Category: Multimedia Design

Tutorials for multimedia designers.

  • WordPress Playground: Set up with Plugins and Themes

    WordPress Playground: Set up with Plugins and Themes

    WordPress Playground is made for experiments. However, plugins are not easy to install. If you want to install and use plugins you have to change the URL and add:

    &networking=yes.

    If you have local storage you will be asked if you want to continue working with the local files. Just answer yes.

    Playground is experimental. Some plugins will not run here. So you have to experiment. For example Kadence Blocks work like a charm. Jetpack did not.

  • [Solved] WP error: Page Not Found

    [Solved] WP error: Page Not Found

    Solution to a strage page not found errror after a version update that stalled.

    In this case the solution was simple. I deactivated the theme TT24 and activated TT23. Then I reactivated TT24. Then everything seemed to work all right again.

  • AI Integration in WordPress

    AI Integration in WordPress

    How to integrate AI output in WordPress and set up the AI APIs with tokens.

    Logo created via Dall-E. Prompt: “Create a circle formed logo for a WordPress workshop.

    In WordPress

    • Page or
    • Post
    • Use a blank template or a cool template in your favorite editor

    Why Use WordPress?

    • Rapid development
    • A page as a presentation
    • Easy media integration: text, sound, image
    • As a backdrop when you present your production by OBS

    Install WordPress?

    Now you may or may not have access to WordPress. If you have WordPress installed, then just create a page or post for this Workshop.

    On web hosts you’ll often have a “one click install” option that will get your site up an running in a few minutes. In the video below WordPress is installed in a subdomain.

    How to create a subdomain for WordPress on Simply.com (demonstration from an online multimedia design class).

    WordPress Playground

    If you don’t have access to a web server you can experiment with WordPress Playground. You can save the page on your computer, but it will not be availabe online. The playground is a sandbox for WP delevopers.

    In the standard Editor (Gutenberg)

    In standard WordPress:

    1. Create a page or post where you can present your production.
    2. Let the page use a blank template – then you can build whatever you want on the page.
    3. For a fast production use WordPress Patters. Some patterns are available in the theme. You can also find free patterns here.
    4. Publish the page – and remember to save your work now and then.

    Alternative editors

    In this workshop you can use whatever editor you fancy. The method is the same as above. Many students prefer editors like Elementor, however some features are locked if you do not pay for the Pro version. Some popular themes like Astra are shipped with their own editor. Again Astra is not free – you have to pay for more advanced options.

    However, during the present workshop I will use the standard editor, since it is free to use for all.

    AI Tools for WordPress

    Output from AI Tools

    Output from AI can be:

    • Text
    • Images
    • Video
    • Audio (e.g. your music)
    • Code (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)

    It is easy to copy or upload this type of content, and integrate it in WordPress.

    Text (e.g. ChatGPT) Just copy-paste the text. Then format the output, so that it looks nice. Use fonts, headings, whitespace etc.
    Images (e.g. Dall-E) Upload the images to your Media Library. Add details like alt-texts and descriptions. Then you can use the illustrations whereever it’s convenient.
    Video / Audio If the video is found on Youtube just paste the URL from the share button.
    Audio from streaming services like Spotify work in a similar manner.
    Code I (e.g. Co-Pilot) If the output from the AI is code, you can integrate the code in a Custom HTML Block.
    Code II (readymade iframes from SoMe, Google etc.) If the output is available online somehow, you can try to integrate the AI output in an iframe. See W3 Schools. Again the <iframe> element should be placed in a Custom HTML Block.
    How to integrate AI output with WP.

    AI Plugins for WordPress

    Plugins can add new functionality to WordPress. Let’s say that you want to create content by AI in a post. That is possible via plugins.

    Here is a list of recommendations from ChatGPT.

    “List the 10 best tools for content creation in WordPress: text, audio, video”

    (prompt in ChatGPT)

    Output:

    Text Content Creation

    1. Yoast SEO
    • Overview: Uses AI to analyze content for SEO and readability.
    • Features: Real-time content analysis, keyword optimization, readability checks.
    1. WordLift
    • Overview: Enhances content with structured data and improves SEO using AI.
    • Features: Content analysis, automatic linking, schema markup.
    1. Grammarly
    • Overview: AI-powered writing assistant that checks grammar and style.
    • Features: Grammar checks, style suggestions, context-specific corrections.
    1. Jetpack by WordPress.com
    • Overview: AI-driven tools for content creation and site management.
    • Features: Content recommendations, automated social media sharing, security scanning.
    JetPack – AI. Free trial version

    I have used my quota, but here’s the option.

