It was a great way to add some work over the weekend when BoonEx released Dolphin 7 RC last week or so.

Well, after installing beta after beta we finally got RC. I am sure there will be more to come. But it sure is looking good for the New Year :D

This version of Dolphin is built differently but as it appears it will be easier to update in the long run. I think what I like about it so far is the modules and extensions area. Borrowing from other OS apps, I hope it will make the task of modding easier.

I've read in the forums what people don't like about Dolphin 7 RC1, but how about talking about what you did like?

Any thoughts on this?

...sip...

 

Site Updates

I took a few minutes today to just update some of the blocks and also update the css files. I found that it worked out better when I kept the site colours within the same range. I took out some of the backgrounds and it seemed to simplify the look of the site a bit more. I guess this is where the concept of less is more may apply.

I've got a few more tutorials in the wings but not until I finish off some of my projects and work for this month. I am also waiting for Dolphin 6.1.5 and Dolphin 7. Exciting times for BoonEx and I can see the anticipation that people are showing.

 

My Twitter Project

Lately, I've gotten a lot of request for all things twittery. Personally, I have been interested in the whole Twitter thing for the past few months and have hacked a few twitter apps. All messy but they work, sort of. Anyway, I will most likely release some Free Twitter apps specifically designed for Dolphin. It will be free and will be initially given to those who are following me on Twitter. You need a Twitter account to try it out. You can then tweet your observations and comments to me.

I am really looking forward to Dolphin 7 and its promise of a more extensible approach to integrating mods. So far it looks really good.

I'll also take this opportunity to thank those kind souls who've sent me encouragement and kudos. You guys are great. It makes it all worthwhile.

 

...sip...

 

 

I was having some lunch at the coffee shop just planning out some work when I got the idea to allow the automatic addition of AdBrite links to my blog entries. Not that I've done a whole lot of blogging lately, but I challenged myself to try to do a quickie solution. Well nothing is every quick and this little bit of script took about an hour, more than I had planned to take on account that I am on a schedule working on some Dolphin Web sites.

Anyway, this is a test blog entry and I hope it works.

If it does then something should show up at the bottom...

...sip...

 

I received an e-mail today with a fellow asking questions and I noticed a lot of his questions could be answered either via the expertzzz.com, modmysite.com or even this site boonexnerd.com. As I was quickly typing out a reply, I had mispelled boonexnerd.com to boonexnerds.com with an "s". I didnt' think much of it, but then I thought, hey, lemme see if the domain is available.

 

I go to check and bam! Someone has unilaterally registered boonexnerds.com.
It is one letter short of boonexnerd.com.
And if I am correct, it looks like it was registered just today!

 

I dont' know who the person or company is but a quick check with whois revealed all kinds of info. It was registered by a company called MetaPredict. So does this mean good things will happen and that is why they are doing this? Who knows. But just remember, this is the real boonexnerd.com site! lol

 

I posted some info at my Unity Blog. Please chime in there and show me some lovin'...this kinda discouraged me :( 

 

So just as a note to everyone, it's boonexnerd.com NOT boonexnerds.com.

 

Aside from a few hours of coding today, this was by far the most excitement I got today.

 

...sip...

 

 

Adding any type of JavaScript based code via TinyMCE is problematic.

What you need to do is to make a blog post entry as you normally would but then go via the backend using phpMyAdmin to update the entry. You would need to manually add your Google Adsense code.

Here's an example:

Instructions
On the assumption you've made your blog post. You need to find the entry in your database. You will need to find your entry in the "BlogPosts" table.

When you find it, just paste your Google AdSense code where you want it to appear.

Remember, you may need to wait a few minutes until the ad shows up.

And voila! It's done.

Here's Another Way to Add Google Adsense to a Blog
You can add JavaScript in the page_49.html template. The file is located in the templates/tmpl_uni?

