#145 Custom.php

[Jans]

In addition to (or in stead of) some of the previous
RFE's, I would like to suggest an additional module:
custom.php

In the custom.php could be stored some variables to
override variables with the same name, declared
elsewhere in the program.

For example:
Each GEDCOM has one title. So, whatever language is
chosen, the title remains the same, which is not very
logical.
A title like this you can not put simply in the language
module, since everyone uses different titles and the
language module would not be exchangeable anymore.

Boudewijn Sjouke mentioned in a previous RFE the text
of some buttons.
If some admin likes to have a different text on a button,
it could be changed here.

It would be good place for customized text for email
messages.

Customized text for an intro page (also mentioned by
Boudewijn) can be stored here.

In this way the admin can do what he wants (within
limits, of course :-), without polluting the language files,
or without the need the change some parts of text in
the other php's.

[John Finlay]

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There is already a method to extend the language files. This
is not a documented feature yet so it is no surprise that you
don't know about it.

Suppose you wanted to add some of your own english text or
replace some of the text with your own. You would create a
file in the languages directory called lang.en.extra.php.

If this file exists for the language that is chosen, it is the
very last thing that is loaded before the display starts.
These files were disigned to be language file extensions, but
you could easily use it to make settings changes based on
the chosen language.

So, in your example of the GEDCOM title, you could change
the title for each language by adding the following line to
your lang.xx.extra.php:

$GEDCOMS["surname.ged"]["title"] = "Title in Chinese";

In this file you could also change the text on the buttons:
$pgv_lang["view"]="Show";

The only settings that you could not override in this file are
the privacy settings. With this file you could also change the
gedcom that is displayed per language. Suppose I had a
gedcom that was in german and one that was in english. In
the lang.ge.extra.php file I would add the following lines:
if ($GEDCOM=="english.ged") {
header("Location: $PHP_SELF?
$QUERY_STRING&GEDCOM=german.ged");
exit;
}

These lines say that if we are using the german language
files, but are using the english gedcom, then we need to
reload the page with the german gedcom. You need to
reload the page so that the configuration settings for the
gedcom get loaded. This assumes that you have
both "english.ged" and "german.ged" imported into the
database and that the english.ged and the german.ged have
the same people in them, just in a different language. Thus
I1 in english.ged should refer to the same I1 in german.ged.

Of course I haven't tested these things, but I believe that
they will do all that you have requested in this RFE.

--John

[Jans]

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OK John,
It's beautiful. I will start testing it.
I wonder if you can still make it to The Project of the Year. :-)

In the Open Discussion forum I posted a thread about
changing the link to the Home-page, when the language is
changing.
I suppose I can do that in the lang.xx.extra.php as well.

Thanks,
Jans

[KosherJava]

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John,
How many undocumented features are in place waiting to be
discovered? :)

[John Finlay]

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If I could remember all of them, then I could document
them ;)

There are many features that I don't view as important
enough to document, but we come up with a unique way to
use them (as in this case) and suddenly documentation would
be very helpful.

I wish that I had a good way to document all of the
features. I don't think the readme file is the right place to
tell everything little thing that you can do with the program.

I should probably start using Roland's users guide as the
place to document things like this.

--John

[Jans]

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Hi John,

It's f.... beautiful (excuse my language :-)

I made some lang.xx.extra.php files, like you said.
For testing I tried three languages.

Together with changing the language, now the Titel in the
header is changing, and also the link to my Main Site is
changing with it.

I think this is a very strong part and it should me mentioned
at least in the readme file.

This feature serves the title of "Feature of the month".

Thanks,
Jans

p.s.
Thank God I decided a couple of weeks ago NOT to go for
TNG :-)

[Boudewijn Sjouke]

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Hi all,

It's a good plan to start documenting the features of PHPGV.
Although it will take a considerable amount of time, it will
prevent many questions posed over and over again. This
particular feature is engraved in my memory, because I use it
to translate custom-events from PAF.
One remark about text on buttons: it is true that the text can
be changed either in lang.xx or in lang.xx.extra. But that is
not what I meant in RFE 855259.

Boudewijn.