TJHooker's Latest TUTs

Accomplishing Common Tasks Using MooTools, jQuery, and Dojo

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 8:42:23 PDT

With Dojo, jQuery, and MooTools the tasks are similar — the syntax is simply different. Here are a few basic JavaScript tasks and the syntax to accomplish them within each awesome framework.

Create a RECENT POSTS module outside of WordPress

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 8:39:30 PDT

In an effort to tie the website and blog together, developers commonly throw together some quick PHP/MySQL programming to pull in recent blog post titles and links to the individual posts. Here’s the PHP and MySQL that accomplishes that task.

How to Send Email using ASP.Net

somepoints.com/tutorials/sending-email-using-asp-net/ — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 8:42:23 PST

Email code is the necessary part of programing. On several occassions, you need to generate some email to convey piece of information to end user. For example, when user signs up your site, you may want to send him a confirmation code for accessiblity. Sometimes you need to send newsletters or you may want end user forward a certain page to hs friend.

Create a Simple Slideshow Using MooTools

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 8:41:52 PST

One excellent way to add dynamism to any website is to implement a slideshow featuring images or sliding content. Of course there are numerous slideshow plugins available but many of them can be overkill if you want to do simple slideshow without controls or events. We’re going to create a simple slideshow from which we’ll build on.

How to write Unmaintainable PHP

phpadvent.org/2009/unmaintainable-php-by-stoyan-stefanov — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 8:40:56 PST

With the recent unemployment rates, everybody realizes that job security is important. The best way to keep a job is to be irreplaceable. If no one can maintain the code you write, you have a job for life. Writing unmaintainable code is a special skill that seems to come quite naturally to certain developers. For the rest of you, here are some tips and tricks to get you started.

Use PHP to cache and display your tweeted links

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 22:14:27 PST

This PHP tutorial fetches your last 10 tweets containing links using the Twitter Search API, then displays them in an unordered list (

). It requires PHP 5.2.0 or above to use PHP’s built-in JSON functions.

How to Create a Clean Blog Design with Photoshop

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:20:32 PDT

In this step-by-step web design layout tutorial, you will discover a method for designing a clean blog design with stunning gradient and lighting effects using Adobe Photoshop. This tutorial is geared for beginner to intermediate Photoshop users.

How to Create a 3D Tag Cloud in jQuery

www.devirtuoso.com/2009/08/how-to-create-a-3d-tag-cloud-in-jquery/ — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:20:10 PDT

With browsers rendering JavaScript faster than ever before, it’s a great opportunity to get creative with jQuery. This tutorial will show how to create a scrolling 3D tag cloud…it’s not as difficult as you might think.

Styling Drop Down Boxes with jQuery

www.devirtuoso.com/2009/08/styling-drop-down-boxes-with-jquery/ — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:19:44 PDT

One problem with HTML forms is it is hard to style the elements to fit into your design. The tutorial will show you how to style the hardest of them all, the select box.

Mastering CSS, Part 1 - Styling Design Elements

www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/08/03/mastering-css-styling-design-elements/ — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:18:19 PDT

CSS isn’t nearly as tricky as some people tend to believe. This tutorial has tips and techniques for creating and styling design elements with CSS. It's a good place to start if you’re new to CSS but are valuable even if you’re a veteran designer. Not all the techniques are strictly CSS; some include integration with JavaScript or XHTML to extend the functionality of your site.

Git for Subversion users - Getting started

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 8:01:10 PDT

Git (capital "G"; git is the command-line tool) is in many ways designed to be better than Subversion. It is one of many distributed VCSs. My own first experience with these was with Arch/tla, as well as Mercurial, Bazaar, darcs, and a few others. For many reasons, which I'll discuss as far as they are relevant, Git has become popular and is often considered together with Subversion as the two leading choices for a personal or corporate VCS.

How to handle URLs in PHP

php-html.net/tutorials/how-to-handle-urls-in-php/ — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 7:55:31 PDT

URL handling is one of the tasks you have to do from time to time in PHP. Sometimes you have to do it because you want to record the referral sites, other times because you want to write your own spider or just because you want to retrieve your current URL.

jQuery Fancybox and Flowplayer Integration Tutorial

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 7:54:19 PDT

Flowplayer is undisputedly a great flash video player versatile enough even for most projects with its free version and Fancybox I had used before in several other projects. Fancybox is a fine modal box capable of showing pretty much any kind of content. The guys over at Flowplayer.org have released their own jQuery tools library which integrates perfectly with Flowplayer. I wanted the best of two worlds.

