The cost of a license is a one-time fee of $299 for a commercial site. This is less for non commercial (non-profit) but most clients will fall into the commercial category. The cost may seem a hurdle at first but break it down into billable hours and it starts to make more sense in terms of profit margin. At a $100 per hour rate this accounts for 3 billable hours.

Let’s say you have a project that requires customization beyond what a free application offers. Further there is no plug-in or component that will do exactly what you need without some form of compromise in function or design. This is not an unusual situation to be in as it happens quite frequently. For example say you need a CRUD solution with a customized report to display search results and you are using joomla. Due to a lack of built in functionality you may find yourself using a third-party component to build the form and manage submissions. When it comes to presenting the data for search you may spend several hours figuring out how to customize the report to the project’s specifications. This hurdle then cost you in time to come up with a solution. While there is a support forum for the third party module you remain at the mercy of the developers or a community member to get an answer to your questions. Maybe there is a subscription service offered, but this is yet another expense, and it only covers the third-party product. If we were using expression engine creating the form, the search, and the report would have been a straightforward process and any further customization could have been handled without the need for a third-party plug-in/add-on/component. This in turn would have saved us hundreds of dollars in time spent on the project.

The example above is only one instance where a seemingly simple project escalates in cost due to the lack of flexibility of, in this case, joomla. Not only is there a cost associated with development there is also an unseen cost in maintenance. For instance: joomla has a security issue that warrants an upgrade. If you are not actively looking for this issue, days or weeks can pass before you are made aware of its existence. During that time sites are vulnerable to attack and should one fall victim the cost in fixing the issue and more importantly in client relationship escalates far beyond the initial cost of the project itself. There is more, with each update you not only have to worry about the core system, but also with the third-party components the site depends on for advanced functionality. We now have to keep track of these for vulnerabilities as well as the software they run on which in turn is an added cost. (note: wordpress offers an excellent update system and is my first choice for smaller projects)

Here lies the value of a paid product which contains the ability to extend itself beyond the typical free solution. When you purchase Expression Engine you not only receive the license to run the software, but also support from the developers and community so that problems are addressed in a personal manner as opposed to relying solely on a community to answer a question (or not as is often the case). Your product is also backed by an active development program that has a financial incentive to push the software forward in a responsible yet innovative manner. You will be made aware of security issues rather than discovering they exist allowing a proactive approach to fixing potential problems. This is in contrast to the reactive (damage control) mentioned earlier. Should there be a need for a third-party solution there is an active group of developers out there with a wide array of solutions, at the same time creating your own add-ons is an easy process that is supported with extensive documentation and support forums (just like the free solutions).

The bottom line is your bottom line, what seems to be a cost can be a savings when the total cost of each solution is examined. While there are times when a free solution is a wise choice, I believe this to be the exception and not the rule. It is important that you determine what tools you want to use and stick to them so that you can build a solid understanding of their abilities and limits. This will help you judge projects in terms of total cost. The end result will be a savings of time and money which in turn increases profit margin and good will associated with your brand.

Further reading:

• The Expression Engine Website
• Product Overview
• Product Features

Check out the definition of social http://www.merriam-webster.com/netdict/social You’ll find that it is not a one way source of communication. Social is the conversation and to have a conversation you have to listen, once you’ve done that you can respond. When I log onto Facebook, I’m not looking for a brand, I’m looking to connect. I’m not sure who coined the phrase “Social Media” or who told corporations that tweeting was a good idea. I believe we are missing the point when we use these tools as a method of exposure rather than drawing closer as a community.

Community, brings to mind commune, take it further communicate. So we’re a bunch of digital hippies farming relationships with people we may never see. There is a certain power in this, “power in numbers” we can benefit people’s lives in a positive way. Someone is down on their luck, a community comes together to pick them up. A person has a question and someone has the answer. Community is about relationships. relationships are fostered on trust. Trust is gained through conversation, learning about one another. You can’t learn about someone else till you ask questions, and when you ask LISTEN.

So social is not about YOU. Social is about an equal voice, an equal chance, to learn grow and benefit. Social is not saying “you just don’t get it” but teaching and being taught. Social is an evolving mindset of community and as a community we band together so no one has to fall apart.

What is social to you?

I appreciate your time reading this and hope we together can show this family some love.

Why use SimplePie over the included MagPie Reader?

