MLA_Tag_Cloud and IPTC/Exif

  • Resolved rumples2022

    (@rumples2022)


    11 months, 1 week ago

    Dear David:
    First: I’m hugely impressed both by the power of your plugin and by your commitment to helping the people who use this software. Thank you for both.
    I’m new to your plugin, and am feeling overwhelmed by the range of options available to me. (The documentation is astonishingly comprehensive, but I think I am not seeing the trees for the forest.) I think my issue is pretty straightforward, though, and I hope you can point me in the right direction.
    I would like to use the mla_tag_cloud shortcode to allow users to select images to view using IPTC information. So, for instance, I would like to have a page that has a tag cloud with the countries in which photographs were taken.

    I have used the IPTC/EXIF/WP tab to create a rule for a new field called “country.” That works for a gallery where I specifically search for a particular country — so, for instance, this works:

    [mla_gallery meta_key=country meta_value=’Switzerland’ mla_alt_shortcode=gallery layout=”square”] (NB: I’m using Meow Gallery, which works beautifully with MLA.)

    But what I would really like to do is use the tag cloud capability to give users the option to choose . I cannot seem to figure out how to do this. I have tried variations on the [mla_tag_cloud] shortcode, including [mla_tag_cloud taxonomy=country] (which predictably returns “ERROR: Invalid taxonomy, country”).

    If I can solve this, then I imagine I can move on to do the same for other IPTC or EXIF fields that users could choose from.

    Any pointers would be most welcome!

    Thank you,

    André Lambelet

Viewing 9 replies - 1 through 9 (of 9 total)
  • Plugin Author David Lingren

    (@dglingren)

    11 months ago

    Thanks for your generous feedback on MLA and for your question. I know the Documentation, while comprehensive, is more reference than tutorial and I appreciate the time you put in to study it.

    As you have discovered, the [mla_tag_cloud] and [mla_term_list] shortcodes are very specific; they only work with taxonomies and terms. The current MLA version does not have any way to create a cloud or a list of WordPress custom field values that you could select from and pass along to [mla_gallery] for gallery composition.

    It is an interesting and reasonable idea, though. Give me some time to investigate the work required to add features along these lines and I will post an update here when I have progress to report.

    Thanks for the idea, your patience and your interest in the plugin.

    Thread Starter rumples2022

    (@rumples2022)

    11 months ago

    Thanks for the reply. I had begun to suspect I was barking up the wrong tree. I can accomplish what I really need to do manually without serious difficulty, but I’m always looking for a way to automate things that can be repeated (even, often, if the hunt for automation takes me longer than doing it manually in the first place would have done).

    I wonder — and again I’m a novice here, so this may not be feasible or wise — if allowing MLA to create custom taxonomies might be one way to do this? Then it might be possible to create a custom rule under the IPTC/EXIF tab that would allow the user to move information to a custom taxonomy, and use that for the tag cloud?

    In any case, thanks again for the quick and generous reply. It’s lovely to read a whole support section that is marked by deep courtesy and thoughtfulness.

    Plugin Author David Lingren

    (@dglingren)

    11 months ago

    Thanks for the kind words and for the new question. Thanks as well for your generous review; it’s a great incentive to keep working on the plugin and supporting its users.

    You wrote “if allowing MLA to create custom taxonomies might be one way to do this?” Adding a custom (flat) taxonomy would certainly be a viable alternative to using a custom field. There are many other plugins that provide support for creating custom taxonomies, and MLA’s “MLA Custom Taxonomy Example” plugin shows how to do it from a bit of PHP code in a small custom plugin. I decided that adding the feature to MLA core didn’t pass my cost/benefit filter.

    Regarding the original idea of a custom field cloud, my investigation verified that it is both interesting and reasonable. The work required is straightforward but significant. I plan to work away on it in the time I have available but cannot promise a prompt result. Let me know if you’re still interested in trying it out or if you’ve changed your priorities. Thanks for your understanding.

    Thread Starter rumples2022

    (@rumples2022)

    11 months ago

    Thank you, David – very much appreciated!

    I stumbled across the MLA Custom Taxonomy Example yesterday, and have been thinking about how I might make use of that.

    I’d be delighted to try out whatever you come up with for the custom field cloud, but please don’t feel any urgency; I have plenty of work to do on the other aspects of my site. I’ll keep an eye out for news from you on this, and will give you any feedback I have.

    A challenge of MLA is that there are always more possibilities! I remain very much interested in the idea of a custom cloud — not just because it meets my own needs, but because I think it would be a neat addition to MLA. More broadly, MLA is making me think about the way in which we order and classify information, so it’s a stimulating intellectual exercise to think about how I can use the software you have written to allow other people access to my images. So thank you for the software, and for the enrichment.

    Regards,
    André

    Plugin Author David Lingren

    (@dglingren)

    9 months, 2 weeks ago

    Thanks for your patience while I worked away on the custom field cloud/list shortcode. It’s a good project but was quite a bit of work. The new shortcode combines all the features of the taxonomy-based [mla_tag_cloud] and [mla_term_list] shortcodes and adds some new features as well.

    I have uploaded a new MLA Development Version dated 20231022 that contains the new shortcode. You can find step-by-step instructions for using the Development Version in this earlier topic:

    How to download & install the current development version of MLA

    Once the Development Version is installed you can look through the extensive “MLA Custom Field List Shortcode” sections in the Settings/Media Library Assistant Documentation tab. I would be delighted to consider any feedback you have on the shortcode or its documentation.

    The enhancement will be part of my next MLA version, but in the interim it would be great if you could install the Development Version and let me know if it works for you. Thanks for inspiring this significant MLA enhancement!

    Thread Starter rumples2022

    (@rumples2022)

    9 months, 2 weeks ago

    Thanks, David! I’ve downloaded and installed on my local development site, and will take a look. I’ll provide feedback as soon as I can. Thanks again!

    — André

    Plugin Author David Lingren

    (@dglingren)

    7 months ago

    I have released MLA version v3.13, which contains the new shortcode developed for this topic. I am marking the topic resolved, but please update it if you have any problems or further questions regarding the new shortcode. Thanks for inspiring this MLA improvement.

    Thread Starter rumples2022

    (@rumples2022)

    2 months, 3 weeks ago

    David,
    It’s been a very long time — but I wanted, even at this long remove, to thank you for the extraordinary work on the [mla_custom_list]. It’s enormously useful, and I’m deeply grateful. (No request for help this time – just an expression of gratitude.)

    Regards,

    André

    Plugin Author David Lingren

    (@dglingren)

    2 months, 3 weeks ago

    Thanks for the positive feedback and kind words regarding the new shortcode. I am happy to see you’ve found it useful. Let me know if there’s any further help I can provide.

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