Michel was last seen more than two months ago. A lot of people, like myself, is looking for him.
If anyone has any information about him, please share it.

In any case, please stop testing stuff here.
Thanks!
Ricardo @ 02:03:31 335
47 comments, 1 trackback, 1 pingback

I'm at a stage where I have to decide whether to support old versions of PHP, with all the tricks and limitations this would involve, or use new features from PHP 4.1.x and newer.

So I need you to answer this important poll about which PHP version you're using.
Thanks in advance !
michel v @ 23:57:09 206
6 comments, no trackback, 1 pingback

Thanks to Mort's recent code contribution to b2, the next b2 release will support PingBack.
For those interested to help me test it, grab b2 from CVS and give these features a try.
michel v @ 00:41:34 237
no comment, no trackback, 1 pingback

I wrote a small hack to list out the categories with their corresponding posts. It's nothing big, but it may be useful for those who use b2 for galleries, tutorials, and such. b2-include/b2template.functions.php is the only file that needs to be edited.

Discussion
Example
Download File
daynah @ 05:12:42 425
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

I'm coming up with an implementation of TrackBack in b2. Since MT developers only explained about post-to-post TrackBack, I could only get that part to work so far since I don't know how post-to-category or category-to-category TrackBack would work.
Anyway, I finally got it to work: now tidakada.com is trackback-able and can trackback other blogs !
michel v @ 00:39:09 235
12 comments, no trackback, 1 pingback

b2 0.6pre4 is out !
It's in the /releases directory.
What's new: b2mail lets you post entries via email, popup comments are now in default template, and the xmlrpc interface has been improved for use with the upcoming wbloggar 3.
What's fixed: various comments/categories link issues, and then more bugfixes all around. All files are now in Unix newlines format, as opposed to DOS newlines. Categories now list all posts.
You can check the CVS server for exact changes in the code.
michel v @ 18:41:43 987
8 comments, no trackback, no pingback

There was a bug in b2calendar.php, that made calendars have a extra row if you set the start of the week to Sunday. Get the fixed version of b2calendar.php here.

Also, several would-be users reported corrupted zip and sit files in the /releases, the problem was because of some FTP incident, I re-uploaded (with the calendar fix) so it should be OK now.
michel v @ 19:27:33 019
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

The 0.6pre3 release has been updated, to include support for Syndic8 and RSS auto-discovery, in default templates and b2-generated RSS. Also, the RSS now displays the <language> tag (set $rss_language='' in the config, check here for possible values).

If you already upgraded, here are the updated files: b2.php, index.php, b2rss.php, b2functions.php.

You can grab the new files' source from the new /source directory, which saves you the trouble of re-downloading a zip file
michel v @ 21:08:50 089
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

There it is, b2 0.6pre3 is there for the download

It features several important fixes and improvements:

• BBCode, GMCode, smilies, are now supported
• new modes of archive: daily and weekly
• you can now use a calendar (see the ReadMe)
• PHP 4.2.x with register_globals Off is now supported
• archives code has been recoded to make them just much faster
• the Team listing doesn't show logins anymore to users which are under level 4
• ...and more

Check the releases folder !

I'm still working on the b2mail.php file, so it wasn't included in this version yet, but it might be there in a few days.
michel v @ 22:01:13 125
6 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Some users live in timezones that are GMT +5:30 or something, just not plain hours like GMT +5 or +6. They could try typing 5.5 in the time difference field in Options, but it would always be rounded to 5 or 6, because of an error in b2's table structure.

If you live in such a timezone, don't worry: here's the fix !
(This fix will be included in the next version.)
michel v @ 21:27:16 102
7 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Lately I've seen a lot of hits coming from pages that talk about a security flaw in b2.
If you came here from one of these pages, here I tell you this bug has been fixed in the release version... in early May. And I even announced that bug etc (if you look down, it's just two posts below this one).

So now, if everyone could just stop submitting that same bug to every ****ing security sites on the 'net, it would be cool: it's a FIXED bug, for Christ's sake.


Incidentally, I've been working on CaféLog 1.0, from the b2 codebase and I'm not happy of the results; so I may rewrite the whole thing, for a whole lot of purposes: compatibility with PHP 4.2.0 even without register_globals on, Smarty templating (possibly even make the interface templatable), post-via-email, database-abstraction, and all sorts of goodies. There may be a pre-version available in July if I code fast, and then a finished code by September (I'm taking August off for travelling !). Don't consider these release dates as promises though.
When I can, I'll reduce some of the new features as 'hacks' for b2 in the forums (especially the post-via-email interface, which isn't released yet because of a weird bug with Outlook-generated emails).

About the lack of support, email replies, and updates: I'm losing my job by the end of July because the place closes doors, so I'm very busy with searching another one... (anyone could hire a french PHP coder ? pretty please ^_^ ? I don't bite !)
michel v @ 02:28:43 311
5 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Someone recently told me about a security hole in b2, that would allow the attacker to do nasty things. It has just been fixed in the distributions.
I also fixed the date preview 'bug', and added some config options to b2config.php, most important one is for people using Asian languages or any language that encodes text on two bytes instead of one.

The fix for the security hole is very simple: create a file named b2config.php and upload it in your b2-include folder. The file can be blank or be a copy of your original b2config.php file, it doesn't matter; but it's enough to fix the threat.
michel v @ 01:42:07 279
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Post-via-email is almost done.
The current implementation works like this:

• Setup :
  Specify a POP3 email address for the script to check, and a prefix for the subject of the emails (so that the script doesn't check every email in the mailbox). Default prefix is "blog:"
  Set up a cronjob to run the script every 5 minutes or so.
• Usage :
  Send an email to the above specified address.
  The subject must be the prefix plus the title of the post, e.g. "blog:the title of my post".
  In the message body, type "login:password" on the first line then go to the next line and start typing your post. For example if your login is "me" and your password is "123", and you want to say "I just ate an apple, woohoo!", type this:
  

  me:123
  I just ate an apple, woohoo!

There will soon be an open beta test of this feature, for the 0.6 testdrive blog (hint: go and register there for testing). I'll announce it when it's ready.
michel v @ 18:15:09 010
10 comments, no trackback, no pingback

There have been several changes in 0.6, the most important one being the login process which uses cookies only now, instead of sessions+cookies. This should get rid of all the Profile bugs and 'I can't login with IE' errors.

You can test b2 v0.6 on the test blog.
Once you register there you can post right away, so have fun !
michel v @ 12:19:02 763
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

If you're a Blogger user who would like to switch to b2 but is afraid of having to re-taylor your blog's design from scratch; or if you would like to use a Blogger template from one of the sites that provide them, here's something that may be of interest for you: a Blogger-to-b2 template converter.
It's just in beta stage, and still has some things lacking in the conversion of permalink links, but it's functionnal. I've tested it with various default Blogger templates and it worked like a charm.

