Exponent CMS Blog

Are you having a Facelift letdown?

You've unwrapped (installed) v2.3.0, and much to your dismay it looks the same!  Where are all these major new features?  One of the goals of the Exponent CMS project is to provide seamless or transparent upgrades to newer versions.  While this isn't always true (1.x code deprecation, etc...), we do try to keep your web site looking the same after an upgrade, while offering new features and improving the site management tools.  In this article, I'll attempt to show you how to activate the 'new' interface options and work around a couple minor issues.

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Using the new Workflow Feature

Version 2.3.0 includes a new optional feature called 'Workflow'.  This feature allows greater control over a multi-user site, especially where there are many users adding new material which should be edited or approved prior to being visible to the public.  'Workflow' adds 1) Revisions, and 2) Approval.Workflow Revisions

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Preparing to Upgrade to v2.3.0

Version 2.3.0 is the follow-up to version 2.2.3 and was given a version bump due to the many new features added.  It also marks a 'slowing down' of version releases as it's purposely been five months since the last release.  While it doesn't require as many changes as the move to v2.2.0 (which deprecated all the old 1.x code), it would still be wise to note and adhere these following changes.

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Which WYSIWYG Editor to Choose?

Version 2.3.0 includes a second optional What You See Is What You Get (WYSIWG) editor called TinyMCE.  While in most cases you'll probably want to stick with the venerable CKEditor, TinyMCE will work on Android devices, where CKEditor does not.TinyMCE WYSIWYG Editor

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Using the new elFinder File Manager

Version 2.3.0 includes a new modern File Manager which (in the long run) will make it much easier to manage and work with uploaded files.  In general, elFinder follows an 'operating system' paradigm, so it should be fairly logical to begin using, but it is much different than the old Exponent File Manager.elFinder File Manager

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More About Less

less cssCSS3Back in version 2.0.8 we added the LESS ​stylesheet compiler to Exponent.  LESS is a dynamic stylesheet language which extends CSS with dynamic behavior such as variables, ​mixins, operations and functions.  This functionality makes it much easier to create flexible stylesheets since redundant styles and style variations can be handled by the compiler/server instead of the designer.  Though this addition to Exponent was primarily to support Twitter-Bootstrap, its use is increasing especially beginning with v2.2.3.

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Permit me to tell you a little about the next version

While v2.2.3 (when released) will focus on addressing issues in v2.2.2 and removing all the deprecated features and 0.9x compatibility, there will be a few minor new features and changes to the permissions system (final implementation will be based on your feedback to this article!).

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Bring Out Yer Dead!

Bring Out Yer Dead!Monty Python fans will quickly recognize the title phrase and remember the scene where he's not quite dead.  So begins this article on how to remove all the old, dead stuff from your Exponent site and custom theme.  Before the end of the year (probably v2.2.3 which tentatively will be a Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday/last release of 2013) we'll have stripped out several deprecated modules and no longer support older themes (deprecated function calls).

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Facebook and Tweet Integration in v2.2.1

FacebookTwitterThe next release will introduce a new 'Facebook' module and optional Facebook 'Like' and Twitter 'Tweet' buttons to blog posts.  

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The 'Wizard' Returns to Exponent

The WizardOne feature which didn't make the move from Exponent 1.x to 2.x was the 'Wizard'...essentially a sequential set of forms.  Well 'ta-daaa', we're planning to have a wizard or paged-form feature in the next release (already in the 'develop' code branch)!  This will be a much simpler implementation than available in 1.x, as a 2.x paged form can easily be designed all in one place, instead of having to create separate form pages, etc...  This feature will be available in both the forms module/site forms (event registration now uses site forms) and in templates/views.

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