For many of us who are consultants/integrators of Plone, making time to explore the cool new features of Plone 3.0 can be nearly impossible to squeeze into our jam packed days. We are still implementing 2.5.3 dangit! We want to play with the new toys too!

My view on all the new bells and whistles that Plone 3.0 is providing us is first and foremost, how does this improve my clients daily interaction with their website, intranet/extranet or Plone based application?

And so, I'm starting a series chronicling my exploration into Plone 3.0..

How is it different?

What's really, really good.. what could use improvement (from the non-technical perspective)

Changes in the way we theme Plone (templates have changed completely..no more TAL?.. and learning viewlets is going to be a matter of just digging in and actually starting to write some.. that's how we learned creating viewlets for CMFContentPanels!)

I'll be starting a Plone 3.0 theming project and blogging about that as well for those who will be required to create a theme for clients or the boss.

(csquaredtech.com will also be going through a redesign and upgrade to 3.0 over the next few months)

As an integrator/designer I find myself answering the same question over and over again in #plone or via email.

"How do I change the text in my footer?"


In order to make changes to footer.pt in pre-3.0 sites (through-the-web) you would do the following:

• Login as manager
• Go to http://mysite.com/manage or click on Site Setup (usually in the site actions bar on the top right of your site..depends on how your site is configured) and then the Zope Management Interface (ZMI)
  
• Once in the ZMI you went to /portal_skins/plone_templates and clicked on footer.pt
• Click on Customize button and the system put your footer.pt in the custom directory
• You made your changes and saved it and there you had it.. your new footer.pt

Plone 3.0 has a new Viewlet customization process that's different than what I detailed above.. (not difficult.. just different)

• Login as manager
• Go to http://mysite.com/manage
• Once in the ZMI go to portal_view_customizations
• Scroll down to zope.interface.Interface
  
• Click on plone.footer
• At the bottom of the file click on "Customize"
  
  

Instead of putting your footer.pt in the custom directory it puts plone.footer in portal_view_customizations

You can modify the file just the way you would in 2.5.3 and save it.

If you go back to portal_view_customizations and scroll down you'll note that there is a "yellow" highlight over your plone.footer. This indicates that the file has been customized.

What? You made a mistake and you need to revert to the original version og plone.footer?

In the previous version you would go to portal_skins/custom find your file then rename it or delete it. 

In 3.0 return to portal_view_customizations (if you aren't there already) and click on the contents tab. You'll see your newly customized file. Delete the newly customized file and plone.footer will revert to the orginal version.

(I used plone.footer as an example but the same process is applicable for any viewlets in portal_view_customizations)

Kevin Teague has posted an excellent screencast on creating a Plone blog on 3.0 without installing a third-party-product.

http://www.bud.ca/blog/create-plone3-blog

Excellent screencast, Kevin! Thank you for the contribution..

I love this community!

Today, I'm sitting in IRC as usual..working on client sites when Jared Whitlock (jwhitloc) of Novell logs on  and the following conversation ensues (I'm SnowWrite :-))

