http://nicolas/blog/ en nicolasbottari@gmail.com Copyright 2010 2010-08-03T15:02:40+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/handy_use_for_apples_black_cleaning_cloth http://nicolasbottari.com/site/handy_use_for_apples_black_cleaning_cloth#When:15:02:40Z Everyone has one or more of those black cleaning cloths that come with a number of Apple products. Often ignored, this cloth does an amazing job at cleaning the screen of your computer or glass-based device. I also noticed that the cloth causes enough friction and traction to be used as a great bottle/pot opener. Any other good uses for the cloth? Tips and tricks, 2010-08-03T15:02:40+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/how_to_fix_some_wordpress_e_commerce_plugin_annoyances http://nicolasbottari.com/site/how_to_fix_some_wordpress_e_commerce_plugin_annoyances#When:14:29:42Z Here are some small fixes I found during Wordpress site development using the WP e-commerce plugin. Although the plugin is a quick (and free!) way to quickly put up a small e-commerce section on a website, it still requires a handful of improvement to make setup more simple to use. Removing decimals to prices This should be an option in the control panel, but unfortunately isn't. Not every currency has decimals (eg. Japanese yen), so the extra ".00" needs to be dropped. This can be done by first setting the plugin not to display decimals in the control panel. Unfortunately, this setting does not extend everywhere, so two files need to be modified: In the wp-e-commerce/wpsc-includes/cart.class.php file near line 1362, change $price = number_format($price, 2, '.', ','); to $price = number_format($price, 0, '.', ',');   In the wp-e-commerce/wpsc-includes/processing.functions.php file near line 81, change $price_out = number_format($price_in, 2, '.', ','); to $price_out = number_format($price_in, 0, '.', ','); Use form-submitted values in confirmation email/thank you page Another feature that should be working out-of-the-box. By default, only the following tokens can be used in emails and thank you pages (Store > Settings > Admin): %shop_name%, %product_list%, %total_price%, %total_shipping%, %find_us%. How about the client name? Or email address? Or shipping info? Would be nice to have a "Thank you, Mr. X, for your order", right? Not the best type of hack, but works. Each input field you set up in the wp e-commerce control panel has an field ID attached to it. Let's get those IDs and create new tokens like %field_id_1%. In the wp-e-commerce/transaction_result_functions.php file, add the following near lines 231 (or anywhere in that area): $submitted_form_data = $wpdb->get_results('SELECT * FROM wp_wpsc_submited_form_data WHERE `log_id`="'.$purchase_log['id'].'"');foreach($submitted_form_data as $k => $v) {        $extra_field_data[$v->form_id] = $v->value;}foreach($extra_field_data as $id => $value) {        $message = str_replace( '%field_id_'.$id.'%', $value, $message );        $report = str_replace( '%field_id_'.$id.'%', $value, $report );        $message_html = str_replace( '%field_id_'.$id.'%', $value, $message_html ); } You should now be able to add %field_is_X% tokens (X being the field ID) in the report and client message emails, as well as the shop HTML pages. Multibyte shop category names Looks like multibyte characters do not play nice with category names in the WP e-commerce plugin. By default, the category name is used to create the "nice-name" which can be thought of as the category slug. With multibyte characters (eg. Japanese), this can become a problem when used in URLs. If you do not use the category description field, that field can be used to store your multibyte name, and the category name is used for your standard alphanumeric category name. To do this, a small change is needed in the wp-e-commerce/wpsc-includes/category.functions.php file at lines 29-31. Change: function wpsc_print_category_name() {    echo "[wpsc_category_name]";} to function wpsc_print_category_name() {     echo "[wpsc_category_description]"; } Your multibyte text will show on the site, but your URLs will contain alphanumeric characters based on your category name field in the control panel. Hopefully this can come in handy for someone. And yes, using ExpressionEngine with Freeform might have been faster. Coding, Wordpress, 2010-07-27T14:29:42+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/how_to_change_the_collation_of_a_table_and_its_columns http://nicolasbottari.com/site/how_to_change_the_collation_of_a_table_and_its_columns#When:08:56:21Z One of my ExpressionEngine 2 installations wouldn't accept multibyte characters (Japanese, to be exact) in the Discussion Forum module. Those characters would be displayed as question marks in thread posts. I thought that the default EE2 install created tables in Unicode (UTF-8) automatically, and that I shouldn't have any problems with multibyte characters. After a closer look at my database, I realised that the exp_forum tables were in latin_1! I had two options to fix the problem: Turn on the "Convert to high ASCII" option in ExpressionEngine's control panel (under Admin / Channel Administration / Global preferences). Multibyte characters would then be saved as entities in the database. For example, "あ" would be saved as あ . This is not my favorite strategy anymore, as I would rather have