Module Images Manager (beta)

[Soma]

PW Images Manager (beta)

Just a weird little screencast trying to show how it works. (out of date a little, tags now use a textfield for easy copy/paste)

This module allows you to manage images from one central repository. You create a root page "/images/" where you can then add categories and images as pages. From there the new admin page created "ImagesManager" will show categories and images added in a ajax data table, from where you can see and search/filter all images, upload and create new categories and edit images too.

Every image will also show an image tag generated to copy into a textarea. This tag looks like this:

{image=/path/to/image/imagename/, width=200}

The width=100 is the thumbnail size used to output the image.

You can also have additional segment to contain classes:

{image=/path/to/image/imagename/, width=100, class=align_left}

Or you can enter the id directly:

{image=1033, width=100}

Once inserted into a textarea field it will get parsed when saved and loaded automaticly. It will store an abstract id tag in Database and convert it back to the image HTML tag. So after first save you'll see the image inserted in a Wysiwyg and be able to resize and place it as usual. Once it's inserted somewhere Images Manager will show a search link with the pages containing the image (you can configure the fields int the module setting). You can change the image or move it to a different category, it will still work and show the correct image. This also works with multi-language fields.

You can still also use the regular insert image dialog in TinyMCE and chose image from those pages. And it will start keeping track of those as well (they're the same after all).

You can use those central images pages also with page fields to reference them single or even whole categories, search them with API and do what you like.

Images Manager will also parse the page render on front-end and replace any found image tags with the HTML code. It will also look for a description on the image and output it as alt tag. If you want to have multi-language description you can add a `image_description` TextLanguage field to the image page template and have images parser use them.

Along with this module, you can also install the `PageListImageLabel` module to add thumbnails to the image pages in the tree.

To get it working you need to have the basic setup:

1. Create new `image` field with input setting to 1 max image

2. Create new `image` template and add `title` and the `image` field created before

3. Create a 'image-category' template with only title and allow the `image` template and `image-category` as child pages under family settings.

4. Create a `image-root` template with only the title field for the root of the images tree. Allow only `image-category` as child page under family settings.

5. Create the root page with the `image-root` under the home page as "/images/"

6. Done.

The structure of the image repository looks like this

/images/

/cagetory1/

/imagesxy/

/category2/

/image2/

/image3/

Now you can use the ImagesManager to add categories and images. But you can also still use the page tree to add new stuff as usual.

The root path, template names and fields are configurable in the module settings.

How to install the module:

- Download the contents of this repository and put the folder renamed as "ImagesManager" into your site/modules/ folder

- Login in to ProcessWire and got to Modules page and click "Check for new modules". You should see a note that the two new module were found. Install the "ImagesManager" module.

- A new admin page "ImagesManager" should appear in the top menu.

- You may configure the option on the module screen to suit your needs.

Download at github

https://github.com/somatonic/ImagesManager

Thanks and enjoy.

[diogo]

Amazing work Soma!!

[kongondo]

Brilliant work Soma! Thanks for this.

Cheers.

/k

[Grays]

This looks really awesome, Soma! Thanks so much for this (and also for helping me in regards to my image management concerns post). I will definitely be giving this a run... er, once I break through this wall of trouble I'm having with learning PW. In any case, this looks like quite the thing that could help me.

Questions:

How many images can this manager handle comfortably, would you say? And is this something that's server intensive?

Also, is this something that you'd recommend for the general handling of all images, or just the ones that would be reused?

[MadeMyDay]

Soma, this is awesome!

One minor suggestion: Instead of copying the image code by hand perhaps it is possible to copy it on click with Javascript?

One major improvement: Somehow connect the image manager to a standard image field, so you can also insert existing images to it and / or mix it with single ones. Like I suggested here: http://processwire.com/talk/topic/1188-image-inputfield-like-in-tinymce/#entry10701 I know that we would need a way of symlinking to other images than the ones in the assets/files folder. But you are creative ;-)

Great work!

[Marty Walker]

Bravo! This'll open the flood gates to folk who expect this functionality in whatever CMS they use.

