PHP Magazine

[CMS Magazine] XOOPS CMS releases Version 2.4.0

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 05:15:16 +0000

XOOPS CMS usability is getting much better today with the release of XOOPS 2.4.0 : it just got a completely new themeable admin interface, in addition to lots of new features and improvements. XOOPS came also with a support for WCAG 2.0 which make it more ready to adopt for government websites in many countries including New Zealand, Canada, Europe, and Japan. Below the press release :

After over 25,000 downloads of its previous version in just five short months, the XOOPS Project, world�s leading Open Source CMS (Content Management System) and #1 CMS System hosted on SourceForge.net, is aggressively building on this success and has released a new version of its award winning software - XOOPS 2.4.0.

This release is focused on usability and productivity improvements. Some of the major changes are:

* new user friendly Admin GUI
* new mechanism to modularize and extend Core via Preloads
* central support for jQuery
* improved Installer
* WCAG 2.0 - Sight Impaired Assisted Forms
* Themeable Admininstration area
* support for WYSIWYG Editors: CKEditor, wymeditor, Xinha, and Spaw2
* new System License Key
* Support to PHP 5.3
* Security updates

The new Admin GUI and the Preloads extension mechanism are the highlight of this release. The key for this new release was an active collaboration of XOOPS developers from around the world: China, France, UK, USA, Germany, Peru, Libya, Belgium, Netherlands, and several others. The worldwide XOOPS community is one of its strength, resulting in a quick translation of new releases into over 20 languages.

[CMS Magazine] RavenNuke� CMS 2.40.00 released

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:22:37 +0000

RavenNuke� CMS: flexibility of PHP-Nuke with advanced security, features, & support

Raven PHP Scripts released version 2.4.0 of the RavenNuke� CMS, which features an improved static content module, new project management module, a new W3C compliant theme, dynamic HEAD section generation with on-page overrides of title, meta description and meta keywords tags. It also includes numerous security improvements, a simplified approach to loading CSS and JS designed to simplify future upgrades and the use of add-ons, as well as improved installation and upgrade utilities. The RavenNuke� team also introduced the RavenNuke� Wiki.

RavenNuke� CMS was originally based on PHP-Nuke 7.6, but has evolved with its focus on security, performance, standards compliance and significantly enhanced functionality.

[AJAX Magazine] PMRPC, HTML5-based Inter-window Cross-Domain RPC Librar

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:52:46 +0200

Pmrpc is a HTML5 inter-window cross-domain JSON-RPC based remote procedure call JavaScript library. The library provides a simple API for exposing and calling procedures from windows or iFrames on different domains, without being subject to the same-origin policy. Pmrpc also provides several advanced features: callbacks similar to AJAX calls, ACL-based access control, asynchronous procedure support and fault-tolerance via retries.

The implementation of the library is based on the HTML5 postMessage API, the JSON-RPC protocol and the JSON data format. Pmrpc uses the postMessage API as an underlying communication mechanism and extends it to a RPC model using the JSON-RPC, a transport-independent protocol that uses JSON for formatting messages.

The library is compatible with Firefox 3, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer 8, released under Apache v2.0 license.

[Enterprise PHP] PDF Generation with Zend Framework

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 10:49:13 +0000

Generating print-ready well-formatted PDF documents with PHP is not an easy task. Traditionally, there are two main approaches to PDF generation with PHP. Given sufficient time and patience, both partially get the job done, but still leave a lot to be desired:

HTML-to-PDF: This approach is widely used in mainstream applications. Here an HTML document is programmatically created and converted to a PDF, using one of the many open source libraries ¹. Since HTML, however, is not a page-oriented format (as is PDF), it is impossible to perform a 1-to-1 mapping between HTML and PDF. Typical word processing file format features, such as header and footers, orphans and widows or even page numbers can simply not be represented in HTML.

Programmatic: This approach offers total control of the resulting PDF. However, it requires that the x and y coordinates of every line of text, every geometrical shape and graphic be set from program code ². Not only is this an extremely time-consuming solution, but is also very brittle: Every time a graphical designer changes the layout of a document, a programmer must re-work his or her program code.

[AJAX Magazine] Webopoly, New Ajax-based Property Trading Game

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:24:47 +0200

Webopoly is a new Ajax-based monopoly-like game written in PHP where players can trade properties like web companies, or products. It supports multi-player games, in-game chat and a variety of other features, all without the use of any Flash or Java. The games uses many JavaScript libraries such taconite, soundmanager2, and greybox. Geeky and very addictive game ! Players can create their own private or public games and invite friends or colleagues to join.

Have fun http://www.webopoly.org/ !

[Open Events Magazine] ConFoo, Web Techno Conference, Call For Speakers

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 04:33:29 +0000

PHP-Qu�bec, Montr�al-Python, Ruby Montr�al, W3Qc, and OWASP Montr�al are organizing the first edition of the ConFoo.ca conference, which will be held in Montreal on March 10th through 12th at the Hilton Bonaventure Hotel. With over 500 expected attendees, ConFoo.ca is the largest Web development conference in North America.

