Cumulus and HTML for beginners

perniciousviper · Post by **perniciousviper** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 8:16 pm

Hi all,

OK. I've checked pretty thoroughly the threads here, looked at a bunch of HTML-for-dummies-type websites, all to no avail. I know the info I need is out there...

I have been using Cumulus successfully for three months or so now. It's great. I'm online. Time for my next step...

What I would like to do is create an extra web page carrying selected data from my weather station that I can point an RSS feed app to in order to create my own RSS feed, in addition to publishing the bundled index page to my website. I don't need them to be pretty, I don't need graphics, tables, etc, just the very basics of updated weather data. I've read the help manual and the threads here but can't tell if I can. It looks as though I can but the following means I can't be sure.

I'm an absolute novice when it comes to html. I have read Steve's explanation that web tags are involved, of replacing the indexT.html template page with one of my own and that the 'extra files' function is the way forward for this.

But I still don't get it. Is there any guide to moving (or running in tandem in my case) from the index template to a simple custom page available, or a simple html code set I can cut and paste? I am assuming the extra files settings (ie browse to the local file with the html code) bit is under the files tab in the internet settings in Cumulus. I can't event write the html for the Twitter update that Steve has thoughtfully provided in the latest version.

The amount of skill and knowledge that some of the people posting here exhibit is a bit daunting when I consider how basic these questions are...I'm genuinely sorry if this has been answered elsewhere but I assure you I couldn't find it (or didn't look hard enough, as my mum would say).

Thanks,

Jon.

ritchie · Post by **ritchie** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 8:24 pm

Jon
If you want to create a RSS feed, download the zip file and take my example template in it, you will find it in the thread about Cumulus and AJAX, you will see that the template in there could be a ready made RSS feed for you, that's what I used it for originally.
At the very least it will give you an idea as to where to start your coding.

Enjoy

Post by **steve** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 8:37 pm

perniciousviper wrote:I can't event write the html for the Twitter update that Steve has thoughtfully provided in the latest version.

You don't need to write html to use that, it's just plain text plus tags. For example, your twitter.txt file might contain:

Code: Select all

The temperature is <#temp>°C, and the wind speed is <#wspeed> mph.

and this would come out on Twitter something like:

Code: Select all

The temperature is 12.4°C, and the wind speed is 25.6 mph.

Steve

perniciousviper · Post by **perniciousviper** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 9:23 pm

Great, thanks both. I'll try amending the twitter .txt doc as per Steve's post.

This was my attempt at a twitter page update, which was printed verbatim (mildly embarassingly) on twitter:
.........................
<html>
<head>
<title>My weather</title>
</head>
<body>

Weather for Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire from http://www.perniciousviper.com

<#time> : <#dayname> : <#month>

Outlook <#forecast>


Temperature <#temp>


Pressure trend <#presstrendval>


Humidity <#hum>


Current rainfall <#rrate>


Current wind speed <#wspeed>

.........................

Would this work as a very basic web page? If so I'm struggling to make it update - I end up with a lot of <#...> lines on the site.

For twitters needs, I'm guessing all the head and body info is superfluous and I can limit it to the sort of plain text with tags that you suggested Steve?

Lastly, am I right in thinking that the extra files function is located in Cumulus > internet > files? Armed with this info I will look at creating a page that I have already got an RSS feed creation site looking at for updates (rsspect).

Thanks again for not laughing (out loud anyway).

Jon.

perniciousviper · Post by **perniciousviper** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 9:56 pm

Breakthrough (aka one small step for mankind, a giant leap for Jon)! My twitter updates are working fine, thanks for the info Steve. I suspect this format may help me in creating a basic, text only RSS feed page. I will persevere.

Would like to know whether I'm on the right lines with extra files though - does creating a file to browse too mean this page is also updated with the relevant tag data values as well as indexT?

Ritchie, I downloaded the .zip file from the Cumulus, Ajax, etc thread but couldn't see which file you meant as the one suitable for RSS feed - was it the solitary IE file? In which case to edit it I view source, amend it then save should I want to make changes?

Thanks again,
Jon.

Post by **steve** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 10:07 pm

perniciousviper wrote:This was my attempt at a twitter page update, which was printed verbatim (mildly embarassingly) on twitter:

I wasn't actually sure whether you could put html tags in twitter, so I got Mrs L to try it, which I found to be much less embarrassing from where I'm sitting.

Would this work as a very basic web page? If so I'm struggling to make it update - I end up with a lot of <#...> lines on the site.

Yes, it would. Your probably haven't ticked the 'process?' box to get Cumulus to translate the tags.

For twitters needs, I'm guessing all the head and body info is superfluous and I can limit it to the sort of plain text with tags that you suggested Steve?

Yes - strip out all of the html tags and just leave plain text and Cumulus tags. And don't forget the 140 character limit - after processing.

Lastly, am I right in thinking that the extra files function is located in Cumulus > internet > files?

Yes. How did you get the file above to upload if you weren't using that? Anyway, that's what you need to use, and make sure you tick the 'process?' box.

Steve

perniciousviper · Post by **perniciousviper** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 10:37 pm

Hi Steve, it uploaded as I had checked the 'use Twitter' box I guess. And it duly did.

You're right about the 'process?' box not being ticked - I'll give that a whirl.

I don't know where you get the time/patience to be so helpful, but very grateful.

Jon.

perniciousviper · Post by **perniciousviper** » Mon 23 Feb 2009 11:15 pm

Et voila...

Thanks!

ritchie · Post by **ritchie** » Thu 26 Feb 2009 9:29 am

perniciousviper wrote: Ritchie, I downloaded the .zip file from the Cumulus, Ajax, etc thread but couldn't see which file you meant as the one suitable for RSS feed - was it the solitary IE file? In which case to edit it I view source, amend it then save should I want to make changes?

You should find a file named xmldata.tpl (my way of naming a template file)
Place this on your Cumulus PC, outside of the Cumulus installation. Then add it into your process files, I adopted the convention of naming ithe output as cumulusdata.xml

When this is processed, you will have the basis of your RSS feed file to place on your server - amend the template to fit your specific requirements.
Always take a look at the processed file with IE7, it will tell you whether or not it is well-formed.

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