Tried Quiz Master Next plugin for WordPress with some Math quizzes with success. However, this plugin has no feature to let users to upload image file for quiz, i.e. if there are some non-multiple choice question and need to review student’s steps, then this plugin is not enough.

Then purchased a Learning Management plugin by Flyplugins called WP-Courseware to accept upload image as the written answers with student’s working steps and to extend the quiz feature to a full function learning management system.

Issue:

Unlike Quiz Master Next plugin, WP-Courseware has no built-in LaTex rendering feature. To present Math formulae into a question, there must be a separate LaTex rendering mechanism, among several solution, I picked MathJax-LaTex plugin as it includes the AMSMath package, but after testing several scenarios, all are fine except after submit answers, the quiz result cannot render the LaTex shortcodes, probably because after the quiz result page is loaded dynamically via AJAX. It is interesting that after a hitting on the reload button, the LaTex will then be nicely rendered.

Solution:

After searching on web, it is a known that for MathJax to handle dynamic content, a MathJax reload is required. Actually a suggested function below may cure this issue:

MathJax.Hub.Queue([“Typeset”,MathJax.Hub]);

I tried to include this to the Header.php of the activated theme, but failed with a total white screen. According to the developer of WP-courseware – Flyplugins, it is logical to place the above function call in wpcw_front.js as the suggested code is javascript function call. After placing it in line 380 immediately before function: quizHandler_setup(), it works brilliantly.

Credit has to be given to Flyplugins’ Ben Arellano who responded to my query promptly and finally advised where to insert the javascript function.

Config:

• WordPress   4.1.1
• WP-Courseware   3.2
• Quiz Master Next 4.1.0
• MathJax-LaTex  1.3.3

Tricks:

1. Flyplugins has no idea on LaTex support and proficiency in MathJax. And they originally did not believe LaTex would work on WP-Courseware! Without try-and-error, LaTex integration with WP-Courseware is unachievable.
2. short code \( \small{[ \text{latex} ] \dots [ \text{/latex} ]} \) should be compatible with MathJax-LaTex and WP-Courseware, however, the questions using this shortcode is fine, but even adding the MathJax queue function stated above, the quiz result within this shortcode still cannot be rendered, only using equivalent short code \(\small{\backslash (\; \dots \backslash )}\) works fine. Together with the short code \(\small{\backslash [\; \dots \backslash ]} \) (that forces line break and horizontal centre aligned), there is good enough control provided by the MathJax-LaTex plugin.

The post WP-Courseware LaTex Integration appeared first on LarryLai.

The built-in slideshow feature of Piwigo has neither fading effect nor full-screen show. Though there is a CoolIris/PicLens plugin, it cannot work in iOS including iPhone and iPad as it requires Java. There is a new slideshow plugin for Piwigo called Fotorama that I have been waiting for a long time to empower the online albums.

However, it did not work in my Piwigo site. Just displaying all the thumbnails but no slideshow happened either under window or full-screen. No error message. Changing all combination of plugin configuration, nothing was changed.

Solution:

1. Check Administration -> Configuration -> Options -> Genereal -> Gallery title
2. Remove all text including Apostrophe (‘).

Config:

• Piwigo     2.6.2
• Fotorama Plugin   2.6.h

Tricks:

• At the beginning, I observed that a slave Piwigo site works but the host site did not work, and interestingly another separate Piwigo site works while the slave site did not work.
• As there is no error message while executing slideshow, it is difficult to find out the bug mentioned in the Solution above.
• Posted a question in Piwigo Forum related to Fotorama plugin, but no one responded after a day.
• The flow to solve the issue was by adding new slave Piwigo site under the working host Piwigo and then adding only the Fotorama plugin but nothing else, it works and then gradually configuring other settings. After adding a Gallery title, it did not work. Bingo! Usually, we use “LarryLai’s Gallery” or “Mr. X’s Gallery”, then no luck, you are trapped by the bug.

The post Piwigo Fotorama Plugin Bug! appeared first on LarryLai.

zPanel is using RoundCube as the webmail frontend. It’s clean and user-friendly. However, if it is going to be used by ordinary mailbox users without zPanel admin access, users cannot change their own password through RoundCube. Deploying the Password plugin is not easy for zPanel as RoundCube is an open source webmail software, and it is not dedicated for zPanel.

Solution:

1. Open /etc/zpanel/configs/roundcube/main.inc.php
2. Deploy password plugin by modifying: $rcmail_config[‘plugins’] = array() -> $rcmail_config[‘plugins’] = array(‘password’)
3. change dir to /etc/zpanel/panel/etc/apps/webmail/plugins/password/
4. Copy config.inc.php.dist to config.inc.php
5. Change the line: $rcmail_config[‘password_driver’] = ‘sql’ -> $rcmail_config[‘password_driver’] = ‘zpmail’
6. Add the following driver contributed by setris.
7. Name it as zpmail.php and put it under directory ../plugins/password/drivers/:

<?php

• zPanel   10.1.1
• RoundCube   0.9.5
• Password plugin  3.2

The post zPanel Webmail Password Change appeared first on LarryLai.

qTranslate is the best free multilingual plugin of WordPress, but its standard method to include language selector is adding widget. One deficiency of WordPress is that most themes do not provide many defined widget areas (same as regions in other CMS). In case the language select is to be displayed on the header, then some codes modification has to be done.