"Somehow connect the image manager to a standard image field" <- An uber image field

I rarely stick images into a wysiwyg editor and I have dreams where the standard image field can either accept an upload or link to another image on another page.

[apeisa]

Marty, that is good dream to have (it would be superb feature).

Soma: you are a machine.

[Soma]

Thanks guys!

Yes there I see some room for improvements to select the tag and also show some infos of the image size.

It's impossible to have image field select from those images. It would require a new image fueldtype. But that's not something that has to be connected to ImagesManager but just a field you can select an image page. Thats the great thing about this approach.

But you can do it with a page field easily. I'm doing it. If you use PageListSelect you'll even see the image thumb. And it would also be possible to select multiple or even just categories. This is even better than a dedicated fieldtype.

[Didjee]

WOW! Very, very interesting module, Soma!

[k07n]

it's.. it's.. beautiful

[Soma]

This looks really awesome, Soma! Thanks so much for this (and also for helping me in regards to my image management concerns post). I will definitely be giving this a run... er, once I break through this wall of trouble I'm having with learning PW. In any case, this looks like quite the thing that could help me.

Questions:

How many images can this manager handle comfortably, would you say? And is this something that's server intensive?

Also, is this something that you'd recommend for the general handling of all images, or just the ones that would be reused?

PW can handle x thousands of pages easily. Image Manager is using ajax based data table to list and search/filter those pages, so it scales infinitely. Also the abstraction of the images in texts uses page ID's searches, and this is pretty fast. So you could go as far as your server limit. It's not more intensive than PW itself. ImagesManager doesn't add a noticeable overhead.

You could use this for all images, but still also use the on page image field where it makes sense. However when sharing images and inserting those in Textareas, I think ImagesManager approach and its abstract feature is a big plus in handling those.

It's still alpha and it's possible some things may change on the way to a first RC. So it's not for use in production yet. 

[ryan]

Nice job Soma! Lots of good thinking here, and I like where you are going with the scalability. I look forward to seeing this in the modules directory. 

[Soma]

I just pushed an update to 0.0.2 to github.

Some refactoring and some changes

- changed image tag syntax to use selector string syntax. This is easier to handle and I can use the PW selector class to read key=value easily.

Now supports:

{image=/path/, width=200, height=200, class=someclass, id=myimage, rel=album}

- improved image upload to use the image field settings for max size settings, also improved error handling there

- added some translations string

- changed data table some and added a input for the tag where when you click it will select the tag text automatic for easy copying.

- added modified date (sortable), also fixed some stuff with sortable of other cols

- added size col

- improved data table live search to search for also image description or image description field and title

Planned

- improve upload even more if/where possible

- add easy image delete function

- (Done) add textarea fields setting, to only insert "ImageManager" button to those specified

Any testing or help appreciated.

Thanks

[horst]

Hey Soma, very cool Manager!
(it's not the first time I say this, but it can't be said to often )
 
I want to ask if it is possible and if you find it useful, to include an optional userdefined callback-function that gets invoked in the public function executeUpload() method at line 517. After successful upload and the new ImagePage is saved calling it for example like this:
 

if( ! empty($this->options['userCallbackUpload']) && function_exists($this->options['userCallbackUpload']) ) {
  ${$this->options['userCallbackUpload']}( $imagepage );
}

 
With this, users may have a simple way to extend imagesPageTemplate with some more fields (e.g. for Exif-data). Yes, actually they allready have this option to extend the template or provide an own, but it would only allow to do a manually populating of fields. With a userCallbackFunction it could be done automatically.
 
Is this not of interest for the ImagesManager himself?
You may read Exif-description and IPTC-description fields and populate automatically the ImageDescriptionField. (IPTC has higher priority as EXIF).
 
So, if a user uses IPTC-description the field is allready filled, if not, and Exif-Description is available, this is used.
Downside: If there is unwanted text populated, the user has to change it manually. But with nothing populated automatically the user allways has to do it all manually.
 
