WordPress as CMS for Pandan.gov.ph

Friday, December 17, 2010 @ 11:50 pm by Sofie Hofmann

I converted Pandan.gov.ph, the Official Website of the Municipality of Pandan, Antique, Philippines, from simple PHP to WordPress as CMS. I actually revised the Website a few months ago but I did not write about it.

I designed this Website in 2005 and it was officially online on April 01, 2005. I also paid for the hosting of the Website. But more than two (2) years ago, I gave up maintaining the Website but did not give up hosting it yet as I would like to turnover the Web content maintenance of the site to Pandan Local Government Unit.

This year, upon my request, Mayor Tan, the new mayor of the Municipality of Pandan, Antique, Philippines, decided to maintain the Website and so I converted it to WordPress CMS.

The web design is still the same, based on the original web design of Pandan.gov.ph when it was still using simple PHP and before that using simple XHTML, except for the navigation menu on top of the page as it is a dropdown navigation menu now. Despite the new dropdown navigation menu, I left the other navigation menu by section on the left side of the page.

I used the Pages feature for most of the pages on this Website and used the Posts feature for the gallery, news and bid sections. If there are any updates on the site, the readers will be able to see them immediately at the front page.

When it comes to WordPress Plugins, this Website is using three (3) plugins only, Akismet, WordPress Stats, and User Role Editor.

It took me at least four (4) weeks to finish redesigning this Website.

Boracaydivers.com converted to XHTML and PHP

Thursday, March 22, 2007 @ 12:53 pm by Sofie Hofmann

Boracaydivers.com had been converted from HTML to XHTML and PHP. I actually finished converting the site within a day on the first week of March but since I was busy with other matters I was not able to write about it. There were no other major changes and the design remains the same.

On other matters, maybe it’s a bit late but it is still important. You might not have read about it yet. For those of you who still have WordPress 2.1.1, please upgrade your WordPress 2.1.1 to WordPress 2.1.2. I was also not able to write about it here but a few hours after I read the announcement at WordPress “WordPress 2.1.1 Dangerous, Upgrade” I immediately upgraded all my sites using WordPress 2.1.1.

Even if I downloaded WordPress 2.1.1 earlier than what was stipulated at the announcement when the original code had been possibly modified I still upgraded all my sites. It was probably not affected but then WordPress declared version 2.1.1 dangerous and released version 2.1.2.

Just to inform you, I don’t write all my updates here especially if I update the other sites, so please visit my other sites once in a while for site updates.

Upgraded to WordPress 2.1 Ella

Friday, January 26, 2007 @ 6:09 pm by Sofie Hofmann

I finished upgrading the sites using WordPress from WordPress 2.0.7 to WordPress 2.1. Upgrading a WordPress site is not that complicated. What makes the site complicated when being upgraded? If some tags were deprecated, some features were removed or transferred, and if the Plugins, if you have any, aren’t compatible with WordPress 2.1 Ella.

There were no major problems with SofieHofmann.com Blog as it is a blog. I just have to check my blog entries for XHTML validation. I corrected a little bit at CSS file as my images are always centered but the text are always justified. All of a sudden, the centered text were adjusted to the left. They’re ok now.

With Sehdi.com, I had to redo the conditional tags because of the feature that a static page can be assigned to the front page. I did both the code for a static page as well as for the latest posts, so even if I switch from one to another, the pages won’t break and won’t be affected at all. No matter what, I can assign a static page or the latest blog posts anytime to the front page. I haven’t use this feature with other sites yet. One thing though, the quicktag <!--more--> doesn’t work but the quicktag <!--nextpage--> works. I still have to figure out the solution to the <!--more--> quicktag.

With Weggis.net, I needed to remove some conditional tags at the archives, having the articles after each topic. Sometimes they appear, sometimes not. Instead, I changed the number of articles at the individual archives. So if you check each topic archive, all the titles of the articles are there aside from the latest one on top of all the other ones.

With Pagtatap.org, there’s not a lot of problems, as it was just newly redesigned.

With Pandan.gov.ph News, it was just like Sofiehofmann.com Blog. I just fixed the CSS because of the floating images to the right, and XHTML for validation.

