How to use this plugin to override the frontend com_content category view, blog layout

[LiliwoL]

Hi,

and thanks for that plugin, i tried to write my own to override view.html.php, and i didn't succeed.

So i installed yours, but it is limited to administration side.

Could you tell how to use it for frontend side and to another view (category) ?

I changed layout.php as:
function onAfterInitialise(){
var_dump(JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('option', '', 'cmd'));

    /** Set criteria for the View you want to override */
    if (JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('option', '', 'cmd') == 'com_content'
        && JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('view', '', 'cmd') == 'category'
        && JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('layout', '', 'cmd') == 'blog'
    ) {

        /** Override JRequest View and Layout - register the view (example in the layout/com_content folder) */
        JRequest::setVar('view', 'article2');
        JRequest::setVar('layout', 'blog2');
        JLoader::register('ContentViewArticle2', __DIR__ . '/com_content/views/article/ContentViewArticle2.php');
    }

}
}

But the var_dump never displays anything...

[AmyStephen]

On quick look (at work right now), the following is not an array or object, so you should be able to just echo the contents.

Meaning, change this:
var_dump(JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('option', '', 'cmd'));

To this:
echo JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('option', '', 'cmd');

[LiliwoL]

Well, neither ver_dump, neither echo is executed.

My question is most about onafterInitalise callback. Is it the right to use even in front end?

Forgive my poor english...
Thanks for your quick answer

[AmyStephen]

Looked at the code, again.

The line that you need to change is
https://github.com/AmyStephen/Layout-Override-Plugin/blob/master/plugins/system/layout/layout.php#L20

Change "administrator" to "site" to use this approach on the frontend.

[LiliwoL]

Thanks that's it.
changing administrator to site make the plugin works in frontend.

Now i've got a 500 error because display is not found.
Is ther another way to organize the views folder in fronted side of com_content?

Do you have an idea?

[AmyStephen]

Yea, don't be changing the folder structure. That would be no fun, at all. =)

Not sure where "display" is coming in -- can you explain what you are trying to do? That will help me better advise you.

[LiliwoL]

Ok,
My aim is to override the view.html.php of the category com_content in order to be able to display the articles whithin subcategories.
As i don't want to hack joomla core files, i found your plugin solution interresting.

So, i installed your plugin and i changed code like that:

// Overide Frontend View
if (JFactory::getApplication()->getName() == 'site'
&& JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('option', '', 'cmd') == 'com_content'
&& JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('view', '', 'cmd') == 'category'
&& JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('layout', '', 'cmd') == 'blog'
) {

        /** Override JRequest View and Layout - register the view (example in the layout/com_content folder) */
        JRequest::setVar('view', 'category2');
        JRequest::setVar('layout', 'blog2');
        JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory2', __DIR__ . '/com_content/views/category/ContentViewCategory2.php');
    }

And the folder structure:
layout
-- com_content
-- -- views
-- -- -- article (your folder unchanged)
-- -- -- category
-- -- -- -- tmpl
-- -- -- -- -- blog2.php
-- -- -- -- -- index.html
-- -- -- -- ContentViewCategory2.php
-- -- -- -- index.html

And i've got this error while calling this page:
/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=30&Itemid=289
Error 500 - (Not found display) Affichage introuvable [name, type, prefix] : category2, html, contentView

In ContentViewCategory2.php file:

/** Override this View */
JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory', JPATH_BASE . '/components/com_content/views/category/view.html.php');

/** Override this Model */
JLoader::register('ContentModelCategory', JPATH_BASE . '/components/com_content/models/category.php');

/**
* Extend the real View
*/
class ContentViewCategory2 extends ContentViewCategory
{
/**
* Display the view
*/
public function display($tpl = null)
{
    /** Put your view into this folder - or change the path */
    $this->addTemplatePath(__DIR__ . '/tmpl/');
    parent::display($tpl);
}
}
/**
* Extend the real model
*/
class ContentModelCategory2 extends ContentModelCategory {}

[AmyStephen]

Wait. Sorry. Let me rethink this.