It will be in the /releases directory soon for you to test. In the meanwhile, you can paste your Blogger template here and copy the generated b2 template.
Please tell me (comment here) if you see any bugs or things that could be improved.
michel v @ 09:48:17 658
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

iMeridian notified me of a big 'oops' in the v0.6 distro, the converters haven't been upgraded to it yet; which is why they outputted errors and stuff. I'll get to fix them later today.
[ UPDATE: they're fixed now ]

Also, asked about an AvantGo method to post to b2 and provided a way there. But I'm thinking about coding an AvantGo client that would work with XMLRPC, so that there wouldn't need to be interaction between the offline client and the server once you have fetched your list of blogs (method blogger.getUserBlogs) and categories (method b2.getCategories). More about this later.
michel v @ 10:01:34 667
5 comments, no trackback, no pingback

The install script has been upgraded a bit, with a better response to errors, and no default password anymore.
Now if for some reason your installation fails, it tells you the SQL query, and the exact error it generated. You can then use this information when asking for help in the forums.
And if you can't change your password (I'm working on re-writing the profile page), you're not stuck with an open b2 where anyone could enter with admin/admin, because your default password is now a random password, generated when you install b2.
michel v @ 02:19:17 346
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

If you're a beta-tester of the new Recently Updated b2 Weblogs list, all you need now is download b2 again and change your b2functions.php ad b2edit.php files. Then open b2config.php, and add these two lines:
$cafelogID = "yourcafelogID";
$use_cafelogping = 1;
Replace yourcafelogID with the ID that you received in your registration e-mail.

Then you'll see your weblog listed there in a neat XML list updated every 3 minutes, or there as a regular HTML list that is instantly updated.
Report any problem to [email protected]


If you are not beta-testing the feature, you can join now, by e-mailing [email protected] with these details:

• your site's name
• your site's URL (the par that is powered by b2)
• your e-mail address (if different than the one you used to e-mail this)
• a password

You will then receive an e-mail with your cafelogID. Then follow the steps explained above, and you're in
michel v @ 15:11:01 882
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

If as a new user you've had problems with logging into your b2, please download it again, and replace b2login.php and b2verifauth.php with the new files. I fixed several bugs in them.
michel v @ 19:34:47 065
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

I've just started coding a feature à la blogger.com: a list of recently updated b2-powered blogs.
This will require using v0.6pre or later; though it isn't coded in b2 yet. It will function like the ping to weblogs.com, only it will ping cafelog.com in addition to weblogs.com.

You can participate in pre-launch tests, and join up for when this is available, only by e-mailing [email protected] .

What you must enclose in your e-mail:

• Your site's name and URL
• a password

You'll then receive an e-mail back with your sign-up details.

Because we're important folks, this feature costs $20... no wait, it's free.
michel v @ 23:00:39 208
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

In addition to the HTML entities to Unicode converter, there is now an HTML corrector in b2 (in v0.6pre).
What it does ? Closes all non-closed tags in posts and comments, ensuring that a mistake does not make your whole page italicized, for example.
This balanceTags code is courtesy of Leonard Lin @ http://randomfoo.net - praises to him.
michel v @ 02:20:42 347
7 comments, no trackback, no pingback

It was Bugs' Night last night, as I fixed the last 3 big bugs in b2 v0.6pre.

So if you had problems with these bugs, you're invited to re-download b2 and change the files as explained there.
michel v @ 13:37:23 817
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

b2 v0.6 pre-release version is out !
It's in the /releases folder, as usual.

I've been working hard to fix all the bugs I could, but it's still possible that you stumble on a bug. If you do, please report it in the forum, or e-mail me if it's a security-related bug (which is very unlikely, but you never know...).

This new version features file/image upload, template tags enhancements, lots of speed improvements, an XMLRPC interface implementing the Blogger API, post preview, RSS syndication, and a new spellchecker (since the old one, spellchecker.net, isn't free anymore).
You can "post to the future", by editing the date of the post: the post wouldn't be displayed until it's the right time in your timezone.
You can post through a SideBar (IE5+/NS6+ only), in addition to the regular bookmarklet (bookmarklet now working in IE5 Mac).
Oh, you can also post multiple-pages entries now. And with the new cookie system, you stay logged in for days until you logout (be careful and logout on shared computers though)

Have fun !


UPDATE: just fixed some bugs with the comments. If you downloaded the file already, download it again and replace the file b2template.functions.php in /b2-include - also, add a line to b2config.php that says $comments_notify = 1; if you want to have comments emailed to you.

UPDATE (10:00): bugs fixed, new versions are online: replace b2profile.php, b2login.php and b2register.php with the new ones.
Those who download the file now do not have to apply these fixes.
michel v @ 20:14:13 093
11 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Development is going fine and there's only a thing preventing me from releasing b2's new 0.5.2 version. So I might aswell do a pre-release, while I fix the thing. It's something to do with cookies, it just won't log you back in like it does in CafeLog (for example when I reboot I'm still logged in), so actually you wouldn't notice the change from 0.5.1

How about it ? Anyone interested by a pre-release ?
michel v @ 21:04:39 128
10 comments, no trackback, no pingback

If you look at its specs, the Blogger API doesn't allow a title and a category for the posts. However, when you'll use that with b2, you'll be able to use title and category by typing them with your post: just put <title>your title</title> and <category>your category's ID</category> in the body of your post (at the start or the end, for example), and there you go
michel v @ 14:00:38 833
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

b2 now supports multiple-pages posts, you can try the feature on the test installation there: b2 v0.5.2 public test.
Just register then post away.

Just type <!--nextpage--> to start a new page (except for the first page).
For example:
The quick brown jumped over <!--nextpage--> the lazy dog.
Would make 'the quick brown jumped over' appear on the first page, and 'the lazy dog' appear on a second page.
michel v @ 21:13:01 134
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

This morning I could use Radio Userland 8 to update the b2 test blog, thanks to Radio's new Blogger-Manila Bridge feature. It basically is a mirroring feature to mirror your Radio entries to a Blogger-API compliant blog, such as b2's next version, Blogger (duh!), DruPal...
Now you will be able to use Radio, among other Blogger API clients, to update your b2 blog.

Another blog client that I like is Bloggar, I guess I'll volunteer to translate it in french sometime.

I'm not Asian, but if you are asian check this: ImAzn now offers to install b2 as part of their free hosting package !
michel v @ 15:20:10 889
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I just noticed that SpellChecker.net stopped offering a free banner-supported service. This means there won't be spellchecking in future b2 releases, or I'll have to find an alternative solution. If you know of any solution, please contact me or reply here.
michel v @ 19:31:36 063
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

On a notebook I devised some new XMLRPC methods for b2, that would make more stuff possible, like adding/renaming/deleting categories, listing comments and commenting from another website, etc.
These should be part of the b2 API soon when I have actually implemented them, but I have a bigger idea for them: I'll contact other authors of weblog tools to see if we can come up with a discussion over a standard Weblog API for all our tools, so there wouldn't be specific b2, MoveableType, DruPal, etc kinds of clients, but just one Weblog kind of client for all. A bit like the Blogger API, but with a lot more features, to cater with tools that use titles, categories, comments, and other such things that the Blogger API doesn't cover.