With Pandan.ph, I have more problems with one of the Plugins. I’m using a Paged Comments Plugin in this site and it was not working with PHP include <?php include (file.php); ?> unless you put the TEMPLATE PATH before file.php. I also have Paged Comments Plugin at Pagtatap.org but this problem didn’t occur there as I was not using too much page templates unlike with Pandan.ph. Anyway, I was able to fix everything.

For all the other sites, I needed to change the deprecated template tags, wp_list_cats to wp_list_categories and get_archives to wp_get_archives. Actually, as of the moment, even if you didn’t change them, they will stay the same, won’t really affect the site.

Regarding the links being part of categories now, if you have get_link_list and opted to check show description, it’s not working now. That option was removed from the admin side, and so, I replaced get_link_list with wp_list_bookmarks.

I’ve written something about a Plugin. What about other WordPress Plugins?

I don’t use too many WordPress Plugins. So far, I have these Plugins but not in all the sites.

Akismet Plugin by Matt Mullenweg, WP-PostViews by GaMerZ, Post Updated by Kaf Oseo, Peter’s Custom Anti-Spam by Peter Keung, Sidebar Widgets by Automattic, Simple Recent Comments Widget by Mika Perälä, randomimage by Justin Watt, Filosofo Home-Page Control by Austin Matzko. No problem with all these WordPress Plugins.

SRG Clean Archives Plugin by Shawn Grimes. I have to fix the post_status='publish' to post_type='post' as I don’t want the pages to be part of the monthly archives.

Paged Comments Plugin by Keyvan Minoukadeh. I already mentioned about the Paged Comments Plugin and fixed the problem.

Counterize II Plugin by Steffen Forkmann. I deactivated this Plugin except at Sehdi.com and SofieHofmann.com Blog even before upgrading to WordPress 2.1. It’s in conflict with the Google Search that I’m using. I couldn’t fix it yet. I’m always getting a message above the page referring to the database. But if I just use the normal WordPress search, no problem at all.

WordPress database error: [You have an error in your SQL syntax. Check the manual that corresponds to your MySQL server version for the right syntax to use near ” at line 1]
update wp_Counterize_Pages set count = count + 1 where pageID =

Everytime I activate the Plugin and test google site and web search, the message above appears and another one and another one. I haven’t asked the author of the Plugin yet about this, hoping that I will solve it myself. But since I’m not a MySQL guru, I still have to figure it out. As I see it, I think the solution is just simple and it’s just there but I haven’t really figured that out yet.

WordPress Database Backup Plugin by Scott Merrill. I never really used WordPress Database Backup as I backup my database from the phpMyAdmin itself. I just tested it and eventually deactivated again in the other sites. No matter how I changed the File Permission of wp-content, it’s just not working in other sites. It’s not creating index.php at the backup folder and so I couldn’t backup my database. So as not to put the security of wp-content in danger, I just deactivated the Plugin except at the 2 of all the 6 sites.

Well, that’s all for today. Other than what I have mentioned above, everything is ok. All the sites are fine and running without any problems. Thanks to WordPress Team! Thanks to WordPress Plugins authors!

WordPress as CMS for Pandan.ph

Saturday, October 21, 2006 @ 9:11 pm by Sofie Hofmann

I decided to use WordPress as CMS (Content Management System) for my sites. I already started using it as a CMS at Weggis.net. Weggis theme is based on the original design of Weggis.net when it was not using WordPress, PHP and XHTML yet. I also made several code updates at the other pages using PHP.

I also revised Weggis.net search capability. Weggis.net search is not only searching posts or entries in categories (normally the updates) but other pages as well.

Since several search engines have already indexed Weggis.net, especially google, I also placed google search at Weggis.net as another option to search the site. I also implemented this in my other sites.

Then, I revised Pandan.ph once again. This time though, WordPress is not only being used for the News and Gallery Pages. I used WordPress, specifically WordPress 2.0.4 version, as CMS for the whole site.

I just revised the codes so the web design is still the same. This WordPress theme is based on the original design of Pandan.ph when it was also not using WordPress, PHP and XHTML yet.

