Joomla! Discussion Forums

GXCori -

the podrss20.xml file (pls note the actual file name, not podcast_rss.xml) should show up in your cache directory. if things go well, you shouldn't have to mess around with it - the component should create it and update it after you create your first podcast chapter.

so just follow the tutorial step by step and you should be okay. it may look daunting, but it's not!   and most of that stuff you just have to do the first time to set up the component and stuff. after that, adding new podcast chapters is very easy! 

Thanks for the advice, I got it set up, BUT we're currently using just a basic MP3 player for the site because it pops up and allows the player to surf the site while listening to the player. Is there an option for this in this mod? We also have some archived content we want to make available but I'm having trouble understanding how to get all of these to show up on it's own page and not the front page.

Any suggestions? Help? lol.

hmmm, what's the code you're using to call up the MP3 player? i'm not sure how that might work, but i can take a look.

then it seems to me you have two different issues: 1) having the archived MP3s (i'm assuming by "content" you mean MP3s?) be incorporated into the podcast "directory" (for lack of a better term), and 2) determining which ones show up on the front page.

for (1), what you need to do is move or copy the MP3 files to the designated podcast file directory specified in the component, then add their enclosure tags to the content items they're related to. then they'll automatigically be included in the podcast list.

for (2), each content item that contains a podcast enclosure just needs the "frontpage" check box checked to appear on the front page, or not (so it won't appear on the front page).

does that make any sense?

Webman911 - First up, thanks for all of you insanely hard work trying to take this up a few notches.  =]

One thing that I noticed:  When you use both .mp3 and .mov files in the same feed with this component, even though it seemingly displays (and plays) both files correctly now, the RSS feed seems to be getting the wrong 'MIME type' written to it for the .mov files.  This is due to the setting in the 'settings' tab of the Podcast Suite component for 'MIME type', which we have set by default to 'audio/mpeg'.

On that note: Does anyone know the syntax for specifying the MIME type within the {enclose} tags inside of a content item?  I've searched high and low for this still to no avail...(I want to keep the settings default at 'audio/mpeg' but be able to specify other file types so that they are written correctly to the RSS feed).

I really need to get viewing both audio and video files perfected on my site very badly!  Any ideas for a *better* 'player' solution which will allow me to play mp3, .mp4, .mov and even .avi (if possible) files using this component?  Honestly, I'm not a huge fan of the quicktime video player at all - especially on my site in particular.  If anyone has this info, I'd also likely need a little walk-through in terms of placing the HTML inside of the Components 'settings' area as well.  Thanks in advance!

...AI

adinfinitum -

hmmm, i see what you mean! i found the code that creates the enclosure in the xml file, but being a n00b hacker at these things i can't figure out where the type-related variable is stored (and where it can be checked/compared/changed). i'm sending a note to joseph leblanc to see if he can figure this out.

on the positive side, even with the type=audio/mpeg, my juice podcatcher was able to successfully figure out that it was a video and launch the correct player. i don't know about itunes, though, and i have no idea how well other podcatchers might work.

and if you do find a better player, please post it here - i'd be intererested in finding out! hacking the mambot to include it shouldn't be a huge deal as long as you have all the code necessary to embed the player in a web page... 

From the information screen in the component, here is the format to use if it isn't getting the right MIME type: {enclose http://www.otherserver.com/file23.mp3 8474349 audio/mpeg }

The first parameter is the URL to the file, the second is the length of the file in bytes and the third is the MIME type.

From what I understand, Flash makes it particularly easy to build MP3 playback into .swf files, but does not have the same capability for other formats. That's why you see a lot of Flash based MP3 players out there, but none for other formats.

Thanks Guys...

Interesting.  I'd really like to know how to sort out the MIME type issue.  Even if I seemingly change the default to 'video/quicktime' in the settings the resulting MIME type in the RSS feed reads as 'audio/mpeg' - unless I'm missing something here!

I really want to get this component in-shape badly, as it's sooo close to being perfect for my needs...

Anyone else have any good player solutions for both mp3 and .mov/.mp4/.avi?  There must be something!

And to jlleblanc:  is the layout of the format for setting the MIME type the same for a 'non audio/mpeg' that is local?  Like would: {enclose somefile.mov 456776 video/quicktime} work?

