BackSpaceStudios Blog

WordPress Plugin Development Workshop at RMI - Recap

This past Saturday, yes I know it was Valentine Day, but we spread the WordPress love, I ran yet another WordPress workshop at RMI ( Rich Media Institute ), it was great to see almost everyone from the theme design workshop show up, plus a few new faces.  This was the second in a series of workshops I’m running at  RMI this year.

Other workshops to look forward to , WordPress 2.7 - all the ins and outs, WordPress 2.7 Admin Skinning/Customization. i am also planning on running a FREE Workshop on WP2.7 Admin Theming at PHUG end of Feb or early March.

For this workshop, the goal was to convert a PHP script that loads random Flash SWF ( view here ) files into a functional WordPress plug-in. Sounds easy, and it was! You can download the original PHP script here and the WordPress plug-in here. The plug-in is fully functional, but still requires some option under the admin area. Play arounf with and let me know what you think.

Here’s the slide presentation from the workshop.

As promised here is a list of some plug-in development resources:
Simplified AJAX For WordPress Plugin Developers using Jquery
“Desenvolvendo Plugins para WordPress” by Rafael Dohms (in Brazilian Portuguese)
12 part “How to Write a Wordpress Plugin” at DevLounge.net by Ronald Huereca (PDF)
How to create WordPress Plugin from a scratch
Using AJAX with your WordPress Plugin, also at DevLounce.net
How to Write a Simple WordPress Plugin at ATD

Posts from past workshops:
http://backspacestudios.com/blog/index.php/wordpress-25-workshop-at-rmi-recap/open-source/
http://backspacestudios.com/blog/index.php/vecta-lova-free-wordpress-theme/open-source/

WordPress Theme Design Workshop at RMI - Recap

This past Saturday I ran another WordPress workshop at RMI ( Rich Media Institute ), it was great to see so many familiar faces, you know who you are This is the first in a series of workshops I’m running a RMI this year.  This weekend, Saturday Feb 14th 1-530pm, is WordPress Plugin Development ( register now ).

Other workshops to look forward to , WordPress 2.7 - all the ins and outs,  WordPress 2.7 Admin Skinning/Customization.

During the theme design workshop, we converted a static HTML+CSS web template, from styleshout.com, to a functional WordPress theme. There is still a little work to do to get it all working, you can downlaod here and feel free to feedback or ask questions.

Here’s the slide presentation from the workshop.

As promised here is a list of some great FREE Premium Theme sites, enjoy.
http://themeshaper.com/
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/
http://www.wpsnap.com/
http://freethemelayouts.com/
http://www.styleshout.com
http://wpcandy.com/

…and for inspiration…
http://www.bestwebgallery.com
http://welovewp.com/

Posts from past workshops:
http://backspacestudios.com/blog/index.php/wordpress-25-workshop-at-rmi-recap/open-source/
http://backspacestudios.com/blog/index.php/vecta-lova-free-wordpress-theme/open-source/

WordPress Workshops - Theme Design and Plug-ins

After a very successful WordPress workshop at RMI (Rich Media Institute) back in November I have been asked back to run 2 more great WordPress workshops.

Feb 7th – WordPress Theme Design
In this workshop, we will show the process of taking an HTML & CSS designs and PhotoShop templates and converting them into a fully working WordPress theme. Along the way, we’ll look at the main aspects of WordPress theming, some best practices and a few tricks. WordPress 2.6 and 2.7 makes the whole process easier than ever, so get started making your WordPress site look not like a WordPress site!

To find out more and register

Feb 14th – WordPress Plug-ins
“Plug-ins can extend WordPress to do almost anything you can imagine.” In this workshop we will cover the following areas, Extending WordPress, Customizing WordPress Plug-ins, Tips On Writing WordPress Plug-ins, Writing WordPress Plug-ins, and Essential WordPress Plug-ins. Plus, that isn’t enough, we will build a simple Flash plug-in by the end of the workshop that you can take with you!

To find out more and register

Ajax Animator

The original goal was to be a usable Flash IDE alternative, but has evolved into a cross-platform/cross-format animation tool, primed to support Animated GIFs, SWF (Flash), SVG Animations, and more. It is currently built using Javascript and PHP.

The new Ajax Animator version 0.2 was launched on Sunday, August 8, 2008.

Old Screenshots
Application

If you feel urge to live on the edge, and try out the latest unstable builds, use the following link.
Development (Unstable) Version

WordPress2.5 workshop @ RMI

Our very own Brendan Sera-Shriar, Director of BackSpaceStudios, has been asked by RMI (Rich Media Institute) to instruct a full day workshop on WordPress design and development.

The workshop will be a full day of WordPress2.5, focused on design and development. We’ll cover the essentials of setup, installation, and management. We’ll learn how to build custom themes using CSS, PHP, and image architecture. We’ll also jump into custom code and template files, best practices for design and management, integrating Flash, and how to build and install WP and custom plug-ins.

About The Rich Media Institute:
The Rich Media Institute (http://www.richmediainstitute.com) is a training center for designers, developers, marketers and artists working in the rich media industry. The RMI conducts training sessions in digital media design and technology, and organizes for-artists-by-artists workshops, providing training and inspiration for individuals engaged in culturally and technologically-relevant projects.

Related Links:
Brendan’s Bio
Sign Up for workshop
RMI
WordPress