Usage example:

{exp:simple_pie url=’http://christopherreding.com/feed/’} // parses atom and rss feeds and returns a list)

Get it here: Simple_pie.zip

For a while things were great, I looked forward to your events, your keynotes were a source of excitement and joy, “one more thing” was a thrill, what changed? You used to be so loving, your ads generated a source of pride about being a Mac as opposed to a dreaded PC. I was happy that I couldn’t get sick with all those dreadful viruses, that those awful hackers were being kept at bay, that my shiny new OS was full of wonder and the spinning beachball was just too cute for me to be upset that I was having issues.

However I’ve gotten older (I’m 10.6 now) and things seem to have changed. You are alienating the very people that made me special, forcing them into draconian agreements that hinder my ability to grow. What’s this I hear about your disdain for Flash? I know it’s true, Flash and I  have never been perfect buddies, but flash is working on it. He’s trying to make it right while you scoff and insist his parents are to blame for all the world’s nasty problems. I know I crashed a time or two, but I also lost my vision due to a bad graphics card, I couldn’t see for days (have you decided I won’t have graphics?) I don’t think so. One time my spacebar got stuck to no fault, did you remove it and curse the spacebar to utter damnation? No! Therefore I think it’s time to reevaluate our relationship Apple.

Once upon a time I was open source, do you remember where you found me? Do you remember when you were a laughing stock? When no one wanted you or me for that matter. You have achieved so much, but the more you grow the more you limit me. And now my kid brother iphone OS is getting crapped on by limiting the developers (who make us great) to writing code in a proprietary environment, why all the hate? Sometimes I wish Fake Steve would be the real Steve, would he do this to me?

Frankly my logo is getting tarnished, as you sue anyone and everyone at will. You are killing us my friend and people may not know it but they will soon enough. Just because you got famous and made a few bucks don’t make us the BAD guy. You negate all we have we been fighting for all these years. We were once the saviors of PC kind, and now look at us. I’m ashamed Apple, i wish i could scrape off my logo and hide. I can no longer say “I’m a Mac” and not feel like a PC at this rate I’ll just turn into a NatC – Oh Apple, please change your ways, this Kafka-esque metamorphosis is draining my battery. But as Kurt said “so it goes” and so it will…

Sincerely,

Your OS

iShowPro is not an official product of SlideShowPro or Dominey Design Inc. I am not the Developer nor do I support or guarantee this script. I am merely showing what can be done to add to an existing application as a demonstration or proof of concept.

Step 1. Go get SlideShowPro (what are you waiting for)

Step 2. Create a slideshow in flash (or use the stand alone) set your xml file to http://yoursite.com/gallery/slideshow.xml

Step 3. Crete a template group called gallery in EE  and create a template called slideshow.xml

Step 4. Add this to your template and save it:

{assign_variable:gallery_name="gallery"}
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<gallery>
<?php if (!isset($_GET['category_id'])) { ?>    
 {exp:gallery:categories gallery="{gallery_name}"}
 {category_row}
 {row}
 <album title="{category}" category_id="{category_id}">
 {embed="gallery/slideshow_embed" gallery_name="{gallery_name}" category_id_number="{category_id}"}
 </album>
 {/row}
 {/category_row}
 {/exp:gallery:categories}
 <?php } else {  ?>
 <album title="<?php if (isset($_GET['category'])) echo $_GET['category']; ?>" category_id="<?php echo $_GET['category_id']; ?>">
 {embed="gallery/slideshow_embed" gallery_name="{gallery_name}" category_id_number="<?php echo $_GET['category_id']; ?>"}
 </album>
 <?php } ?>
</gallery>

Step 5. Create the embed template call it slideshow_embed (paste this into that template)

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/swfobject/2.2/swfobject.js"></script>

<script type="text/javascript">
 // swf finder
 function thisMovie(movieName) {
 if (navigator.appName.indexOf("Microsoft") != -1) {
 return window[movieName]
 } else {
 return document[movieName]
 }
 }

 // SWFObject embed
 var flashvars = {
//  if you are using the standalone  paramXMLPath: "/include/param.xml",
 initialURL: escape(document.location),
 useExternalInterface: "true"
 }
 var params = {
 base: ".",
 wmode: "transparent",
 bgcolor: "#FFFFFF",
 allowfullscreen: "true"
 }                
 var attributes = {
 id: "ssp"
 }
 swfobject.embedSWF("/include/slideshowpro.swf", "flashcontent", "470", "340", "9.0.115.0", false, flashvars, params, attributes);
</script>
<div id="flashcontentcontainer">
 <div id="flashcontent">In order to experience the photo gallery fully, you will need the latest Flash player.</div>
</div>

Step 6. Create an include folder in your directory and drop your slideshow.swf file there (if using standalone drop the param.xml file there as well.