    Price samples – JetPack – you can try it for free.

    Audio Content Creation

    1. Podcast.co
    • Overview: Uses AI to transcribe podcast audio for better accessibility and SEO.
    • Features: Automatic transcription, searchable transcripts, podcast SEO.
    1. Sonaar Music Player
    • Overview: AI-powered audio player for WordPress.
    • Features: Automatic audio metadata retrieval, customizable player, playlist management.

    Video Content Creation

    1. Pexels Videos
    • Overview: AI-powered plugin to find and embed free stock videos.
    • Features: High-quality video search, easy embedding, automatic attribution.
    1. Lumen5
    • Overview: Uses AI to convert blog posts into engaging videos.
    • Features: Automatic video creation from text, customizable templates, video editing tools.
    1. Videopress
    • Overview: AI-powered video optimization and embedding tool by Jetpack.
    • Features: Automatic video optimization, fast loading, seamless embedding.
    1. Rev
      • Overview: Provides AI-generated captions and subtitles for videos.
      • Features: Automatic captioning, subtitle translation, searchable transcripts.

    These plugins leverage AI technologies to enhance various aspects of content creation, from text and audio to video, helping to improve the overall functionality and user experience of your WordPress site.

    AI Trends in WordPress

    AI trends – a small selection

    Trend? Block the AI scrapers – protect intellectual rights.

    Metaprocess: Dall-E explains how to create a propt for Dall-E resulting in an image.

    Images

    Here is a similar list for image creation:

    Best Free AI Plugins for Image Creation in WordPress

    1. Smush Image Compression and Optimization
    • Overview: Uses AI to compress and optimize images for faster loading times.
    • Features: Automatic image compression, lazy loading, bulk optimization.
    1. WP Paint – WordPress Image Editor
    • Overview: AI-powered image editor within WordPress.
    • Features: Advanced image editing tools, layer management, filters, and effects.
    1. Remove.bg for WordPress
    • Overview: Uses AI to remove backgrounds from images.
    • Features: Automatic background removal, high-quality output, easy integration.
    1. Imagify
    • Overview: AI-driven image optimization and compression tool.
    • Features: Lossless and lossy compression, automatic optimization, bulk optimization.
    1. ShortPixel Image Optimizer
    • Overview: AI-powered image compression and optimization plugin.
    • Features: Automatic optimization, WebP conversion, bulk processing.
    1. PhastPress
    • Overview: Uses AI to optimize images and improve site performance.
    • Features: Image optimization, lazy loading, CDN integration.
    1. Optimole
    • Overview: AI-driven image optimization and delivery service.
    • Features: Automatic image resizing, lazy loading, adaptive image delivery based on user device.
    1. Adaptive Images for WordPress
    • Overview: Uses AI to serve responsive images.
    • Features: Device-based image optimization, automatic image resizing, lazy loading.
    1. Media Cloud
    • Overview: AI-powered media management and optimization.
    • Features: Image optimization, cloud storage integration, image CDN.
    1. ImageRecycle PDF & Image Compression
      • Overview: Uses AI to compress and optimize images and PDFs.
      • Features: Automatic image and PDF compression, bulk optimization, detailed optimization reports.

    These plugins utilize AI technologies to enhance image creation, optimization, and management, making it easier to maintain high-quality visuals on your WordPress site while improving performance.

    Demonstration:
    Install an AI Plugin

    In Practise

    As you can see these lists are long, but it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Let’s try to install a typical plugins. When you can do this, you may be able to do something similar later on.

    The following recipe was made by ChatGPT:

    Output

    Installing and integrating ChatGPT into WordPress can be done through various methods, typically involving API integration or using a plugin that facilitates communication with the OpenAI API.

    Here are some suggestions from ChatGPT.

    Install AI by plugins in WordPress.

