Stephen Burge's Blog, page 125

Absolute Beginners Guide to PHP Arrays

Arrays are wonderful ways to organize and use data in PHP.

Quite simply, an array is a list.

Here’s a quick example of an array of types of transportation:

{codecitation}$transportation = array( ‘Planes’, ‘Trains’, ‘Automobiles’ );{/codecitation}

For readability you can write it like this as well:

{codecitation}$transportation = array(

    ‘Planes’,

    ‘Trains’,

    ‘Automobiles’
);{/codecitation}



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New Video Class: Drupal EVA Module

The Drupal module EVA, or Entity Views Attachment is a really helpful module that goes beyond References or Entity Reference. While inserting a link, or even the rendered node into another node is something easily accomplished with Entity Reference, EVA allows you to actually embed a contextual view in a node. This can be very helpful when you want to provide more than just a link.

In this class, Robert takes us through the setup and implementation of the Entity Views Attachment module with two related content types.



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New Video Class: Drupal Context Module

The default block system in Drupal is adequate for simple sites, but if you need more control, then the Context module is a great solution.

The Context module sets up conditions and reactions for blocks, allowing you to place them anywhere, for any reason.

In this class, Robert gives us a great tour through the module, providing a number of examples. He also offers his thoughts on the differences between Context and Panels for managing blocks.



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New Video Class: JetPack Stats for WordPress

Jetpack is one of the most installed plugins in WordPress. In this class, Topher reviews over the stats package that is part of Jetpack Plugin. Developers use Jetpack for a variety of tasks, and the stats package provides more information than the standard Google Analytics javascript.
It's worth taking a look at this very helpful part of the plugin.



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New Video Class: Setting Up SSH Keys

As you develop your skill set in web design, you may want to go beyond CPanel and dive into the command line.

SSH keys allow for secure authentication between your computer and your server.

As such, one of the important tools in your toolbox should be the ability to set up SSH keys via the command line. In this class, Robert demonstrates everything you'll need to master this important task.



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5 Videos to Get Anyone Started with GIMP

If you're looking for a powerful, free alternative to Photoshop, GIMP is a great choice.

GIMP (short for "GNU Image Manipulation Program") is available for Linux, Mac and Windows. It's been around since 1996 and is still going strong with millions of users.

You can use GIMP for image retouching, editing, drawing and much more.

These five introductory videos are from Part 1 of our 4 classes on GIMP.



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Multi-Lingual Joomla Sitemaps with OSMap

Do you have a multi-lingual Joomla website?
Do you want to improve your site's SEO?


If both answers are yes, you're in the right place.

In this tutorial we will show you how to create sitemaps for a multi-lingual site using OSMap.



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New Video Class: Git and Version Control, Part 2

Git is a free and open source distributed version control system designed to handle everything from small to very large projects with speed and efficiency. Git can really help your development, but it can be intimidating to set up and use.

Part 1 of this class was published last month.

In Part 2, Brian shows you how to move code between your work environment and the shared Git environment. You'll see how to use Github, Bitbucket and SSH keys. You'll learn to clone, push, move, merge, undo changes and much more.



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Pros and Cons of the Make Theme for WordPress

Last May I noticed an announcement from a friend of mine that his company, The Theme Foundry, had released a new WordPress theme, called Make. I didn't give it much thought at the time. Most of the sites I build have custom designs, and I usually start with something like Underscores, or no theme at all. Then last fall I decided to switch my own blog to WordPress, and needed a theme, and didn't have a design. I tried out Make, and quickly fell in love.

Before I get too far into this, I'd like to point out that Make has 2 URLs you should check out. The free version of Make is in the WordPress.org theme respository. There's also Make Plus at The Theme Foundry's web site. Make Plus is actually a plugin that greatly extends the Make theme, and costs $99. It adds lots of functionality and comes with support, which is great.



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Change Google's Page Titles and Descriptions in Joomla

What many starting site builders don't realize is that it's possible to change the information that Google displays about pages.

That means that you can optimize it for the people that are searching for your site.

We do that at Alledia, OSTraining, and other other sites using OSMeta. This tutorial will show you how to do it as well. Let's get started.



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