Step  7. Use this embed in your templates to display your slideshow.

Step 8. Profit

Get Expression Engine
(if you have any improvements or suggestions hit me up in the comments)

From Wikipedia:
“A software framework, in computer programming, is an abstraction in which common code providing generic functionality can be selectively overridden or specialized by user code providing specific functionality. Frameworks are a special case of software libraries in that they are reusable abstractions of code wrapped in a well-defined API, yet they contain some key distinguishing features that separate them from normal libraries.”

That explains it? If you are like me then that was more confusion than an answer. For a long time this sort of lofty explanation was a road block to truly grasping the power frameworks contain. However, step forward a few years, and poof I got it. While learning to code from scratch was probably the best thing that could have happened, learning to use a framework (on top of that knowledge) made it all the better. So what is a framework in common terms?

To be concise a framework is a set of tools prefabricated to assist you in building your application. Imagine building a house if you had to create the hammer, mold nails, build a saw, etc. At one time this was how people lived, but progress brought the toolbox. The same is true with coding. Frameworks become our toolbox, and the API gives access to our tools. This makes us more efficient and saves time so we don’t have to re-invent the wheel (or class) every time we embark on a new project. Now we know what and why frameworks, lets get to the how.

For this discussion I’m going to limit it two two examples. The first is a PHP library that goes by the name of Codeigniter. I’m not saying Codeigniter is better than other libraries, that is a personal choice, I’m just using it as an example here. Codeigniter is a MVC framework (we’ll discuss MVC later) it enables the development of robust applications in a fraction of the time it takes to code traditionally. Codeigniter consists of a series of classes, libraries, helpers etc. that together make up a pretty nice toolset for developers. For instance say you need to run a database query, in the past this would require something like this:

$link = mysql_connect(‘localhost’, ‘mysql_user’, ‘mysql_password’);
if (!$link)
{
die(‘Could not connect: ‘ . mysql_error());
}
$query “SELECT Foo FROM Bar WHERE Foo = 1”;
$result = mysql_query($query) or die(mysql_error());

while ($row = mysql_fetch_assoc($result){
echo $row['Foo'];
}

becomes this:

$result = $this->db->query(“SELECT Foo FROM Bar WHERE Foo = 1”);
if($result)
{
foreach($result as $value):
echo $value->Foo;
endforeach;
}

As you can see the code is a lot shorter and more streamlined. This is due to Codeigniter’s database class, one of the many tools you can use to speed up your workflow.

Another example is jQuery. jQuery is a javascript library containing predefined functions that allow you to harness the power of client side scripting without having to write
excessive amounts of code. Just as before I’m not saying jQuery is the best, there are others out there that are just as useful, I’m just using it for this example. jQuery allows us to create animations, load data, submit forms, interact with the DOM, and much more. Without jQuery (or a similar library) this would entail lines of code that may or may not work (in ie6 ). The beauty of jQuery in found not only in it’s simplicity, but in the ability to function in an expected fashion across browsers. This frees up time to focus on presentation as opposed to compatibility. jQuery also offers us the ability to interact with data in real time without having to reload the page creating a more desktop-esque experience within the confines of the browser. This brings us to where.

Now that we’ve discussed the How, what, and why you may be wondering where to learn more about all these wonderful tools, and so I bring to you the resources, a series of links to sites that I think are awesome.

http://codeigniter.com – the name says it all
http://jquery.com – the home of jQuery
http://nettuts.com – great tutorials and information on EVERY web subject
http://www.prototypejs.org/ – javascript framework
http://mootools.net/ – javascript framework
http://cakephp.org/ – PHP framework
http://www.alistapart.com/ for the purist and web standards guru
http://usejquery.com/ – a great resource for tutorials using jquery

This is just a few, if you have any favorites mention them in the comments.

http://shouldyougettheappletablet.com/