How to work on your website on two different computers

I do most of my work on my home desktop, but like to use my laptop if I can when time allows in other locations, but VSD makes synchronizing the site data difficult.

When you upgrade from one version of VSD to another is an excellent time to try this.

1) You NEED to have all your website files in one primary directory and its subdirectories. VSD likes to put your .vnu files and img*.jpgs in its own subfolder, but allows your other stuff like jpegs and documents to be scattered all over your computer. That will not work, you have to bring them into one accessible location.

2) Move all of your data files and .vnu files and the img**.jpgs that VSD created onto a flashdrive
3) INstall the new version of VSD, which uninstalls the old version
4) Once you have the new version installed, use the OpenExisting Website function and point VSD to your flashdrive. It will now build the site from that drive and save to that drive.

If you start fresh on a site that has not been previously created, VSD wants to put all the files in its own directory, but if you open an existing site on another drive it will continue to save to the file that it opened.

5) You can now insert the USB drive on a different computer and with a fresh install of VSD on that computer, the same thing will work.

On my laptop and home computer, the USB flashdrive uses the SAME drive letter. I cannot guarantee that this will work if the drive has a different letter on different computers, but changing a drive letter is not difficult.

6) Be sure to back up your work, Your mileage may vary, all disclaimers apply!

7) A nice thing about this, all your site files are in one location so periodically copy the stuff on the flashdrive to a folder like "VSD Backup" on both computers you are working on. If you lose or destroy the USB drive, you will have recent copies that will work immediately.

If you already have the current version of VSD, you can still move your data files to a USB drive, uninstall VSD then reinstall it and this will work.


The other option (a little more tedious); Keeping all your data files and .vnu files in one directory, copy that directory to the flashdrive and then from the flashdrive copy to and overwrite the older files on the hard drive every time you make updates to your site.

The important thing in all this is that all files, photos, documents are contained in basically the same location so they are easy to move and copy.

Backup your stuff before you try this!

Joomla, Facebook custom Pages and added html

You know, when I first started using Joomla and I wanted to add html(wasn't that good at it), I worked around using VSD(incidentally, using html is a lot easier because of absolute position stuff, but if you don't know how, sometimes VSD has been a prayer answered). Before I had a graphics program, I would create some of my graphics in VSD.

Now I am playing with FB custom pages and discovered with making very few mods to the VSD page, you can whip out a tab on a custom fan page in about 10 min flat(excluding content). I mean within a day you can have several custom fan pages up and with FB ending personal boxes for developers this year(no more frames in boxes), I feel this is a viable option for those who want to get up a fan pages fast especially if you don't know html.

The only negative thing I can say(ergo one of the reasons I'm not an Ambassador), is that it takes a couple of extra seconds for the page to load.

I will be blogging on this and adding to the abcomputered site sometime this month(or linking if someone else does).

ADD: to all the new folks, this is a modification to the html of the VSD page is is not a 'standard' application of the software.

If anyone has ideas or possible future FB issues with doing this, please let me know.

I've said this before, but thanks Coffeecup for a awesome program!











Monitor combined postings, plus copy and moved added conversation into it's own thread. Please refer any questions or comments you have to this thread. Click here to new thread ..

Adding a Flash file to VSD without the Flash tool, an easy and an expert way

I made this for user Vito in another thread, but I think it is right here too...

Hi Vito,

You didn't do anything wrong! The add flash tool adds Flash presentations made by one of the Coffeecup Flash tools. Those software products produce the needed XML file automatically.

But there's an easy way to show your flash file (or any other file, the word 'document' in VSD is a little bit misleading): add it as a document to a link (a button or a text link) and use a new window for the link (target=new window). The flash file will be uploaded automatically when you upload your site.

And there's an expert way: show the flash files in a new window using javascript inside an HTML box. To make the flash file upload automatically, you have to add it first in VSD. Go to >settings>add files, browse for the SWF file and choose add, then OK. This way, using javascript, you can control the size (and other things) of the new window, which can't be done in the easy way.

