Hi Steve,
Because this is not about making a WordPress site - it’s about adding CMS functionality to a RW site (like Pulse CMS, Total CMS etc). You could go direct to MySQL and not use WordPress, but the advantage of using WordPress - especially for clients - is the user interface. WordPress login/pass, GUI and version control is the reason I chose it over just going direct to MySQL. Hope that helps.
That’s correct - to connect and retrieve data from WordPress’ MySQL database you need a script. Here you go!
<?php $mysqli = new mysqli("localhost", "username", "password", "database"); /* check connection */ if (mysqli_connect_errno()) { printf("Connect failed: %s\n", mysqli_connect_error()); exit(); } /* Change wp_posts and ID to match your DB */ $query = "SELECT * FROM wp_posts WHERE ID=5 "; if ($result = $mysqli->query($query)) { while ($row = $result->fetch_row()) { printf($row[4]); } /* free result set */ $result->close(); } /* close connection */ $mysqli->close(); ?>Hi Steve,
The problem is RW is not a CMS, which is the reason why there’s all these CMS stacks floating around. People like making websites in RW but then are confronted with the editing problem once the site is published - either when they’re not on their computer or if the site was for a client and the client wants to make an edit (again for example, change prices in a menu). That’s where the CMS functionality comes in. For a full blown CMS, RW would not be my first choice, but for sites that I have made for clients in RW that have only a few pages that may need periodic editing, it makes sense either to use a CMS stack or roll your own like I did. Cheers!
OK Steve, you win. You like to use a CMS stack ($), I don’t.
I know you don’t get it and for that I’m sorry. I’ve tried to explain the rationale as best I can:
- You don’t have to use WordPress, but it’s login/pass, GUI and version control are the reasons I do.
- No licenses, subscriptions or conflicts with other stacks.
- It’s free.
OK, let’s try a different approach -
I checked out your bicycles site and your portfolio.
Now lets pretend you don’t have a CMS stack and furthermore there isn’t a CMS stack available.
All your clients start emailing you saying they want to change this or that.
What are you going to do? The sites are ready paid for. Are you going to rebuild all of them in WordPress or some other CMS for free? Maybe there’s another way, and there is. It’s called includes.
Sorry Steve, apparently my command of the English language isn’t as good as I thought it was. Perhaps Gary http://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/webdeer or Greg http://forums.realmacsoftware.com/u/1611mac can explain this better than I can.
I have been watching this thread and finally have a moment to throw in my 2 cents.
First things first, I really appreciate the sharing of technique. I know that one of the main reasons people use RapidWeaver is so that they are not required to code. This is exactly why I started using it. However, now that I am a developer as well as a designer I greatly value more technical conversations.
That being said, I think it is important to note that this solution will not be practical for the majority of users. Developers like @joeworkman have spent a tremendous about of time providing amazing solutions which are far simpler to use in a RW environment and require zero database setup.
Something like mySQL may seem simple enough to some of us, but lets also remember that for many users they haven’t even heard of FTP until they open RW for the first time.
I would also caution fragmenting your system architecture by splitting between RW and Wordpress. I know some people use WP specifically for managing a blog that is imported into RW. Although this is “free” and open source solution, if you are self hosting, you will then have to worry about all the maintenance that comes along with using WP.
Yes, WP is used on over 25% of websites in the public DNS. However, this doesn’t say how many sites have actually been completed, are receiving traffic, or still functional. One automatic update and any of your themes and/or plugins can break your site. Also, not updating your WP version, themes, and plugins is never a good idea with WP.
WP is the perfect platform to use if you wish to be an easy target for hackers. I use a Linux distro called Kali and it comes with a dozen or so tools for penetration testing WP sites. One the tools is called wpScan. All I have to do is put in a URL of a WP site and it will show me all of the vulnerabilities for that WP version, themes, and plugins. It then provides a convenient link to where I can learn all about the vulnerability and how it can be exploited. All of this has provided many businesses with the opportunity to make a ridiculous amount of money maintaining, troubleshooting, an recovering WP sites.
Lastly, before I move on for a bit, WP can only be “free” because they have highly inflated pricing for their hosted plans. It is not fair to compare this business model to that of Realmac/RapidWeave. Realmac does not have a subscription service that is priced any where as high as WP nor do they have as large of audience. Maybe this will change in the future.
In conclusion, I think conversations about code should be highly encouraged within the community. Along with that we should remember that code is not for everyone. Perhaps we could have a Code Junkie category added to this forum. Also, if anyone is using WP or plans to use WP they should also plan to invest the time to learn how to secure and maintain a WP site.