In the meanwhile, I'll be offline for a few days again, and then only will I get back to working on b2.

Happy New Year !

( and like we say in Corsica, Buon Capudannu, è Pace è Salute pè u 2002 ! )
michel v @ 01:34:50 315
11 comments, no trackback, no pingback

The file navigator won't be in b2template.php finally. There's a flaw in some shared webhosting companies, that makes it too easy to use the file navigator to check other people's accounts files and directories. So I'm not including the feature, because even if I added some protection in the script itself, it would be too easy to circumvent.
I'd rather just leave that feature alone.
michel v @ 02:27:14 352
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I've got the beginning of a XMLRPC Blogger API implementation now, for v0.5.2. So far, b2's custom xmlrpc server recognizes the methods blogger.newPost, editPost, deletePost, and getUsersBlogs.
This is enough to already post with BlogBuddy, and some other apps.

b2 will ship with the minimum required for XMLRPC, which is the xmlrpc php classes, a xmlrpc server file, and a xmlrpc demo client that would allow you to test the newPost, editPost, and deletePost methods, and show you how xmlrpc calls work.
(Now if only Ev updated his blogger API pages instead of giving updates on the sole BloggerDev mailing-list, it would make my day.)


UPDATE: Now b2 deals with blogger.getUserInfo, getPost, and getRecentPosts. I think there's only the xmlrpc template calls left to implement, and those should be very straightforward.

UPDATE2: Implemented getTemplate and setTemplate, and this means I'm done with the Blogger API. Started coding some b2-specific methods, like b2.getCategories etc; hopefully someone will make a xmlrpc client that supports category and title, or a standard API will come with these, in such case we'd switch to it right away.
michel v @ 18:31:57 022
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

The image upload function is done. You can specify the type of images to allow (gif, jpg, png, more ?...), their maximum size (but you cannot go over the server's limit), where you want to upload them, which minimum level is required (default is 1) or who has the right to upload (just fill a list).
You'll just have to click a button, that opens a popup where you can choose the file to upload. Then it gives you the IMG code you have to use, and lets you click a button to add the code to your post.
michel v @ 18:38:02 026
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

Following this thread, I quickly modified shock's code to really integrate it in the interface and now we have a working file uploader for v0.5.2, with some options for customisation in the b2config file.
Still needs some final javascript touches to make it output the <img> tag in the form's text, but this shouldn't take so long.
michel v @ 18:50:36 035
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

There's some big change in the template functions, that makes functions like the_content be just gateways to more advanced ones. Let me explain: first we have the_content() which extracts the conent of the post and displays it. The downside for a developer is that if you want to change the way it's displayed, you have to modify it. And if you want several ways to manipulate the data before displaying it, you just can't. Now I made the get_ functions for some functionnalities like title & content: these get_ functions just grab the content, then you can manipulate it as you want: the_content(), for example, now uses get_the_content() and puts html entities then displays it; the_content_unicode() does the same but substitutes with unicode characters.
Basically there is no change for you on the user's side, but if you ever wanted to do advanced stuff with b2, this is a good thing coming your way
michel v @ 19:27:27 060
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

New in 0.5.2: the b2 SideBar - You can now open a little panel on the left of your browser, that works like the bookmarklet. This feature is currently limited to IE5+ and NS6+, since these are the only browsers that have such a capability.
michel v @ 18:27:20 018
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

CaféLog has reached its goal of instant page generation, now that I added comments count, post count, and archive strings in the database. Over two weeks, the time it took to build this page came from 0.350 seconds, to 0.001, and the archive generation is just instant now.

I'm tempted to add those 4 fields to b2's db structure for 0.5.2, it would require just a little update script.
What do you think ? Please comment here.
michel v @ 19:15:24 052
8 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Post preview ? Who needs post preview ? Apparently, a lot of you want that feature in b2. I have thus spent my lunch and dinner hours on it.
Now, who needs a preview that only shows the text of the post in the interface ? That's not really useful. I have thus implemented 'realtime' preview, which shows you the post as it would appear on your default template. Requires javascript though, as it builds the preview in a new window while you can still type in your form freely and re-click the 'preview' button for an updated preview, etc.
Now, I'm going to upload all of this and get back on my hungry stomach's duties.
michel v @ 19:40:05 069
5 comments, no trackback, no pingback

For the upcoming 0.5.2 and CaféLog: added the possibility to display only some categories on your page, or to display all but some of them.

How it works: first line of your blog template, you would add this line: <?php $cat="1and3" ?> to display only categories #1 and #3, or $cat="not2" to display all posts but category #2, or $cat="not2and4" to exclude #2 and #4. Or you can also make that into the querystring, with ?cat=not2and4.
Syntax: put 'and' between two numbers to associate them, and/or 'not' in front of all the string to exclude them.

michel v @ 18:18:49 013
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I was bored with IE's inability to display b2.rss because of &eacute; chocking, so now everything that isn't an usual character gets converted to unicode. What it means, is that the system is now truly multilingual, and the RSS would still validate as good RSS even if you use terribly exotic characters like me and my froggie fellows (frenchies) do.

Edit: OK, I figured IE just wouldn't display it because it didn't have a .xml extension. Of course when I view it with a .xml extension it works fine.
michel v @ 20:13:25 092
5 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Out of the blue, I'll be releasing b2 v0.5.2 tomorrow next friday. It contains all the new stuff that doesn't require database changes, and most of all it contains optimized code, so the pages will be generated way faster (you'll feel a good boost if you have lots of posts).
Also, RSS syndication and the Weblogs.com ping will be there.
(There may even be weekly archives and image uploading if I can squeeze them in.)
michel v @ 01:22:07 307
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

CaféLog now (re)generates an RSS file with your last posts. You can specify how many posts to display, and the name of the file.
Here's the RSS file for this blog: b2.rss
michel v @ 13:29:20 812
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

The good old template editor got some new feature: a file navigator. It lists the files in the current directory, and lets you navigate in other directories. A click on a filename is all it takes to go edit that file. There are settings to allow/disallow the listing/editing of non-writeable files and the config file, and to allow/disallow the navigation in ../ and other directories that are not in the b2 directory.
There is one bug to fix: on Unix, it would tell you that there's an error when you first load it, that's gonna be a trivial bug to fix.
Because it doesn't use much CaféLog-specific code, I will port it to b2 0.5.x as a hack.

