customize article submission fields

[webrp]

I would like to have the article submission layout customized in a simpler way. So my front users dont get too confused.

I wanna take out the section, show on frontpage, author alias, start and finish publishing, access level, and metadata fields. Bassically only title, text, category are really needed.

Is there some way to hide this fields for users, or even better only for authors?

[dpminusa]

You can comment them out of the program. The parameters to request this are not there.

the program is:
/components/com_content/views/article/tmpl/form.php

dpminusa

[devload]

All of those fields can be hidden from the drop down menu on the right hand side of every article editor UI I thought.

Anyways "Flex content layout plus" is a nice article display component that lets you really customize how your articles display including all of the features you listed.

Hope this helps

[webrp]

All of those fields can be hidden from the drop down menu on the right hand side of every article editor UI I thought.

Where can I find that drop dawn menu?

[dpminusa]

@devload

Thanks for the input.

We are talking about the Article Submission Form for the Users off the User Menu right? If so there are no parameters on the screen. Bring it up and look. You are thinking of the back-end.

You can customize the form used as indicated. I did.

dpminusa

[webrp]

what are you guys talking about?
My question is about adding a new article, in other words submitting a new article. I would like to make it simpler for Authors to write articles.

From begining, again, my question...

I would like to have the article submission layout customized in a simpler way. So my front users dont get too confused.

I wanna take out the section, show on frontpage, author alias, start and finish publishing, access level, and metadata fields. Bassically only title, text, category are really needed.

Is there some way to hide this fields for users, or even better only for authors?

[dpminusa]

YES. That is what I am assuming. It is a PHP script:

/components/com_content/views/article/tmpl/form.php specifically.

You want to customize it, right?

dpminusa

[webrp]

/components/com_content/views/article/tmpl/form.php specifically.

thanks dpminusa. I found it and customized it as I wanted. Its done

And even better, by moving this line I could hide everythin I wanted only for users, with admin account I still have them all.

Code: Select all

<?php if ($this->user->authorize('com_content', 'publish', 'content', 'all')) : ?>

Just one more detail, I would like to hide the section (it will be allways be the same), and only display the category field. To achieve this I suppose I first have to make some section default, so the categories will be listed. How can I make it?

maybe some hack on this lines? I am pretty ignorant with.. php(?)

Code: Select all

var sectioncategories = new Array;
<?php
$i = 0;
foreach ($this->lists['sectioncategories'] as $k=>$items) {
	foreach ($items as $v) {
		echo "sectioncategories[".$i++."] = new Array( '$k','".addslashes( $v->id )."','".addslashes( $v->title )."' );\n\t\t";
	}
}
?>

[dpminusa]

It needs to be something. You are right, it will want to pull the categories for the sections. If you look at the page rendered with view source you will see it makes an array:

var sectioncategories = new Array; // Holds the categories
(sectionID, Category ID, "Category Name")

Later there is an HTML form option list with the Section Names. You could force it to be a list of one section and default to it.

As I remember, the sectioncategories can be left alone and only the section form options code needs to be changed. In other words, the array can be more than you need and the logic will only show what the Section list references.

Maybe this gives you some direction.

I did all this stuff and decided that my users did need some of the fields, so I put some of it back. But that is my site, not yours.

I did a couple of other things that you may want to consider. I wrote a HELP button with instructions and layouts of the editors that pops up. I also added an 3rd party extension that emails the submissions to me for edit. It has a link to approve the article automatically without having to use the back-end admin screens.

Hope this helps.

dpminusa

[webrp]

Maybe this gives you some direction.

Didnt find the right direction yet, but I am working on that

Thanks for your help.

[cchow32]

/components/com_content/views/article/tmpl/form.php specifically.

thanks dpminusa. I found it and customized it as I wanted. Its done

And even better, by moving this line I could hide everythin I wanted only for users, with admin account I still have them all.

Code: Select all

<?php if ($this->user->authorize('com_content', 'publish', 'content', 'all')) : ?>

Just one more detail, I would like to hide the section (it will be allways be the same), and only display the category field. To achieve this I suppose I first have to make some section default, so the categories will be listed. How can I make it?

maybe some hack on this lines? I am pretty ignorant with.. php(?)

Code: Select all

var sectioncategories = new Array;
<?php
$i = 0;
foreach ($this->lists['sectioncategories'] as $k=>$items) {
	foreach ($items as $v) {
		echo "sectioncategories[".$i++."] = new Array( '$k','".addslashes( $v->id )."','".addslashes( $v->title )."' );\n\t\t";
	}
}
?>

Hi there!