Thanks!

...AI

No, the format I listed is for external links. The component is set to try to use mime_magic to determine the file type, if it's available on the system you're using. Otherwise, it uses the default filetype set in the configuration panel.

Hmm - interesting...

I wonder if I can just treat local files as external links then, in terms of formatting?

I looked into MIME-magic, but I honestly have no idea how to do anything with it!

Grrr.  If we could just round off this extension so that it was perfectly tight - I think the demand is certainly there.  Almost...

Thanks guys - anyone else have any suggestions or comments?

...AI

Yeah, just do http://mywebsite.com/whereverthefilesare/mediafile.mp4 and then specify the length and MIME type.



Either your server has it or it doesn't. To check, go to System > System Info, and then the PHP Info tab in the backend. Search for the string "mime_type"; it should be under it's own heading. If you can't find it or if it says it's disabled, then the automatic file type checking won't work.

joseph, AI -

okay, i got it to work following joseph's instructions (after i got my own domain name right in the pathname - i'm such an idiot sometimes!).

so, the format in the enclosure is just as joseph said. i checked the PHP settings on my server, and it supports mime magic.

the only actually tricky thing is that you have to watch out that whatever editor you're using in Joomla doesn't goof up the URL (i just used the HTMLFix mambot).

a question for joseph: in the feedcreator.class.php file, there is this snippet of code:




i was wondering if it would be possible to make a conditional statement to check the last three characters of the url variable and then based on the results assign the type? i know this wouldn't be for a whole slug of different mime types, but that might be another option for those who just need maybe one or two types (e.g., audio/mpeg and video/quicktime).

Excellent work, webman911.  =]

I'll be testing this myself tonight, and I'll report my findings afterwards.

I'm interested to hear what joseph thinks about the URL variable as well...

Ez!

...AI

If you have magic_mime installed and it isn't doing the MIME type correctly, then it isn't configured correctly on your server and I don't know how to direct you from there. You're welcome to add whatever conditional statement you need there, but I'm probably not going to add it in. Most people have only one type of media in their feed and the MIME type for it can be set in the configuration panel.

I love the work you've done here and the tutorial helped to get all working.

I now use an audio player plugin to play the mp3, but I'd like to try to get in on iTunes and all. I'm a regular Joomla webbuilder and not into programming or any of the more deeper things (I did build my own template from scratch, but that's as far as my knowledge of CSS and PHP goes)... So forgive me if I'm talking nonsense here.

First what I don't get, is why I can't insert two or more audio files in one content item. If I use any mp3 player plugin (like I do now), I can add multiple versions of it in one content item and here it's just one. I tried two, but it does weird things: it doubles up on the second one showing two players.

And second, if we're inserting new players like the DewPlayer this easily (forgive me if I insult someone who has worked days to make it work), why not change it so you can add ANY mp3 player plugin. Like the one I'm using now (http://www.duvien.com/blog/p,189/) and think looks cool and where I can adjust all colors to my liking. By the way: there's a adjusted version of the DewPlayer where you can adjust background color to more integrate it into your website (http://extensions.joomla.org/component/ ... Itemid,35/), so at least add this one... but even then, I don't like the colors of the buttons, slider, etc. hence why I promote to be able to use any mp3 player plugin or skin.

Like I said, I have no idea if I'm talking nonsense here, since I clearly don't get how the software is written, but I'd like to use it for promoting, making subscriptions, putting it into iTunes, etc. (where I'm now simply placing podcasts as audio files on my website) but I don't particularly like the looks of the player (if only I could change all colors it would help a LOT) and I often have multiple files in one content item which I can't now.

