Questions concerning PW and it's capabilities

[Chris]

hi everyone:)

i stumpled across ProcessWire on my way to learn ModX. It draws my attention because of it's fast backend, and the chance for me to connect it with my big wish to learn php (atm i know just very basic stuff :- ). PW seems to enable me to use some php-funktions with an easier layer on top of it. so, i can be productive at the beginning

here are some questions, that i came up with at my exploration of the PW-wonderland in the last days:

1. search: afaik there is the possibility to integrate a search function to the website. is it possible to combine a searchfield with checkbox filters to search and filter pages in a specific branche of the page tree?
   
2. blogging: it's possible to build a tag-cloud for a blogging sections with PW. this hole filter possiblities-thing is somewhat unclear for me atm
   
3. comments-module: the comments containing a name and an e-mail field, but i like to extend it with a "twitter" and "your website" field. is this possible without a lot of complicated "core hacking" ?
   
4. forms: from what i have understand, it's possible to create a front-end form that collects data for the content of a page. are ther possibilities to get form entries per mail with csv-file attached or csv-styled text inside?
   
5. demo page: maybe i've just overlooked it, but i was not able to find the skyscraper siteprofil on the download page. i realy like to have a look at it, to learn from the api usage there.
   
6. does someone have experience with forums and newslettersystems, that go well along with PW ?(same userbase/passwords)
   

(i hope my english was understandable, since i normaly don't write a lot in english myself. but i'm able to perfectly read and understand it).

greetings,

chris

EDIT:

a questions to the modx users in this his forum: is PW now your primary cms and modx a fallback for some special usecases? - PW made me desinterested to learn modx, but maybe i miss something

Edited July 28, 2012 by chris

[diogo]

Welcome to PW and the forums!

You came to the right place to learn PHP

1. This is possible, and not difficult at all. Have a look at this module http://modules.proce...es/ajax-search/

2. Yes, see here how you can build a tags system http://processwire.c.../page__hl__tags

3. It's possible without any "core hacking", But it will imply some "module hacking" we are here to help though.

4. There are ways to convert csv files into php arrays. From there, everything is possible. You will have to configure your server to pipe the emails to PHP https://www.google.c...iw=1364&bih=679

5. The skyscrapers profile was not updated to the last version of PW. But I'm sure Ryan can send it to you if you want a lot

6. I did a very basic newsletter system that is explained here http://processwire.c..._hl__newsletter. For something more complex, you should try Mailchimp or something similar. This forum is integrated in PW, but i think sharing logins could be tricky.

[Pete]

Chris - your English is far better than my German and reads well so don't worry about that - I always feel bad when people whose first language isn't English come to forums and apologise for their English when I can't speak much of their language

"Wilkommen bei ProcessWire" is about my limit this morning

I agree with diogo's points above. I'm sure someone made a module that allows for good blog-like tagging of pages (a specific tag fieldtype that was a bit like Wordpress) but can't seem to find the link - does anyone else know where this is? I have a feeling it might have been one of Nico's modules.

As a long-time MODx user ProcessWire is now my main choice (and only choice) of CMS. It's the most flexible CMS I've ever worked with and every other system you use will feel too restrictive in comparison. There's nothing I could do in MODx that I couldn't do in ProcessWire - often it was a LOT easier in ProcessWire too! As an example, see this site: http://www.strategycore.co.uk/ - that all used to be MODx and now it's ProcssWire using a lot less lines of code than I had before.

It does require that you learn a little bit of programming, but with a few examples you should get along just fine.

I'd recomment the walktrhough tutorial here: followed by other tutorials in this forum: http://processwire.com/talk/forum/13-tutorials/ but often it's simple enough just to start building something and ask questions - we're happy to help.

The Skyscrapers demo site is based on an older version so I don't think ryan has that available to download because a few things have changed, but the tutorials above will probably give you a better (gentler) place to start from anyway.

Hope that helps

[Martijn Geerts]

Can't comment on some of your questions, but let start..

ProcessWire "traversion" capabilities are more logical & better then seen elsewhere in CMS land. With a few switches or if statements you can find anything you want or exclude what you want. For forms & stuff, you're not bound to modules. You have the total freedom with PHP & you get the rely useful & understandable ProcessWire API for free. ( look at Soma's cheatsheet to get a point ).

I stepped in in MODX This september, so started with Revolution. I always thought, MODX is a nice CMS, but lacked the overall vision. They added nice feathers, but they glue it to the core. Many things in my eye's are inconsistant or put where the don't belong. Working the MODX way give me a lot of trouble. Errors in PHP occurring in the cache, finding where some kind of variable is coming from, Unnecessary difficult ACL's. Don't allow me to disable cache ( even if I set: disable cache ). All "template" chunks & PHP snippets pilling up as high as the Mount Everest & then finding the way through that mountain. Not been able the really work with code on disk, cause all PHP etc is stored in the DB ( why the hell you want logic data in the DB ?) The must use of MOD FAST_CGI... I can continue but better to stop

All things I mentioned above, is solved on a real clever way in ProcessWire. They don't just add things, adding things may have a big cost. I love the road PW is traveling. So no I don't want to step back

[yellowled]

a questions to the modx users in this his forum: is PW now your primary cms and modx a fallback for some special usecases? - PW made me desinterested to learn modx, but maybe i miss something

I never actually used MODx in production, but I don't think I'll ever use it. So far, PW has worked extremely well in 3 or 4 projects, the community has been extremely helpful and nice, and I have yet to see development take a direction I didn't like (and I doubt it ever will).