foreign characters readable in my database, using the command line or phpMyAdmin. Alter the latin_1 MySQL tables, and its columns, into UTF-8. This can be done with phpMyAdmin, but the following SQL is more expedient (just repeat for each affected table): ALTER TABLE exp_forum_posts CONVERT TO CHARACTER SET utf8 COLLATE utf8_general_ci; After this, I was able to post with multibyte characters, which were saved as is in the database under the right utf8_general_ci-collated column. Coding, 2010-07-14T08:56:21+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/cup_noodle_ads_funny_lyrics_of_known_music_videos http://nicolasbottari.com/site/cup_noodle_ads_funny_lyrics_of_known_music_videos#When:12:02:47Z I'm really digging the recent Cup Noodle commercial series in Japan. The commercial looks like a regular music video, but the lyrics are completely different and sung in Japanese. Check out this Jamiroquai gem: Looks like the famous "Virtual Insanity" video, until Jamiroquai starts singing "I'm hungry, I'm hungry, I'm hungry, I'm hungry... Oh Cup Noodle, I could eat about five!" I only know of another music video from a Japanese song, but looking forward to more of these commercials. Engrish and odd findings, Japan, 2010-06-21T12:02:47+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/addon_updates_for_ee2_part_1 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/addon_updates_for_ee2_part_1#When:23:21:43Z I have updated some my addons over the weekend for ExpressionEngine 2. Each addon will now have two download links for the 1.6.x and 2.x versions of the addon. The updated addons are: Google Analytics (actually updated my Mathieu Fauveau) NB moji limit NB CSV to Table NB Japanese Year I have tested these addons myself and they seem to be running fine. If you encounter any problems, please let me know. Since ExpressionEngine 2 stores text in the database in UTF-8 format, I thought Ellis Lab's Character Limiter plugin would easily do NB moji limit's job. To my surprise, text came out garbled as in 1.6.x, so I decided to update my plugin. Don't forget to make sure your PHP installation has the required functions for multibyte characters! ExpressionEngine 2, 2010-06-13T23:21:43+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/using_twitter_from_a_japanese_mobile_phone http://nicolasbottari.com/site/using_twitter_from_a_japanese_mobile_phone#When:22:15:07Z I remember a few months ago when I tried in vain to login on Twitter from my Japanese ketai, which most have only a simple WAP browser (meaning no Javascript or complex CSS, old school webpages only). I couldn't get past the login form, which wouldn't clear for some reason. Looks like this has been solved now, with the whole Twitter interface translated in Japanese, little Japanese keitai-only emoji and all. Some mobile-specific functionality has also been added, including emailing a tweet from your mobile (like mobile blogging found in some CMSs) and keypad menu selection. That might explain why Twitter is becoming increasingly popular in Japan, after a slow start compared to other parts of the world. In fact, there is even a current drama on Japanese TV (Sunao ni narenakute, 素直になれなくて) about a group of friends who met using Twitter. A number of scenes showed the protagonists tweeting on their keitais, which I thought was not yet possible. Looks like I'm wrong. Japan, 2010-06-09T22:15:07+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/this_site_now_fueled_with_expressionengine_2 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/this_site_now_fueled_with_expressionengine_2#When:06:02:28Z It's done, the site has been upgraded and is now running using ExpressionEngine 2. The upgrade went very well, aside from a few minor hiccups (note: upgrade goes better if you don't leave the "save templates as files" option on in EE 1.6.x). You may have noticed a few more changes on the site as well. Site redesign I guess my green phase is over. The initial design was put together very quickly to be able to officially hold my EE addons and have a place to blog. I decided to go "purple" this time, and hope to tweak the design more in the coming weeks. Latest tweets on front page I decided to add twitter to the mix, as I often do not have enough to write for a full blog article, but still like to communicate some of my thoughts. Besides, I use twitter a bit more frequently than the site. Projects page I added a simple page for projects I have worked on in the past. This section is not very refined yet, but hope to improve it soon. EE2 addons Right now, only the Google Analytics plugin has been updated to EE2, thanks to another EE developer, Matthieu Fauveau. I intend to convert the other addons over time. Since I do not know how many people out there actually use my addons, if you would like to see a specific addon updated to EE2 more quickly, please let me know and I'll try to speed things up. I will also have to review which addons actually need to be updated, as some of them may be obsolete for EE2. NB show custom field data I have an updated version of the currently 1.6.x-only addon NB show custom field data (v1.0) which I would like to make public soon, under a possible new name. The extension should answer a number of requests I received based on the current official version, and contain a few more goodies. I would