The Definitive Guide to Using Negative Margins

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 7:52:04 PDT

Out of all the CSS concepts designers have ever used, an award probably needs to be given to the use of Negative Margins as being the most least talked about method of positioning. It’s like an online taboo—everyone’s doing it, yet no one wants to talk about it.

Sticky SideNav Layout with CSS

designm.ag/tutorials/sticky-sidenav-layout/ — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 7:51:13 PDT

Having a fixed sidenav comes in handy when dealing with blog style websites where the content is extremely tall and there is a need for good amount of scrolling. The fixed navigation allows the user to cruise through the content without scrolling back up to the top to navigate through the rest of the site.

Handling the unexpected - Type safe functions in Javascript

Wed, 05 Aug 2009 7:35:00 PDT

Javascript is a weird language. Great but weird. Take functions for example. You cannot only pass any type of arguments, you can also pass any number of arguments. This may be quite disturbing, especially for Java developers. Recently I had a discussion with a Java developer who complained about missing code assistance in Javascript, by which he meant no hint about the type of an argument.

Creating a jQuery Plugin: A Beginner Guide

www.noobcube.com/tutorials/jquery/creating-a-jquery-plugin-a-beginners-guide-/ — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:11:21 PDT

This is not an introduction to jQuery or a tutorial on the basic syntax rules of jQuery, but, rather how to take what little knowledge you already have of jQuery to the next level by putting it to practical use, and building a jQuery plugin.

How To Build an Animated Header in jQuery

www.devirtuoso.com/2009/07/how-to-build-an-animated-header-in-jquery/ — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:10:20 PDT

Why not give a little flair to your header. This tutorial will show you how to animate your header’s background image using jQuery to give your website that little extra something.

From CodeIgniter to Ruby on Rails: A Conversion - Nettuts

net.tutsplus.com/tutorials/ruby/from-codeigniter-to-ruby-on-rails-a-conversion/ — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:09:13 PDT

Throughout this tutorial, we'll create a simple shoutbox application in CodeIgniter, and then port it over to Ruby on Rails. We'll be comparing the code between the two applications to see where they are similar, and where they differ. Learning Rails is much easier if you are already familiar with an MVC (Model, View, Controller) framework structure.

jQuery fade and slide toggle plugin

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 9:37:31 PDT

The jquery slidetoggle() is great, but one thing I always thought it was missing is some opacity fading in the sliding animation. When I was coding this iteration of position absolute I wanted this kind of animation so I went there and coded it. This is a very small plugin, but I still find the effect cooler than a regular sliding.

Easy Thumbnails with PHP

www.devirtuoso.com/2009/07/easy-thumbnails-with-php/ — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 9:35:39 PDT

Don’t hassle with image processing software if you don’t have to. This post will show you how to automate your thumbnail making with PHP.

Creating a CSS Image Preloader

www.devirtuoso.com/2009/07/creating-a-css-image-preloader/ — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 9:34:04 PDT

There are plenty of ways to create preloaders for your images, generally a lot of them use JavaScript to get things rolling. No longer are you shackled to JavaScript preloaders, with CSS you can preload your images with little to no hassle.

Easy Development With CodeIgniter [VIDEO]

net.tutsplus.com/videos/screencasts/easy-development-with-codeigniter/ — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 8:14:51 PDT

This video is aimed at beginners who have no experience with a PHP framework. For demonstration purposes, we'll be building a simple image upload utility. We'll then perform some validation, save the file to our uploads folder, and automatically create a respective thumbnail. With raw PHP, this can be somewhat time-consuming. However, with CodeIgniter, it's simply a matter of referencing the correct library, and passing in some configuration options!

MooTools, Framework Compatibility, and Dollar $afe Mode

davidwalsh.name/mootools-dollar-safe-mode — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 8:10:03 PDT

MooTools 1.2.3 was released on June 19, 2009. With this release, MooTools implemented Dollar Safe Mode. Essentially, MooTools no longer requires the $ function for its own purposes.