Another update is the bookmarklet in IE, which now will look like the one in Mozilla/NS6: Windows IE will use the non-standard 'filter:' thing, while Mac IE will use a transparent PNG image like in Mozilla.
michel v @ 02:45:59 365
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Here's the development log of a XML-RPC interface for b2 !
This feature should be included in CaféLog 1.0, and maybe in b2 0.5.2 (if I release it) in the meanwhile, with the optimized template tags and mysql fixes. You can now view the page-generation time like this http://cafelog.com/?timer=1 (look to the bottom of the page). For info, the previous time was around 0.9 seconds.
michel v @ 20:40:33 111
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

YOU SHOULD APPLY THIS HACK
This is a huge performance increase, aswell as a decrease of the mysql queries. This is also something that comes from the upcoming next version, but has been backported. (thanks to Chris for the beta-testing and help on debugging).

So GO THERE and follow the instructions.
michel v @ 23:17:13 220
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

...Anyone out there know of any free web page hosts that offer php? If so send the links to [email protected] please.
Athena @ 23:09:29 214
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I've found a very simple way to do less mysql queries and speed up the page creation time by 40%. It just caches the results for get_userdata() so that we do not ask for an user's data if it's already been searched earlier; and it can be applied to other functions.
For those of you who have tons of visitors per day, it will put a little less load on your server (not that it put a lot already, but still good to see it lower than higher).
It will be released as a hack for now, then included in the next release.
michel v @ 12:48:02 783
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Here for you, in the /releases folder, the b2 converters, compressed as usual in 4 formats so you can pick your own.

Right now there are 'only' GreyMatter and Blogger converter scripts, but I plan on making NewsPro and MovableType converters as soon as I have these two installed and figured how they store the data.

How to use the converter ?
Download, unzip/rar/tar, upload it to your b2 folder, and call it. You only have to follow the instructions given there.
michel v @ 20:21:21 098
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I started coding the Glossary feature, also known as 'Friendly links' on BigBlogTool. This would allow you to specify search-and-replace words, for example to make a link to your friend Mike whenever you type Mike in the post, or to put <!--more--> when you type [more], etc. I'll try to make it possible for Perl regular expressions to be allowed, so the possibilities would be endless (would allow for example [[361]] to be changed to a link to post #361, or to use GreyMatter's underline and bold formatting if you're an user of GM and are used to this feature).
Any suggestion is welcome.
michel v @ 19:54:19 079
8 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Just to let you know that I've finished coding the CaféLog's powered photoalbum and sent it to Michel for quality control and bug hunting. After that the stand-alone version will be released. As for integration with current CaféLog.com structure, it's up to Michel to decide if he'll do it now or wait for CaféLog's next release.

If you don't have a clue about what I'm talking about, read my last post.

Off-topic request: Michel, it would be nice to have a function that would turn post_ids like [[361]] into this: Post title.
Ricardo @ 22:33:22 189
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Cafélog powered photoalbum
http://anamexedo.com/galeria/
It's up and working. No database changes, no new functions (except for a drop-down titles menu).
There's also an upload utility that uploads a thumbnail and a big picture and then blogs them, similar to the one in Greymatter.
There will be a different version for uploading a single picture and blog it, for a photoblog for instance.
So far everything works fine except for the escaping backslashes...
Ricardo @ 02:57:25 373
7 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Little status report: improved some template functions with some more optional arguments, coded an highlight search feature, and of course fixed the bug that prevented posting (now that was a stupid bug) (and there'll be javascript redirects from now on, and the user will also be able to choose whether or not s/he wants a popup box to confirm that they post, but hardly a little part of it is implemented yet, wow that's a long parenthesis there). Ian shall see the post title field back to the far left and rejoice, but it was back there a mere 10 days ago and I was too busy/worried to upload the newest files.
Oh, and a new design is on its way !
michel v @ 18:39:46 027
7 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Querystring+archive improvements:

1. m= : I extended the m= behaviour. This is how it will work: when you'll put m=2001, it will search for all posts of 2001, then when you put m=200106 it will search for every post made in June, m=20010606 will search for posts on the 6th of June, then if you search for 2001060600 it will display posts made on that day, between midnight and 1h in the morning (12AM and 1AM, for you AM/PM people out there), then if you want you can ask for m=200106060041 for posts made at 00:41, and then finally, if you're really blunt, you can add two more digits and search for the seconds. How's that for precision ?


2. w= : New, the week pointer. You can link to posts made a specific week, between 1 and 53 (because there can be a start of a 53th week in the year). You would have to use the m= argument too, for example it could look like this: b2.php?m=2001&w=1, for posts of the 1st week of this year.


3. weekly archives are on their way, thanks to the w= argument. I have plans for a totally configurable thing, you could have "10/22/2001 to Oct 28 2001" for example: there would be three boxes: the first is a date format box for the first part, the second would be the separator (here: "to"), and the third would be another date format box. You could of course leave one of them blank, and use "week of " as the separator, and "M jS" as the second date format, to have "week of Oct 22nd" as the archive link. That leaves some possibilities to you, doesn't it ?

michel v @ 20:54:37 121
15 comments, no trackback, no pingback

In reference to Ricardo's Javascript fix for OS X on the bookmarklet thing: it doesn't work, and isn't supposed to work in the first place. I don't know what the problem is but one of the guys at the ADC told me that IE doesn't support this JavaScript too well. Maybe it's because I have the beta.

Anyway, his suggested fix was similar to the one I sent to Michel, however it also doesn't work too well... I sent an e-mail to Microsoft. We'll see.
ian @ 08:06:02 587
6 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I wonder if this should be considered, but how about a pop-up window for the post navigation system? It does seem an interesting prospect because you save some loading times, and you need not be bothered by the constraints of having to scroll to the top or bottom.
ian @ 08:32:52 564
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I'm introducing some user-specific preferences in the profile window, as well as the default behaviour of hiding inactive users on the team page, and pretty soon the e-mail notification of comments. Lots of things have been changed/added in the database and I can now say that technically, the multi-blog objective has been reached, and what you are reading now is just blog #1 on the database. I could add a second blog in the same database, the posts would share the $tableposts, the users would be the same but their levels might be different, etc. More later.

On a bright note, Ricardo offered a nice b2-powered site to his girlfriend Ana for her birthday, so go there and wish her a happy birthday !
(yeah I know I'm a bit late...)

[ edit: oh by the way, there are cookies now, so you won't need to go login everytime you use b2 - you'll just have to remember to logout when using a shared computer ]
michel v @ 20:01:16 042
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Maybe you're noticing a little improvement in loading-speed here. Now b2 has got GZip compression on browsers that support it (recent IE, Netscape 6, and surely others...). I usually always use GZip compression in my php script but fantastically forgot it for b2, so there it's fixed. In the works is a mini file-navigator for the template editor page. It would explore the b2 folder and its subdirectories and list only writeable files, with their size and last modification date. While you're navigating the editor's box is hidden, and when you click on a file's name it opens it for editing in the template editor's box. There are issues with coding that script if I want it to work on every platform, that's why it's not ready yet.
michel v @ 03:07:15 338
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

This is a test for the upcoming multipage feature.
(more...)
1 2 3

michel v @ 13:42:10 779
7 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Ian, I don't really see the problem you're telling us about... Is_writeable() is the perfect function for that kind of check, and I just installed a fresh b2 on a folder in tidakada.com and could update the templates just fine...
michel v @ 00:36:07 233
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

There was a glitch and the template tag the_ID() wasn't in the distro. It just got included, aswell as the tag permalink_single() that makes a link to a post, long version, with comments.