[12:09] jwhitloc: so, my copy of "Professional Plone Development just arrived today.  Inside the front cover there is what appears to be a hand-written post-it not.  It says "Warning: not to be used in enterprises".  What I want to know is, what is up with that?  Is that a joke specifically to me because of the talk I gave at the Plone conference?
[12:09] jwhitloc: or is that in all the books?
[12:09] darcilicious: ha!
[12:09] SnowWrite: lol jwhitloc
[12:09] * SnowWrite has two copies.. no post it notes
[12:09] SnowWrite: :-)
[12:09] SnowWrite: very funny
[12:10] jwhitloc: the thing is, that comes from the publisher...
[12:10] SnowWrite: are you serious jwhitloc?
[12:10] jwhitloc: yes, I am
[12:10] * SnowWrite thought you were joking.. dang
[12:10] SnowWrite: see what you did aaronvanderlip :-)
[12:10] SnowWrite: was it a review copy?
[12:10] jwhitloc: nope
[12:10] SnowWrite: crazy
[12:10] jwhitloc: from the publisher, ordered normally
[12:11] * SnowWrite doesn't know then..
[12:11] SnowWrite: ah
[12:11] jwhitloc: SnowWrite: if it is a joke (which I assume), I'd like to know who put it in
[12:11] SnowWrite: yeah me too.. and hope it was just on your book
[12:11] dabu: is buildout useable to install Plone offline?
[12:11] jwhitloc: wow, there are post it notes all through this
[12:11] jwhitloc: seriously
[12:11] darcilicious: awesome!
[12:12] *** oferw has signed off IRC (Read error: 104 (Connection reset by peer)).
[12:12] dabu: mine doesn't have any postits
[12:12] *** oferw_ has joined #plone.
[12:12] *** oferw_ is now known as oferw.
[12:12] SnowWrite: aren't you with Novell jwhitloc? (pardon if I got that wrong)
[12:12] jwhitloc: yes
[12:12] SnowWrite: well that's just weird
[12:12] jwhitloc: "The Plone community is a cult" that's in there
[12:13] SnowWrite: oh that's horrible!
[12:13] jwhitloc: but funny
[12:13] SnowWrite: hmm
[12:13] SnowWrite: strange that that would go out
[12:13] * SnowWrite wants post it notes
[12:13] dabu: take them for fingerprints
[12:13] * SnowWrite sends her books back to the publisher
[12:13] dabu: put them in a plastic bag
[12:13] jwhitloc: I might have to scan them and post them here
[12:13] dabu: with tweezers
[12:13] darcilicious: jwhitloc: yes!
[12:13] SnowWrite: that's too funny
[12:13] darcilicious: i was just going to suggest scanning them :)
[12:13] SnowWrite: jwhitloc.. do you have a blog connected to planet.plone.org
[12:14] jwhitloc: no
[12:14] SnowWrite: we can get someone to post.. (darci and I both do..)
[12:14] SnowWrite: as do quite a few people here on the list
[12:14] SnowWrite: scan them.. I think people would get a kick out of it.. lol
[12:15] jwhitloc: I think I figured it out: the package is glued with that lame rubber cement stuff that you can seal right back up.  I'm guessing one of my coworkers had some fun after the mail people put it on my desk.
[12:15] SnowWrite: the package wasn't tampered with..
[12:15] SnowWrite: ahhhh
[12:15] jwhitloc: didn't look like it
[12:15] jwhitloc: who says big companies are no fun?
[12:15] SnowWrite: yeah but it could have been.. lol

See the post-it notes here...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19400891@N06/

Just another day in Plone IRC.. have I mentioned I love this community?

So you heard me lamenting not that long ago about the unfairness of the new "way" to theme a Plone site (Plone 3.0). How those of us who are integrators were feeling the sting of being "left behind".

As time is passing I'm warming up to the ideas presented and trying my hardest to assimilate myself into this new "process" as much as possible. I owe it to my clients. That said.. I'm always on the look out for resources to help those of us who don't dream in code learn how to make Plone look pretty (or at least match our clients look & feel).

So about a month ago one of the regulars on IRC , RobZoneNet, posted his theming write up to the channel and I, being curious, went on over and took a look.

Rob has provided an excellent write up for those of us who don't need to know about adaptercomponenttypethingiesontuesday...

https://weblion.psu.edu/trac/weblion/wiki/PloneThreeUserInterfaceChanges

Beautiful! I have this baby printed out and stuck on my wall with a bright red thumbtack...talk about valuable!

Oh and to top it off.. Rob is working on another one..

https://weblion.psu.edu/trac/weblion/wiki/PloneThreeWhereIsWhat

Wanna learn more about TAL or how to customize the Plone favicon.. go here

https://weblion.psu.edu/trac/weblion/wiki/WebDevelopment
(most of these were written by Rob)

Granted..one must always check Plone.org for the latest in documentation.. but keep these links bookmarked because I guarantee you.. these will be dog eared in no time.