Thumbnail Quality

June 12th, 2007

I have played with some configuration settings (imagecreatetruecolor (GD Library 2.0) set to default), and with the size of the thumbnail resizing in the HTML (although I controlled this from the Admin area - set all to width of 130), and the results are dramatically improved. However, in the early days, we had some glitches with photo uploads, in that the upload of large photos was not completed and a blank page returned. One of the attempts to fix this involved changing the imagecreatetruecolor (GD Library 2.0) setting to manual override.

However, further tests on 12 June found that the upload of photos caused a white screen to occur (blank page returned instead of image added page) with a large 950 kb test file, irrespective of whether I had the GD Library set to default or manual override. So I have turned it back on. It works fine with normal-sized photos. Maybe we are being over-generous by offering a 1 MB upload. Perhaps that should be 200 kb?

However, further tests on 12 June found that the upload of photos caused a white screen to occur (blank page returned instead of image added page) with a large 950 kb test file, irrespective of whether I had the GD Library set to default or manual override. So I have turned it back on. It works fine with normal-sized photos. Maybe we are being over-generous by offering a 1 MB upload. Perhaps that should be 200 kb?My bet is that the image problem is more likely to do with bandwidth and timeouts. I found a really in-depth article on what could cause image problems at:

https://geodesicsolutions.com/products/geohelp/index.php?x=&mod_id=2&id=128

In short, it could be that the PHP script is timing out while waiting for a 1 MB file to upload. The PHP script timeout is 30 seconds. I reckon 1 MB on my cable connection (which is asymmetrical - fast downloads but slow uploads) would take round about that time. Further, the current chloekirkhope.com server seems to be on a quite slow connection, so even superfast at this end may be superslow at the other! And on top of that, the article says the performance of the server has an impact. Large graphics take quite a while to thumbnail, so it could be timing out for that reason too.

When it goes on the live server, we may get (a) better connection speed, (b) better server performance, and (c) possibly better GD Library handling.

In summary, I think we should leave it as the “default” setting (ie, lovely thumbnails), but consider changing the limit from 1 MB to something smaller. (That’s just one setting change, and one Help text change (http://www.chloekirkhope.com/admin/index.php?a=14&b=10&l=22).) Then, we’ll see how it goes on the production server.

Changing Photo Title

June 12th, 2007

I’ve changed the help (instructions for image collection form) so that it explains that to change a photo title, you’ll need to delete the photo and add it again with the corrected title.

The change was on http://www.chloekirkhope.com/admin/index.php?a=14&b=10&c=167&l=22.

Unfinished Listings

June 12th, 2007

The way it works is that a cookie containing a “session number” is created when the user logs in for the very first time. When the user revisits using the same PC and same browser, that same session number is retrieved from the cookie. Now, when a user starts a listing, that listing’s details are stored in the database against the user’s session number. When the user logs off using the sign off button, that record (of the unfinished listing) is deleted. However, if the user just closes the browser without formally logging off, the listing’s details remain. It is the retrieved whenever the user next logs in.

In short, the problem lies in users not logging off, but just closing the browser. The fix may be to delete any record with a matching session number when the user logs in. That might cause a new issue, though, in that if the user session times out while he or she is looking for a photo, for example, then the partially complete listing will be gone.

I have modified the classified_sell_class.php and index.php files so that when a interrupted listing is found, a JavaScript function is injected into the page. I added the referenced JavaScript function to hw_ua.js, which we previously “included” on each page. (Can’t remember what for! To display the Help panels, perhaps?)

Anyway, the JavaScript displays an alert box warning that it’s an interrupted listing. When the user OKs the alert box, the script sets a cookie so that the alert is not shown again for that browser session. In other words, when the browser is closed, the cookie is lost. That way, when the user next opens the browser and goes to add a new listing, the alert re-displays. 

 

US Dates

June 12th, 2007

The issue of US date formats raised itself in the add listing area for the auctions, and where the auction start and auction end dates were displayed. In the add listing area, the dropdown for the months now shows the month names rather than the month number, and the order is day month year. Changes were made to the classified_sell_class.php and index.php code to change the text.

Changes Made to PHP ‘classes’

December 14th, 2006
  1. Favourites page - add delete heading (user_management_favorites.php)
  2. Removed Category Headings  (module_display_main_category_navigation_1.php)
  3. Added ‘Choice()’ function to auto-insert area codes (register_class.php)
  4. Added function ‘onClick=’return confirmSubmit()’ to submit button (auction_bid_class.php)
  5. Added button to Preview Ad (classified_sell_class.php)

 Not sure - need to check if we upgrade:

  1.  Links to example listings (classified_sell_class.php)

Alternative Help

December 10th, 2006

An alternative method of displaying Help to that described in the Extensions - Help section, has been used in the Seller Info area. In this case:

  • The icon at images/misc/question_mark.gif is used to launch the Help.
  • A JavaScript function is attached to the onClick event.
  • The function win() is called to open show_help.php, with a sample syntax being “win(’show_help.php?a=102826&l=22′). L=22 means Australian English language.
  • The win() function simply opens a new window, displays the text from the referenced database field, and adds a close button for the window.

See also: Context Sensitive Help

Context Sensitive Help

December 7th, 2006

To create a help pop-up:

  1. Create an HTML file (eg name buy_now.htm)
  2. FTP it into \helpfiles
  3. Insert pic: images/misc/question_mark.gif
  4. Insert link: href=javascript:win(’helpfiles/buy_now.htm’)

See also: Extensions and Alternative Help.

Special Characters

October 24th, 2006

! : %21

/ : %2F

: : %3A

‘ : %27

( : %28

) : %29

, : %2C

Manage What Where in MySQL

October 24th, 2006
  • Categories are managed in geodesic_classifieds_categories_languages
  • Field labels are managed in geodesic_pages_messages_languages
  • Mandatory registration data fields in geodesic_registration_configuration
  • Modules are managed in geodesic_pages

To modify field or category text through Navicat or another database client:

  1. Open the table to return all rows.
  2. Use the filter function to show records for the page_id of the page with the fields, and to only show records where the language_id equals 22 (Australian English).
  3. Modify the wording in the text memo field as required.

Protected: Page IDs

October 24th, 2006

This post is password protected. To view it please enter your password below:


cialis online stores buy levitra online buy cialis on line order soma online cialis canada cheapest cialis online online levitra find cialis without prescription propecia generic lowest price for viagra accutane cheap accutane online stores cheap viagra pill online accutane price of accutane viagra generic order viagra without prescription drug viagra online purchase cheapest cialis cheap viagra tablet buy cialis no prescription required buy acomplia online levitra cheap accutane for sale generic cialis cheap lasix lowest price propecia discount accutane cialis online pharmacy levitra online cheap viagra pharmacy online order cialis no prescription required discount viagra overnight delivery purchase cialis online viagra price zithromax sale viagra tablet levitra order accutane buy clomid cheap cialis pill buy cheap zithromax online viagra india viagra us synthroid online cheap buy cheapest cialis online lowest price cialis discount cialis no rx buying viagra order cialis no prescription sale viagra online soma buy viagra internet buy cialis online cheap discount levitra purchase cialis soma pills cialis in malaysia drug viagra cheap viagra lasix prices cheap soma tablets cheap viagra internet order viagra cheap online price of cialis cheapest propecia prices cialis overnight shipping buy synthroid without prescription discount soma cialis without rx viagra internet generic viagra order cialis in us