Build your Web Site with IG Pro

[ideasguy]

The Reviews Program -GA032 in IG Pro has been developed to allow the user to generate a set of web pages.
IG Pro users will be offered web space to "get on line".
You wont need any knowledge of HTML. The Genie will do all that for you at a click of a button.

Status as of 3rd April 07
Heres a preview of the first "output" - a set of photos I'm working on.
The photos were sent to me by André (Greenfinger) - photos of Camellias growing in the Leuven Botanical Garden - Belgium.

The initial attempt
http://www.ideasforgardens.net/andre/fram.HTM
Edited: 26th May 07: After some more work, it looks like this:
http://www.ideasforgardens.net/andre/andre

Please explore, and let me have your comments.

Things to note:
a) The Suppliers for this Plant link in Camellia japonica 'Lavinia Maggi'
b) The Gardens where this plant can be seen links in Camellia japonica 'Lavinia Maggi'

Ive done this set. You can easily do the next!

[greenfinger]

Good evening, Wizz. It's obvious I am a humble apprentice. I looked at the website ....../fram.HTM and the Reviews Program - GA032. How you distill the first out of the second is a mistery to me. Can you show us the way to Enlightment, you great Sorcerer?

[ideasguy]

I havent released the new version of GA032 yet, Andre. When I do, there will be a new button on the initial screen to allow you to progress to a new set of screens where you can compose the data for the web pages.

Have no fear - All will be explained in due course 

Ive done some more work to the set of web pages. Click the link above and have another look.

[greenfinger]

Suppose I want to write such a text how should I proceed?
As you know I have the outline of a text.

[ideasguy]

I had that text in mind, Andre.
You can write text about each plant (which I refer to as a Review - hence the program is called the Reviews program)

Heres the first few steps, and you can do this right now.
Start the the Review program GA032
Note there are 3 long buttons, or tabs. Plants, Add Selected Plants to Reviews and Reviews
Click Reviews
You'll see 3 check boxes, Gardener, Supplier and Other each with its own ww button.
Check Other
Click the ww button beside Other.
Click New, and continue to add a Reviewer called Web Projects (much the same as adding a Gardener)
Then click Add New Review.
As a suggestion, add a Review called Camellias at Leuven
Then return to the initial screen and use the Reviewer and Review Name pop-up to select your new Review.
Now click Plants tab and select a plant (you must add plants in the normal way to the database first of course)
Then click Add selected plants to review tab and click Add to this review.
Click Reviews tab, and you'll see the plant listed
Repeat to build up a list of plants in the Review.

When you click Reviews, you'll see a text region.
Thats where you type up your Review of that plant.
A review is the Reviewers appraisal of the plant, or anthing you wish to say about the plant.
In this case, that data in that text box will appear in the upper right region of the web page as Info

If you now have a look at the web pages (above) you'll see a link to an Intorduction Page.
I'm now working on the program to allow the user to do a write up for inclusion on that page.
You could do your history text there, or attach it to the individual plant.
How big is the write up? If its a full scale article, then we can place a link to it, from within the project.
In any case, do the article and let me have a look and we'll discuss the possibilities.

[greenfinger]

Tried this out with some search work, including the last step about bringing in info. Seemed to work well. Must have taken a lot of time to program this!
I assume it is a bit early to merge this already in a web site?
My camellia text would rather be a global one, not so much concentrated on indiividual plants. The length probably will be 1.5-2 pages.

[ideasguy]

I'm delighted youve managed those first steps already!

The update with that magic button to allow you to get to the screens where you prepare your web pages will be posted soon.
Its pretty "rough cut" at present, but I'm very excited at how it generates dozens of integrated web pages at a click of a button.

Ive done some more work tonight, so go back and click that link and see the latest version.
You'll now find photos for all but one plant (your photos of course).
My colleague is a photoshop expert, and "helped me" to optimise the photos. Over 40 of your large photos now have a total disk space of 2.5 mb, and the quality is still pretty good.

You'll also see Notes for each photo (Location, Date taken etc)
You can add as much info as you like in there - that history for example.