Solution:

1.  Create child theme (if not yet available)

2.  Copy header.php from mother theme to child theme

3.  Include the following codes before </div></div></header> of file header.php under child theme

<div style=”float:left; margin-top:25px; margin-left:40px;”>

<?php qtrans_generateLanguageSelectCode(‘both’); ?>

The post WordPress qTranslate Add Language Select on Header appeared first on LarryLai.

Ready! Pricing Tables is a great free plugin for making price tables in WordPress, but its gray template has a weird behaviour that the currency sign appear after the price instead of leading the price.

Solution:

Open the file under the plugins directory:  pricing-table-ready/constructor/gray/column.php

Change line 2 from:

…{prt Price} {prtCurrency}…

to become:

…{prtCurrency}{prtPrice}…

Trick:

Under WordPress admin panel, the file to be modified does not appear when you click “edit” to the plugin Pricing Tables Ready.

The post Correct Pricing Tables Ready Plugin’s Currency Position appeared first on LarryLai.

After correctly using Gimp’s Color to Alpha feature to turn white (or other colour) background into transparency. It appears also correctly in Gimp. However, every time export the image, there is no transparent background, instead the white background appears.

Solution:

Export image to PNG format instead of JPG

Config:

GIMP   2.8

Trick:

In case the image to be edited is in JPG format, then whenever it is to be exported, GIMP makes the default format same as the original, i.e. JPG, and you can never get the expected transparent background even the process of editing is correct.

The post GIMP No Transparent Background appeared first on LarryLai.

Need to apply tiered pricing schedule for the service, however, WooCommerce Dynamic Pricing Extension is unreasonably high at US$129 for single-site license.

Issue:

There are some ecommerce plugins in WordPress, but like WP-ecommerce, the pricing discount setting is too complicated, and I wonder if it works for my pricing schedule.

Solution:

Shopp plugin comes with clean and logical admin interface.

Config:

• WordPress: 3.7.1
• Shopp:        1.3.1

Tricks:

Most of the WordPress ecommerce plugins claimed them as free, but some require upgrade to chargeable pro version even for very basic function, few free plugins are offering comprehensive features. Shopp is definitely offering quite comprehensive features. WooCommerce is good but not as a free plugin. There is no pro version for WooCommerce as they want to charge every bit of feature as chargeable extension at unreasonably high price.

The post Deployment of WordPress Shopp appeared first on LarryLai.

The built-in Faq feature of the WordPress theme Shopifiq cannot perform multilingual provided by qTranlate plugin. No issue for the questions, but the language contents mixed together for the answers. I guess it is due to the inability to add html control to the answers, i.e. omitting the directive <!–:en–><!–:–> suggested by qtranslate. Thus, there is a need to find a substitute FAQ plugin. After searching for lots of related plugins, Q and A Focus Plus FAQ meets all my requirement including multingual compatibility with qtranslate and providing grouping related questions.

Issue:

After installing the Q and A Focus Plus FAQ plugin in WordPress, most features are fine without any problem, but the Category widget was missing in the Edit / Add new FAQ page. At the same time, the Category Edit page could not be called by the FAQs menu.

Solution:

1. Actually below is only a workaround, not a solution
2. Activate other theme that does not has a built-in FAQ feature with Category attribute
3. Click FAQs -> FAQs Categories to edit or add Category for Q and A Focus Plus FAQ
4. Activate back the theme back

Config:

• WordPress:    3.7.1
• qTranslate:      2.5.38
• Shopifiq theme:  2.0.9.3
• Q and A Focus Plus FAQ: 1.3.9.1

Tricks:

• Cannot find any clue on web as it may be rare that a WordPress theme having built-in FAQ feature.
• Other FAQ plugins having Category attribute do not having (probably) such taxonomy conflict with Shopifiq theme.

The post WordPress FAQs Plugin missing Categories appeared first on LarryLai.

Want to change order of the footer content.

Solution:

1. Create directory my-templates in ./template-extension
2. Copy ./themes/default/template/footer.tpl to my-templates
3. Click Administration -> Configuration -> Templates
4. Corresponding to ‘my-templates/footer.tpl’ choose footer.tpl under column: Original Templates

Config:

Piwigo      2.5.3

Tricks:

Theorectically, it can be achieved by modifying directly ./theme/default/template/footer.tpl, but using after updating core version, probably it needs to be modify again.

The post Customize Piwigo Template appeared first on LarryLai.

Last time trying to use Aegisub was just a simple task to shift the subtitle timing for several sec. for the whole subtitle syncronization with the video clip. This time just I want to do a pilot project to publishing Chinese subtitle for a video clip from public domain.

Issue:

A video subtitle editor – Aegisub always shows error message below when selecting

Audio -> Open Audio from Video

Solution:

• Aegisub          3.0.4
• HandBrake     0.9.9
• OpenSuse       12.3

Tricks:

1. If MP4 is chosen instead of MKV, the FLAC (ffmpeg) cannot be selected in HandBrake
2. Many other Subtitle Editors for Linux are not comprehensive enough to do an easy job for making subtitles, e.g. most of them cannot display the wave form of the audio that can be used to estimate the voice timing
3. In case the Audio cannot be open from Video, Aegisub cannot even play the sound track

The post Aegisub Audio Issue appeared first on LarryLai.