    Method 1: Using a Plugin

    1. Log in to Your WordPress Dashboard
    • Open your web browser and go to your WordPress site.
    • Log in with your admin credentials.
    1. Navigate to the Plugins Section
    • In the left-hand menu, click on Plugins.
    • Select Add New to open the plugin installation page.
    1. Search for an AI Chatbot Plugin
    • In the search bar at the top right, type in “AI Chatbot” or “ChatGPT”.
    • Look for a suitable plugin that integrates with the OpenAI API. Examples include “AI Engine” or similar plugins that support OpenAI integration.
    1. Install the Plugin
    • Click the Install Now button next to the chosen plugin.
    • After the installation is complete, click the Activate button.
    1. Set Up the Plugin
    • Once activated, you may be redirected to the plugin setup page. If not, find the plugin settings in the left-hand menu under its name.
    1. Obtain an OpenAI API Key
    • Go to the OpenAI website (https://www.openai.com/) and log in to your account.
    • Navigate to the API section and generate a new API key if you don’t have one.
    1. Enter the API Key in the Plugin Settings
    • In the plugin setup page within your WordPress dashboard, enter the OpenAI API key.
    • Save your settings to connect the plugin with the OpenAI API.
    1. Configure the Chatbot
    • Customize the chatbot settings according to your preferences, such as the chatbot’s behavior, appearance, and placement on your website.
    1. Add the Chatbot to Your Site
    • Use a shortcode, widget, or Gutenberg block provided by the plugin to place the chatbot on your desired pages or posts.

    Method 2: Manual Integration

    Now this one is experimental. The output came from ChatGPT. But you may want to try something along these lines if you know or want to try PHP. In WP you can create your own plugins. So here’s an indea: add a hand crafted bot via the ChatGPT AI.

    1. Create a Custom Plugin or Use Functions.php
    • If you are comfortable with coding, you can create a custom plugin or add code to your theme’s functions.php file.
    1. Obtain an OpenAI API Key
    • Go to the OpenAI website (https://www.openai.com/) and log in to your account.
    • Navigate to the API section and generate a new API key if you don’t have one.
    1. Write the Integration Code
    • Use the following sample code to integrate ChatGPT with WordPress:
    function chatgpt_response($input_text) {
        $api_key = 'YOUR_OPENAI_API_KEY';
        $url = 'https://api.openai.com/v1/engines/davinci-codex/completions';
    
        $data = [
            'prompt' => $input_text,
            'max_tokens' => 150,
        ];
    
        $options = [
            'http' => [
                'header'  => "Content-type: application/json\r\nAuthorization: Bearer " . $api_key,
                'method'  => 'POST',
                'content' => json_encode($data),
            ],
        ];
    
        $context  = stream_context_create($options);
        $result = file_get_contents($url, false, $context);
    
        if ($result === FALSE) {
            return 'Error in fetching response from ChatGPT';
        }
    
        $response = json_decode($result, true);
        return $response['choices'][0]['text'];
    }
    
    function display_chatgpt_chatbot() {
        if (isset($_POST['chatgpt_input'])) {
            $input_text = sanitize_text_field($_POST['chatgpt_input']);
            $response = chatgpt_response($input_text);
            echo '<div class="chatgpt-response">' . esc_html($response) . '</div>';
        }
        ?>
        <form method="post">
            <textarea name="chatgpt_input" rows="4" cols="50"></textarea>
            <br>
            <input type="submit" value="Ask ChatGPT">
        </form>
        <?php
    }
    
    add_shortcode('chatgpt_chatbot', 'display_chatgpt_chatbot');

    NB: I have not tested the code above. It looks all right though. You can either save the code as a plugin or add it to the functions.php file in your theme. If the plugin should work independent of the themes it’s best to use the functions.php method.

    1. Add the Shortcode to Your Site
    • Use the [chatgpt_chatbot] shortcode to display the ChatGPT form on any page or post.

    By following these steps, you can integrate ChatGPT into your WordPress site, enabling AI-powered content generation and interactions.

    WP AI Co-Pilot

    The present ChatGPT licence of the Business Academy does not cover the use of tokens. Therefore my demo will be a few screeenshots that will give you the general idea. As you can se it is relatively easy to set up bot or AI plugins.

    First enter the token under Settings.

    You can see that this is a “freemium-premium” thing. You’ll get it all as soon as you pay for the plugin and for the token usage on ChatGPT.

    As soon as the token works you can use the AI tools.

    Workshop: Presentation Page in WP

    Workshop

    During the present workshop your best option may be to use the output from the different AI’s and integrate the outputs as either text, images, sounds or videos.