[Chris]

first of all, i like to thank you guys for all your great informations and linked references

it seems PW is realy what i was looking for. i hope i have the chance to use it for a small website of a customer in the next week (challenge accepted [x])

otherwise i will build my new portfolio with it, containing some contentpages, references and a blog. so there will be some tasks to get my hands dirty:)

[...]

5. The skyscrapers profile was not updated to the last version of PW. But I'm sure Ryan can send it to you if you want a lot

[...]

according to your informations, i think the text on the demo description page needs to be changed. it's a littlebit confusing when there is no download :-

[...]

I always feel bad when people whose first language isn't English come to forums and apologise for their English when I can't speak much of their language

[...]

there is no need to feel bad, im just the new guy in the classroom and a littlebit shy but the class seems to be verry friendly, so all is going well

it's cool to see what people do with PW, to get a glimpse on whats it's capable of. is it possible to show the comment count, like on your strategies website, natively with PW ?

[...]

Not been able the really work with code on disk, cause all PHP etc is stored in the DB ( why the hell you want logic data in the DB ?

[...]

i didn't liked this either. i have the feeling that their is a huge potential, during the work with PW, to create some reusable snippets. so i don't have to write everytime a gallery new, for instance ..will need some time to figure out best practices and a good workflow, but that's always the rule of the game

,

[...]

your statements confirming my impressions i got from twitter these days. I will keep an eye on ModX, but work with PW

[Soma]

1. This is possible, and not difficult at all. Have a look at this module http://modules.proce...es/ajax-search/

2. Yes, see here how you can build a tags system http://processwire.c.../page__hl__tags

Ah, well my AjaxSearch module isn't what he's looking for, it just to progressively enhance the search using ajax.

Adding filter options is more about how you do it in regular html/php adding them to the form markup. PW then just plays a role when creating the query and performing the search according to those options. You could then simply filter by template or parent or anything you like. It would go too far writing example code down here, but I'm sure there's a thread about it, and if you give specific example what you want or even example code you're trying there's people here willing to help.

[Chris]

Ah, well my AjaxSearch module isn't what he's looking for, it just to progressively enhance the search using ajax.

Adding filter options is more about how you do it in regular html/php adding them to the form markup. PW then just plays a role when creating the query and performing the search according to those options. You could then simply filter by template or parent or anything you like. It would go too far writing example code down here, but I'm sure there's a thread about it, and if you give specific example what you want or even example code you're trying there's people here willing to help.

right, i was looking for a search/filter options like this:

THE AWESOME SPECIAL NEEDS PIZZA SEARCH SITE
Your City  [_ Townname_____]

Exclude pizza services that don't sell
[   ] cheese pizza
[ x ] chocolate pizza
[ x ] sharkmeat pizza

Your genter (for our creedy marketing management)
( • ) Male  (  ) Female

-------------------------------------------
KLICK HERE TO SEE RESULTS   |
-------------------------------------------

but, when it's possible to do with the PW api, my question is answered..thank you verry much:) - maybe i need somethin like this in the future and then i will know which filter and search options i exactly need to look for

[yellowled]

but, when it's possible to do with the PW api, my question is answered

Just my experience from the last couple of weeks, but mostly with PWs API, the question is not if you can do something but how you can do it.

The API as well as the whole system's architecture really don't limit the possibilities at all. There might not be an enormous amount of modules for just any task (yet), but there's a beauty to that as well since (again, just my humble opinion) if that's the case, one tends to use pre-built modules instead of building their own solution, which most often makes for a more unique site experience. And if you get stuck building a site on your own, you'll find a lot of solutions already posted here in the forums.

Just start playing with the API, I promise you'll love it and very soon get a sense of how much is possible with it.

[JeffS]

MODx is a great tool. No doubt. However when I compare the code and work required get things done in it versus PW, PW comes out ahead as a winner for the types of sites my shop builds. We are busy converting three content heavy sites from MODx. These were due for upgrades from MODx Evolution. There are another dozen that will be in the switch over queue before too long.

I worked with MODx Revo and deployed a few sites on it, but honestly there was a lot of extra overhead and a new API to convert our custom modules (snippets) to. I could not justify the work to upgrade as I did not see enough benefits. Clients will pay for new features, just usually not for the coding required to update the backend. I felt a sense of dread, instead of excitement, when I heard the news of MODx V3. The API has completely changed once already and I was not excited to start over again, again. Not knocking MODx here, built some well performing sites with it. Even donated $. I wish the team continued success.