[LiliwoL]

Ok, so if i name my class as the class which iam overriding, there is no extends then!
i can't write it:
class ContentViewCategory extends ContentViewCategory{

And my JLoader seems to call the file whithin the plugin folder
JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory', DIR . '/com_content/views/category/ContentViewCategory.php');

But you're right, if i set
JRequest::setVar('view', 'category');
It works, but no overriding...

[AmyStephen]

Yea, I answered too quickly - removed my comment but not before you read it, apparently. Put those class names back to 2 the way you had them.

You are right -- this is probably your problem:
JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory', DIR . '/com_content/views/category/ContentViewCategory.php');

Maybe try this:
JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory2', JPATH_COMPONENT_SITE . '/views/category/ContentViewCategory2.php');

[LiliwoL]

Thanks Amy, but i think that the folder "category" whithin plugin views folder isn't read at all.

Neither its ContentViewCategory.php file.
So once again:
plugins
-- system
-- -- layout
-- -- -- views
-- -- -- -- category
-- -- -- -- -- ContentViewCategory2.php
-- -- -- -- -- tmpl
-- -- -- -- -- -- blog.php

In the layout.php file:

// Overide Frontend View
if (JFactory::getApplication()->getName() == 'site'
&& JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('option', '', 'cmd') == 'com_content'
&& JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('view', '', 'cmd') == 'category'
&& JFactory::getApplication()->input->get('layout', '', 'cmd') == 'blog'
) {

    /** Override JRequest View and Layout - register the view (example in the layout/com_content folder) */
    // JRequest::setVar('view', 'category2'); // Returns a 500 error even if the view folder is named category2
            JRequest::setVar('view', 'category');  // Loads normal category view
    JRequest::setVar('layout', 'blog');
    JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory', JPATH_COMPONENT_SITE . '/views/category2/ContentViewCategory2.php');
    }

I'm a bit lost now.
This plugin is built to shortcut the call of Category Class & Model.
Apparently, it doesn't!

Could you explain what JLoader: :register stands for?

Thanks for your help. I noticed that you build a fork of Joomla which seems interresting, when i'll have time, i'll test it.
My aim is to make what i want from Joomla Core.
I'd like to build a plugin which allows simply to hack the core functions, and allows to overide any view.html.php (through parameters of the layout plugin...)

[LiliwoL]

It's me again.
I looked at the JLoader::register documentation.
And i tried to require_once better than to use JLoader::register.
JLoader::register('ContentViewCategory', DIR . '/com_content/views/category/ContentViewArticle2.php');
changed into
require_once(dirname(FILE) . DS . 'com_content' . DS . 'views' . DS . 'category' . DS . 'view.html.php');

Then, the view.html.php is really called.

But if in this view.html.php i use (as you do in ContentViewArticle2.php):
JLoader::register ( the joomla core category class)
then it loads the core class and don't care the following of overriding i'm writing...

To conclude, i think that JLoader::register loads and executes the class, then it's impossible to overide by this way.
It seems we've got to Jloader::register the overriden class before the core one!

[ienev]

Hi Amy and Liliwol,

by using Amy's plugin I've succeeded to override the com_content archive front end view. Basically what I wanted to achieve was a blog-like monthly archive for articles from a specific category (combined with a module to display months). This was not possible with the stock com_content as the archive model selects only archived articles (state=2). I've overridden the view and model and changed the ContentModelArchive model to select published articles (state=1) and within a given category (category_id=x). It is a really small modification to Amy's plugin but I thought you would like to take a look, especially Liliwol, who had issue with modifying the plugin.

I will shortly fork the project and apply my changes.
And thanks for the plugin Amy!

Cheers
Iskar

[AmyStephen]

Please leave a link to your fork so that folks know where to look. I'm not actively developing in Joomla at this time.

Thanks much!

[ienev]

Here is my fork https://github.com/ienev/Layout-Override-Plugin

Thanks