Dynamic vs. Static Embedding

Prior to this release, the only option for embedding Flash objects with SwfObj, was statically. This embeds the objects directly into the html rendered by WordPress.

By dynamically embedding them, WordPress instead places a div tag on the page that holds the alternative content only. Once the page has loaded, Javascript replaces this alternative content with the Flash object.

I’ll defer you to the official SwfObject project for the advantages and disadvantages of either SwfObject embedding method.

How to embed objects dynamically

By default, SwfObj is set to embed statically. If you would rather use dynamic embedding by default on your site, it is very easy to change the settings. Go to Settings > SwfObj and in “Default Embedding Mode” select “Dynamic Publishing”. Save your changes and you’re all set.

If you ever want to use the other method for a particular post, you can override the default with the new dynamic_embed attribute. Here are a couple examples.

[swfobj src="..." dynamic_embed="true"] ← (embedded dynamically)
[swfobj src="..." dynamic_embed="false"] ← (embedded statically)

Other developments

In more exciting news, Joen Asmussen the developer behind the Flash Shorttags SwfObject Plugin requested that I merge in features from his plugin so he could discontinue it in favor of SwfObj. As a result, you can also use the [flash] shorttag to embed your Flash objects. I really appreciate Joen approaching me about merging our two plugins. It makes things simpler for everyone out there looking for an easier way to embed Flash on their WordPress site.

I originally developed this plugin for myself because embedding Flash was such a pain. It’s been great to see so many other people getting value from it as well. Thanks to your help and suggestions SwfObj continues to improve. Please continue to send any comments or suggestions you may have as you use it on your sites. And if you really want to show your appreciation, feel free to buy me lunch.

Actually, I thought SwfObj was ready for the WordPress upgrade. I use a beta version to try and stay ahead of the curve. The plugin worked fine in my beta so it was good. Then I came across BraveNewCode’s plugin checker and discovered the SwfObj plugin was breaking a cardinal rule. FAIL!

Plugin No-No

According to the plugin checker, my plugin was not compatible with the latest WordPress release for the following reason:

Uses ‘wp-content’ directly in code

Translated, this means I was hardcoding the wp-content path in my plugin, rather than using the WP_PLUGIN_URL constant.

As of WordPress 2.6, the wp-content directory can be located anywhere the site admin wants it to be. By hardcoding this path, anyone who had moved it would get errors when they tried to use the SwfObj plugin. There’s a good post on how to correct the wp-content hardcoding problem if you are guilty of it too.

SwfObject 2.2

SwfObject also released an update. In response, I’ve updated SwfObj to use the latest SwfObject code, version 2.2. Onward and upward we go!

And there you have it, the latest SwfObj build. An updated SwfObject release and some compatibility fixes. All are available now at a WordPress repository near you.

From URL

The main change in 2.7 that necessitated this release is the “From URL” tab in the media upload/insert popup. This requires a new handler in the plugin. I also took the time to add all of the features available for uploaded swfs to swfs linked to using the “From URL” tab.

Holiday Bugs

There are always bugs to be squashed and this release includes a few of fixes as well. One to note is that the alt content is no longer automatically wrapped in <p> tags. This means you can put it in whatever wrapper you’d like.

2009 is coming

I do have some plans for upgrading the project in ’09. The major update I’d like to make is to enable dynamic embedding of swfs using SwfObject as an alternative to static embedding. I’ve had a couple of requests for this feature so I know others are looking for it, too.

If you have anything you’d like to see added/improved in ’09 please let me know.

Thanks again to all who have provided feedback and support. Hope everyone has a happy holiday season!

Taming the big bully

Apparently, unknown to me, this plugin has been inserting swfobj shortcode whenever a media object is imported into a post from the Media Library, whether it is a Flash object or not. That kind of over-aggressive attitude is not welcome around here. As a result I added a media check to the import function. Now the swfobj shortcode is only inserted when embedding Flash objects. I also sent the plugin to time-out and told him he needed to apologize to everyone for his bad behavior.

Class-itis

A minor bug fix that most people probably won’t notice involved cleaning up the class attribute. It was being added to both object tags as well as being placed in a defunct param tag. The class attribute is now only applied to the outer object tag and no defunct param tags to speak of.

I’d also like to take this chance to thank all of you who have sent in feedback both good and bad on this plugin. Thank you for taking the time to contact me so I can continue to improve the SwfObj plugin. And a very big thanks to the generous person who recently sent me a donation as well!
Please continue to send any bug or feature requests you have. All feedback good and bad is appreciated.