like to offer this addon as donationware for the time being, as I don't know how popular the addon is, and would like more people to try it out first. The idea is that you make a donation, and I will send you the extension (one donation = one single-site license). If this addon is popular enough, hopefully that will mean further improvements and even EE2 compatibility! I sure have a lot of little things I want to add/improve on the site, but hope to push these incrementally. A bit like Google with their frequent and tiny additions to their web apps. ExpressionEngine 2, nicolasbottari.com, 2010-06-05T06:02:28+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/my_latest_gadget_the_washlet http://nicolasbottari.com/site/my_latest_gadget_the_washlet#When:10:34:58Z While everyone else is talking about the iPad, I would like to show off my latest gadget which I have purchased last week: the washlet. I'm sure a lot of people know what a washlet is, but personally, I didn't know about the term until I came to Japan. So, what is a washlet? A washlet is a device that replaces your standard toilet cover with a high-tech seat containing a number of functions, such as sprinkling water on your bum, heating the seat, filtering odors, automatically raising/lowering seat, etc. It comes with a sidearm console, which I have played with numerous times in Japanese restaurants. It's always nice to figure out what a particular washlet can do, despite some uncomfotable surprises form time to time (cold water up there when you're not expecting it? Not fun.) Installation The installation was not as hard as I thought it would be. Toilet seats have two big plastic screws which are very easy to remove, and likewise, the washlet screws into the toilet the same way. The piping was slightly more complex, as the standard pipe going to the tank must be modified to bring water to both the tank and the washlet tank, which in turn will warm up the water to be later sprinkled. Then, the washlet must be connected to a power outlet to power the console. Finally, a thin metal wire must be grounded to avoid static charge buildup while the device is on. I cannot image getting a jolt of static electricity on your privates being a pleasant experience. Basic washlet functions I got a fairly normal model by Japanese standards: Heating seat: Most japanese homes are not or badly insulated for winter (don't ask me why, no one knows!!!). Standard seats can get very cold in winter, which is very unpleasant. Heating provides a much better experience. Odor filter: Do I have to explain this one? A lifesaver after Mexican food. Heated water sprinkler: Want a better butt-wiping experience? Try spraying some water first. The spray can even move! You also save on paper (but lose on water, I guess). Bidet: For the ladies, I'm sure this is very practical, and you don't need a bidet in the house in addition to the toilet. 2-in-1 !!! Fine control over everything: seat temperature, water temperature, water pressure, sprinkler position... maybe more? More advanced models come with odor filtering with perfumes, automatic opening seat as you walk in and closing as you are done (after getting up, of course), flush strength, air jet to dry your bum after sprinkling it, and otohime, the fart silencer. Sounds weird to be excited about a washlet, but I'm actually very happy to have gotten one, even if it's just for the heated seat. I'm even thinking of giving a few to my family back home. If you can get your hands (or butt) on one, I totally recommend it. 2010-02-07T10:34:58+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/addons_and_expressionengine_2_0_something http://nicolasbottari.com/site/addons_and_expressionengine_2_0_something#When:21:35:56Z ExpressionEngine 2.0 PB, formerly "Beta", formerly "Release candidate", now "Public Beta" (or was that Peanut Butter? maybe later), has been out for about a week now. A lot of developers are annoucing roadmaps, and I should probably do something similar... eventually. Based on the developer's documentation, porting my plugins to 2.0 should not be too difficult. I hope to update those soon enough, although there doesn't seem to be any rush to do so right at this moment. The NB Show custom field data extension will be an interesting challenge, and I think this extension can come in handy in 2.0 as well as 1.x. So, no roadmap for now, but I hope to move the addons to 2.0 in the future (I use a number of them here myself). Just a heads up. 2009-12-07T21:35:56+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/taking_on_the_seven-patty_whopper http://nicolasbottari.com/site/taking_on_the_seven-patty_whopper#When:13:16:56Z Oh boy, what a feast! Along with the Windows 7 launch, for which I'm psyched just for Internet Explorer 8 and the hopefully hastened death of IE6, Burger King in Japan was offering a seven-patty Whopper. The first 140 visitors or so could get the whopper for 777 yen (about 7 bucks), but since I got there late, I dished out the full 1420 yen. Worth it though, being my birthday and a rare chance to see this marvel, if ever see such a sandwich again. Also... what a challenge! The Whopper tasted like you would expect: pure meat, with a touch of condiment flavor if you bit the top or bottom of the burger. Since this gargantuan sandwich was higher than my maximum buccal aperture size, I opted for the bite-the-top, bite-the-bottom approach. Needless to say the meal was quite a messy one. As pumped as I was to conquer this monster-sized burger, three-quarters down I had to concede defeat. I wrapped up the remaining patties, which I will probably use in macaroni and cheese or something. 