MAD -

you're not talking nonsense, but i can't guarantee i'll have all the answers. 

as for using different players, *technically* the standard component and mambot should be able to use any player by selecting the "HTML Code" option and then specifying the HTML in the Enclosure Code box. however, while i messed around with this option a little bit, i didn't have much luck with it and just went in and hacked the code in the podcast mambot.

using more than one audio files in a content item: okay, i don't claim to be an expert on how this is working, but this is what i believe is happening. first, remember that this component is tailored for *podcasting*, not just presenting audio files through web pages. i think it is expecting only a single audio/multimedia file per "article", because when it creates the XML file that subscribed pocatchers use to "see" what podcast chapers are available, it builds that from the text the audio is associated with. and i think if there's more than one file per article, it gets confused.

so, think of it this way: each podcast is a "chapter" that may (or may not) be part of a larger story, but think of it as being unique, and it has one enclosure (audio/video file, etc.) per content item. the component builds a specific entry in the XML file for that chapter, and shows the entire list (or however many you may have specified in the "# items" setting) of chapters show to the podcatchers and iTunes: those chapters show up as items in the podcatcher queue that people can listen to.

does that make any sense? 

anyway, if i get a chance i'll take a look and see if i can put something together with the modified version of dewplayer and/or Duvien's player...

Thanks for your reply. You're right (of course  ). I hadn't thought of the HTML option. I'm glad I know how Joomla works and have built (simple) pages in HTML with CSS before, but to mix those and get an embedded audio player by entering the code, is really asking a lot from me. Besides, the Duvien player I use now is a bot for Joomla. I have no idea if there's a HTML version available (and if there's not, how to make HTML from a Joomla bot). I fiddled around with the options and used your DewPlayer bot, BUT if I choose another radio button, like QuickTime player or HTML (I did find some other player which I could copy/paste code from) I still see no change and just the DewPlayer. Even if I unpublish the DewPlayer bot, it still shows the DewPlayer even after I do a hard refresh. Weird, huh? It simply doesn't change player when I pick another option.

As for the use of multiple files. I publish interviews on my website and next to that I have a podcast show. Some of the interviews consist out of several parts and I simply add the new part to the same content file so it's not confusing for my visitors. They simply look for the interviewed person they like and see updates on that page when there are ones, resulting into multiple audio files on one page. Next to that I have a podcast show about these interviews. I can publish those on different pages, but it would be nice if people can also can download the interviews itself. I thought to make the interview page like a podcast show where every new update is kind of like a new podcast episode. If I now have to split all the interviews to separate pages visitors will be confused, since the page the put in their favorites suddenly only has one interview and is linked to a dozen pages with the rest.

The other thing is that I don't publish the interviews as I would a podcast and leave them all as audio files on the website, BUT it would be nice if the on-site podcast player has a similar look as the player I now use for the interviews, hence the question to include a player I can adjust to the website colors and my other player.

Anything you can and are willing to do is fantastic of course.

Thanks.

MAD -

okay, one observation on the podcast mambot: if you're using the one i posted that includes dewplayer, it's currently hardcoded to *only* play using dewplayer (for MP3) and quicktime (for MOV) files. the settings menu for the component normally control what the mambot does, but the hacked mambot that i posted won't do anything else - the radio buttons still appear in the settings menu, but it's an evil illusion: they don't work!      but i'll try to take another look at it when i get a chance and see if i can modify it.

as for the audio files, it sounds like you've got two categories of audio: one being the interviews, the others being your podcasts. one way to handle this could be to simply embed the interview files in a content item using whichever player/multimedia mambot you want - these files would *not* be handled by the podcast component, just be embedded players in the page.

then you'd have your podcasts, and if i understand correctly there's just one of those per "page" (which may contain multiple embedded audio files).

so, if you want to take that route, i think that would work (and, as you pointed out, you'd want to use the same player for both sets of files).

so am i understanding properly what you want to do? 

Preferably it would be nice to put all in the same program and look similar all over the website. But when multiple files in one content files don't work (for now), I won't try that. If only I can add the podcast files to iTunes, etc. because those are just one audio file in one content item AND make it look the same as the rest (Duvien's player) that would already help a LOT.

I guess Joseph will update the program and include your "hack option" one day, but I apreciate any help including Duvien's player so I can start using this right now. I have no idea what I'm asking here and if it will take a lot of your time, but I'd be greatful.   

Chiming in here with some answers...

As far as the multiple items per content item go, iTunes will only recognize one enclosure per item, so that's why that is the way it is.