I'm trying to accomplish something similar (simplify article submission layout) and I was wondering if you would be able to provide more details on the modifications you did to the code please? I'm not very good with PHP and I'm not sure where to start

Thanks in advance!

[jagrit2853]

Hi Dude,
I am also trying something similar. Did you find any solution ? Could you provide me with some details ?
Thanks,
Jagrit

[jmuehleisen]

I've had good success with this extension: http://extensions.joomla.org/extensions ... ssion/5178

It does have quite a bit of simplification of the article submission form. It isn't quite as simple as you are talking about, but my users love it.

[jagrit2853]

Hi,
This works just fine. Thanks .

But I also want to implement the feature that you had worked on,:
1. Fields like: Published, Front Page, Metadata, Keywords etc need not be displayed on the screen for Authors. But this is visible to the Admin, so that he can do the changes if needed.
2. Authors should be able to automatically publish their articles under a specific category (without using any admins involvement).

I am new to Joomla and am not very well versed with the codes. So you may have to provide a lil detailed instructions .

Looking forward for your response.

Regards,
Jagrit

[jmuehleisen]

Let me research the code a bit here.

[jmuehleisen]

This was actually pretty easy to accomplish.

Let me give you the theory, and then how to do it.

The page that the content submission component builds (the extension that we have been discussing) is actually generated by this file: (assuming that you are using the "let the user submit by category" option):

Code: Select all

/components/com_contentsubmit/views/article/tmpl/bycategory.php

There is part of the page that is hidden from the user if they do not have publishing privileges.

That code is inside a php "if" block that begins on line 90 and ends on line 101.

Then, the code below that is what gathers the author alias, publishing dates, meta data, etc.

So, all we need to do is to move the closing php "if" statement of that block a bit farther down in the file to enclose all of that in the "show this only if the user is a publisher or higher".

So, move the code in line 101, which is

Code: Select all

<?php endif; ?>

down to the end of the table rows, but right before the close of the table (between lines 161 and 162).

So, this is what lines 187 and 188 look like presently:

Code: Select all

</tr>
</table>

When you move the contents of line 101 down there, it will then look like this:

Code: Select all

</tr>
<?php endif; ?>
</table>

And with that simple hack, you have what you want.

This is what it looks like now (which is what I think you want):

content_submit_1.gif

[jagrit2853]

Thanks a Ton !!!!! It works perfectly fine. !!!

[jmuehleisen]

Very good. It was actually a very easy modification to make. Move one line of code and it's done.

[generalbongo]

Super!

Exactly what I was looking for!

I have another question:

Under the field where you can insert your story I have 3 options: Image, New Page and Read More.

I also want to remove these buttons. Any idea how to do that?

Best regards

Bongo

[jmuehleisen]

This one is actually easier to do and doesn't require any code modifications.

Those buttons are actually controlled through Joomla "plug-ins" ... so disabling the plug-ins will make the buttons disappear.

Go to Extensions -> Plug-in Manager.

You will find 3 plug-ins that you may want to "disable" ... "Editor Button - Image," "Editor Button - Read More" and "Editor Button Page Break."

That should make them disappear.

Now, keep in mind, however, that if you are using the JCE editor, these functions are also on the editor toolbar and turning them off under the editing box will not make them disappear from the editor toolbar.

To make them disappear from there, you will need to edit the toolbar settings in the JCE Editor plug-in.

But, if you are using the default TinyMCE editor, this is not an issue.

[kducey]

I would like to modify the arcitlc submit form, but I am using 1.6. Does anyone have the code to be able to do this?

[darylsob]

Few days I seen some good software which is looking promising to modify article submission field. I am interested to use it.

[rollerskate]

Not sure if anyone is still working on this, but I'm trying to simplify article submissions as well and it looks like that form.php file isn't in the same place for the most recent Joomla version. Anyone know where it went, or if the .php changed?

[GODpleasers]

We are in Joomla! 3.5.1 and have the same question?

On the new article submission form I would like to remove the following fields so the registered members cant use them or see them.

Under the publishing tab...
the fields tags, status, featured, Start Publishing, end Publishing, access

Under the language tab...
the language field or the whole tab if possible?

Or this simply hide them so only super users or administrators can use them. Is this possible?