I also installed a new guestbook using WordPress Paged Comments Plugin. I removed the comments capability for the gallery, news and other pages. Instead of commenting at the news page and its subpages, people can only now leave their messages at the guestbook.

I removed the CGI script used for my contact page and used WordPress comment capability instead with Akismet Plugin so that comment spams could be caught and de-spammed. Comments that were de-spammed will be submitted to Akismet as mistakes so it can learn and get better.

To use Akismet, I needed Akismet WordPress.com API Key, so I opened an account with WordPress.com but then opted not to get a username only but registered a blog too, sofiehofmann.wordpress.com. I could not use my own theme though. I have an idea what to write there but still thinking of other possibilities.

Anyway, if you look at Pandan.ph, as if, there are no changes at Pandan.ph, but on my part, with regards to coding, it was such a lot of work. I could have written something about it everyday but opted not to do it. I was just too busy.

Other updates: Publications and Media pages of Green Cross Switzerland have been updated.

Pandan.gov.ph News improved

Thursday, September 21, 2006 @ 10:50 pm by Sofie Hofmann

It’s been more than a month since I converted Pandan.gov.ph from HTML to XHTML and PHP. I wrote about it on August 15, 2006, Simply Sofie Blog WP Upgrade, Pandan.gov.ph HTML to PHP. For the past few days, I’ve been also working on the News section of the site.

The News page of Pandan.gov.ph, the Official Website of the Municipality of Pandan, Antique, Philippines, is using WordPress 2.0.4. Now, that the site uses XHTML tags and PHP, and since WordPress uses PHP too, I used WordPress as a CMS (Content Management System) for the News section for easy updating purposes. I designed a theme patterned after the original design of the site, spending a lot of time creating CSS (Cascading Style Sheets). The News page is the only section which is using WordPress at the moment. I’m still thinking if I should use WordPress for the other pages. Well, for a start, I removed the Events menu and transferred it under News section.

The News section has several news updates too. Read the latest news update, 2006 International Green Apple Awards Winner. Bugang River Tour has been chosen as a winner in the International Green Apple Environment Awards for Environmental Best Practice.

For other pages, I need to make a template for each section so the subsections will reflect and not just the normal sidebar. It’s a lot of work, and so, for the meantime, I’m shelving that idea. If ever I decide to really do it, then I just have to do it slowly.

I also updated the Services section, added Engineering Services on how to apply for a building permit with links to building permit forms and documents for downloading. The forms and documents are also linked at the Downloads section. At the Downloads section, aside from the forms and documents, several resolutions were uploaded and they can be downloaded as well.

I made several changes at the site, and hope to be able to do more improvements later.

Site Updates and the newly revised Pandan.ph

Monday, August 28, 2006 @ 2:23 pm by Sofie Hofmann

I revised the site Pandan.ph Pandan Antique Philippines. It took me weeks to finish it as I could not make up my mind what to do with the Gallery and News sections. The design is still the same. I just changed the HTML tags to XHTML using simple PHP at the same time. I removed some pages and used .htaccess to redirect them.

I finally ended up installing WordPress for News Updates and Photo Gallery making Pandan.ph finally more interactive. I checked the CSS and XHTML and they passed the validation. I checked them with Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Opera and Netscape, and everything seems fine.

Ok now, I would like to mention that Pandan.ph Portal was hacked, not the Pandan.ph itself. I was not checking it for several days and when I was checking google for any pandan related sites, I saw that the hacked pages were indexed. I didn’t panic, I just accessed phpMyAdmin, and uploaded my MySQL database. No sweat, in just about 2-3 minutes everything was restored. I just forgot to back up the counter, so the number of visits was the old one.

I use phpnuke for Pandan.Ph Portal, quite an old version, so to say, and because of some bugs, the hackers got into it. That’s why it’s important to upgrade all the time. This is also the reason why, I’m not very fond of using CMS such as this one because I always have to upgrade. Very important?! Don’t ever forget to back up your files and database. If you are not upgrading, it could happen that the hackers could destroy all what you have in your site just like what happened to Pandan.ph Portal. And, if you have no back up, then all that you have worked for will just be gone like dust in the air. Poof!

