In Code, Hacking on
6 August 2010
The default post_type in query_posts is ‘post’, so other post types will not be in the loop unless they are specified. Here is an example of what you could include at the top of your template to include all post types.
global $wp_query;
$p = array('post_type' => array('article', 'gallery','post','project'));
$q = array_merge($wp_query->query_vars, $p);
query_posts($q);
In Code on
3 August 2010
I’m sure everyone has run into this problem! You’re looking at a list in your file browser, or a maybe a list of tracks, the filenames or track numbers contain both numbers and characters, and the ordering is against logic: “1,11,2″ instead of “1,2,11″. Often times we will rename filenames to be have a preceding zero to fix the problem, “01, 02, 11″, however that isn’t compulsory! This error happens because the numbers are seen to the software as as “string” of characters and their numeric value is not considered when it is sorted. Here is a great resource with examples in many programming languages on how to sort the “strings” considering both the alpha and numeric values in the “strings”: The Alphanum Algorithm
In Websites on
2 August 2010 tagged Django, Pasadena, Poobah
Adding an audio player to a website can be a simple to complex task, there are many possibilities. For the Into Infinity project, intoinfinity.org, sponsored by Dublab and Creative Commons, we needed a player that would cleanly loop an 8 second audio sample, and be able to play multiple tracks simultaneously. For music.vtechphones.com we needed something that would be embeddable onto other websites and blogs. In the case with poobah.com, what we need is something simple, and the WordPress Audio Player fits the purpose. This isn’t a WordPress website, however the audio player can be used on any website, and they have a page detailing how to do that at: WordPress Audio Player – Standalone Version.

Art Direction: Stephen Serrato
Development: Braydon Fuller
Website: Poobah.com
Remembering HTML tags and syntax can be debilitating especially if it’s not your expertise. For that reason visual HTML editors are important in the ease of use and efficiency for website admin interfaces, as most people who will be editing the information on the website are likely not experts at HTML, but experts on the subject matter of the website, and in any case the focus is on writing, and not HTML, so the more the HTML can get out of the way, the better it is of an interface. WordPress uses the TinyMCE text editor for their admin interface, however the editor can be used for any admin interface. Here is a tutorial on how to do that: Django: Add WYSIWYG Editor

Django Admin Interface for Poobah.com
In Gonzo, Life on
30 July 2010
So it seems cycling in Los Angeles is becoming more legit! 4th St. and Fountain Ave. now have shared bicycle arrows painted on portions of their asphalt surface. According to the the Los Angeles Police Department Officer, S. Koegel, the LAPD will be escorting the Los Angeles Critical Mass ride tonight for the second time. I asked if he rode with us on the last LACM, he was riding a motorcycle, and he said they are going to be escorting a ride tomorrow. I said it was probably LACM. This last month I’ve had absolutely horrible luck getting cited for infractions to the law riding my bicycle on the gritty, pothole ridden, bicycle unfriendly streets of Los Angeles! Some of the tickets I’ve been cited for this last month riding solo on my bicycle, “Failure to Stop at a Red Light”, and “Failure to Yield on a Left-hand Turn”. All around the Pico/Vermont and 7th St. areas. Why do I feel the impulse to “drive” my bike like it’s 3,000 pounds, 13ft long and 6ft wide? Have the glory days just ended or begun?
Meets at Western & Wilshire at the Metro Station
Gather 6:30 PM. Ride at 7:30 PM
Every Last Friday of the month.
In Recommendations on
19 July 2010
Previous research has shown a relationship between use of social networking sites and feelings of social capital. However, most studies have relied on self-reports by college students. The goals of the current study are to (1) validate the common self-report scale using empirical data from Facebook, (2) test whether previous findings generalize to older and international populations, and (3) delve into the specific activities linked to feelings of social capital and loneliness. In particular, we investigate the role of directed interaction between pairs—such as wall posts, comments, and “likes”— and consumption of friends’ content, including status updates, photos, and friends’ conversations with other friends. We find that directed communication is associated with greater feelings of bonding social capital and lower loneliness, but has only a modest relationship with bridging social capital, which is primarily related to overall friend network size. Surprisingly, users who consume greater levels of content report reduced bridging and bonding social capital and increased loneliness. Implications for designs to support well-being are discuss
cameronmarlow.com
(PDF) Social network activity and social well-being
In Code, Hacking on
13 July 2010 tagged PHP, Wordpress
WordPress has it’s own URL management system, and when developing websites it’s convenient to be able to add new rules dynamically. I’ve used this for two websites, music.vtechphones.com and for a site I am building now. It’s also great to keep all modifications in one place, so upgrades are easier, and easier for another developer to pick up!
Create a new plugin, and you place your rules into it doing something similar to the PHP below:
add_filter('rewrite_rules_array','wp_insert_my_rewrite_rules');
add_filter('init','flush_rules');
// Remember to flush_rules() when adding rules
function flush_rules(){
global $wp_rewrite;
$wp_rewrite->flush_rules();
}
// Adding a new rule
function wp_insert_my_rewrite_rules($rules){
$newrules = array();
$newrules['(articles)$'] = 'index.php?post_type=article';
$newrules['(gallery)$'] = 'index.php?post_type=gallery';
$newrules['(projects)$'] = 'index.php?post_type=project';
$newrules['(blog)$'] = 'index.php?post_type=post';
return $newrules + $rules;
}
In Life on
10 July 2010
Life, past the tragedies we face along our way, is impossibly complex and beautiful! The ups, the downs! I’m constantly amazed. I am who I am because of who we are, and where we have been! I am still here! We are still here! It’s all connected. There is a time for everything!

Photo from Zen – Wikipedia
In Recommendations on
8 July 2010 tagged Wordpress
I’ve gone through and installed several themes into a testing install of BuddyPress and have selected a few that I think will work as good starting points for further development and a good way to learn more about BuddyPress and how to develop social networking sites with it.
TwentyTen BuddyPress (Download) This is a theme that extends the default WordPress 3.0 TwentyTen theme to support BuddyPress. A great place to start in enhancing a blog with social networking features. Author: Ron & Andrea
BuddyPress Columns (Download) A three-column fixed-width variation to the default BuddyPress theme. There are many smaller details that make this theme feel almost finished, but still a bit of room to work with. Author: modemlooper
Fishbook (Download) A clean monotone light-blue two-column flexible-width theme. It remains consistent with default theme’s functionality. Author: Michael Kuhlmann
Jukt Micronics (Download) A minimal light two-column fixed-width theme. This one is one of my favorites, it feels open, good use of highlighting colors, and feels direct and to the point. Author: Michael Kuhlmann
Sense and Sensibility (Download) A stripped down minimal two-column theme. It diverges by not showing the activity in the main menu, which is good to see some variation in navigation. The theme looks like an ideal starting point for a heavy customized theme as there really isn’t much styling added to it yet. It also includes the WordPress meta in the sidebar with a link to access the site admin. Author: Ron & Andrea