Desperately need help :/

Greetings all

I just became a user of this wonder of a cms called MODx.
I previously used Joomla myself to be honest.

I made my share of forums before (smf, vBulletin and phpbb), websites etc.
But still Im a novice (newbie) user compared to all of you here.

Took me a day to make a site with MODx and I still dont understand some of the basics.
Im only good at finding the code, modifying it to my purpose and integrating it.
Im a graphics designer, there in lies my skill.
I have no knowledge/skill to write the code tho. Over the years Ive learned a thing or two but still lack php fundamentals.

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OK now I turn to you to help me, point me to a newbie site where I will be able to accomplish my goals.
These seem a daunting task to me, being a newbie and all.

Goals:

Make a blog (simple no more) so my fellow kinmates can write a thing or two
Make a chat system integrated in some subpage in MODx.
Make a forum Integration that would read latest topics to the right side simple News bar (only 5 topics).
Make an attendance MOD where users will be able to sign up for events.
News bar that would read news topics and couple of first words from them on a news subpage.[/li]

Ill try to explain in more detail to what I want here:

Blog: prety straight forward. Im asking is there a solution that allready integrates, lets say wordpress into the modx? Or any other blog for that matter?
With least of the hassle to install/integrate.

Chat: Any chat software that easily integrates with MODx?

Forum: I made a fresh phpBB 3.0.2 forum. Designed a theme, both for Modx and phpbb so they look identical. I have least problems with this and integration is not required. I want to say I can live without it. Right now when I press the link on my sites menu, the transition is allmost unnoticable as the template look the same.
What I want tho is to have a single registration user base. Because modx and phpbb are not integrated they dont share the same database, to the effect that users have to register 2x. Its annoying, nothing more. Is there a way to bridge the database so MODx could read registered users from the phpbb? Allso I would want to have login window on modx site where users of the forum could just log in and use the site. (probably some cokie sollution?)

Attendance: I would want a modiffication where users can go (link of subpage) and read which event it is, when is it taking place and a short description and just press yes, no or maybe button. The mod would then register them to that particular event. Their registered username would be used. Admin would just enter the info in the fields: Event 1, Taking place at 20:00, 22.11.2008, Short description of the event. Soo making it 3 fields for input. Name, date and Description.

News bar: Right now I have to manually enter the news in html. Im using (right side, simpNews chunk) cause I dont have the slightest on how to make a news subpage which links news topics to the first page news bar.


I will be gratefull for any help/code rendered.
Much thanks in advance.

The easiest for the blog is to build a native modx blog (see the demo site for an example) using Ditto, and NewsPublisher (if you want front end editing).

You may be able to use the WebloginPE snippet to work with the forum userbase (not sure on this).

You could use a form for the attendance issue. I would go for a custom php solution, but you could also use eForm for the form processing and add the eForm2db extension to record the data to the database.

Use Ditto for the news bar. It is for taking content from one page and aggregate it on another page. Check out teh ditto support site for some ideas: http://ditto.modxcms.com/ there are also some tips in the wiki.

What you have told me I allready knew. As to what i could use. But the problem is I lack the knowledge to make it happen.

Is there no precoded solutions available that you can install as easy as templates and snippets and chunks?
Thats prety easy and straightforward, altho worlds apart from Joomla simplicity.

If you install the demo site when installing modx you will have a working blog example using Ditto.

For the news bar, lets say that your news is in a container with the ID of 123 you would place a ditto call in your template where you want the news items to show. In the call you specify the parent document ID (in this case 123) something like this:

Then you can add to the call to get more specific like adding a sort order or a sort criteria and specifying the number of articles to return as well as determining which output template chunk to use:


In your custom tpl chunk you can code the output html the way you want to match your site.

I don’t mean to sound RTFM but with MODx you’ll have to spend some time understanding the logic. I am afraid your question is a bit "all encompassing" and Shane gave you information to get started but we can’t walk you step by step for such wide questions. We simply don’t have the resources to do so, freely (though we often do help step by step on more specific questions).

If you’re looking for "precoded" solutions MODx might not be for you... it’s not that hard to achieve but contrary to YAPS systems MODx is not a "click and install" CMS.

Simplicity is worlds apart from Joomla ? Depends to whom you’re talking... a designer or developper might disagree with you and think the exact opposite (actually, I do)... why ? Because MODx flexibility is worlds appart from Joomla and by a long, long shot ! What you loose in "one click set up" you gain in "customizing is a breeze".

For standard needs / low skills / short amount of time, MODx might not be your best pick... but if you need to set up a custom website tailored to your (or your client needs) it beats hacking the core and modules in terms of how fast and well you can meet a particular need.

I am well aware of this and I am prepared to invest conciderable ammount of time in this beacause this will not be my last page.
But since Im a total beginner in this I do require guidance like dev_cw allready displayed.


By all means I do not force anyone to help out, just those that have time and will.

Allso I said precoded solution because Im used to Joomla nad such.
MODx was a step up for me and I learn by example. Adding to my knowledge.
I look at the code and see what it does, then I modify it when i know what it does.
Im a self learner in all things and thus far i do not stop untill I master one thing.

Thank you.

Ok that’s cool then
Since you’re willing to learn, you’ll discover a word of new possibilities and we’ll help you with that !

Don’t hesitate to split questions into several topics, this will make it easier to answer and help out is all I am saying.

Ive been battling with blog for 2 hours now.
Tried every example in WIKI but the simple blog is just that,.. too simple. You dont even have proper editing tools like for other things.
At a more advanced blog I get stuck because "A Blog Entry Page" is blank. Didnt find a sollution.

Is there a working blog with same tutorial thats better looking and works?

I see people have nice modx blogs and nobody wants to share the code?
I dont mind editing another 99 files as long as its working ad its pleasing to the eyes.
I loan for WordPress eyecandy right now.

I seem to have hit a snag even in the simplest of simple Blog tutorials.
I went through it many times with same or worse results.

On the Blog page this is what I see:

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WRITE (this is my name for the INPUT_BLOG page)


By Default admin account
on 13-Sep-08 00:11.

Comments ([!Jot? &docid=`15` &action=`count-comments`!])


Summary:


Link:

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And I cant get to the actual post I made (my first blog post) from here.
To get there I copy paste browser link and add id+1.

OK once there, I see text without any formatting whatsoever.
What must I do to fix these ttwo annoying problems?

I copied and pasted those chunks in letter for letter.
Only changed ID to match my own.

Must I modify something else?

Are you saying that the part in red text is showing the call rather than the comments? If that is the case you need to remember to alternate the snippet cache settings with embedded snippets. So if the outer Ditto call is uncached [!Ditto?...!] then the embedded Jot call needs to be cached [[Jot?...]].