Gallery Section
I've finally sorted out the gallery section of Broken Kode. This has been on the backburner for nigh on 2 months now, with the only reason I can give for the delay being that I couldn't decide on the final format for the gallery. Originally I was actually waiting for Zenphoto so that I could incorporate the functionality in there for my needs (thumbnails, navigation between images etc). Unfortunately, although a very nice package, I'm not proficient enough in php (yet, something I'm hoping to rectify in the near future) to be able to hack the thing to my needs, and with the lack of an extensive online resource (much like WordPress's Codex), I was effectively fighting a loosing battle.
I thought about going for a Flash solution, however again this would bring about the problem of me not updating the section on a regular basis. I needed to go to a very simple CMS type solution. After bashing my head for 2 weeks now, I decided to use my default WordPress install, and just HACK it to death. The truth of the matter is that I've only touched one file from the core WordPress files, so hacking to death is a gross overstatement. I've just used plugins and hacks set out by others.
Much in the same was as I've done with the main site I'll be modifying things slowly but surely till I get it the way I want it, so hopefully now I can concentrate on content only rather than spending far too many hours design, coding and then going through the process all over again. This final look was done in one evening, after I'd spent the better part of 1 week going back and forth with what I wanted. Part of the design was remove ANY clutter that would distract from the images themselves, so simplicity is the operative word here. Grab the RSS feed to stay up to date with this section of the site.
As a matter of interest for all those looking for Flash based solution to their gallery needs here's a pretty extensive list of solutions that came my way on my hunt:
- Example by Tutorio
- FIG (Flash Image Gallery) - Very promising solution, I just wish I had access to the FLA. I contacted the author to buy a license off him, I'm still waiting.
- Eyelash Photo Gallery - Didn't get very far with this solution to be honest. Seemed a bit too convoluted.
- Swinburne Tutorials - Neat solution, good tutorials.
- Flash XML roundup from the ParticleTree boys
- Dynamic Flash Gallery - Very nice, except why the hell does it resize my browser?
Thanks for the flash links. Will give me something to reference when I finally overhaul my gallery.
"I thought about going for a Flash solution, however again this would bring about the problem of me not updating the section on a regular basis."
At the end of the day, it's all about the pictures. Everything else is only there for support.
Nice work, Khaled!
And, for future reference, SimpleViewer combined with SimpleViewerAdmin makes a great Flash-based gallery solution. If you would like to see an example, feel free to stop by my gallery, though the content isn't even half as good as yours.
Hm, did you disable HTML tags? Sorry about that. Here are the links for my previous comment:
SimpleViewer: http://www.airtightinteractive.com/simpleviewer/
SimpleViewerAdmin: http://www.redsplash.de/projects/simplevieweradmin/
My Gallery: http://www.macmanx.com/blog/gallery/
http://www.slideshowpro.net/
This is the best I have seen and used.
Phu - You're right, it really should be about the content itself, it's just that my lack of script-fu knowledge didn't allow me to do what I originally had in mind, but thanks to you I might actually get a fighting chance now :).
James - Erm I have no idea what is up with the comment form to be honest. I've got textile on and haven't disabled the html tag. Not sure what happened there. Anywho thanks for the links, it's just that the above was partially systems I liked that were not pay-for-us I guess systems. With the exception of FIG, the FLA comes as well, but I really thought FIG should also be included in there as well.
Ben - Sweet looking site you've got there. It's rare for me to look at a Flash site and really enjoy browsing through all the content. The animation doesn't hinder my experience it actually enhances it, the way it should be, very cool stuff there. Yeah didn't but slideshowpro for the same reasons as I said to James.
[...] Owen ruminates on the future of WordPress’ upgrade documentation and why “simple” is never better when dealing with documentation. Bonnie discovers an article which puts an end to the poisoned Halloween candy myth. Michael Heilemann discusses Apple’s tribute to Rosa Parks. Brian lists a few Microsoft Office alternatives, and explains why “Microsoft Office is no more of a must buy than a giant pizza costume.” Khaled completes his Gallery section (more content will be added in due time). Michael Hampton ruminates on the new Akismet anti-spam plugin for WordPress and what the future holds for other anti-spam plugins. Orson ruminates on badly read audio books. Sarah discovers an improvement in her tone and intonation through the use of a single ear plug. Angsuman learns how to change the search engine that is used by Firefox’s location bar keyword search feature. And, Tom discusses a recent outlandish statement made by Forbes magazine. [...]
has anyone come up with the actionscript that parses the xml on the FIG (Flash Image Gallery) mentioned above? dido what was said. if only i could get my hands on that FLA file...
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