For those with already running b2s, check that minor fix in the config file, to fix a sunday problem on the tag the_weekday().
Instead of re-downloading b2, you can copy and paste the new code of b2template.functions.php, there.
michel v @ 22:16:14 136
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

A quick note to people who may have / plan to download the new release to make a backup copy of there main page or there index.php because i believe there may be a major bug in the template editor that may cause deletion of your files. (happened 3 times to me)
Maz @ 06:15:34 469
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Let's feast and rejoice, for the elusive b2 v0.5.1 is there for you to download !

In the same time, I put a that releases folder up so I (and consequently you) wouldn't have to update all the outside links to b2 releases. It features even b2 v0.1, you can test it for fun, this version was not even public, I don't remember if it actually had the option to edit the posts, or if it had comments. I know it lacks a big thing, but don't remember. I'm sorry that I had to pull back the files 2 hours ago, but I didn't want even 1 or 2 of you to have these bugs that I spotted.

The updated release also includes the fixed GM-2-b2 importer script, that imports your GreyMatter blog: the posts, the extended entries, the users, and the comments on the posts are imported. You can see an example of a successful GM-2-b2 import there on gidgetx.com.
michel v @ 03:06:41 337
7 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I pulled the new v0.5.1 released files off the site for the time being, there are two nasty bugs that I've got to fix and I don't know when I'll be done with them. Sorry folks, come back in an hour or two.
michel v @ 00:37:53 234
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Done tonight:

• Added a file b2edit.form.php that is the common form for posting/editing entries and editing comments. Makes b2edit.php shrink from 12KB to 7KB, woohoo.


• Added functions format_to_post() and format_to_edit() for clearer code.


• Corrected some more bugs in the comments thing.


• Added quicktags buttons, an authorized adaptation of subBlue's BBcode panel for phpBB2.

michel v @ 03:23:43 349
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

OK, I slept a lot this weekend and thus couldn't polish 0.5.1 enough for a release.
BUT there's a nightly release ! It's a package I made last night for someone who wanted to test the pre-release.

So here goes b2-20011008 in 3 formats, pick your own:
zip - tar.gz - tar.bz2

This package is more functionnal than the last one, its template system has been brought back to v0.5 functions, only improved behind the scenes. The only change is in the behaviour of the tag comments_number(), it's documented in the readme.
You can install this version now, and then change for the final one that's coming this week, it would only be a matter of re-uploading new files.
The final one shall include the GreyMatter importer, and the bookmarklets for as many different javascript-enabled browsers as possible.
michel v @ 22:40:33 153
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

Important bugfix on v0.5 : if you downloaded b2-v0.5-20011005, and found a problem with numerous slashes in your post, either re-download it and change your b2templates.functions.php file, or follow these steps:

Open b2templates.function.php in a text editor, and look for line #135. Replace this line:
echo $postdata["Content"];
with this one:
echo stripslashes($postdata["Content"]);
And that's it, no more extra slashes.
michel v @ 02:08:21 297
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Quick simple addon/fix: added a link to the poster's profile in b2edit so you don't have to go to the Team section for it. Will re-add a My Profile popup in the menu, and polish the Team section.
michel v @ 01:38:37 276
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I fixed some updated versions of the template tags in 0.5.1 so it wouldn't cause errors in your existing pre-0.5.1 templates.
The readme has been updated too, and I'll freeze code landings tonight, leaving only fixes, which means there should be a 0.5.1 release sometime this weekend (for me 'weekend' is sunday+monday).
michel v @ 20:08:58 047
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Surprise, the GM 2 b2 importer script is finished ! You can find more about it, and apply to beta test it here.
When the beta test phase is over, it'll be downloadable on this page.

Here's another surprise: click this link: (more...)
michel v @ 13:15:40 760
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

There's now a beta of the little posts' navigator, it has basic functionnality. It brought a bug though: when it's not called, ie at first loading of b2edit.php, it would show ALL the entries since the beginning, which I've tried to fix all the evening to no avail. That kind of bug prevents me from releasing it tonight... Also the UI of it isn't even worked on at the moment, so it looks über weird.

I also just loaded b2 in IE 5, and wow what a mess the Post table is. It's supposed to stretch to the borders, like it does in Mozilla and Opera ! Ah, the burden of testing on standards-compliant things and having to cope with non-standard shit ! I will look into that more seriously now.
michel v @ 01:29:21 270
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I'm currently writing a paper on what I would expect a good blogging system to work with, so as to help Michel get a framework to model b3 on. That is, of course, purely my opinion, and you may or may not use it...

In the works also: a Perl implementation to most current posts on a b2 weblog. I'm not too sure on how to access the raw PHP code functions, though, but I'll try.
ian @ 15:46:48 865
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

I toyed around with the UI, template-functions, and categories stuff.

Added some browser recognition so some CSS wouldn't display on Netscape 4, added custom weekdays in the template functions, and started coding a little posts' navigator bar. Also the team listing now has two lists: Active users, and Inactive users; inactive users are those whose level is still zero. Categories are now deleteable; and when you delete a category, all posts under that category go back to the default one.

That's all for b2's idle development. b2's successor, which has yet to have a name, is in the works as you may know if you visit the forums. Go check the 'b3' section for more info.
michel v @ 19:03:10 002
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I'm playing with b2's UI at the moment, so if it looks weird to you, do not worry. I've cut down the huge CSS needs and accomodated the coding with Netscape 4's capricious behaviour.
michel v @ 19:40:28 028
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I have been working on some hacks for b2, unfortunately, the ftp server is down. I can't seem to do anything if at all on FTP.

Therefore I can't test any b2 stuff.
ian @ 14:46:50 824
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

the tarballed version of b2 (aka b2unix, identified by the installers) is available here.

any problems with the installers, or any other files that have not been compressed? report them to me.

by the way, if your installation has been interrupted, read the installer readme.

and final warning: any installer related stuff mentioned here is only for a unix command line interface. your webserver must also run on unix! take note!
ian @ 09:23:23 599
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I still think this page is best for updates on b2's development, and i shall go into detail about b2mac on basic. there's some problems here. well, i could access this page on the mac client, but i have problems with http transfers onto a page formatting. and honestly i haven't thought up about the posts gui yet.
ian @ 18:06:50 963
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I finally have a real suggestion. How about the ability to have it sendmail to an email address when comments and/or posts are made? I had a couple people comment on one of my entries and I completely missed them until today (And Ian - check out the bottom of my pages now... hehe)
travis @ 03:13:51 342
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

I've started work on the port's UI, and I would really appreciate spiffy icons. socket connection will be done next, like

socket.connect=pushbutton.1
socket.connect.address="http://b2.dayzero.org"

all i want is some c coder to do the unix version. i really would appreciate that.
ian @ 19:14:08 009
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Other suggestions include things like idle deletion of users (users automatically deleted when not blogging for, say, one month). Michel, maybe, maybe it's about time to disable people from registering on this site and making test posts (so they can do tests on the designated site).
ian @ 16:43:37 905
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Ah yes. But other options for a Team page include things like pop-ups. That will not hinder the UI at all, I suppose, and it is time to reorganise the different elements on the Post & Edit page.