    Continue your work with the production during the rest of the day. You can use WordPress as a presentation page/post for your project.

    With WP you can create stunning presentation, somewhat like PowerPoint, but online. You don’t have to install a seaparate WP for the purpose – a page or post will do the trick.

    This is Dall-E’s visualization of your process.
  • WordPress Playground – How to Install Plugins and Themes

    WordPress Playground – How to Install Plugins and Themes

    What is WordPress Playground?

    Playground is a WordPress sandbox. In this playground you can try out all WP features and they will not be available online. As long as you are in an research stage this sandbox may be very practical.

    Install WP Playground

    First you must set up a WordPress playground. Do this via the button below:

    Save to a local directory

    Click on the PHP settings tab. Give the Playground access to a local directory on your computer under Storage Device. Here you can save your experimental work.

    Playground settings.

    Now this dialog will open.

    Select Device for a better performance.

    As soon as you have selected a local directory on your computer, you can save and load your work.

    Blueprint Settings

    Now you can edit the Blueprint settings. Click on the burger menu to the right next to the PHP settings, and select edit the blueprint.

    Click “Edit the Blueprint”.

    Edit the JSON

    Now you can edit the JSON in order to enable the network features:

    The Blueprint panel is opened, and “networking”: true added under features.

    Now you can open the Blueprint panel. Now you can add this code to the JSON under features:

      "networking": true

    Now you can add whatever plugins you want to.

    Here we zoom in on the JSON. Note line 10 “networking” : true. This will enable networking features so that you can add plugins, themes and more.

    With this “hack” you have a WordPress sandbox for experiments.

    Click the open in new tab button. Then you have a full screen WordPress version.

    Experiments

    Now you can add themes or plugins directly from the Dashboard. Now we can experiment.

    • Select and install a theme
    • Select and install plugins

    For instance you could install SEO plugins in order to see which one is the best.

    Please note that some plugins will not run on Playground. For instance Elementor could not install on my system, så it’s pretty much a question of trial and error.

    Save Your Work

    Now you can experiment. Remember to save your work now and then to a local version, since the Playground only lives in your browser.

    Since the playground is only a local version of WordPress you can export the theme and import your work if you have a version of WordPress on your server (e.g. Simply.com or One.com).

    Playground is just a sandbox where you can test plugins, themes etc.

  • Add Fonts in WP

    Add Fonts in WP

    Good news from WordPress. At last you can add your own fonts to a standard theme. This is one of the most wanted features, and it is great to see, that easy font management is now part of the WP Core.

    Towards the end this video will even give some tips about the art of pairing fonts – what you can do and what to avoid.

    Learn how to do this in the video below from WordPress TV.

    The new Full Site Editor has become more usefull than ever.

    If you have followed my previous posts you’ll see why this improvement is a major leap forewards. Before this addition you had to hardcode JSON objects in style variations in order to add fonts. This code was not impossible if you have JavaScript knowledge. But invalid JSON could result in serious theme errors. So the font manager is a great help to the part of humanity that is not very code savvy.

  • [Error Solved] WordPress Style Variations: Cannot Assign Font to  Elements

    [Error Solved] WordPress Style Variations: Cannot Assign Font to Elements

    Here a custom font was implemented in a template. Now you can use it … Q.E.D.

    This solution is rather a workaround, but the main problem is solved.

    When you add a WordPress Style Variation it is possible to add a new font. However in the style editor it seems that the new font cannot be enabled. When you save, the font is automaticly changed back to the original font.

    There is a solution, however cumbersome:

    Change the font in the template. There it’s possible to use the new font. Above you see a menu with a custom font.

    Of course this behavior strange, and does not make sense.

    PS: the font features are improved from version 6.5.4 and up. Now you can add additional fonts from the FSE in the main design panel.

  • How to Create Style Variations in a WordPress Theme – the lazy easy way

    How to Create Style Variations in a WordPress Theme – the lazy easy way

    Under appearance you find the style variations. Just click the style variant you fancy. Then save. Now your website is transformed into something completely different.

    Did you know that you can create your own style variations? In the theme folder ./styles you’ll find the style files. They are named after their intended effect, e.g. .styles/blues.json.

    Mostly these files will create changes to colors or gradients. If you want to add fonts you’ll have to add lines to the JSON. Here it’s easy to make errors.