I decided to keep looking around for a better solution. I have used EE, Drupal, Wordpress, Pyro CMS, and a few others. Each with different strengths and weaknesses. Luckily came across PW. Lurked for a while, kicked the tires, built a few mockups.

Discovered that all the things I typically need to do, are simple calls to the API, and some logic coded in PHP. Everything is an extension of the API. The front end, the back end. I love the whole concept of leveraging the document tree, getting parents, siblings, children, and the whole ancestry easily through the API. This matches with the type of highly structured sites I usually build. The selector logic make it simple to pull content from wherever it lives.

I can park any kind of structured content wherever I see fit. Usually the CMS interferes with the IA. Not with PW. The PW API is very clean and so is the logic. I am very productive with it so far, and it has exceeded my expectations. The content editors like the backend and find it easy to work with and publish / update content.

PW has moved front and center in the shop and will be the basis for most all CMS projects going forward. No going back.

Kudo's to Ryan and the forum participants, who are generously sharing here. Welcome to PW.

[choppingblock]

I have come to PW from MODx just a couple of weeks ago... before that, MODx (both Evo and Revo) was my CMS of choice and I always praised its flexibility (e.g. building page templates or adding code snippets was really easy, compared to most other CMSs). I still think that it is a good CMS (I have used it for years without finding a better alternative).

Now that I have done some projects in PW, I doubt I will be going back to MODx. PW is much, much faster, has a very intuitive UI, a unique "the-api-is-everything" approach which allows instant production with just a quick look at the cheatsheet, and, very important, a small but incredibly helpful and friendly community.

Thumbs up for PW!

[renobird]

Welcome choppingblock.

[MatthewSchenker]

Greetings,
Choppingblock: there are a lot of (former) ModX people here. Seems that the kind of people who want high flexibility are attracted to ModX, and the fact that so many ModX people then see ProcessWire as a higher level of flexibility really tells you something about ProcessWire!

After using ProcessWire for several months now (I came from Joomla -- a very inflexible system), I am impressed over and over again how every kind of development challenge can be achieved with such concise, neat solutions using the ProcessWire API.

Thanks,
Matthew

[kongondo]

Well-said Matthew!

I still can't believe that I can "write php" code, thanks to ProcessWire! The API - it's friendliness and power -  has encouraged me to write code. I don't think I would have dared to code a single line of snippet in MODX save for echo "Hello World"; ! It's not a problem with MODX; it's just that PW makes many difficult things easy.

choppingblock, I think I have said welcome before; if not, welcome to PW!

Cheers.

[choppingblock]

Thanks for the welcome...

I noticed that a lot of people here came from MODx... there has been some discussion in the MODx community about where the CMS would go in the future.

The reason for me to try PW was this article by Marc Hinse.

I also had to do some projects with Joomla (hated every bit of it, and that was even before i learned about PW). I still don't understand why this is so popular... its un-flexibility is only matched by its un-intuitiveness.

[MatthewSchenker]

Greetings,

Choppingblock: that article you mention is also what finally got me fully into ProcessWire.  I had been following PW for some time before that, but was still trying to force Joomla to do what I needed (and also giving several other CMSs a try, including ModX, ExpressionEngine, and Drupal).  After reading that article, I finally dove full into PW, and never looked back.

A theory about Joomla -- designer/developers who want flexibility, open design possibilities, clean templating (or no templating), and like playing with code for particular goals, are attracted to systems like ModX and ProcessWire.  However, designer/developers who want a more pre-defined way of doing layouts, and to just "plug in" modules for all kinds of actions, are attracted to systems like Joomla.  I know lots of designer/developers who never move away from Joomla because they like to just "install" what they need.

The problem, of course, is all that Joomla "done for you" stuff becomes a problem once you find yourself spending more time hacking and altering Joomla than if you just went to another system.  Speaking for myself, I had a number of projects I had built in Joomla, and I was ready for something more, but it was a challenge to convince clients to move several projects to another system.

I believe the most painful spot to be in with Joomla is an "intermediate" developer.  You don't yet have the coding skills to hack Joomla deeply enough, and yet you are ready for more flexibility.  ProcessWire is excellent for all levels of developers, but it is the best cure for the "intermediate developer blues"!

Thanks,

Matthew

[choppingblock]

You are probably right about Joomla...

but I think even for experienced developers the time is spent better working with PW than trying to hack or extend Joomla.

That is (for me) the absolute best thing about PW: the api is actually helping me to get things done quicker and easier, instead of forcing me to learn a new language or "hack the core".

[kongondo]

Same here...Marc's article was the tipping point for me as well...

[wishbone]

I still can't believe that I can "write php" code, thanks to ProcessWire!

full ack...

never thought I could ever learn to code...

With ModX, I had to hire programmers to write snippets I couldn't do anything new.

With PW, I learnt some php, and piece by piece, with the help of this never impatient community, I can bring my ideas into life - by myself!!!