You will see this code:
__include _header.html__
    <div class="clear_both"></div>
        __page_main_code__
    <div class="clear_both"></div>
__include _footer.html__

You can add your ad like this:

__include _header.html__
        __page_main_code__
            <div class="clear_both"></div>
<script type="text/javascript"><!--
google_ad_client = "pub-0915650683949696";
//336x280, created 1/7/08
google_ad_slot = "8318103481";
google_ad_width = 336;
google_ad_height = 280;
//--></script>
<script type="text/javascript"
src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script>
    <div class="clear_both"></div>
__include _footer.html__

The above example will put an add at the bottom of your blog page.

Please try it out and let me know how it works.

...sip...

 

How to customize the very top bar - Taking Links Out or Adding Custom Links Manually

Requirements:
You need to make sure you have the correct set up and that you can login to the admin panel.

INSTRUCTIONS
The top links are listed in the _header.html file. That file can be found in the templates/tmpl_uni/ directory.

On or about line 8 is:

    <div class="main">
    <!-- top -->
        <div class="topestMenuWrapper">
            <div class="topestMenu">
                __TOP_Links__
                __TOP_News__
                __TOP_ContactUs__
                __TOP_About__
                __TOP_Privacy__
                __TOP_Termsofuse__
                __TOP_FAQ__
                __TOP_Feedback__
                __TOP_Aff__
                __TOP_Invitefriend__
                __TOP_Bookmark__
                __switch_lang_block__
            </div>
        </div>
        
The tags beginning and eding with "__" are bound to top nav bar. If you take one out it will no longer show up in the list.

If you want to add a custom link, you do that. Just use an html tag. You can do something link this:

    <div class="main">
    <!-- top -->
        <div class="topestMenuWrapper">
            <div class="topestMenu">
                __TOP_Links__
                __TOP_News__
                __TOP_ContactUs__
                __TOP_About__
                __TOP_Privacy__
                __TOP_Termsofuse__
                __TOP_FAQ__
                __TOP_Feedback__
                __TOP_Aff__
                __TOP_Invitefriend__
                __TOP_Bookmark__
                __switch_lang_block__
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="http://www.JamesTadeo.com" target="_blank">JamesTadeo.com</a>
            </div>
        </div>
       
In the above example, I just added a link to my site.

There is a caveat. The orca forum needs to have the top nav bar updated separately. From your root, you can get to the file by going to orca\layout\uni\xsl\canvas.xsl. On or about line 181 you will see this:

 <div style="padding:0px 8px 0px 11px">
        <div class="topestMenuWrapper">

            <div class="topestMenu">
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}links.php">Links</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}news.php">News</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}contact.php">Contact Us</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}about_us.php">About us</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}privacy.php">Privacy Policy</a>

                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}terms_of_use.php">Terms</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}faq.php">FAQ</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}story.php">Add feedback</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="{/root/url_dolphin}affiliates.php">Affiliates</a>
                <a class="menu_item_link" href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="addBookmark( '{/root/url_dolphin}', 'Dolphin6' );">Bookmark</a>

            </div>
        </div>

How to Add a Custom Item by Using New Block
You can easily add a custom block by using the NEW BLOCK item. The NEW BLOCK item can be found in the All Items area. Here's how to add a custom item:
1. In the admin panel go Builders > Navigation menu Builder.

2. Drag a NEW BLOCK over to the Active Items area.
3. Click on the "NEW BLOCK" text located on the actual item.
4. A pop-up dialog show appear. It will show:

System Name: This is the name that will be used to identify it in admin mode.
Description: The default description of what this is.
Language Key:
Default Name:
Visible For: Determines who can see this.
HTML Content: This uses a CMS so you can add your content for this custom item.

If you want to try a test item, you can try out these values:

System Name: Custom Item
Description: The default description of what this is.
Language Key: _CustomItem
Default Name: Custom Item
Visible For: Click on the Guest and Member check boxes so that a check mark appears.
HTML Content: Just type your name of whatever you want.