Upgraded interface

If you use the media toolbar to insert Flash objects into your posts, you will now find a lot more options available for customizing the embedded object. These include width, height, alignment, id, class, allowfullscreen, etc. Any options filled in will be included in the auto-generated shortcode when the object is inserted in the post.

In an effort to keep the library interface clean and practical, the advanced options are tucked away by default. If you want to use them to embed an object, click “Show Advanced Options” and they magically appear. The interface is still a bit cluttered, but its the best I’ve got for now.

The webpage

SwfObj’s official web page also got an upgraded look. It has two fat download and donate buttons. I also added a “recent news” blurb, so you can quickly see any new posts about the plugin. Pretty exciting. Ok, not really.

The future

There is still more to be done on SwfObj. Not all of the Flash parameters are supported yet. The code could use some polishing. And lots of testing and bug fixing. If anyone has any problems or feature requests, please let me know.

Hopefully I’ll get some translations in as well. Any takers?

Updates probably won’t be as frequent as the last two releases, though. Most of the major features are in now. Rather than playing with plugins all the time, I think it’s time to start doing some actual Flash.

SwfObj is overdue for an overhaul. As I stated in my original release announcement, the purpose of this plugin is to take the pain out of uploading and embedding Flash media in WordPress. Right now it makes it easier to embed content, but you still have to upload the Flash files to the server manually, figure out their URLs, and then type out the shortcode. This falls far short of being painless.

Today SwfObj is taking a step in the right direction. Expanded features now make uploading and embedding Flash content into WordPress just a little easier. Still not painless, but closer.

Upload Flash directly

When you install and enable the latest SwfObj release, a new media button will appear in your post editor. This allows you to upload new Flash content to your WordPress Media Library for embedding. Additionally you can view all of the Flash content currently in your library and insert it into your post. Simply click on the “Media Library” to see all of your Flash objects.

Inserting Flash content from the library injects the proper shortcode into the post or page you are editing. Currently it only embeds the “src” and “alt” properties. Any additional properties such as dimensions have to be added manually. Future releases will auto-embed more properties.

Multiple language support

This release also adds international support for the SwfObj plugin. If anyone wants to translate this into their native language, please do. I’d love to have this available in several languages.

Try it out

If you use Flash a lot in your posts and are looking for an easier way to upload and embed them, this plugin may be something you’ll want. Feel free to download the latest version of the SwfObj plugin and try it out. Let me know if you have any questions or comments. I’d love to hear about any features you’d like to see, or problems you have encountered while using it. All feedback, good and bad, is welcome.

Embedding Flash was a pain

As you may have noticed, I embed a lot of Flash files into my blog posts. Embedding Flash content into WordPress posts is a tedious process at best. There are several options and parameters, all needing to be entered correctly or the object won’t display properly. Add to that the complexity of multiple browser support and you’ve got quite a mess, especially if you are concerned with valid XHTML markup.

Up until this point, I’ve been copy/pasting the object code into my posts. First I ftp the Flash file onto my server. Then I pull up a past post that had Flash in it. Then I copy that code to my new post, and edit the items that have changed such as the src and the object dimensions. Finally I save the post and preview it to see if I entered everything correctly. This takes way longer than it should.

Some recent developments

Last year I came across the SwfObject project. It is a great tool to simplify embedding Flash content. The markup is XHTML compliant, but still works most browsers, including IE6.

Flash forward to last month, when WordPress 2.5 was released. The new release includes the handy shortcode feature as well as improved media support with a nice API.

Flash magic voodoo

Combine the two and for me, you’ve got something magical. Assuming I’m not the only person who embeds heaps of Flash content into their posts, I decided to put together this new plugin: SwfObj.

While there are still a lot of features in the works, this initial version has significantly simplified the process of embedding Flash into my posts. A simple shortcode, such as the following, is all the markup I need to embed them. Here is the new shortcode, and the resulting embedded object.

[swfobj src="http://orangesplotch.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/constellation.swf" width="500" height="196" allowfullscreen="true" required_player_version="9.0.0"]

Admittedly this shortcode example isn’t that short. But it sure is a lot shorter and easier to read than the resulting embedded object code.

<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="swfobj_0" width="500" height="196">
  <param name="movie" value="http://orangesplotch.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/constellation.swf" />
  <param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" />
  <!--[if !IE]-->
  <object type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://orangesplotch.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/constellation.swf" width="500" height="196" allowFullScreen="true">
  <!--[endif]-->

    <p>The Flash plugin is required to view this object.</p>
  <!--[if !IE]-->
  </object>
  <!--[endif]-->
</object>

For more details on the plugin, visit the shiny new SwfObj WordPress plugin homepage. Feel free to download it and use it on your own site. Any feedback is welcome.