Michel, like I said, you should create filters to delete test posts (and even demote users who do so).
ian @ 16:38:34 901
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I'll also move the team listing back in a Team page, because when you get 80+ users it slows down the display of the main admin page.
michel v @ 16:28:26 894
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I'm astounded that no one has suggested the complete removal of users by the admin (only). the other day someone signed up at my blog (i forgot to remove the b2signup.html file, apparently) and i couldn't delete him, which is why i asked you, michel, to run b2install.php on my server.

the other thing is changing the options to make b2signup.html REDUNDANT by default, otherwise people who you do not want to be part of your blog will be part of your users (as level 0, of course)! oh well.

yet another thing: the admin should have a setting to sort users by level, alphabetical order and date (joined). it's very much easier for community blogging.
ian @ 19:02:40 001
4 comments, no trackback, no pingback

something that i'd like to see: the filtering of rubbishy stuff like the last post (michel's note: last post has been erased), and possibly removal of vulgarities (suitable for community blogging, and is of course optional.)

on the b2 installer: i'll work on it monday when i'm on the laptop because my laptop is with my uncle.

i'll also do installers for mac users, because applescript is easy. michel, would it be possible if you could send me a list of files for the new versions of b2 so i could tweak the installers somewhat? i would appreciate some framework that would update the two .netrc files for installation and uninstallation.
ian @ 13:40:39 778
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

It is official, then, that the installers will only be included in the unix version of b2. by the way, since the b2 package isn't insanely large, i will either tar or gzip it, depending on the conditions.


i've decided to recode the installers because complications caused my file to disappear. on that pimping thing, well, i don't quite get you, it, i suppose it's the exchange of links, which is probably unnecessary, link us if you want to, if you don't, never mind. i suppose that's how michel likes it.
ian @ 17:32:01 938
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

This script looks and 'feels' great. I'd be happy to pimp it on my website (going to have a php section with my php scripts, I could pimp yours there!)
Email me or ICQ104346190 if your interested... regards
it @ 11:41:24 695
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

I have been put in charge of gzipping the b2 files, as well as the installer. There have been no plans to include the installer within the Win32 installer, and it is questionable for the UNIX version, whether the patch should be done.

If anyone wishes for the UNIX installers for b2 to be included for the UNIX version of b2, you should post here, otherwise if you think that there is no need to do so, tell me also.
ian @ 08:01:42 542
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

If I can guess what you're thinking, webdean, b2 already has subject heading posting, which I use on my weblog, and I'll give you the code snippet. Hold.

You can read it at the b2 readme, it's all in there. About lead-ins, which I think I know what you mean, will probably be part of the next version since you asked and Michel is always obliging.
ian @ 05:55:35 455
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Okay, the b2 installer is done, with a little more functionality than what i had wished for.

see here. i am no good at regurgitating posts, i am sorry. download from here. the readme is here. michel should personally change my damn readme. it is too longwinded.
ian @ 16:15:43 885
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

The installer is almost ready, and will be ready for download as soon as i've finished testin it on b2 0.5.
ian @ 08:37:31 567
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Released b2 v0.5 tonight. It features: less files, more functionnality: categories, template editing, and now the possibility to have several b2 in a single database. It also features the green&yellow summer UI
Oh, the ReadMe file is now an html file, just so it looks better. You can also find it online here.
michel v @ 21:10:36 090
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

I have done the b2 installers. They should work, no syntax errors, all i need now is to test it for real and see if it really works. It should.

If it does, I'll have to redo the Readme. Oh goodnight. it is late. i have to sleep. 2.32am.
ian @ 20:31:45 063
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Screw cookies, they won't work yet and I won't spend ten days on them just for a release.
The double-post thing is likely a bug from the browser. It should not keep the POST data in memory after a header() command, but it seems yours does.
michel v @ 19:39:53 027
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

michel, I need the 0.5 version of the files so i can create the necessary installer files for b2... unfortunately, this shell script version works only for darwin (haven't tested it on any other operating system), but the syntax is universal in all operating systems.
ian @ 17:25:09 934
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Since I postponed v0.5 so many times, I guess I'm entitled to postpone it again. The reason this time is a new cookie login system that I started coding. It's already functional on test pages, meaning it leaves a cookie in your browser and when you come back even two days later you're still logged in. Now I'll integrate it into b2, replacing the cumbersome php sessions system.
michel v @ 12:41:01 736
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

With my new-found knowledge of shellscripts, i'm currently creating a shell script that will upload b2 files and run b2install.php automatically...

Then again, I have no idea how to put in a ftp login command with both login and password on the same line. It'd probably be better that way, and the shell overwrites error codes (!) on a errorlog generated with cat -- I reckon that by adding a '<', the problem can be solved.

Long post.
ian @ 15:08:40 839
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

hey, michel, nice ui! i mean that it's better than the previous one.

i think you should have made a changelog or something, and i'll make a little shell script which will install your b2 files automatically, which i hope will work.
ian @ 08:56:28 580
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

You must be reading in my mind. Yesterday I coded a little dropdown_categories() template function, and I didn't test it yet. There I go, it works perfectly. There shall also be list_categories(), for those who don't want a dropdown menu.

About the license, there's still a copyright thing because b2 doesn't have a particular license upon it. Suffice to say that for the moment I don't really care if you use parts of my code or not, as long as you give me credits for it. And to clear things: opensource doesn't mean no-copyright, it just means that the end-user is allowed to view the source and change it as desired. b2 isn't released under the GPL yet.
michel v @ 13:22:59 765
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Added a page to edit your template (at last !), and/or to edit any file in your directory, provided it's writable by the webserver.
Still need a v0.5 installer/updater all-in-one file.
michel v @ 19:39:46 027
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

another much needed feature is the requirement of more than one category of posting, up to three is my recommendation.

i would like to ask you some questions about the blogging ui, so i could contribute to you a ui design for b2, and my room is filled with little stick it ons about good and bad ui. aaaah.

it's absolutely difficult to do a preferences window in realbasic, really, and i can't get it to change to a different server.
ian @ 16:57:15 914
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

A much needed feature: added editable table-names. So the next release will make it possible to install multiple b2's in a single database.
michel v @ 00:40:22 236
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

b2mac successor's ui.

i'll start work on the new b2mac's ui today because it's almost impossible to do any realbasic project without designing the user interface first.

i'll adopt the eudora (mac, the windows version ui is horrible) ui, which is one of my favourites. and then start coding.
ian @ 09:38:04 609
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

I would like to explain why I did not publicly release the seven b2mac versions. I think Michel already knows why, and I would like to repeat it again.