    So how do you get all fonts and styles from the theme – and then modify? These settings are defined in the theme’s theme.json file in the root folder.

    What if you could just create a copy of theme.json – and then modify everything? That would be a real game changer.

    In fact you can do this. Follow these steps:

    1. Copy the theme json.
    2. Paste the file as: ./styles/theme.json
    3. Now rename the file to something convenient: ./styles/myStyle.json

    Now open the myStyle.json in your favorite editor, and add the key value pair:

    “title”: “Your Title Here”

    somewhere around line four, as in the image below:

    The style title is “Per fra theme.json”. You can of course give your style a more convenient title.

    Now is the time for a test. Go to Appearance / Styles. Hover the mouse over the styles. Now one of the should be your style. In the top image, you can see my style, like this:

    Hover the mouse over the style tile.

    Now activate the style and save it.

    Since we have all the theme settings it is relatively easy to edit the styles or even to add alternative fonts to the theme. You can also edit styles in the editor.

    Why Create a Style Variation?

    You could ask: why should I create my own style variation?

    Answer: if you edit either the theme.json or one of the standard styles you risk loosing your additions if the theme is updated. This will not happen when you create your personal style variations.

  • Chess Puzzle

    Chess Puzzle

    This daily chess puzzle is embedded from Lichess.org:

    The puzzle is embedded in an iframe inside a custom HTML block.

  • Embedded Chess Game

    Embedded Chess Game

    You can embed a chess game that was played on LiChess. Here I used the <iframe> option from Lichess. The game is auto-annotated by Stockfish. Sicilian is one of my favorite openings as black.

    You can embed many APIs in a similar way.

  • Block Based WooCommerce

    Block Based WooCommerce

    These are my research notes about the new Woo blocks.

    By now WooCommerce has changed totally. Now everything is block based, and this will make all editing much more easy – since all is done by drag and drop. Exactly as we know it from the Gutenberg editor.

    Jamie Marshland: 10 minutes Woo Introduction

    Woo Blocks – in ten minutes

    In Jamie’s video you’ll hear that it’s possible to work with categories, keywords and tags in the page templates. Here are a few tips on how to do this.

    Woo Blocks

    Click the button and read more about the new blocks aka “Set up products”:

    Categories, Keywords, Tags

    You can filter by taxonomies. Obbiously we’ll need blocks from a premade template as our model. Here you can eiter use or copy the blocks from one of the filtering templates:

    Click the button and follow the instructions by Woo.

    Woo: Top Ten Blocks

    Top ten Woo Blocks by Jamie Marsland

    Tutorial

    The following tutorial is made in a Kadence Theme. That’s why the Dashboard looks a bit different.

    Jack – Woo shop no plugins
  • WordPress: How to Solve Cache Issues

    Sometimes you’ll see that your corrections to CSS or scripts don’t seem to work. If it is not an issue with your code, perhaps the problem is cashing either on the server or in the browser.

    To me the best cure of caching issues is:

    1. Use a plugin to clear the WordPress cache
    2. The problem can be the browser cache, cure: Use a browser window that is not cached – e.g. a Fire Window in the DuckDuckGo browser, a private window in Chrome or Firefox.
    3. Sometimes you have to use yet another private / fire window in order to see the changes!

    Here is a good article about cache issues when you develop WordPress.

  • Marsland: Changes Coming to WordPress in 2024

    New features in WordPress by J. Marsland.

    A few of the news are:

    • Native custom fields
    • Font Library (so the themes.json method was too cumbersome)
    • Navigation improvements
    • Real time collaboration prototype (available via the Gutenberg plugin)

    Now we’re at it:

    Typical Beginner Errors

    Yet another useful Marsland video. Most beginners make these errors.

    Marsland suggest this workflow:

    1. Don’t put the actual page content in the Site Editor.
    2. Create two new pages, your home page and block/posts page as set in reading settings as normal.
    3. Edit the home page template in the Site Editor to create your blog layout.
    4. Create a new Front Page template in order to design your front- og homepage.
Enable Notifications OK No thanks

We use cookies - more information

Multimusen.dk will set a few cookies from Doubleclick, Google and the Social Media plugins they ay set some cookies. Some of my pages use APIs - such as YouTube, LinkedIn, Google Fonts, Google Maps, Mapbox, Spotify, Jetpack, Twitter, Facebook &c.. Such plugins may set the odd cookie.

Close