2009-10-24T13:16:56+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/google_analytics_plugin_updated http://nicolasbottari.com/site/google_analytics_plugin_updated#When:20:15:01Z Took less time than I thought to confirm that site search queries and other links are tracked in my Google Analytics account. I therefore released version 0.2 of the Google Analytics plugin for Expressionengine. Again, this plugin is really for convenience: no need to look for the GA code, followed by copy/pasting in your template/embed/as a global variable. I mean, is a lot easier to remember than the GA code, right? Not to mention that this simple tag simplifies templates. Juicy details can be found here and at the EE Forums 2009-10-06T20:15:01+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/progress_on_the_google_analytics_plugin_for_ee http://nicolasbottari.com/site/progress_on_the_google_analytics_plugin_for_ee#When:19:39:26Z Just finished adding a few useful parameters to the Google Analytics plugin. Although everything seems to be working fine on my system, I'll need a few days to check if everything checks in alright. Among things to look forward to are search query tracking, as well as download/mailto/whatever click tracking. 2009-10-05T19:39:26+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/tokyo_tower_in_pink http://nicolasbottari.com/site/tokyo_tower_in_pink#When:16:15:11Z Just had to share this. Walking back from work, I see a bunch of people with their cellphones out, pointing their cameras at something. I look behind me, and behold, what a view! Tokyo tower, a "me too!" copy of another famous European building, was illuminated in some kind of purple/pink color. I had just enough juice in my cellphone to take the picture, before my cell died. As you can also see, a picture taken from a crappy cellphone camera, at night, is not great. 2009-10-01T16:15:11+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/changes_to_site_design http://nicolasbottari.com/site/changes_to_site_design#When:20:11:18Z I'm currently making some changes to the website. I haven't tested in Internet Explorer yet, so sorry if the site doesn't look too hot in that (let's be honest) simpler series of browsers. I wrote the first version of my stylesheet a bit in a hurry, as I just wanted to get up and running. Now I have the chance to go over it again and make changes. Also added some CSS3-based styling, which should look nice in a number of browser, except for the above-mentioned browser, of course. So much faster to write too, and lesser worries. I recently have some interest in mathematics in design, in particular the Golden number. Probably comes from my biological science background :) Try to find where I used the Golden number. I find it reassuring to know that things that look pretty have a calculable reason to be pretty. 2009-09-28T20:11:18+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/ongoing_work_on_my_expressionengine_addons http://nicolasbottari.com/site/ongoing_work_on_my_expressionengine_addons#When:19:33:13Z Progress on my NB Show custom field data extension for ExpressionEngine is going well. More detailed conversation about the piece can be found at the EE forums. Right now, work-in-progress options are the no-longer-need to specify the file upload directory when the custom field is set to the "File" display type, and control over the FF Matrix table headers. The bigger and requested option, which I have yet to tackle, is giving the choice of a downloadable file or thumbnail image for the File display type. The nGen fiel field, however, can be used to upload all sorts of files, from images, to text files, to PDFs. I will have to find a way to differentiate file types and be selective for image files. Pretty hard and pointless to make a thumbnail of a CSV file, right? ;) The other question is: create thumbnails or just shrink the image by simply setting width and height? The first option means small thumbnail files would have to be created somewhere on the server. Shrinking images, however, leave no thumbnail images lying around, but images take time to load for big files (a 2000 pixel-wide image, for example, is still a heavy 2000 pixel-wide image). I'll have to look at how the other thumbnail-displaying extensions handle this, as I haven't had the chance to try those much. I might just go for setting width/height for images, though, unless I have some incentive to spend time and work on a thumbnail-creating system :) 2009-09-03T19:33:13+00:00 http://nicolasbottari.com/site/this_may_look_simple_for_now http://nicolasbottari.com/site/this_may_look_simple_for_now#When:03:11:21Z You may have noticed that the site may look somewhat simple and empty, but I intend to add a number of items, such as this section (the blog), some ExpressionEngine plugins and extensions I am playing with/working on, various web projects, tips and tricks I find here and there, as well as probably some not-that-insightful commentaries from time to time. nicolasbottari.com, 2009-08-17T03:11:21+00:00