A Special Note About the Language Key
When you add a custom item you will also add a language key. The value you choose for the language key will show up in the Language Settings located in the Settings Section.

You can check to see if your custom item language key value in the Language Settings by doing this:
1. From the admin main page go to Settings > Language Settings
2. Scroll down to the "Search for strings" panel.
3. Enter your item name in the "Look for" text field and click search.
4. Your custom item should show up in the list. If you click edit, you will be able to see more information.

Boonex Tutorial - How to Show/Hide Home Page Blocks

Requirements:
You need to make sure you have the correct set up and that you can login to the admin panel.

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Login to your admin panel.
2. Go to Builders
3. Click on Homepage Builder

You will see two areas. Active Items and the top and All Items just below that. You can drag and drop items between the two areas.

How To Drag an Item
You can drag an item by:
1. Place your mouse cursor over an item. Make sure it is not over the text but an area that is not occupied by the item description text. your mouse cursor should turn into a directional cursor. It looks like 4 arrow pointing in each cardinal direction.
2. Press the left mouse button and drag. You will notice the item can be dragged anywhere on screen.
3. Drag the item to your target area.

Active Items relates to the items that are "live" on the home page. For example, if you have News, Photo Gallery, Blogs and Login under the Active Items areas, then it will show up on the home page. If you were to take out any one of the items mentioned by dragging it to the All Items areas, then it will reflect on the home page. It will no longer appear.

All Items relate to the items that are not "live" on the home page. You can hide anyone of the active items simply by dragging the item to this areas. Conversely, you can activate an item by dragging it to the Active items areas.

Item Parts
By clicking on the item text it will activate a form where you can place custom properites if the item is editable. This includes:
System Name - what you want to call it in the ITEMS listing (for example Feedback)
Language Key - for example _Feedback
Default Name - for example Feedback
URL - the location of the link
Target Window - whether it opens up a New window or the the link goes to the same window.
Visible - choose whether this link is visible to either Guest or Member or both.

How to Add a New Menu Item

Requirements:
You need to make sure you have the correct set up and that you can login to the admin panel.

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Login to your admin panel.
2. Go to Builders
3. Click on Navigation Menu Builder

You will see two sections. Active Items and the top and All Items just below that.

In the All Items section, there is an item named "NEW ITEM". Drag the item "NEW ITEM" and place it where you want it to appear in the main navigation bar in the Active Items area.

Once there, mouse over the text "NEW ITEM" and click. By clicking, it will activate a form where you can place custom properites. This includes:
System Name - what you want to call it in the ITEMS listing
Language Key
Default Name
URL - the location of the link
Target Window - whether it opens up a New window or the the link goes to the same window.
Visible - choose whether this link is visible to either Guest or Member or both.

How To Customize the Logo

Requirements:
You have a logo sized at a default of 296x69 pixels. When you upload it, it gets renamed to logo.gif. If your logo is bigger than that, this tutorial has the instructions as well.

1. Login to admin.
2. Go to Settings > Basic Settings
3. Under "Change Main Logo" browse for your logo and upload it.
4. Refresh you main site. You should see your logo.

If you need to put in a larger logo, you need to update the CSS files. You can update the CSS file via the admin panel or you can update it from your computer (if you have a local copy) and then ftp it over to the server.

I opted to update it locally. But if you want to update it via the admin panel, just go to Settings > CSS Style Editor and choose the file you want to edit in the drop down menu. You may get a message that says, "Editing file general.css: File general.css is not writable". This means you need to set the permissions on the css file. You can find out how to do that here [insert link].

They are:
general.css located in templates/tmpl_uni/css/general.css
uni.css for orca located in orca/layout/uni/css/uni.css

You need to change the "topBlock" tag. Here is the sample below:

    .topBlock
    {
        position:relative;
        /*height:73px;/
        height:100px;
        border:0px dashed blue;
        margin-bottom:0px;
    }
    
What I did was comment out the original height of 73px. I then copied and pasted the value to have a height of 100px.