Maybe it could be an boolean option: 'Yes, do autopopulate the image description' or 'NO'  ?
 
 
EDIT: approved code for reading this I can provide, - as you've said elsewhere: i'm the 'metadata-man'

[Soma]

Hey Mr MetaData!

Yeah sure why not. Since it does add value and it's only optional I think this is good idea to add.

I just went ahead and added support for MetaData in my last commit. You could now add a field "image_exif" and get the EXIF data stored when uploading images. I made the method setMetaData(), which adds the meta data on page/image creation, hookable so you can do a hook on it to store additional data. Not sure if this a good idea but maybe nice to have.

v 0.0.3

• fixed issue with images getting added twice to the assets folder (hope this is now ok)
• removed the performance intense pages search for image tags (In my testinstall with 120k pages this result in many second waiting to load the data table.
• and just output a link on all images to a PW search that will run a search.
• added EXIF data support.

Let me know if that EXIF data reading is ok, or if it need a more sophisticated method.

You can hook the Meta Data method like this from a autoload module:

$this->addHookAfter("ImagesManager::setMetaData", $this, "hookMetaData");

public function hookMetaData(HookEvent $event){
    $page = $event->arguments[0]; // page that the image will be added
    $file = $event->arguments[1]; // path of file in temp upload folder
    // do whatever you like
    $page->yourfield = "I'm the Meta Man!"; // will be saved to page
}

[horst]

...

Let me know if that EXIF data reading is ok, or if it need a more sophisticated method.

...

Exif reading is perfect! 

We can retrieve the data with

$myExifArray = wireDecodeJSON( $myImagePage->image_exif ); 

EDIT:  Your solution is very elegant. The user who wants to get Exifdata may only add a TextareaField to his image-Template!

---

But there is something with the Textfield not allright:

I use Firefox on Windows

Edited April 21, 2013 by horst

[horst]

Hi, it's me again.
 
It would be really nice if we can have a field for IPTC as well:

'imagesIPTCField' => 'image_iptc',

and if you can provide their fieldnames within the hookable method:

$this->setMetaData($imagepage, $this->upload_path . $file, $this->options['imagesEXIFField'], $this->options['imagesIPTCField']);

public function ___setMetaData(Page $page, $file, $fieldnameExif, $fieldnameIPTC) {

If you want to populate IPTC data too:

		// write iptc data if field exists on page
		if($page->template->fieldgroup->hasField($this->options['imagesIPTCField'])) {
			$tmp = getimagesize($file, $info);
			if(isset($info['APP13'])) {
				$iptc = iptcparse($info['APP13']);
				if($iptc) {
					$page->set($this->options['imagesIPTCField'], json_encode($iptc));
				}
			}
		}

[Soma]

The hook does already allow you to do any additional custom field saving... Just add field you wish and populate it in the hook.

Thx I'll have a look. Forgot FF isnt consistent across OS. I think I know what it is.

[horst]

The hook does already allow you to do any additional custom field saving... Just add field you wish and populate it in the hook.

Thx I'll have a look. Forgot FF isnt consistent across OS. I think I know what it is.

Allright , - but getting the ExifFieldname would be of great help if the user changes the default name: function ___setMetaData(Page $page, $file, $fieldnameExif)

Many thanks!

[Soma]

You can already get the settings via the module options.

[horst]

You can already get the settings via the module options.

Yep (ich habs)  : $options = wire('modules')->getModuleConfigData(wire('modules')->get('ImagesManager'));

[Soma]

Hmm, wire("modules")->get("ImagesManger")->options[key] should be enough The module sets the options array in the init.

But you can also get it when you hook setMetaData() with 

$event->object->options['imagesEXIFField']; 

[horst]

here is the little module that adds auto population for single textfields with exif or iptc data:

http://processwire.com/talk/topic/3398-working-with-processwire-getting-exif-data-from-images/#entry33552

Many thanks for your kind help Soma!

[WillyC]

mr.somo   no.can i load image managers in modules managers ?

[Soma]

willyc, nope. it's not in modules directory yet!