Zikula Community

• **unknown user**
  
  

  • Rank: Registered User
  • Registered: Mar 16, 2002
  • Last visit: Oct 09, 2008
  • Posts: 6

  Posted: Feb 03, 2008 - 10:00 PM

  Hi folks,
  
  I'm hoping someone can suggest some solutions to my current problem. I'm attempting to redesign my website (http://gotorontofc.com) to make it looks less blog-like. Here's a look at what I'm trying to accomplish:
  http://gotorontofc.com/jamey/test.png
  
  Ignore fonts and such, it's all very temporary, but that gives you the basic overview of what I want to do...a "Top Story", secondary and tertiary stories on the same row below the top story, and a third row featuring the latest stories by our columnists.
  
  Now, I have no problem designing the tables and such, but where I'm running into problems is having them configured in the manner I want within PostNuke (.764).
  
  I've recently installed Nate Welch's fantastic BlockHome module, bur I start running into problems immediately after getting the top story "summary" to work, which I have:
  http://gotorontofc.com/test/html/index.php?name=BlockHome
  
  What I need to know, basically, is how to get the secondary and tertiary stories to take a different template than the "Top Story", which is using the template within my theme that displays the "Story Lead-in"...and then how to add the third row with the columnists, and still have it pull all the info from the database. In other words, I don't want to have to rebuild the home page every time a story breaks. ;)
  
  Is it do-able? I'm sure it is, but being a complete amateur I have no idea what I need in terms of modules and such. Any suggestions would be hugely helpful.
  
  Cheers,
  James

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• AmmoDump
  
  

  • Rank: Team Member
  • Registered: Dec 07, 2003
  • Last visit: May 09, 2010
  • Posts: 2703

  Posted: Feb 04, 2008 - 02:56 AM

  Hi James,
  
  Welcome!
  
  

  GoTFC_James

  
  I'm hoping someone can suggest some solutions to my current problem. I'm attempting to redesign my website (http://gotorontofc.com) to make it looks less blog-like. Here's a look at what I'm trying to accomplish:
  http://gotorontofc.com/jamey/test.png

  
  
  Of course you can do that.... but...
  
  

  Quote

  Ignore fonts and such, it's all very temporary, but that gives you the basic overview of what I want to do...a "Top Story", secondary and tertiary stories on the same row below the top story, and a third row featuring the latest stories by our columnists.

  
  
  What you need to do at this point is create new block positions, you can start by doing a search on creating new block positions.
  
  

  Quote

  Now, I have no problem designing the tables and such, but where I'm running into problems is having them configured in the manner I want within PostNuke (.764).

  
  
  Here's the biggest problem, unfortunately. Tables. (Gasps!). Tables are used for tabulated-data and such, but not solely for a presentation tool. The modern course of design calls for tableless design, or CSS design. I was a victim of it a one point myself, but now the glorious light! You may find problems with getting support even because, well, no one thinks in terms of tables... They are messy.
  
  

  Quote

  I've recently installed Nate Welch's fantastic BlockHome module, bur I start running into problems immediately after getting the top story "summary" to work, which I have:
  http://gotorontofc.com/test/html/index.php?name=BlockHome

  
  
  You can also try: http://community.postnuke.com/module-Database-viewpub-tid-5-pid-10.htm
  
  

  Quote

  What I need to know, basically, is how to get the secondary and tertiary stories to take a different template than the "Top Story", which is using the template within my theme that displays the "Story Lead-in"...and then how to add the third row with the columnists, and still have it pull all the info from the database. In other words, I don't want to have to rebuild the home page every time a story breaks. ;)

  
  
  Explain what you mean by Top, second, and third stories...
  
  

  Quote

  Is it do-able? I'm sure it is, but being a complete amateur I have no idea what I need in terms of modules and such. Any suggestions would be hugely helpful.

  
  
  Do some research in tableless design. Hang tight, Mateo will be by sooner or later to tell you about his BlankTheme and how it will help you overcome your problems.. .
  
