ProcessWire Weekly #36

Latest core updates: some logging system improvements, a new inputfield, and more!

This week Ryan has introduced a bunch of very interesting – and quite visible – core updates. Here's a brief summary of what's new, in no particular order, based on Ryan's latest post at the processwire.com blog:

• ProcessLogger, a brand new log viewer for the ProcessWire Admin
  ProcessLogger gives site admins an easy access to log files written by the core system, 3rd party modules, code in your template files, etc. ProcessLogger supports filtering log entries, open log files are automatically updated when new entries are added, and more!
   
• Improvements and additions to the $log API variable
  ProcessWire 2.5 introduced the $log API variable, and this core update improves and extends its features to reading and filtering log files, among other things. Additionally a new $this->log('log message') shorthand method is introduced for any Wire-derived classes, modules, etc.
   
• Built-in logging support to core features
  Various core features now support logging site actions (save/add/delete/clone etc.) if enabled using a new config option $config->logs('pages', 'modules', ...). By default only actions performed on modules are logged, but you can easily turn on logging for, say, all page actions with this new config option.
   
• Shortcut for creating new fields
  Based on a contribution by Adrian, new "create a new field" feature has been added to the template settings view. Using this, you can – in addition to choosing from any existing fields – create new fields directly on the template edit screen. A great timesaver, especially when building a new site!
   
• New core inputfield, InputfieldIcon
  In a nutshell InputfieldIcon lets you choose an icon from Font Awesome icons. While various ProcessWire features have supported icons for a while already, until now this has required typing in an icon name, and visiting Font Awesome site to see what's available. From now on, there's a GUI for that.

As you can see, this week we've got a lot of stuff here. As always, the list above contains only the bare minimum details of each feature, so for more details, screenshots, and usage instructions head down to the latest processwire.com blog post by Ryan.

New module: CroppableImage, enhanced and extended fork of Thumbnails

CroppableImage is a module built by Horst Nogajski, Christian Raunitschka, and Martijn Geerts. It's an enhanced and extended fork of Thumbnails, a module collection originally built by Antti Peisa, and intended for cropping images directly in the ProcessWire Admin.

CroppableImage is very similar to Thumbnails in that it provides a GUI for content editors for cropping images on the go, while simultaneously placing the developer in full control over different crop settings. Original Thumbnails module is a long-time user favorite, and quite possibly one of the most used ProcessWire modules built so far. CroppableImage successfully builds on that foundation and makes cropping images in the Admin even more enjoyable.

Compared to Thumbnails, CroppableImage provides various enhancements, both under the hood and on the surface. Some of the most notable ones are improved UI, configurable quality and sharpening options, and (on the API side) returning a Pageimage instead of a thumbnail URL. The module returning a Pageimage object allows developers to further edit user-created thumbnails, and is one of the most requested additions to original Thumbnails module.

Please note that CroppableImage is intended for ProcessWire 2.5.11+, current development branch, and is still under development itself. If you're using the dev branch, this module is definitely for you – otherwise you'll have to wait for a little longer!

New module: Fieldtype Select Relation

Fieldtype Select Relation is a new module by Bea Dav. In a nutshell, it's a fieldtype that allows you to select values in relation to other fields – or, in other words, values selected (or typed in to) other existing fields. Additionally you can define that values can only be picked from fields that exist on pages using a specific template, or simply specific pages.

The concept is actually quite simple, but also rather unique, and this fieldtype could potentially have a ton of interesting use cases. For an example, you could allow users to pick any existing headline, summary, image, or body text from the site and use it on another page – or, perhaps, choose any tag from those already selected elsewhere.

For more details and all the config settings, visit the modules page. For support requests and/or questions to the author, there's a separate support thread. Thanks to Bea for this interesting addition to the ProcessWire modules directory!

Site of the week: Quick To Impress Inc.

Quick To Impress is a web design, development and SEO company with services ranging from website design to mobile development, marketing services, and print design. Based in the U.S. state of Illinois, they are, in their own words, "a small team based out of the Chicagoland area that is eager to grow."

Their site, recently built with ProcessWire, looks and feels great both on small screens (including mobile devices) and larger ones. Combined with the sleek, clean, and modern design makes visiting the site an enjoyable experience. All things considered it's a really great site and definitely a good fit for a company in the business of designing and building websites!

"We love the ability to build what we need, when we need it and that is why ProcessWire is always encouraged. The scalability is amazing, security is reliable, load times are fast and the ability to create anything we want is second to none." – Quick To Impress

Stay tuned for our next issue

That's all for our 36th weekly issue – thanks for reading and hope you've enjoyed your stay. As always, suggestions are more than welcome, either as comments here or via the feedback form.

Our next issue, ProcessWire Weekly #37, will be out Saturday, 24th of January, with a newsletter version delivered a few days later to ProcessWire newsletter subscribers. Until then, happy hacking with ProcessWire!