I had infringed on Microsoft's browsing engine. I had the help of a code stripper. I know what I did was WRONG, but I managed not to spread this software around the net to save myself from a lawsuit.

Which is why. Conscience is bearing on me, after slamming M$ for infringing on Apple's to-be-copyright many years ago, I myself am copying code from its source.

For your information, dmoz.org uses RDFs for its search directory, which I find (after examining the structure) pretty useful for b2 if it wants to break into the bigboy weblogging software thing.
ian @ 16:41:56 904
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Why don't we rename the variable "withcomments" to something smaller, since it's being displayed in every URL of the weblog? Something like "c" (for comments) would make the URL much smaller and usable - easier to write, to send through email and so forth...
verbosus @ 13:12:48 758
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Does fulltext support boolean? I think search engines were built for boolean capabilities. I will try it out myself.

Update: i think it does. i tried it. but again, that four word limitation thing is a little too much for the average user to stand.
ian @ 08:30:12 562
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Yup, forgot to mention I added MySQL FullText indexing & searching. And it works: it just doesn't search for words shorter than 4 letters, and will consider any word that appears in each and every entry as a 'stopword', meaning it won't display any result in these 2 cases.
The two kinds of search coexist peacefully in the blog.header file, so no need to choose between one & the other.

Actually the most difficult task for b2 v0.5 will be to make a new ReadMe and some additionnal ReadMe's for installing and templating b2. The original ReadMe is way too long.
michel v @ 18:18:28 971
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

fulltext search doesn't seem to be working here, and there's no 'no entries found' page, which shouldn't be. and the search and fulltext searches -- just remember to take out one in the final release.
ian @ 17:30:38 937
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

There's a bug in editing. Not really annoying, unless you're on a roll on editing archived posts. The edit function shouldn't redirect to the main b2edit page, but to the archive page.

Update: there WAS a bug. It's fixed now.
admin @ 12:47:35 741
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

New in b2-devel: categories, and a revamped UI. The navbar still looks weird, haven't worked on it yet.
michel v @ 18:59:46 999
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

You will flame me if you see the mess I made with autobr and post editing ! Still trying out some workarounds to a bug in PHP replace functions...

Edit: Got the whole AutoBR mess fixed !
Now even (poor Mac user) Ian will experience it. (oh did I say something about Macs ?)
michel v @ 23:19:45 180
2 comments, no trackback, no pingback

Fixed the most stupid bug in ages: b2 ignored $time_difference because it wasn't set by the b2header file anymore. Ah, the consequences of fusionning files...
By the way, the admin e-mail bug seems to be fixed now.
michel v @ 12:56:31 747
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Another UI-fix in the release: no My Profile section anymore, just click on your login name in the list and there you can edit your profile.

By the way Ian & Mira/Lexi, you don't need to download the new versions for your accounts, I'll be uploading every (stable) code change.
michel v @ 12:35:59 733
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

New Post&Edit UI, new profile popup windows, database changes...

Equal a release !

Go download b2 v0.4.
michel v @ 22:17:25 137
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Tonight I will be beginning a project on what might be the turning point for b2: a brand new UI.

I'm going to base this on the various UI laws to ensure the best user experience. I'm not saying that you should adopt this in future versions, Michel, it's just a suggestion, and it is almost certainly going to be used for the UI for my b2 control panel.

One of the changes I would absolutely love is the scrapping of the 'team' section: meaning that you incorporate it directly in the post&edit section. The main reason is because the recent posts thing is actually hogging the whole width of the page -- not exactly what i would call 'nice' and 'friendly'.

It'll be in a box next to the recent posts column, and when you click on your own username, you'll be given the option to change your profile. This is in compliance (as always) with one of the most basic UI laws: less clicks, not too much clutter.


If I could have my way I would suggest Blogger-style calendar-based post searching -- which I don't use pretty often, but other users might find it useful.

And then, next to the 'logout' link, i would suggest a search box. this will open a pop-up window with searches for posts. Mind you, this is a suggestion.

Don't remove the top b2bar though, it's wonderful: in fact, one of the advantages b2 holds over greymatter. Blogger looks too Windows-ly, and you're forgetting about the 5% of Mac users on Earth, and that increasing share from new Mac users (and Mac OS X).

Categories are also nice. I'd really like categories, though, it is a kind of filter so your readers can read your posts according to a certain genre -- something that mysql does extremely well, i hear.

Finally, when you click Blog this!, there shouldn't be a redirect page. Instead, you should be redirected immediately to the post&edit page, with red text next to the bold words indicating that your post has been successfully done -- still in compliance with the ui laws.
ian @ 17:29:25 937
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

MySQL FullText Search shall be used in b2 v0.5, next week. This kind of search function goes beyond the simple LIKE statements... but will require a database-update script.

Comment, comments: just thought about a template tag for the word "comments", that would take 3 states: 0, 1, or more comments, with an user-defined text for each state.
Besides, even cool weblogs got the "1 comments" flaw, heh
michel v @ 23:33:07 189
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Took 15 files and made them 5 files. Woohoo, much less clutter.
michel v @ 18:59:06 999
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

While dayzero.org was unavailable (), I have been doing my homework as well. Since I am not such a great Unix programmer, and shell scripts are easier to learn, I'm going to help develop a b2 shell script.

It's going to be kinda manual, I think. hmm.
ian @ 12:03:21 710
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

While dayzero.org was unavailable, I've been working on a textfile version of b2. It started pretty well, and then I started joining the text & MySQL versions into one, which requires just some modularity in the code. At least that's what I thought, since it's actually a bit harder. Anyway, there WILL be a textfile-based b2.
michel v @ 23:25:07 184
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

b2mac update: 3 UI fixes. I managed to get the buttons positioned correctly as instructed by the Aqua UI Guidelines; still can only connect to b2 on this dayzero.org server (it seems to be the only current version of b2 running here).

Some other b2 security fixes resolved as well, which I won't go into further detail...
ian @ 18:41:48 987
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

There, no more b2edit.post.php and other extra files, all the edition is now nested in b2edit.php only.
(Edited: there's a new stupid bug in deleting comments, should be fixed tonight)
michel v @ 12:51:25 744
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Check the new Post/Edit interface, now with comments' editing function. Also, the search function was incredibly easy to do. You'll see a little search box here in the next hour.
michel v @ 19:02:37 001
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Oh in case it wasn't specified, you can code different templates for a single blog, to have different styles, or to cope with different browsers. Here's this b2 test-blog in the original style, and here's a simple style I just coded in a hurry to test the new date & time template tags. These news tags have optional custom time formatting, so you can have different time formats on different templates.
michel v @ 20:01:50 042
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Released: b2 v0.3. New features include a spellchecker, an improved interface, an offline blogthis! page, some new template tags, comment fields saved in a cookie, more options for date formatting.
michel v @ 23:30:24 187
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

b2mac is at 0.1beta and now has support for spell check as a Cocoa application.

