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How might I best allow CMS edited content to include a little bit of data from my database?
20 March 2009 at 2:04pm
On this page:
http://www.multicriteria-mapping.org/download-mc-mapper/
I have this text:
To start the process, click on _this link_ and save the file.
I want the URL behind _this link_, and perhaps a couple of other things on the page, to come from variables in my page type. Obviously I'd normally have the above text in a template. But there's a lot of text on this page, that gets edited using the CMS, and just this one bit of information that needs to come from the database (via a method DownloadLink on the page class, say).
Should I just suck it up and move some of the page into a template, or is there a way? I'm normally a purist, but...
Technically, it would be straightforward. I can overload whatever method I need on the page class, and replace the string as needed. But because this is a) probably not normal or purist and b) possibly controversial but c) maybe pragmatic, I was wondering what I might do.
Toby
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Re: How might I best allow CMS edited content to include a little bit of data from my database?
20 March 2009 at 3:40pm
We've done this kind of thing in the past by creating a Content() method on relevant Page sub-class.
A little method with the relevant str_replace commands would do the trick. Here's a trivial example:
function Content() {
return srt_replace('$MyLink','the-link',$this->Content);
}The Content() method is called by the '$Content' string in your templates, but crucially, it's not called when the page is being edited inside the CMS.
So - it seems like you mostly knew that this was possible but were wondering if it was acceptable code. I think the answer is "yes".
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Re: How might I best allow CMS edited content to include a little bit of data from my database?
21 March 2009 at 5:07am Last edited: 21 March 2009 5:08am
Sam, thanks. You're right: I knew it was possible, but was wondering how acceptable it was.
The following is not a question that needs answering. Just ponderances. I'm okay for now. Thanks.
So, I imagine others will find this thread useful. I also wonder whether something like this might become a standard feature of SilverStripe. Or a new module. Specifically, whether the CMS (the WYSIWYG editor, in particular) could cover this functionality, so editors could use a drop down menu or something to include "little bits of information" from the database like this. I'm sure other CMS/Frameworks have this sort of thing.
Maybe having something in the WYSIWYG editor unnecessary because it's so easy to do in PHP, and all users need to know is a little syntax, like $ThisLink or [[ThisLink]] or whatever. But of course, to help them get it right, if there's only a few specific variables they might include, the page class could perhaps have a method that provides the CMS with allowable snippets/variables it can use:
static $snippets = array('ThisLink');
...
function Snippet($snippetName) {
// assume the snippetName is "ThisLink"
return "this is my snippet"
}Or just rely on method names, as the .ss templates do.
If anyone likes this idea, I'm in interested in developing it. Meanwhile I'm gonna stop right here.
Toby
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