I AM LISTENING TO
|
WAS ICH LIEBE
  • Englisch
  • Deutsch


BLOG FILTER



RIPS is a static code analysis tool to automatically detect vulnerabilities in PHP applications.

By tokenizing and parsing all source code files RIPS is able to transform PHP source code into a program model and to detect sensitive sinks (potentially vulnerable functions) that can be tainted by user input (influenced by a malicious user) during the program flow.

Besides the structured output of found vulnerabilities RIPS also offers an integrated code audit framework for further manual analysis.

RIPS

readmore

IFTTT

IFTTT is a free web-based service that allows users to create chains of simple conditional statements, called „recipes“, which are triggered based on changes to other web services such as Gmail, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest. IFTTT is an abbreviation of „If This Then That“.

BUFFER

Buffer is a new and smarter way to share what you want to share on Social Media. You add updates to your Buffer queue and it will be posted for you well spaced out over the day – and at the best times.

RECIPE

  1. Make sure all the Buffer social media profiles are set to update by default.
  2. In IFTTT, make sure your Gmail and Feed channels are turned on.
  3. Create a new recipe
  4. For this, select the Feed Channel, and choose the New feed item box. Then, enter your blog’s RSS feed.
  5. Click the Create Trigger button.
  6. For that, select the Gmail Channel, and choose the Send an email box.
  7. For the To: address use your SECRET Buffer email address.
  8. For the Subject use {{EntryTitle}}.
  9. For the Body use {{EntryUrl}}<br>@now . Remove the @now, if you want to add new feed items to the Buffer queue and not send them imediately.
  10. Click the Create Action button, give your recipe a description and click the Create Recipe button.
  11. Now when a new item is added to you RSS feed, IFTTT will update Buffer , which will update all connected social media profiles.

 

readmore
2. Februar 2016

LMS meets SaaS

As I said before, Learning Management is really taking off and I get many client requests to do some kind of  integration or custom solution for them.

In one of my latest articles I started listing solutions for WordPress, WordPress and the LMS universe.

But those solutions might not always be the best fit for your project. Many of them actually try too hard to be everything. The amount of cross linked functionality is getting insane and increases the point of failure.

In some cases a trimmed down solid solution might be the better way to go. SaaS (Software as a Service), part of the cloud trend, is providing more and more options, this includes the LMS arena. Stop worrying about the software and concentrate on your content again. The SaaS provider takes care of functionality, support, updates and delivery. This is nothing new, solutions like TalentLMS or Litmos LMS offer this for some time now.

Modern SaaS solutions provide Public APIs, that allow you to seamlessly integrate them with your current solution. So in case of a LMS, that part of your project could be handled by the SaaS provider, while e-commerce, social and other content areas remain under your full control.

One solution I am currently looking at is Intuo, which is a fresh startup out of Gent / Belgium. They provide a solid set of features and a clean API to handle single signons and content access. That would allow a seamless integration into WordPress for example :)

We are looking at a very crowded LMS market, but always nice to have options :)

Enjoy coding …

readmore

In the past 2 years, the e-Learning market has been exploding. Online Learning Management Systems (LMS) have become very popular, to build e-learning platforms.

They not only offer text based content, quizzes, assignment management, course evaluation, social features, but also allow the integration of video, audio and other linked content.  Many support SCORM (Sharable Content Object Reference Model), allowing the exchange of learning content and results.

THE LMS UNIVERSE

Over the past few years, I have been helping clients to build or transform their e-learning platforms.  Sometimes its better to build a customized LMS solution from scratch :), than tweak or customize an offered solution. It all depends on the features you want to see integrated and on the budget available ;)

In this article I want to share current solutions offered for WordPress.

I will divide them into themes and plugins for now. In the future I plan do some feature comparison as well :

  • Theme based or Standalone Plugin (standalone might be preferred)
  • Course functionality (course, units, quizzes sections …)
  • Course linking / Course Groups / Exclusive courses
  • Course categories
  • Course Evaluation
  • Course curriculum
  • Course timeline
  • Course reviews & ratings
  • Course Stats
  • Free courses
  • Variable pricing
  • Course notes / Comments
  • Course Admin area
  • Course Frontend creation
  • Assignment functionality
  • Certificates
  • Messaging
  • Custom Email Templates
  • Course Events
  • BuddyPress Integration
  • BBPress Integration
  • WooCommerce integration
  • Import & Export functionality
  • Login
  • Student profiles
  • Instructor frontend interface

 

PLUGINS

These are standalone plugins, that provide LMS functionality and integrate into your WordPress themes. Ease of integration and options differ.

  1. LearnDash
  2. Sensei
  3. LearnPress  (new – 2015)
  4. WP Courseware
  5. LifterLMS
  6. Namaste! LMS
  7. CoursePress

THEMES

These themes mostly dependent on one of the plugins above or offer only a simple subset of LMS functionality.

  1. eLearning WP (new – 2015 / LearnPress)
  2. Derrick
  3. Guru
  4. Academy
  5. LMS
  6. Clever Course
  7. LMS Press
  8. EduLMS
  9. Skillfully
  10. iKnow
  11. University
  12. Invent
  13. Sensei themes
  14. Clever Course

THEME & PLUGIN

Integrated solutions,  that are supposed to offer a tight integration of WordPress, theme and its own plugins.

