Ajay - On the Road called Life » Blogging, WordPress, Work and Life

Top 10 v2.4.0

This has been cross-posted on the WebberZone blog.

I’ve been working on Top 10 v2.4.0 for a long time where the main focus of this release has been to get a more compatible tracker. Today, I’m happy to say that I have pushed through the release and you can now upgrade your favourite popular posts plugin as you normally would from within your WordPress Dashboard Updates screen. This version adds two new features, fixes several bugs, has cleaner code as per WordPress Coding Standards and also deprecates some functions.

New tracker

Two months back I released v2.3.2 which fixed a security issue and also required me to remove the faster performance tracker. This was needed to ensure continued hosting with WordPress.org and respecting their guidelines. v2.4.0 is the first step towards building an addon that will bring back the faster tracker. This addon will be available for free from this website in the near future.

For now, you have two options for the tracker. Try both to see which delivers a better performance to your site. The first uses an external .js file that can be cached by browsers. The second is the old query style format. From my testing, both have similar performance. But, do toggle between both options to see which performs better. For the brave at heart, you can also adapt this gist which is the old source code for the faster tracker.

Now you can “offset” your posts

Another very useful feature that I’ve added in v2.4.0 is the ability to offset the list of posts by a specific number. This is available via the shortcode or in the widget.

Using the offset you can now display posts starting from a different position e.g. display posts from 11 to 20 by setting it to offset to 10. It also helps if you would like to display multiple versions of the widget with different starting points.

Top 10 v2.4.0 Widget — Widget in Top 10 v2.4.0

As usual, if you’re looking for support, please create a new post in the Top 10 support forum. And, do blog, tweet and tell the whole world about this release.

Detailed list of changes in Top 10 v2.4.0

Features:
- New tracker using a properly enqueued .js file. Two inbuilt options to use query variables or ajaxurl to process the counts
- Shortcode and the widget now have an added parameter for ‘offset’. This is useful if you would like to display different widgets/shortcodes but not always start from the first post
Bug fixes:
- Attachments now work with the widget and elsewhere
- New tracker now works when jQuery is loaded in the footer
- Don’t add tracker code when previewing in customizer
- Doesn’t report an error if no author is assigned to a post
Deprecated:
- tptn_add_tracker and tptn_add_viewed_count have been deprecated. These should no longer be needed with the new tracker option.
- wick script in Settings page which was used for fetching category slugs. You should now use the category name (prompted automatically). Slugs will be automatically converted into names.

Where did they go from here v2.0.0

On Monday, I pushed through a major version a.k.a v2.0.0 of Where did they go from here. If you’ve not come across this before, Where did they go from here is a unique plugin because it actually tracks which links a visitor clicks in the current post and then allows you to display a list of followed posts. Sounds familiar? This is exactly what Amazon does on their product pages.

Since it has always been one of my smaller plugins, I hadn’t updated this for a very long time. However, it is being used on over 1,000 sites and I thought it was high time for an update. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been working on refreshing the plugin to be fully compatible with the latest WordPress version and more importantly to include many features available in my other plugins.

Below are some of the main changes and a full list is available at the end of this post. As usual, if you’re looking for support, please use the support forums. If you’re an existing user, do consider writing a review of the plugin on WordPress.org.

Continue reading “Where did they go from here v2.0.0”

Money Monster – Movie Review

I last wrote a movie review more than two years ago. While I have watched several moview since then, I not felt the inclination to write about any of them. Until now. Ashwina and I set out to get some dinner at Chai Ki – one of the restaurants we frequent – after a regular Sunday evening mass. However, when we got there sharp at the time of our reservation, we were told the wait would be another 30 minutes. You’re kidding me, right?

So, instead we decided to go catch Money Monster at the Everyman Cinema next door. It was an unplanned decision and since IMDB said the movie was a 6.9/10, we decided to take the risk. And, how could I say no to hot dog and pop corn?

The poster above already tells you that Money Monster stars George Clooney (as Lee Gates), Julia Roberts (as Patty Fenn) and Jack O’Connell (as Kyle Budwell). It also and Caitriona Balfe (as Diane Lester). While the former two don’t need any introduction, for me Jack O’Connell is an unknown name and so would Caitriona have been if my wife didn’t make me watch Outlander.

The movie starts off with an ever so charming Lee Gates hosting his show Money Monster designed to give you some stock advice. The share price of IBIS capital has taken a massive hit due to a computer glitch(?). All the it’s investors have lost their money but the all-knowing (or so we think) Lee still attempts to convince you that the stock is on its way up. But, even before he dives into the details of why he thinks so, he is taken hostage by Kyle.

