Chisimba vuvuzelas and learning in Polokwane Tweet
49 days ago

I bet this is the only software framework where programmers get a free Vuvuzela!

---

Le Vuvuzela de #Chisimba Tweet
57 days ago

The guys at UWC created a Chisimba vuvuzela to take to OSCON. If this doesn't get attention, nothing willl!

---

Digital business card in #Chisimba Tweet
63 days ago

The digital business card module is incomplete, but works and provides a vcard compatible business card for Chisimba. This is for someone who is experimenting with it.

Currently, the fields are stored in user paramters (MENU: user | user configuration). The plan is to move this to triplestore as soon as triplestore has a user interface (no planned timeline, no list response to query). The following fields will generate the business card:

ABOUT ME:
tagline

SOCIAL NETWORKING:
africatorurl
deliciousurl
diggurl
facebookurl
flickrurl
friendfeedurl
googleurl
identicaurl
linkedinurl
mutiurl
operaurl
picasaurl
qikurl
slideshareurl
technoratiurl
twitterurl
youtubeurl

ADDRESSES:
addr_home
ddr_city_home
addr_city_work
addr_postalcode_home
addr_postalcode_work

MAP:
latitude
longitude

PHONE:
phone_home
phone_work
phone_cell

TAGS:

tags
   separated by a dash -
   e.g. geek-elearning-chisimba-php

WEBSITES:
homepage

Happy experimenting!

---

mLearning with #Chisimba Tweet
63 days ago

Paul Scott shows the login screen for Chisimba's mLearning skin. The mLearning skin was developed for use of UWC's eLearning site on mobile phones.

---

My blockview: personal templates in #Chisimba Tweet
66 days ago

There is a new module in Chisimba that I wrote at the airport on my way to Madrid. It is very simple, and it only exists to demonstrate the power of dynamic templates. However, it could be expanded to provide for a system of user created templates that allow users to create their own look and feel. The module is myblockview (My block view).

To use it, a user may create a templates directory on a Chisimba server using file manager. In that directory, then create a new directory, one for each template, and load into it a file called template.txt file containing a typical dynamic template of the same kind you would use in a module powered by dynamic templates.

Let's say you create a directory called templates, and then in it you create a directory called default. Then you would create a template contianing the three column divs that you would expect in Chisimba as follows.

 <div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region1">
    Put some content here for the left column
    </div>
    <div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region3">
        Put some content here for the right column
    </div>
    <div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region2">
        Put some content here for the wider, middle column.
    </div>
</div>

Of course, this is not very powerful in itself, but if you combine this form of dynamic canvas with the dynamic blocks specified using JSON, then you can have your own design for a Chisimba interface very quickly.

This module is just a proof of concept to show the power of the dynamic canvas approach to templates. Took me <30 minutes to make it, sitting in the airport. Hopefully, this can stimulate some other ideas.  To use it, install the myblockview module and play around with creating your own templates as described above. At the time of writing, there is little or no error trapping or checking, so if you use it, be warned, it is developer grade code, not yet ready for unleashing on users.

---

External blocks with dynamic templates in #Chisimba Tweet
67 days ago

Chisimba can display blocks on another Chisimba server, using the dynamic blocks module with the blocks specified in ajax format in a content or personal template. To display blocks in response to an external request, the host server must have the externalblocks module installed (in modules, not in core). In addition, the ALLOW_EXTERNAL_BLOCKS property of the Blocks module must be set to 1 on the host server. If this is not set to 1, then the host will not supply external blocks even with the externalblocks module installed.

To be valid for display externally, blocks must have a property expose set to true. This is done by the developer at thet ime of development of the block, and would normally be done in the init() method of the block as follows:

    public function init()
    {
        $this->title = "Demonstration block";
        $this->expose = TRUE;
    }

External blocks are rendered by the dynamiccanvas module, so only module that use the dynamiccanvas for displaying content can display dynamic blocks, although a filter is in development to provide external blocks within content. The minimal JSON content to display an external block is as follows:

       

All the other parameters of the dynamic blocks JSON are available to external blocks. For example,

       

will display the thirdtest block from the dynamiccanvas module on http://localhost/ch. The following will display the same block without a title.

       

The only difference between the JSON to display regular blocks and that to display external blocks is in the two lines
            "display" : "externalblock",
            "server" : "http://localhost/ch/",

instead of just

            "display" : "block",

for an internal block.

---

Block-based dynamic canvas for #Chisimba Tweet
70 days ago

Since I code for relaxation, for the past few days of my holiday I have been doing some work on Chisimba to improve the way in which it renders its look and feel, as well as the way in which it parses templates to render content. Everything I do is backward compatible.

Following on from the idea of dynamic canvases, I have made it possible for Chisimba to render an entire template based on functionality of Chisimba that we call blocks. There are two types of blocks in Chisimba, narrow blocks and wide blocks. Narrow blocks work on the side columns of 2 and 3 column layout, and wide blocks work on the middle area of 1, 2 and 3 column layout.