  1. WPLMS (started the revolution at Envato)
    One thing that sets WPLMS apart from many of the above is the frontend interface. So instructor tasks happen on the frontend not in the WP Admin. Also when it comes to assignments, WPLMS is currently the best solution. Even if the assignment management is not yet perfect, its better than what many of the other solutions offer.

Enjoy coding …

readmore

portalZINE NMN | Development meets Creativity |I started adding a standard preface to emails from clients asking to work with me. So here it is, for potential new clients, that think about working with me :)

  1. I am not doing subcontracting. I am a full-stack developer and my customers get what they see, which means my full attention for a project. Projects I take on are handled as if they were my own.
  2. For bigger projects, I do fixed project prices only. I am not starting development without a full roadmap, timeframe and specifications in sync with the functionality required to get the project live :) A fixed project price covers all from development,  integration and  assistance in moving forward. Clients and myself hate additional hidden costs ;) Any work that moves far out of the project boundaries will be highlighted and discussed in a timely fashion.I have a reference hourly rate, which I do squeeze if a long term commitment to the project can be foreseen.I also offer hourly rates for maintenance and smaller projects. Projects can also be split up into stages, if needed!
  3. If you want someone that thinks for himself and incorporates ideas, I am the right person. If you are looking for a simple developer that just steps through a list of tasks, I am not the right person for your project.
  4. All project steps will be monitored via an Asana project to keep schedules and tasks cleanly organized. I offer be-weekly updates of the status and schedule meetings, if anything is unclear within an area currently worked on.

Anything else about me can be read here:
http://www.portalzine.de/services/
http://www.portalzine.de/services/about-alex/
http://www.portalzine.de/services/portfolio/

If you made it so far and you still would like to work with me, we can move to step 2 :)

 

Get in touch with me …

readmore

How do I choose the right JavaScript framework for my next single-page application project?

A question I have asked myself over and over again.

There are countless options these days, that claim to be the ultimate solution to all our developments needs.

USED BEFORE

I have build applications with

  1. Angular
  2. Backbone
  3. Ember.js
  4. Knockout
  5. Ampersand.js
  6. Rivets

TRIED BEFORE

I have looked at

  1. Polymer
  2. React
  3. and many other solutions out there.

And I seem to be evaluating new options every week :)

ANSWERS ?

The only answer I can give you is that :

  1. None of them will fit any of your projects perfectly.
  2. None of these will cover all project areas to your personal satisfaction.
  3. None of these will prevent you from errors and the need for unconventional solutions.

In the end its a matter of personal taste and project requirements. We only have limited resources to finish a project and find solutions to unsolved problems in a timely fashion (yes this always happens). Go out and play :) Also take  a look at TodoMVC, which might help you to decide. No guarantees !

Over the past few month I have evaluated all the things that I used in the past. I  started stripping it all down to a bare set of essentials, that have been following me for a long time. There are solutions that just fit and require no replacement.

GOING SOLO

So my answer for the perfect framework, is a set of solid singular solutions that have proven themselves over the years. Working solo or together in harmony.

 Like a painter I want to choose my own brushes and color mixture. Programming is an art that needs freedom.  A freedom that can often be limited by a too strictly defined framework. Structure is important, but it should never dictate the options you have to fulfill your project goals and limit you.

I will be covering some of those tools here in coming articles.

I will talk about:

  1. MVC
  2. DOM manipulation
  3. Templates
  4. Data-Binding
  5. Directives
  6. Routing
  7. Observables for Arrays and Objects
  8. Modules
  9. Dependency Loading
  10. Utility solutions

…enjoy coding

readmore

„Holland America Line Reisprofile Test“ provides an interface for customers to find out which cruise type they are.
By sliding the images you are choosing your preferences and define your cruise type, which allows you to get an individual set of cruises sent to you.

readmore

film2learn

film2learn is a new Learning Management System (LMS) / platform for B2B partners, that I just released together with Dr Dish TV this week.

A highly customized system, that gives each partner their own little LMS universe to share knowledge with distribution partners or staff.

An easy way to introduce new products and teach how to promote them.

film2learn

readmore

This is a series of articles summing up some of the key points when planning a Google Adwords campaign.

  1. Building up a Google Adwords campaign (1) – Research
  2. Building up a Google Adwords campaign (2) – Starting the campaign

With the keywords defined, we can start with the setup of the campaign.

I am not actually going over each of the options provided by the Adwords interface, but I provide you with  an initial and fast first start. The Google Adwords documentation is very detailed and it makes no senses replicating that here.

Building up a Google Adwords campaign (2) – Starting the campaign weiterlesen

readmore

This is a series of articles summing up some of the key points when planning a Google Adwords campaign.

  1. Building up a Google Adwords campaign (1) – Research
  2. Building up a Google Adwords campaign (2) – Starting the campaign

When doing an Adwords campaign research always comes first!

Keyword Research

Which keywords are most relevant to your campaign and are used by people to find your product/service/company?These are also relevant for the keywords that you will be using on the target website itself.

Can also be adjusted in the long run by checking the log and see what search keywords visitors used to reach the website.

Adwords also provides a quality score for keywords, so that you don’t waste your time on underperforming keywords.

Consistency between the landing page content and Adwords keywords is important. Quality search results are awarded with a higher quality score by Google. Building up a Google Adwords campaign (1) – Research weiterlesen

readmore