Here is an example site: http://www.johnvanhulst.com/vito/index.html . It shows the easy and the advanced way. You can download the VSD design there too. After downloading the VSD design, look at the javascript code inside the html boxes and adapt it to your own situation (if you want to use the expert solution, it's not that difficult :-)).....

The SCUBA file is a Powerpoint presentation made by my wife, in Dutch, converted to a swf in Open Office...

If you have any questions, let me know

Success, John

Adding Blank spaces between words

I have yet found a way to make the blank spaces to work on their own. But I do have a work around, however it only works if you have a solid color behind your text.

Simply use the _ key.

Add _ where you want an extra space
When your done creating your text, highlight the _ in the text
Then using "Object Property" change your _ to the same color as the background.

It is not the best work around, but it works until CC allows blank spaces in text fields.

Kim

Moving Multiple Items at the Same Time

I was updating some pages with some text and forgot about three pics that were near the bottom of the page. I had already increased the page length and had all my typing done which now went over the pics. To move all three pics at the same time and to preserve their spacing I held down the shift button on the key board and was able to select each pic and move all of them at the same time leaving the text in place.

Restoring a Site

From Scott- "If you go to Settings Menu > Preferences, look at the last setting "Saving creates a .vnu backup here". If you have that enabled, click the "here" link and it will open a directory where the VNU files are. Just copy that and overwrite the damaged VNU and you should be all set."

After using this work around, I did have a few images come up missing but easy enough to replace. I also found it moves the image files, but to the wrong location. If you get error messages about missing images during upload, try this:

Open all pages of the site one by one, when all are open hit Save. After saving, go to Edit, Remove Files, select all image files not in the Root folder and delete. Check pages for missing images and replace.

Don't know if this is the correct place for this. I wouldn't consider myself able to "code" build websites, that's why I LOVE CoffeeCup's Visual Site Designer. I use all CoffeeCup software to build websites. I now build forms and have the data collected by these forms e-mailed AND reported back to a page that shows the information! To give you an idea, I have included a link to a website, operated by a CoffeeCup Ambassador. He worked with me to make sure I had all the "coding" that allows it to be used in CoffeeCup. I did have to have something that would allow me to save a .php file. Here's the link:

http://www.coffeecuphelp.com/form-data.php

Just another idea of what CoffeeCup Visual Site Designer can do.

Thanks again for all the staff at CoffeeCup and their Ambassadors!

Creating great looking tabs using shapes

There are several tricks that can be used to create impressive looking tab menus on VSD. Using the Object rectangle shape to create a long rectangle and then use the Buttonize to give it a nice 3D look. That can function as a nice header. The Object menu has a tab looking shape, but it it pointing up. If you want to use tabs below the header, simply use the pentagon shape, and then enter a period "." on the button text, then press ENTER for the second line and type your tab name there. Buttonize the pentagon to give it a nice gradient look. Assign a link to the proper page, and finally place it below the header bar that was created first. The final trick is to right-click on the button and select Arrange-Send to Back, or press Alt-B. This will hide the top part of the pentagon (and the period above the tab name. The final result is a very nice looking hanging tab.

This same technique can be used to create virtually any type of interface and it gives VSD pages an amazing Web 2.0 look.

Carlos

Before I add my rant, Carlos mate that is a great tip I new it could be done but you have taken the time to explain.

I just cleaned my hard drive and VSD files. My method was to use a Re writable disk, could have been a flash drive. After checking the files I zipped the backups and stored those. I loaded the site in VSD and then erased the website folder and the temp preview folder.

I then saved the site and did a preview replacing the files that were reported missing. I then ftp'd to my main host site and deleted the files there after zipping them up.
I then uploaded. Checking showed a nice clean setup without some of my trials. If you play by VSD rules all goes smoothly. I ftp the form folder zipped and unzip onsite the form php file I use Add Files.

What would be nice is a link to an example, sounds impressive would like to see it