Cheers!
Brandon
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Not so much a “Code Junkie” forum… but more a “for those who want to venture outside the RW box.” I was handed a 1500 page RW site to maintain and obviously I’m not going to convert it to anything else. Yet, why shouldn’t I be allowed to “think outside the RW box” a bit when I want to do things like using includes, or free scripts, etc.? Surely there are other users out there who would want to learn more about htaccess, php, flat file or SQL databases, css, etc. Yet, the worry seems to be about confusing the novice… For example, I cringe when I think of all the RW users out there who have never once actually looked the files on their webspace. Who have never really looked at what’s in the “common” folder, etc. I guess it’s just me… but I enjoy learning things…
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Thanks Brandon!
Regarding the security issues of WordPress, most people use shared hosting. My hosting company is very vigilant about updates - not only Core but plugins and themes as well. You can always add it to your functions.php if that’s not the case.
add_filter( ‘auto_update_plugin’, ‘__return_true’ );
add_filter( ‘auto_update_theme’, ‘__return_true’ );
Also, I’m just using WordPress for the back end, so noindex.
<meta name=“robots” content=“noindex”>
As for whether or not this CMS will be useful to RW users, don’t know. I know I had had enough of CMS stacks that didn’t work for me. I can say it’s doing what I need for my sites (and I’m not out $297).
Thanks again!
I am using the standard-free-plan wordpress blog just for some clients to enter blog entries. And the WordPress stack to display them on the RapidWeaver site.
About not using WP for everything: RapidWeaver is much nicer and more powerful and faster to build my sites with. It is a tool I like to use. So if I have the chance to use RW and import blog posts from WP - then I go this way.
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Yes, thank you for asking. I use includes all the time. That’s why with what you started this thread with it did not make sense that it worked with WP. All is good. Probably best to let this thread drop unless comments are on topic.
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Please be more descriptive on use and deployment/install of the script, such that the average web developer can use it.
Thanks!
Well said, Brandon!
I think this is an interesting workaround, and curious to see how it pans out (works). I’ve got to say that the “costs” associated with hosting WordPress, keeping it secure, updating it, etc, can turn out to be much more expensive (and hassle) than simply using one of the many plugins / platforms available for RW.
Speaking from extensive WP experience, adding WP to the mix only complicates things x10. Like everything, a website is better kept simplified + streamlined.
Essentially, you’re introducing the threats of WP into RW. 
All that said, love stuff like this! Just throwing in my personal 2 cents!
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Sorry, I don’t have the strength to redo this thread.
Hi Aaron,
Just to clarify again - this is NOT about making a WordPress website. This is about using the MySQL database that WordPress creates. You could just as easily go straight to MySQL and not use WordPress at all. The reason I use WordPress is for the GUI (login/pass, easy to use editor, revision control), but that’s my preference. Access MySQL any way you see fit or just use flat files.
Right, I get that. My response was to the solution you posted here (which does use WordPress). 
I think it’s a neat workaround, and I’m glad you shared it - but full disclosure has to be provided. Someone with no WP or SQL experience could make a real mess with this. That’s why the add-ons / platforms exist - to create CMS functionality within a RW site without the vulnerabilities that using a database introduces.
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Sorry, didn’t I say that in my first sentence?
This CMS uses WordPress as the back end (though you can just as easily go direct to MySQL or some other CMS)
I also might add that the reason I wound up going this route was because I bought two CMS stacks which didn’t work. The first was Dropkick CMS which made .htaccess rewrites and conflicted with the shopping cart. If you want to talk possible website disasters - htaccess screw ups are right at the top! The second CMS stack was EditsPro which conflicted with the MP3 player. That’s why I first posted the thread RapidWeaver - native CMS? wondering why at this stage of RapidWeaver’s development it doesn’t ship with a CMS. Anyway, that’s how this all started!
@Aaron… that could be said about any piece of software/script/code including RW itself. If a person really doesn’t understand what RW is doing they could also really mess up their site. Like renaming pages and paths to no end so server has duplicate versions of everything and seo can never get things right. That’s just one example. Yet, we don’t blame RW or RealMac when things like that happen do we? We simply say that people didn’t implement and use RW correctly.
It’s good for people to learn. If people don’t want to try it they don’t have to. But it may just be what someone else needs.
Right…my point is this specific solution (mentioned in OP) is adding an EXTRA element of vulnerabilities to any existing site. The solution was labelled as an alternative to current paid options - I’m simply stating why the options might be better for most people.
I personally would try this in a heartbeat, and probably will – I find this intriguing.
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