I was actually just testing phpnuke and I will not probably upgrade it anymore. There’s too many files and it takes long to upload. For one thing, Pandan.ph Portal was an experiment but I will not remove it because a lot of search engines have indexed those pages already. I just have to check it often that it will not happen again. If ever it will happen again, I guess I just have to uninstall it then.

That’s what I like about WordPress, easy to install, easy to upgrade, easy to upload, easy to manage, and easy to create a theme for it. Everything is just easy with WordPress!

Other updates!

I updated the site of Lux International AG, particularly the Lux worldwide pages. I added the countries Poland, Slovakia and South America. I also updated the Lux Partners page, changing it from Lux Group Worldwide into Lux International Partnership Alliance.

I updated the site of Green Cross Switzerland, particularly the Publications pages. I uploaded the Annual Report for the year 2005 of Green Cross Switzerland, in PDF files, both in German (Jahresbericht) and French (Rapport annuell). Kindly check them out at the Green Cross Switzerland site if you like to read the report.

Ok, that’s all for now. Have a wonderful day everyone!

Simply Sofie Blog WP Upgrade, Pandan.gov.ph HTML to PHP

Tuesday, August 15, 2006 @ 11:31 pm by Sofie Hofmann

I updated the sites, Weggis.net, SofieHofmann.com, and Pandan.gov.ph, the Official Website of the Municipality of Pandan, Antique, Philippines.

Photos of the Hoechifest 2006 are now available at Weggis.net. Hoechifest is a private small grill party of those families residing at the Höchi area in Weggis, Switzerland.

I finally upgraded Simply Sofie Blog at SofieHofmann.com. I upgraded from WordPress 2.0.2 to WordPress 2.0.4. Read the upgrading instructions at WordPress.org.

I also revised the codes of the website of the Municipality of Pandan, Antique, Philippines at Pandan.gov.ph. I finally converted the pages from HTML to PHP, but of course, still using XHTML tags. There is one page though that is not valid XHTML 1.0 Transitional because of the external links.

That’s the problem if you are using Content Management System (CMS). Most of them are not XHTML valid. I’m not fond of using CMS but then I found WordPress. With WordPress, you can really check the themes if the CSS or XHTML used are valid or not. If not, then you’ll just have to correct them yourself.

Well, I don’t have to correct the other themes as I’m using my own themes, and I see to it that the CSS and XHTML I used are valid. I’m using WordPress in some of my sites but not all. With regards to the other websites, I am also planning to revise them.

New Weggis.net, WordPress, WP Widgets

Thursday, July 6, 2006 @ 2:43 pm by Sofie Hofmann

Finally, I was able to revise Weggis.net Web site. The look is not really different from the old web design. I just improved it a little bit. I changed all the pages from HTML to XHTML and PHP but then realized that I’d better integrate it with WordPress.

I integrated my own coded XHTML and PHP pages with WordPress. I redirected HTML pages to the new pages. Weggis.net is now more interactive. I just designed my own theme based on the original site.

I installed the latest version of WordPress 2.0.3 and also used WordPress Widgets. The Widgets make the sidebar easy to tweak. If what you want is not included in the original zip file, just download that particular Widget Plugin, upload it at the Plugins folder and activate it. Once activated, you’ll see the Sidebar Widgets along with the Themes, Theme Editor at the Site Admin Presentation. If the Widget Plugin is not activated, then you will not see any change at the Site Admin Presentation.

I started revising it last week, exactly seven days ago. So I was quite busy for the past few days. But even before that, I was already quite busy then. I was busy revising my other websites and doing the donation pages of Green Cross Switzerland.

Speaking of Green Cross Switzerland, we haven’t finalized the donation pages yet. I’m still waiting for the English, Italian and French translations as the pages were done in German language.

Yesterday, I updated Green Cross Switzerland Media pages regarding the 1st National Nuclear Dialogue in Moscow on July 3-4, 2006. The Nuclear and Disarmament Experts emphasize the importance of the demilitarization of the materials and weapons of mass destruction.