Instant remote git repository using ssh

www.opsb.co.uk/?p=41 — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:52:16 PDT

This is a very short tutorial that illustrates how to setup a remote git repo using ssh.

Better JavaScript Debugging in 15 Minutes [VIDEO]

Thu, 14 May 2009 8:04:32 PDT

I have created a 15 minute screencast that will show you how to Debug JavaScript with Firebug. I cover a number of concepts such as using the console, interactive debugger and timer features of the Firebug extension for Firefox. If you haven’t tried Firebug yet, I’m sure that this screencast will convince you to make it a part of your JavaScript coding workflow.

AJAX Definitions with jQuery and PHP [VIDEO]

www.sampsonvideos.com/video.php?video=24 — Thu, 14 May 2009 8:02:03 PDT

In this lesson we will create a sweet-action AJAX Definition retriever with jQuery and PHP - leeching definitions from the ever-wise Google of course.

An Intensive Exploration Of jQuery With Ben Nadel [VIDEO]

Thu, 14 May 2009 8:01:00 PDT

The presentation covers most aspects of the very robust feature-set provided by the jQuery library.

Using Blueprint CSS with Zend [VIDEO]

www.zendcasts.com/using-blueprint-css-with-zend-2/2009/01/comment-page-1/ — Thu, 14 May 2009 7:58:18 PDT

This video looks at the HeadLink view helper and how blueprint can easily be integrated into an existing zend_layout.

Using Wordpress as CMS

robertbasic.com/blog/wordpress-as-cms-tutorial/ — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:44:56 PDT

You know what’s the best part of Wordpress? With some knowledge of PHP and MySql, you can turn it into much more than just a blogging platform. After doing some HTML to WP work for Roger, I thought of one way how could Wordpress be transformed into a CMS. Note the “one way”. This is not the only way for doing this, and, most likely, not the best way.

Building a Todo List using Code Igniter

query7.com/building-a-todo-list-using-code-igniter/ — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 9:33:47 PDT

This tutorial is aimed to be a general guide to build ’something’ using Code Igniter. It uses Models, Views, Controllers, Helpers and Libraries and will give you a good idea how Code Igniter works as a whole.

How to improve PHP session security | A blend of programming and seo

www.rawseo.com/news/2009/04/23/how-to-improve-php-session-security/ — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 10:40:54 PDT

PHP is an easy language to use and many details are hidden from the programmer. When you store variables in a session, a cookie is dropped on the user’s system (you don’t need to use cookies, but the details are the same) with a unique identifier (this is highly randomized and difficult to reproduce). All of the actual data is stored on your server in a file (which is the default) or a specific database table. The random/unique identifier stored in the user’s cookie is then used as a key to their data.

How to Speed up Your Django Sites

Sat, 25 Apr 2009 10:38:13 PDT

A lot of these steps will speed up any kind of application, not just django projects, but there are a few django specific things. Everything has been tested on IvyLees which is running in a Debian/Ubuntu environment.

A Better Pagination / Portfolio / Christoph Pojer

og5.net/christoph/article/A_better_Pagination — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:36:54 PDT

More than two years ago I implemented something unique and I thought it would take over the world someday. Well, it seems like I was wrong. It may just be that I had no place before to release this awesome little snippet. There also is a reason why it took me so long to release it: See, it is about Pagination and I did not want to show off a nice feature without actually using it myself.

Facebook-Style Modal Box Using MooTools

davidwalsh.name/facebook-modal-mootools — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:34:33 PDT

In my oh-so-humble opinion, Facebook’s Modal box is the best modal box around. It’s lightweight, subtle, and very stylish. I’ve taken Facebook’s imagery and CSS and combined it with MooTools’ awesome functionality to duplicate the effect.

How to install and use the PHP xdebug extension

devzone.zend.com/article/2803-Introducing-xdebug — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 6:40:09 PDT

xdebug is a small, but very useful tool in PHP development. It should be installed and activated on every PHP installation that is used for development. You should not run xdebug on a production system, though, because most features degrade performance. Personally, I would never want to miss xdebug a single day on my development system, and if it is just for the better formatting of the var_dump() output.