For the player, I'm sorry you're having so many problems. Originally, the Podcast Suite was designed to automate generating the RSS feed for podcasts (the tedious, boring part) and not really for Flash players. But, SO many people asked for one that I had to at least package one for use. The HTML Code option should work; you'll need to use whatever HTML code the Flash player tells you to use along with the {filename} tag where you need the name of your MP3/MOV/whathaveyou to appear. If you're having trouble with this, make sure your HTML code is pointing to the Flash file in the right place as all paths are relative to your Joomla root: the path media/player.swf will point to http://www.yoursite.com/media/player.swf.

Hope this helps.

Let me start by thanking you for making the software in the first place. I'm clearly not capable of making such stuff and am always grateful if others are and are willing to share this within the Joomla community. I really appreciate it

Well, I'm not having THAT many problems. I'm really starting/trying to understand how it works now. I also understand how to include any player by HTML, but it would be really nice to have an option to include any bot or module as well. Most players made for Joomla are bots or modules and there are some pretty cool ones out there. Why try to include one that you may like and others don't. Everybody is a critic nowadays and has his own taste in what he/she thinks looks cool. The HTML option does already provide it a little bit, since you can choose any player there, but there are also a LOT of good and nice Joomla player which you can simple install like a bot and include in your content (the bot often has simple radio buttons and color pointers in how to change it's appearance so it can be turned 100% to your liking. The HTML option, I find, is often more difficult to control and change colorwise, etc.). Now I do see the problem the bot causes. The inclusion of the bot uses {bot}{/bot} and you use something like {audio}{/audio}. Of course I'm not a programmer and don't know how hard it is the replace one by the other and still make both your program and the bot from someone else work at the same time. I guess that's the part that got hacked to insert the DewPlayer.

The player that's there is solely for convenience's sake so that there's something out of the box for people to use. I realize that not everyone will like it, but I get so many emails and messages about the suite that this at least gives people an option that works.

As for the other bots, can you try using their bot code in my HTML Code area along with {filename} in the appropriate spot and then publishing their bot after mine? That way, the player bot code will get into the content item first, then the player bot will come along and turn that code into a player. (Or so I would assume...)

The thing that would make all of this much, much easier would be if player bots could either identify themselves as players (the way we have the HTML editors identifying themselves as editors) or we could all use the same code for embedding players. But that's a little beyond the scope of what I'm trying to accomplish. I'll gladly conform to a standard for this if one arises.

I finally bit the bullet and set this up.  It was not as bad as I thought.  But I do have one problem.  I set up menu link to the component, but there is one problem.

http://www.ortingreunion.com/content/bl ... ory/39/60/

Notice how the titles of my modules on the right side do not show up?  But they do work on every other page of my site (see any other link for an example).  Can anyone tell me, is this a problem with the component, my template, Joomla, or other?

Thanks!

Oh, and webman911, thank you for the great tutorial and the upgraded flash player!  Awesome!

Your template's CSS is looking for ../images/purple/module_head.png on those module headers and not finding it. The text for your headers is actually there, but in white as it's expecting a purple background.

oh, awesome.  That was it.  Thanks so much for figuring that out.  I have no idea how that file went missing, but it is working now.  Thanks again for your time!

It does not work even if you include http://. Problem is that podcast.php is hardwired to include $mosConfig_absolute_path in front of whatever you put in the podcast location in settings.

It is coded to put $mosConfig_absolute_path in front of filenames that aren't already linked to offsite locations using http:// or https://:


This is the piece of code that adds $mosConfig_live_site ONLY after determining that the link does not already point offsite. There are instructions on how to do this in the information panel of the component.

I am surely doing something wrong. I am able to get the system set up properly. I have uploaded a sample podcast, created the feed, etc. Everything works when you browse to the page. You can listen to the podcast.

When I subscribe to the feed via iTunes, the podcast shows in my iTUnes, the proper information is pulled in, etc, but NO podcasts show up under the subscription. I have feed items set to 20.

Looking at the podrss20.xml I see the podcast there (http://www.boomerzest.com/cache/podrss20.xml). However looking at the xml, I see no enclosure url so that iTUnes can find the mp3.

What am I doing wrong?

Keith

Have you tried deleting /cache/podrss20.xml? Sometimes it gets cached for a while and doesn't show your changes right away.

I deleted it, but can't figure out how to regenerate it.

I did create a category rss http://boomerzest.com/cache/podCat25rss20.xml but it doesn't have an enclosure-url either.

Keith

Here is the feed xml