  I think it is doable, sure.
  
  --
  David Pahl
  Zikula Support Team

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• **unknown user**
  
  

  • Rank: Registered User
  • Registered: Mar 16, 2002
  • Last visit: Oct 09, 2008
  • Posts: 6

  Posted: Feb 04, 2008 - 05:05 AM

  Thanks for your help, David. I'll certainly do some research now that I have a starting point. That was the problem before - not knowing what questions to ask of a search engine. ;)
  
  To answer your question, the "Top Story" would be the big story of the day, regardless of topic. What I've done is to create a category called "Top Story" which allows me to assign a story to that top table.
  
  After that, the secondary and tertiary stories would be the first articles in two topics other than the one featured in the top story. I have about a dozen topics on my site, but only a few of which get regular use. So if there was big trade, I'd have that story in the Top Story block, and say FIFA News and MLS News in the secondary and tertiary blocks respectively. As an example, I've installed BlockHome on my main site and generated a page with two rows...
  http://gotorontofc.com/index.php?module=BlockHome&func=main&pid=1
  
  The first row would be the top story, and the second row has the top stories in other categories (what I've been calling here my "secondary and tertiary stories").
  
  Ignore the wonky sizes and such, as the live site still has all of the old look. I haven't bothered to hook my test site up to my live database yet.

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• nestormateo
  
  

  • Rank: Team Member
  • Registered: Sep 06, 2006
  • Last visit: May 09, 2010
  • Posts: 2446

  Posted: Feb 04, 2008 - 05:35 AM

  Hi James(?)!
  
  As David says, you new design is absolutely possible. And it's easiest if you use CSS than tables. Currently, http://gotorontofc.com/in...ckHome&func=main&pid=1 has problems with table widths... it's pretty easy to build that columns with CSS.
  
  Also, 0.764 is not good as 0.8 in the Theme engine, but you can accomplish it with new Block positions. Can you wait a little until your site can be upgraded to the 0.8 release? we can make it so easy with the BlankTheme after that.
  
  Currently we're mounting a demo site with many block positions to show the flexibility of the BlankTheme and YAML, and David is making the documentation about it as easy as possible to use/make different layouts.
  
  BlankTheme demo is here: http://mateo.mipopayan.com/demo/
  So, can you wait for 0.8?
  RC3 will be released in the next days!
  
  --
  - Mateo T. -
  Mis principios... son mis fines

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• **unknown user**
  
  

  • Rank: Registered User
  • Registered: Mar 16, 2002
  • Last visit: Oct 09, 2008
  • Posts: 6

  Posted: Feb 04, 2008 - 05:46 AM

  Hey Mateo,
  
  To be honest, if it's going to make things that much easier I would probably go live with an RC3 release. I mean, by that stage most of the kinks have been ironed out, typically.
  
  I do know the widths are messed up on that BlockHome-generated page...that's because they're using an old template with a fixed width. I just set that up as an example of what I wanted to do. :)
  
  I have announced mid-March as my re-launch deadline, so I do need to have this done by then.

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• nestormateo
  
  

  • Rank: Team Member
  • Registered: Sep 06, 2006
  • Last visit: May 09, 2010
  • Posts: 2446

  Posted: Feb 04, 2008 - 11:54 AM

  OK ,
  so test the RC3 upgrade script (when released) and check if you have any problem.
  We'll continue developing an easy-to-use and modify theme.
  See you soon!
  
  --
  - Mateo T. -
  Mis principios... son mis fines

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• JørnWildt
  
  

  • Rank: Softmore
  • Registered: Jul 02, 2002
  • Last visit: Oct 21, 2009
  • Posts: 240

  Posted: Feb 05, 2008 - 01:11 AM

  You might want to keep an eye on this project: http://noc.postnuke.com/projects/content/
  
  Currently it does not have the content plugins you need (this corresponds to the blocks you use). But maybe you can write them yourself.

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