Create astonishing iCal-like calendars with jQuery | Stefano Verna

www.stefanoverna.com/log/create-astonishing-ical-like-calendars-with-jquery — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 8:26:19 PDT

One of the most common requests from clients when it comes to Wordpress personalization, is to add a basic event calendar to their website. Finding a good place to position a big table like a calendar within your Wordpress template is always a taught work. In addition, the tag itself is often quite difficult to style in a good way.

LavaLamp for jQuery lovers!

www.gmarwaha.com/blog/category/client-side/jquery/ — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 21:11:00 PST

As User Interface developers, we know that one of the first widgets our visitors use is a “Menu”. Capturing their attention right there is something that we always strive for, and I guess LavaLamp is a step in that direction.

MooTools TwitterGitter Plugin

davidwalsh.name/mootools-twitter-plugin — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:48:51 PST

Everyone loves Twitter. Everyone loves MooTools. That’s why everyone should love TwitterGitter, a MooTools plugin that retrieves a user’s recent tweets and allows the user to format them however the user would like. TwitterGitter allows the user to choose the number of tweets to retrieve and returns an object containing the data provided by Twitter.

Handling errors in Zend Framework

codeutopia.net/blog/2009/03/02/handling-errors-in-zend-framework/ — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 9:12:49 PST

In Zend Framework based applications, error handling is typically done using the error controller, but there are different ways to send the execution to it - some better than others. Let’s look at some ways to trigger the error controller and how to have it handle different error conditions.

43,439 reasons to use append() correctly - Learning jQuery

www.learningjquery.com/2009/03/43439-reasons-to-use-append-correctly — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 9:04:34 PST

The .append() method is perhaps the most misused of all jQuery methods. While an extremely useful and easy method to work with, it dramatically affects the performance of your page. When misused, the .append() method can cripple your JavaScript code's performance. When used well, it'll keep your script humming along.

Creating Custom Write Panels in WordPress

wefunction.com/2008/10/tutorial-creating-custom-write-panels-in-wordpress/ — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 13:33:35 PST

Everyone knows that WordPress is one of the most, if not the most, popular blogging systems on the internet today. With its out of the box features, plugins, and great theming community, its no wonder WordPress has been accepted as today’s standard. However, sometimes you just want to add a little more.

A Plugin Development Pattern - Learning jQuery

www.learningjquery.com/2007/10/a-plugin-development-pattern — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 22:38:40 PST

This article is meant to share the pattern that I've found especially useful for plugin authoring. It assumes you already have an understanding of plugin development for jQuery; if you're a novice plugin author, please review the jQuery Authoring Guidelines first.

Create a TinyURL with PHP

davidwalsh.name/create-tiny-url-php — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 21:19:21 PST

TinyURL is an awesome service. For those who don’t know what TinyURL is, TinyURL allows you to take a long URL into a short one. Using the PHP and TinyURL API, you can create these tiny URLs on the fly!

An In-Depth Look at jQuery UI - Part 1 | Steve Reynolds Blog

www.reynoldsftw.com/2009/02/an-in-depth-look-at-jquery-ui-part-1/ — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 7:04:15 PST

jQuery UI is a fantastic library that sits neatly on top of jQuery enabling you to animate various elements for amazing front-end interactions. In the first of 3 articles, the author discusses the Interaction functionality, followed by Widgets, then Effects in part 3.

Working with jQuery, Part 1: Intermediate JQuery: Using plug-ins to extend jQuery functions

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 7:01:32 PST

The popularity of jQuery owes a lot to its decision to include a plug-in architecture. This decision allows any number of third-party developers to create and extend the jQuery functions beyond the original library functions. The result is hundreds of plug-ins that provide nearly any type of function needed on a Web application. This article describes this plug-in architecture and explains how jQuery can help your Web application behave just like a desktop application.

CodeIgniter Tutorial using AJAX, Scriptaculous, and Models

video.derekallard.com/ — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 3:00:56 PDT

What you see here is the final product of a video tutorial on building an application using Code Igniter. The entire application takes about 20 mintues to build - but don't take my word for it, watch it getting constructed for yourself.