Other refinements include some stupid errors in code, and very soon b2mac will be able to run on any copy of b2 in this world, not just the one on this server. So there.

I won't be releasing the distro version, though, because I figure no one is going to use b2mac (pc freaks) except for me. Another feature worth considering is the automatic installation of b2 (including the chmod-ing) to the ftp server with a user and a pass.
ian @ 04:41:19 403
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

okay michel, allays my fears. tonight i'll get apache running so i can test this b2 thing, yeah.

right now the status of the b2mac app is very very bad. it keeps giving my mac kernel panics and i find it hard to connect to the b2 interface, as well as make changes for this updated b2. so there.

i'm posting from b2mac, but i'm not sure if it's going to come out right.
ian @ 17:00:29 917
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Just coded something that lets the super-admin (level 10) modify the date of posts.
admin @ 13:37:53 776
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Front page nonsense: fixed.
Level 0/1: already fixed here, there's an option in the config file to enable new users to post once they registered. Oh, I've set it on here, so if you're not registered yet, you can have a go and test
SpellCheck button: fixed, along with tab order. Now you just type something in the edit box, and hit tab and enter/return to blog it.
michel v @ 12:23:59 724
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Hahaha funny funny, Michel. I'm thinking of creating a Mac OS X client version of b2 so you don't have to connect to the website to login.

I currently have a little beta over 3 hours of programming, but it simply connects to this b2 server, and not another where b2 is installed. i'll get a few plugins for that.

if i can figure out how the dockling works, i can also put a little shortcut on the dock thing.

another thing: b2 caused server kernel panics on os x. Uh-oh.
ian @ 07:38:46 526
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

[Wen I was in the thirst grade, my teacher send I kudo spill Verdi well.]
Some replacement words are weird...

Anyway, it'll make its way into the next release. Tonight I'm setting up a CVS on SourceForge so you can check the changes directly, and download the latest files, between the future releases. (I'm just waiting for their approval actually)
michel v @ 18:43:53 988
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

The new spellchecker says "blog" isn't correct in English, and proposes the following words instead: bog, log, belong, oblong, long, bogs, bogy, bong, loge, logo, logs, logy, belongs, biltong, blowgun.
Oh I can replace "Type your blog here" by "Type your blowgun here". Neat.
michel v @ 18:05:54 962
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

Just updated the zip file to fix the nasty bug in the comments.
If you have already downloaded b2, then open the file b2template.functions.php, look for these lines:
function comment_time() {
global $id,$postdata;
Replace the second line with:
global $commentdata;

This is an error that got fixed a while ago but came back mysteriously...

michel v @ 12:52:15 744
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

Just cleaned some old bugs, added the 'post title' functionnality, made an install script for the database operations, and wrote a ReadMe file.

What does this mean ? --> First release !
Go download, test it, and tell me how you like it !
michel v @ 22:53:19 162
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

I've been an ass. No changes in the code for days, because paid work had taken all my time. Sorry guys.
First thing to do now is to separate the engine of the blog and the blog itself: right now everything is in the root directory, and that sucks terribly. It'd be more convenient to have the b2 files tidied in a /b2 directory and then the normal template file for the blog in any directory. When that is done, there'll be a first beta release.
Anyway, weither it'll be done by then or not, my personal blog will be powered by b2, from next monday.
michel v @ 12:51:46 744
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

Comments are working. Now got to code something to delete comments.
michel v @ 00:12:01 216
3 comments, no trackback, no pingback

As I was quietly eating pasta for lunch, a bunch of code passed through my mind and I coded a comment system.
There's just an annoying bug, MySQL won't store the comments yet, and I've still got to find out why.
michel v @ 20:47:35 074
1 comment, no trackback, no pingback

Mariah I'm an evil tester !
News from the front: fixed very annoying bugs in Options and settings that mysteriously wouldn't update. Made a little archive system: at the moment it does only monthly archives or post-by-post archives (in which case it looks for each post's title: if it doesn't find one, it puts the ID number of the post).
michel v @ 02:00:51 292
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Just made the changes I was announcing in the menu at the top. It's now calling a text file with the list of the modules like this: the minimum level required by the module, the URL of the module, and the title of the module. For example: 1 edit.php Post/Edit.

Fixed a bug in the Edit mode that added extra line-breaks when you edited a post with AutoBR set On.

Worked on the Options section.
michel v @ 18:46:38 990
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Fixed this bug: when you edit a post, now it doesn't converts html special chars anymore. Ie, & and &amp; can be distinguished (very handy when showing source code).

Also, added a box for AutoBR on a per-post basis.

And now users can choose what to display on the blog: their login, nickname, name, first name, or last name. (here the default is set to "nickname")
michel v @ 12:29:38 728
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Templating's completed for the features already present.
Phew, it was way easier than I thought !
michel v @ 13:52:14 786
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Working on template functions at the moment. Some are working right now, for example to display the post's author and the time, it's:

<b><? the_author($id) ?></b>

 @ <? the_time($id) ?>

michel v @ 12:56:54 747
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Today I've worked on search-engine friendly URLs for the archives, but it seems most stuff can be done only with some Apache configuration, something most potential users wouldn't be allowed to do on their servers... Anyway I'm not giving up on this.
Also, some template routines are showing, and that's a big thing to do to make templates customizable by Joe Newbie. I don't want to have these horrible things you can see on GreyMatter...
Tomorrow there might be a zip with a simple template, but it won't be the definitive template.
Some stuff in the Options and the Profile areas have been done but not uploaded yet.

And I'm going to bed ! Phew.
michel v @ 02:41:17 320
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

Made little improvements, started a little fake template system (instead of Blogger-style tags, there'll be short PHP bits to place).
admin @ 21:17:13 095
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

It is now possible to edit posts and to set your timezone (actually you set the difference between your timezone and your server's, in my case it's +6).
michel v @ 05:06:51 421
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

If you found yourself registering and logging in, just to see you can't post yet, it's normal: you can't post until an admin raises your "level".
Just so you know, there'll 4 different levels of users: New members who are waiting for an admin to approve them as Posters, who may become Admins thanks to a promotion from the highest Admin. (phew)
And if you've seen how this works and want to cheat with some forged querystring, I'll spare you the effort of it: it's secured so you can't do that.
admin @ 19:22:53 015
no comment, no trackback, no pingback

So, we got AutoBR working (something that acts like Blogger's function to add a
everytime you type a new line), and deleting functions working.

Now I got to make it possible to edit posts...

michel v @ 18:38:34 985
no comment, no trackback, no pingback