The National Nuclear Dialogue was held 10 days before the 2006 G8 Summit in St. Petersburg, Russia where efforts of the G8 led “Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction” will be highly prioritized.

Read the reports in German and French languages at the website of Green Cross Switzerland for more information.

PHP, MySQL, HTML, External Hard Disk Drive

Friday, June 30, 2006 @ 11:57 pm by Sofie Hofmann

I’ve been too busy lately. Few days ago, I revised the PHP codes of my personal site Simply Sofie at SofieHofmann.com. It’s better now and easier to update. I also updated some data.

I didn’t really appreciate PHP before because of MySQL. I just hated the idea that I always have to back-up my database and if ever I forget to do it, and then something happened (i.e. lost database), then I will be left with nothing and have to do it all over again.

I am not a programmer just a simple hobby web designer but if I would like to be more effective, I need to know PHP. So I learned PHP through reading tutorials on the net.

One way or another, I have learn to love PHP and MySQL but I will never forget HTML. If you would like to start designing a website, I will always recommend to start with HTML. Until now, I write my codes using notepad. I still use HTML/XHTML combined with PHP and MySQL.

Since I have to download a lot all the time, considering that I also take a lot of pictures, I’m now running out of space in my hard disk drive. I still have a lot of pending hobby projects and I couldn’t really clean up my computer because I need to back up my data first.

Finally, my husband bought a 300 GB external hard disk drive today. He bought it for me. I was really so happy when I saw it. I can finally transfer my other data and erase some unnecessary files. What a relief!

XHTML, PHP, WordPress, YM, Yahoo! 360

Wednesday, June 21, 2006 @ 6:28 pm by Sofie Hofmann

Today, I changed the codes of my web design site, Sehdi.com – Sofie Estolloso Hofmann Designs International, from XHTML to PHP. I enhanced the index page with rotating images of my web designs with URL links and added the Latest Blog Posts, and so if you are regularly visiting my site, you will know right away if I updated my blog. I redirected the HTML pages to PHP pages using .htaccess. Then, I upgraded my sehdi.com blog from WordPress 1.5 to WordPress 2.0.3. Everything seems to be working fine.

That’s what good about WordPress, it’s not difficult to understand so you can configure it easily.

Yesterday, I revised the PHP codes of the donation pages of Green Cross Switzerland. I just need the translation of the German version to English, French and Italian languages, then everything will be in place and Green Cross Switzerland will finally be able to receive donations online through its site.

On other matters, Yahoo improved its Yahoo! Messenger with Voice.

According to Yahoo! 360 Team:

Yahoo! Messenger & Yahoo! 360° Working Together

The new version of Yahoo! Messenger has a great new feature called “plug-ins.”

Plug-ins are free, mini-applications that can be easily added to Yahoo! Messenger with Voice so that Messenger becomes more personal and interactive for you.

There’s a Yahoo! 360° plug-in on Messenger that lets you do some pretty cool stuff. You can read updates from your friends, see if you have new blog comments, and even write a blast or a blog entry – all from within Yahoo! Messenger.

Last night, I downloaded and installed the new beta version of Yahoo! Messenger with Voice (BETA) (8.0.0.505) with MyYahoo Module (7.5.0.1).

The new version is ok except for the Yahoo! Toolbar and Yahoo! Browser Services which are no longer optional if you want to install it or not. But you can uninstall the Yahoo! Toolbar if you don’t like it at all. (Updated on June 22, 2006 at 11:49 pm regarding the phrase that I just erased, see my next blog entry)

How do you uninstall it? It’s easy, just locate the “Edit” button, which appears like a pencil, click it and you will see “Uninstall” almost at the bottom. Just click it and the Yahoo! Toolbar is gone.

For more information, read the following at the Yahoo! Toolbar Help.

How do I remove Yahoo! Toolbar for Internet Explorer?

How do I remove Yahoo! Toolbar for Mozilla Firefox?

If you decide to install the new version of Yahoo! Messenger with Voice but don’t want the Yahoo! Toolbar, you just uninstall the toolbar after installing the new YM beta version.

That’s all and good luck!