We are looking for the best speakers willing to share their experience and skills with programmers, managers, marketers and decision makers. The conference is divided into two parts:

A technical part, encompassing different aspects of Web development: PHP,Python, Ruby, security, project management, CMSs and frameworks,databases, systems administration, Web standards, accessibility and agile methods.
A decision-making part: referencing (SEO), Web marketing analysis, and social networking.

Presenters can decide to present in English or French. Presentations are roughly one hour long. These may be recorded for later broadcast in digital format.

All relevant details concerning the conference are available on the website confoo.ca.

[e-Commerce Magazine] MobiCash, The Universal Mobile Payment

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 04:19:00 +0000

Johannesburg, South Africa, September, 21 2009 - MobiCash may conveniently be described as the next generation of mobile payment system. When it comes to mobile payment options, nothing is more convenient than MobiCash cell phone payment! MobiCash is changing the rules in the contactless electronic transaction business and generates very large opportunities!

Patrick Ngabonziza Gordon, Founder / CEO, stated: "Think about it: No more Wallet! No more Check! No more Plastic Cards! No more POS Terminals! No more Wired Networks! No more handle of any Paper Money! All you have to do is to make a call and your mobile phone signs for you!"

Mr. Gordon went on to say: "With just a mobile phone number and a digit PIN and a free MobiCash account, MobiCash customers can make secure cashless transactions. All phones can make payments using MobiCash no matter what phone model or network operator. You do not need to modify your phone in order to use MobiCash. Due to its simplicity MobiCash mobile payment has wide appeal, is easy to deploy and open to everyone - there are no complicated software downloads necessary and no restrictions to enrolment."

[CMS Magazine] XOOPS CMS releases Version 2.4.0 RC

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:37:35 +0000

After over 25,000 downloads of its previous version in just five short months, the XOOPS Project, world's leading Open Source CMS (Content Management System), is aggressively building on this success and has made available a release candidate of its award winning software - XOOPS 2.4.0.

This release focused on major usability and productivity improvements. Some of the major changes are:

* new user friendly Admin GUI
* new mechanism to modularize and extend Core via Preloads
* central support for jQuery
* improved Installer
* WCAG 2.0 - Sight Impaired Assisted Forms

XOOPS has not only a very loyal base, as the number of downloads suggests, but is also highly respected in the industry. In 2008 it was a finalist in SourceForge Community Awards and in the CMS Awards by Packt Publishing. It also won the prestigious 2008 China Open Source Software Contest Award.

[Hosting Magazine] Helicon Ape and ISAPI_Rewrite, Apache emulation on IIS

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:16:59 +0000

If you use exclusively IIS in your web development and want to implement something that run under apache, or if you want to migrate a solution from linux to windows, there is a product called Helicon Ape which provides apache emulation on windows environment.

Helicon Ape is a software solution that emulates Apache execution environment on Microsoft IIS. It literally implements Apache configuration model (like .htaccess and httpd.conf files) and all most demanded Apache modules in a single IIS add-on, not only making IIS compatible with Apache, but also extending its functionality by a number of essential features.

Benefits of Helicon Ape :

Users can move their Apache web sites to IIS without modifications;
Current PHP and other Unix oriented web applications can be easily configured for IIS;
Flexible user permissions control (as they implemented in Apache world);
Powerful URL rewriting compatible with Apache does not require rule redesign;
Reverse and forward proxy features available for a web server;
Low level controls over web site behavior open extended abilities for optimization, security and performance;
Comprehensive protection from site attacks;
Flexible compression and cache functions to speed up a server;
All-round HTTP-level web developer toolset.

You can find many interesting usage of Helicon Ape over their blog. Helicon Ape is available for download as a 45 days trial, server license start from $175. The company have a similar product ISAPI_Rewrite which provides Apache .htaccess mod_rewrite compatible URL rewriter for Microsoft IIS.

[AJAX Magazine] Open Source RIA Framework Qooxdoo 0.8.3 Released

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 03:39:39 +0200

The Open Source RIA Framework qooxdoo is now available in a new release 0.8.3. This release include many enhancements, 300 bug fixes, and lots of new features including :

New Form Handling
Unified Selection API
Advanced Data Binding
New Flow Layout
New Flash Widget
New Themed Iframe
Global Error Handling

"qooxdoo 0.8.3 is one of the best tested and most extensive releases to date." According to QooxDoo announcement there are about 1.700 Commits since last release, more than 1.100 Unit tests (incl. more than 3.200 assertions), about 30 Browsers/OS combinations continuously unit-/GUI-tested, and about 160 GUI-tests of applications, fully automated. Migration and more details about this release are available here.

More information and download at http://qooxdoo.org/.