Kyle has lost his entire life savings (a full $60k) taking Lee’s and is out to get an answer and possibly revenge…

Well, to find out the rest of the story, I strongly suggest going to cinema now and watching it.

The Cast

Money Monster has a good cast with a mix of known and lesser known actors. This isn’t the first movie for George and Julia and hopefully won’t be the last. Unlike Ocean’s Eleven and Ocean’s Twelve, they’re not married and share the relationship of producer and news anchor(?). As expected, they do not disappoint with their respective roles and the chemistry they share.

Jack plays his role to perfection – A troubled young man with a plan attempting to get justice and some answers. Caitriona plays her supporting role trying to also figure out the reason the stock of her company took a plunge. Nobody knows, so blame it on the computer… In my opinion, she really does need to smile a bit more.

The Story

The end is somewhat predictable. It wasn’t a nail biting finish. However, what the story does do excellently is throw in some great movies was mix up the plots within the grand story line. It threw in a few unexpected elements like Kyle’s girlfriend’s reaction, some interesting international dynamics and several funny moments that had the audience laughing. The trailer above paints a very serious picture and so the funny bits do make it a pleasant viewing.

In summary…

It’s a very good and different movie to watch in today’s cinema when currently you have Captain America and X-Men attempting to steal the spotlight and the audiences. Well, I still need to find the time to watch Captain America and I’ve not been very impressed with the trailers of X-Men. And, Hollywood hasn’t impressed with its wide range of movies off-late. So, Money Matters is definitely welcome change from the super hero franchises.

Finally, if you have already watched this movie or plan to do so, I’d love to hear your reaction. As for me, I’ll give it an 8/10.

Photos from Gunby Hall

Taking advantage of the bank holiday, Ashwina and I took a trip to Gunby Hall which is a National Trust property in Skegness.

The Orchard Cottage located in the property grounds is the former gardeners cottage and is a quaint little house. This turned out to be a great way to enjoy a quiet weekend reading, eating and drinking.

We had access to the grounds after hours and so ventured out to take in the beauty.

Here are some select photos from our walk.

Watt Knott – A conversation in confusion

Came across this joke in my inbox that I had forwarded by self back in 2004. Couldn’t help posting it. Read on and enjoy!

Enjoy this terrific confusing conversation of William Knott and Mr Watt.

“Who’s calling?” was the answer to the telephone.

“Watt.”

“What is your name, please?”

“Watt’s my name.”

“That’s what I asked you. What’s your name?”

“That’s what I told you. Watt’s my name.”

A long pause, and then from Watt, “Is this James Brown?”

“No, this is Knott.”

“Please tell me your name.”

“Will Knott.”

YOU LEFT THE TALKERS AT A POINT WHERE THEY WERE TOTALLY CONFUSED,READ THE REST OF WHAT HAPPENED…

“Why not?”

“Huh? What do you mean why not?”

“Yeah! Why won’t you tell me your name?”

“But I told you my name!”

“Didn’t you say you will not?”

“Not not, knott, Will Knott!”

“That’s what I mean.”

“So you know my name.”

“Of course not!”

“Good. So now, what is yours?”

“Watt. Yours?”

“Your name!”

“Watt’s my name.”

“How the hell do I know? I am asking you!”

“Look I have been very patient and I have told you my name and you have not even told me yours yet..”

“You have been patient, what about me?”

“I have told you my name so many times and it is u who have not told me yours yet.”

“Of course not!”

“See, you even know my name!”

“Of course not!”

“Then why do you keep saying of course Knott?”

“Because I don’t.”

[Pause]

“What is your name?”

“See, you know my name!”

“Of course not!”

“Then why do you keep saying Watt is your name”

“To find out your name!”

“But you already know it!”

“What?”

“See, and you know mine!”

“Of course not!”

“Exactly!”

NOW THEY ARE AT A POINT WHERE BOTH THINK THE OTHER KNOWS THEIR NAME, BUT THEY THEMSELVES DON’T KNOW THE OTHER’S NAME.

“Listen, listen, wait; if I asked you what your name is, what will be your answer?”

“Watt’s my name.”

“No, no, give me only one word.”

“Watt”

“Your name!”

“Right!”

[Pause before it hits him]

“Oh, Wright!”

“Yeah!”

“So why didn’t you say it before?”

“I told you so many times!”

“You never said Wright before”

“Of course I did.”

“Ok I won’t argue any more. Do you know my name?”

“I do not.”

“Well, there you go, now we know each other’s name.”

“I do not!”

“Good!”

[Pause before it hits him]

“Oh, Guud!”

“Good.”

“No wonder, it took me so long, is that Dutch?”

“No, it’s Knott!”

“Oh, okay. At least the names are clear now Guud.”

“Yes Wright.”