Also Previous and Next buttons, plus a few other wee things.
I'm enjoying this!

Any suggestions?

My daughter is home from Manchester England for Easter - I have to go and talk and be sociable! More tomorrow.

[ideasguy]

RE: That general info, 1.5 to 2 pages Andre.

In the list on the left, click "Introduction"
You'll see a big empty page on the right. It could go there.
Do the article and we shall figure out if the intro page is OK.

Its also possible to post it a separate page, and link to it.

[ideasguy]

NOW READY FOR ACTION (IG PRO & Bonsai Genie ONLY)
Instructions for creating a Web Project (a set of structured web pages) from your review

Edited Feb 08 to bring this thread up to date.
Now that Ideas Genie Pro 5 has been released, (required for Web Page Generation) there is only one download required.

Please download this:
http://www.ideasforgardens.net/dl/webfiles-dl.exe

Now start GA032
Create a new review as described in my posting dated April 4th earlier in this thread (scroll up)
You can of course create any kind of review, Gardener, Supplier or Other, and use the Web page Generator feature to build your website.

When you've done that, add a few plants to your review, and click the new "Web" button, located bottom right of screen.(The Web button is grey (disabled) until you have at least one plant in your review.
Takes you to screen GA032S04
Notice that Help appears in the window (right) as you mouse over the buttons.
Read over the (easy) steps in order 2 to 11

The fast route:
a) Enter a carefully thought out and meaningful text in the "Web Page Prefix" field. (read about this in Help for Step 2)
b) Click Step 7, Colours - click Save Changes at bottom of screen.
This will allow you to accept the default colours for the web pages (please note that you can change this later to your own colour scheme - the colours are unlimited)
c) Click Step 8 - Generate
d) Cick Step 9 - View
Voila! a set of web pages in less than 1 minute!!

[ideasguy]

Following a few updates, heres the latest look of my Camellia project.
http://www.ideasforgardens.net/andre/andre/

YOU can generate a web site like this using Ideas Genie Pro.
No HTML knowledge required.


Notes:
The user can pick a colour scheme.

Edited Feb 08 to bring thread up to date.
Since release of IG Pro, omly one download (web files) is required

[ideasguy]

Good news!
Larry has indicated that he is ready to have a go at generating his website.

For anyone else whos toying with the idea, heres the latest status.

There have been refinements since Tina and Andre published their first project.
André was my beta tester. Hes now working on his second web project. Tina emailed yesterday to say she is taking lots of photos of her garden for her next project.

You can now have multiple photos per plant, and you can have Garden Photos in the list. This makes it a very versatile tool, and I'll leave it to your imagination to think of the applications.

On the technical side, one slick feature to put the icing on the cake was the inclusion of a class library of really cool code to manipulate photos. Its called the gdiPlusX project. Heres a link where you can read up about it:
http://www.codeplex.com/Wiki/View.aspx?ProjectName=VFPX&title=GDIPlusX

Ive used this class and adapted the code developed by a guy called Cesar Chalom from Brazil. He's just one of many experts who work on that project, and freely share their knowledge on a Foxpro users forum I joined, hosted by Eric den Doop from Netherlands.
http://www.foxite.com
Some of the things these guys can do is incredible!! Its also the best forum Ive ever used. Very knowledgeable people, and very helpful.

Ive applied Cesar's code in the Web Page Generator, to allow users to create Web-sized photos at the click of a button, copies of their originals, of the standard size Ive used for the web pages in our projects. Done
It also puts the "thumbnail" copy into the correct folder, as used by your project.

It means you dont have to use the resize feature in whatever photo editing program you use. Very quick, and sheer simplicity.

However, the Thumbnail gererator requires Ideas Genie Pro 5.

As previous posts, before you start make sure you have the very latest downloads. Check on your computer to see if your version of GA032 matches the very latest download.

You will need the new Webfiles:
http://www.ideasgenie.com/updates-igpro/webfiles-dl.exe

Text in red was Edited Feb 08