[CMS Magazine] Asbru's CMS 7.1 Delivers Content to Mobile Phones

Sat, 12 Sep 2009 01:04:55 +0000

London, United Kingdom, 10 September, 2009 - Asbru Software has released version 7.1 of the Asbru Web Content Management system designed to provide control and simplicity for non-technical users while maintaining flexibility and power for developers.

This latest major upgrade to the Asbru Web Content Management system enables organizations to easily deliver content tailored for different devices such as mobile phones and PCs. This release also includes several new features for online stores and many significant improvements for system integrators and developers.

Deliver Content to Mobile Phones

The new version 7.1 enables organizations to easily deliver content tailored for different devices such as mobile phones and PCs.

The content management system's flexible template system already lets organizations build several versions of their websites. The new functionality now enables organizations to easily configure, which version of a website to display for specific devices.

So an organization can for example build and display a simplified mobile friendly version of their website to mobile phone users and another version of their website with a layout to fit larger screen sizes to other users. The new functionality enables organizations to configure special website versions for as many different devices as required.

[AJAX Magazine] DHTMLX v2.5 Released

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 01:06:22 +0200

DHTMLX 2.5 have just been released, one of the most interesting JavaScript libraries to build amazingly rich UI for web applications for both GPL open source and commercial apps. "We were working hard, carefully preparing this update, to make it more comfortable and easy for you to build rich web interfaces with our dhtmlx components" announced Ivan Petrenko.

Version 2.5 introduces lots of significant improvements, including:

Object API

In addition to the existing functional API, all the components now have an object API that provides a familiar way of initialization for those who are used to work with object oriented model. Instead of writing large number of commands, you can now define an object within a single command with all the properties set inside of it. This new object based approach allows you to initialize the components in more simple and clear manner. The old commands based model is still available as well.

[AJAX Magazine] StreamHub, Realtime Comet Server

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:29:44 +0200

HTTP Push Server for Streaming Real-Time Data is interesting solution for real world Ajax applications. One of these solutions is StreamHub, a highly-scalable HTTP Comet server allowing you to stream live data to a web browser without requiring any plugins or security-policy changes. It uses a technique known as Comet or HTTP Streaming to keep a persistent connection open to the browser.

HTML, Ajax, .NET and Java clients can all receive data from StreamHub. Data can be streamed into StreamHub using the Java or .NET SDKs. Early access is available to interested parties for Silverlight, Flex, iPhone and Mobile APIs. StreamHub's highly-scalable architecture is suitable for streaming live stock quotes, real-time chat, live news delivery, online-gaming and a whole host of Rich Internet Applications.

StreamHub is available in community edition (Free), Web and Enterprise edition for commercial use. The enterprise provides additional features such Clustering, Secure HTTPS Support, .NET Adapter SDK for Streaming, Java Thick Client SDK, .NET Thick Client SDK. The clustering option is obviously not available for the web edition.

Download StreamHub community edition. Some tutorials are available to get started with StreamHub and Comet or to create a Comet Chat applications.

[PHP Community Magazine] Windows Cache Extension for PHP Released

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:23:26 +0000

Microsoft IIS team released today the first beta of the Windows Cache extension for PHP (WinCache 1.0) for PHP 5.2 and 5.3. The new cache extension is a PHP accelerator that aims to increase PHP applications speed running on windows platform. The extension doesn't require any code change, it just need to be enabled in IIS. WinCache have many directives that could be enabled/disabled in php.ini and six utility functions to return extension-specific information about the cache internals.

Joe Stagner, posted an introduction to the windows cache extension and pointed to some notes about compatibilities :

The extension can only be used with non-thread-safe builds of PHP
The extension can only be used when IIS is configured to run PHP via FastCGI
The Windows Cache Extension 1.0 for PHP 5.3 can only be used with the x86 VC9 build of PHP 5.3.

The Windows Cache Extension includes 3 different types of caches. The following describes the purpose of each cache type and the benefits it provides.

[AJAX Magazine] CKEditor 3.0 Released

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 12:58:07 +0200

FCKEditor knew lots of changes recently and version 3.0 came with a new brand name, the editor is now called CKEditor where the CK meant for Content and Knowledge (the web 2.0 fragrances) instead of taking its creator initials Frederico Caldeira Knabben. Lots of new features in addition to bugfixes, amazing performance, and accessibility compliance with W3C WCAG and the US Section 508 accessibility standard marked this new release. CKEditor got a brand new UI, now you can easily change color of the editor interface to match your website's design in addition to skins, editor's options are fully customizable. CKEditor interface is available in more than 50 languages.

CKEditor is released under GPL, LGPL and MPL open source licenses. Commercial license (CDL) is also available for companies interested to integrate the editor in their software or solutions. The editor is compatible with most internet browsers and operating systems including Internet Explorer 6+, Firefox 2+, Safari 3+, Google Chrome and Opera 9.5+. Languages integration is also available for JavaScript, AFP, ASP, ASP.NET, Coldfusion, Java, PHP, Python, Adobe Air ... etc.

More information and download at http://ckeditor.com