Media-Tags 3.0 plugin for WordPress Released

I’m proud to say I’ve finally released Media-Tags 3.0 to the general public and it is available via the WordPress plugin repository http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/media-tags/. Thanks to all who contributed ideas, bug reports and support in this milestone development. And my apologies for taking so long to get this out.

This plugin contains many new features. Some highlighted items are:

• Bulk Administration of media items This feature on both the Media > Library and Media Upload popup for the Post admin screen allow you to assign/remove Media-Tags to a selected group of media items. In previous versions you would need to edit each media item.
• Roles management Under the Media-Tags Settings panel is a new Roles management panel. This panel allows you to fine tune the access by individual users.
• Internationalization This is a much needed and requested features. Now all text handled by the plugin are using the WordPress i18n hooks to support translation into other languages.
• Removed over 1000 lines of custom code This old code was used to provide basic functionality for the tagging and URL rewrites. Since WordPress core functions have progressed over the last two years this custom code is no longer needed. This means the plugin will run cleaner and is more stable than previous releases.
• Better support for WordPress standard Taxonomy templates In the past the plugin has supported a custom theme template, mediatag.php. The plugin now support the more standard WordPress templates taxonomy-media-tags.php.
• A new Help section This new Help section provides many topics from general use to shortcodes tricks to template files support questions. Check it out.
• Many other features have been added. Too many to mention here.

Please leave all comments on the Media-Tags project page.

Media Tags 2.0 Beta

Today I’d like to release the first public beta of the Media Tags plugin. This is an exciting change and almost complete rewrite to the core plugin code.

For anyone downloading this beta please be aware this is a beta version and subject to change in the near future. Also since this is a beta it is recommended NOT to use this on a production system. User beware! If you do download the plugin and test if please using the comment form below to mention any issue you have with the new plugin. I can only test thing to a certain level with my own client sites.

This new beta has been tested on WordPress versions 2.7.1 and 2.8 only! At this time I’ve not tested the new Media-Tags Management interface on any lower version of WordPress.

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Which type of programmer are you?

Had some free time this afternoon after killing bugs and playing some Half-Life 2 (Episode 2). So I fired up my FireFox browser and was clicking the StumbleUpon toolbar. Hitting page after page I can across two interesting pages that affected me directly since they were tied to the discipline of programming.

I’ve been a developer for almost 20 years. From the dark ages in the early 1990s as an application developer on Windows (C/C++), Unix (SCO, HPUX, Linux, Sun, Mainframe). To the Web world from the late 1990s forward, I think I’ve seen all the characters mentioned.

Question for you the reader is which one do you identify with?

10 types of programmers you’ll encounter in the field

PHP Function Index new release

One of my favorite OS X utilities has just been update. I was lucky enough to find this tool just a few days after converting from being a long time Windows user to the Mac platform.

Being a web developer and using primarily PHP as my language of choice I had at my disposal a few desktop tools to assist in my development. I mostly used UltraEdit as my editor for PHP code on Windows. Along with the PHP compiled Help files for looking up PHP functions I couldn’t recall off the top of my head. On the Mac the support for compiled help (.chm) barely there. Sure there are a few chm viewers like Chamonix and Chmox. What is lacking however in these utilities for Mac is the display of comments. Sometime it’s the user comments that make all the difference when using a new PHP function or library.

Somehow I came across a link to the ARTisSoftware site. I don’t really remember. I just know I’ve used the little PHP function index ever since.

It comes with a script to use as part of BBEdit. Once installed I just move my cursor to a word to lookup. Then invoke the tool via alt-apple-period. The PHPfi window will open to the listing for the given PHP function I’m interested in. PHPfi also comes with a similar script to be invoked from TextMate. The index is built from the PHP HTML help files you download from php.net. Just unzip them into a folder on your mac. Then tell PHPfi to build the index.

What I would like to see is this engine used for other languages like Ruby or even some common tool like WordPress. Still given it works very well for PHP I consider it a steal for $8.50.

So give it a try. PHPfi version 2.1 is the latest. http://www.artissoftware.com/phpfi/

On vacation for the last week of the year

Lucky me. Mindshare closes the office doors for the last week of the year. This on top of getting two weeks vacation to take during the year. What a fantastic company to work for. So this week I’m off and getting bored. Sondra’s family came to town and celebrated Christmas. It was short and sweet. They have all left now and Sondra has gone back to work. So for th emost part I’m on my own during the day. Her mom is also home. so I try and spend my time doing things. At the moment I’m sitting at Mozart’s Coffer house on Lake Austin Blvd. http://www.mozartscoffee.com/. I took a turn walking around Town Lake trying to drop some weight for the new year and before we go on our cruise in Jan. 2007.

I have some projects I’m trying to work on. I’ve changed the theme on this site. And I have a list of WordPress plugins to develop. Mostly these are from working in WP for the past 14 months. Looking at what is offered and what clients request. So keep this site bookmarked so you don’t miss the announcement of the new WordPress plugins I develop.