[Quicknr]
[Quicknr]
Wednesday, 23 March 2016
New release of Quicknr brings a new optional feature: eye candy for the news listing page.
If thumbnail images (names ending with "thumb.jpg") are found in the "public_html/news/images" directory, they are placed as floating blocks in front of the introductory paragraph in the news item on the news listing page. The first image found in the linked news post is used for this.
When pre-existing thumbnails are not found, and the Python Imaging Library module is installed, Quicknr will create the thumbs. Failing that, full-size originals linked to in the news post are used for the thumbs. In this last scenario, it helps if the images are progressive JPEGs, so that at least a low resolution version is displayed before the image fully loads.
Other improvements: HTML tree indenting is handled better and is now on by default. Randomness of "odd"/"even" classes on floated image blocks has been removed (it is better handled with CSS). And News.js is now always offered for upload when news are updated, across restarts.
Quicknr is continuing to prove wonderfully useful in website development. Where its Light Markup syntax of plain text construction for a web page is too limiting, the importing and custom python function directives are a breeze to integrate. Particularly enjoyable is the process of finding new ways of combining the power of Python and Javascript. PHP goodness is also in the works... Quicknr is here to stay and can only go from strength to strength.
Alas, no progress on webmaster documentation. No time for it yet, unfortunately.