To use blocks to make a template, it may be necessary to use output buffering. To do this, add the following to the top of the template:

<?php
ob_start();
?>

Then add the following to the bottom of the template:

<?php
// Get the contents for the layout template
$pageContent = ob_get_contents();
ob_end_clean();
$this->setVar('pageContent', $pageContent);
?>

You then need a layout template in your module that contains:

<?php
$objBlocks = $this->getObject('blockfilter', 'dynamiccanvas');
$pageContent = $this->getVar('pageContent');
$pageContent = $objBlocks->parse($pageContent);
echo $pageContent;
?>

In your controller, for methods that will render the block-based dynamic canvas, you need to ensure that you enable the layout template using:

$this->setLayoutTemplate('demo_layout.php');

For this to work, you need a version 3.0+ skin, and you need to use the Chisimba Canvas layout, which is as follows:

<div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region1"></div>
<div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region3"></div>
<div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region2"></div>

Note that Canvas_Content_Body_Region2 is the middle, but needs to be presented last in order for the columns to float and align correctly.

For 2-column layouts this would be:

<div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region1"></div>
<div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region2"></div>

Blocks are inserted using JSON syntax as follows:

 

Thus, adding the above block to the left column in such a template would consist of including it in the Canvas_Content_Body_Region1 div as follows:

<div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region1">

 

</div>

Everything except display, module and block are optional. A template made up in this way might look like:

<?php
ob_start();
$objFix = $this->getObject('cssfixlength', 'htmlelements');
$objFix->fixThree();
?>

<div id="threecolumn">
    <div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region1">
       

       
    </div>
    <div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region3">
       
       
       
       

Type: table
This is an example of a block rendered using type table. It places the title in a normal header cell, and the block output in a table cell.

       
    </div>
    <div id="Canvas_Content_Body_Region2">
       
       
       
       
    </div>
</div>

<?php
// Get the contents for the layout template
$pageContent = ob_get_contents();
ob_end_clean();
$this->setVar('pageContent', $pageContent);
?>

Note that the lines

$objFix = $this->getObject('cssfixlength', 'htmlelements');
$objFix->fixThree();

are there to equalize the columns. This need will shortly be removed.

For a working example of this, see the dynamiccanvas module. 

---

Mowing the pitch at Soccer City Tweet
73 days ago

Worker mowing the grass at Soccer City in Johannesburg, just before the Argentina-Mexico game. When we got to a big game at a facility such as this, during the world cup, we often forget that the boys who kick the ball are not the only professionals that make it possible. There a lot of people with a lot of different skills involved it creating the 'beautiful game'.

This is true of the work that all of us do. As a DVC at a top university, I could not do my job, and achieve anything without the support of many bright, talented, dedicated people. So, instead of showing the Argentinian goal, I thought I would share a photo of this gentleman, in appreciation of all who make great things possible through their dedication behind the scenes.

---

The #Chisimba dynamic canvas: the simple version proposal Tweet
74 days ago

Following on from the refactoring I have been doing, I have made a proposal to simplify the Chisimba templates using what I call the dynamic canvas. This proposal is only partly dynamic, in that the blocks that are rendered on the template can be changed, but only by the module author. A full dynamic canvas would allow for editing the blocks displayed by any suitably authorised member of the site. This will come later. Meanwhile, the use of blocks with the dynamiccanvas module can greatly simplify Chisimba templates, with a typical template looking as below:

Basically, a template renders into the canvas, and there are two kinds of blocks, those that belong to the module, and those that belong to another module. The format is MODULE:BLOCK, or just BLOCK for blocks from the module which owns the template.

It makes use of the output buffering features of PHP, and sends the output to a parser that parses the template for the block codes.

---

Bee gathering pollen on an Aloe flower Tweet
74 days ago

A honey bee gathering characteristic orange pollen from Aloe plants at the Johannesburg Botanical Garden. This time of the year, the Aloes are in flower, and are visited by large numbers of bees, as well as sunbirds such as the Amethyst sunbird, grey louries, speckled mousebirds, black eyed bulbils, cape whiteeyes, and others. It is well worth spending some time watching the life of the Aloes if you are in the Joburg gardens.

---

Johannesburg burning (blogging to #Chisimba from Flickr) Tweet
74 days ago

This time of year, we get a lot of grass fires. This one is at Mellville Koppies, a nature reserve just north of the City. Also nearby is the Johannesburg Botanical Garden, where we often go for walks. The city is visible in the background, with the Hillbrow Tower.

---

Testing the new #Chisimba canvas on dkeats.com Tweet
99 days ago

This site is now being a guinea pig for the new Chisimba canvas system. See previous posts for more. I have not yet made a dkeats.com canvas, so I will just change from time to time to show what the canvas system can do. This is a simple blue canvas that took less than 2 minutes to make. Yea, I know, it shows!

---