Reviews

Current Version

Review posted by okapi on at

Great AddOn for C5 prior to 5.7.x

okapi
@huge

Before posting a one star review, you should inform yourself, or at least contact the author.

For C5 5.7.x there is this one:

http://www.concrete5.org/marketplace/addons/block-designer...
Review posted by huge on at

Unuseful

huge
It works only on old versions.

And however this may be a mandatory feature in core C5 project, IMHO.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Hi. 5.7 compatibility is not advertised for this addon. It also doesn't run on Wordpress, Drupal, Ruby on Rails, or your toaster. The code is all open source if someone wants to take it and run with it. But I don't think it's fair to give a low rating to this 5.6-specific addon because of things it doesn't even say it will do.
Review posted by Mattydor on at

All star add-on

Mattydor
This is really good. Really really good.
Review posted by losttheplot on at

WOW - an add-on and a half!

losttheplot
Jordanlev: you're my hero :)

As a seasoned coder new to MVC and c5 I struggled to understand how c5's blocks worked but this add-on allows one to put together all the basics in some very easy steps; study and analyse the resultant functioning block; then tweak, enhance and end up with exactly what is required in a way that builds on a solid foundation.

Thank you Jordan, thank you very much for allowing us all to share the spoils of your hard work :)
Review posted by pilipala on at

My favourite add on ever!!!!

pilipala
I've used this lots and I keep meaning to review it. Can't say much more than thanks so much saves me loads of time! What a great tool to be able to use for free.
Review posted by nesoor on at

Is this an addon?

nesoor
This shouldn't be an addon.
This should be a feature which comes with C5!
It's a really great addon, thanks for sharing!
Review posted by NotInterestedGuy on at

Should win a prize.

NotInterestedGuy
Designer content is THAT good.

It's like a 3D printer for blocks!
Review posted by sully210 on at

Genius - What a Guy!

sully210
I really don't even know how to express my gratitude for not only this amazing contribution for people learning like me, but all of the others he has provided. You should check out Designer Content Pro! I won't place a link here and I am not just seeding his fantastic reviews. I know I owe him a truckload of gratitude. AWESOME ADD-ON, AWESOME HUMAN BEING! Good on You Jordan! Thank you so much!
Review posted by clmedia on at

Unbelievable that it's free

clmedia
Might be the most useful module on c5's marketplace, and it's free. Absolutely incredible in its simplicity and ability to save developers lots of time and make things dummy-proof for the user. Absolutely awesome work, thank you!
Review posted by imJack on at

again... so good, its just a staple for all my builds

imJack
this was one of those addons that blew me away. I still have it as one of those addons that go into almost every build. what more can a person say? other than thanks and I can't believe its free.
Review posted by imJack on at

again... so good, its just a staple for all my builds

imJack
this was one of those addons that blew me away. I still have it as one of those addons that go into almost every build. what more can a person say? other than thanks and I can't believe its free.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks, I'm glad you find the addon useful.

You might be interested to know I just released a "pro" version which you can use to build custom blocks of "repeating items" (like slideshows, image galleries, testimonials, social icons, styled link lists, etc.):
http://www.concrete5.org/marketplace/addons/designer-content-pro...

(But the free Designer Content addon will remain free and available -- the "pro" version is only needed if you require the "repeating items" functionality).
Review posted by Pomlo on at

Just the most useful addon I found

Pomlo
Thank you for this great piece of software. This addons allow me to build website with the exact semantic I could use in a static html. Defines your fields, build a template to display them and forget about automatic wrappers put by the CMS or wysiwyg editor limitations.

Kindest regards Mr Jordan :)
Review posted by FOX97 on at

The most useful add-on

FOX97
When building a new site this addon allows you to make the site domain or customer specific.
I find I use the addon to create the initial block, then customise it once its in.
Thanks you very much.
Review posted by ppisoban on at

One of the essential add-ons for every project

ppisoban
I am not sure how I would live without this excellent add-on, for enabling my clients with no HTML and CSS knowledge to produce quite complex layouts by filling in a few fields, and enabling me to make the sites more interesting with minimal PHP knowledge. Only annoyance is that I can't find it when I do a search for Designer Content after going straight to the add-on search from the Dashboard, but I'm sure that is to do with the Concrete5 search! Thanks so much for this exceptional add-on.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks for the great review -- I'm glad you find the addon helpful!
I agree that it would be nice if Designer Content showed up when you search the marketplace from your dashboard, but because it is in the "advanced" category, the Concrete5 folks hide it there. So unfortunately it's outside of my control (but you could send them an email and ask them about it if you want).

Also, you might be interested to know that I'm working on "Designer Content Pro", which will has the ability to create "repeating fields" and also to edit blocktypes after you've created them. It should be ready in a few weeks, and an announcement list is available athttp://theblockery.com if you'd like to be notified when it's released.

Thanks,
Jordan
Review posted by 5fly on at

Free your web editors!

5fly
This is a really useful addon to allow people (rather than developers) to add nicely formatted content into the site... Provides a useful way of brining some continuity to your sites content!
Review posted by Matteld80 on at

Cant believe this is FREE

Matteld80
Best add on I've found yet for concrete 5! I can now give clients editable blocks that don't ruin the look and feel of their sites or asking them to get dirty in html code!!

I would happy pay $15 a pop for this its so useful! A c5 must!
Response by okapi on at
okapi
I totally agree, actually there will be a way to honor Jordan's work in the near future:

http://www.concrete5.org/marketplace/addons/designer-content/forums...

Cheers,
Michael
Review posted by enlil on at

Great Add-on!!

enlil
I'm just beginning to dig in and can already see I will be using it HEAVILY. Thanks for this!!
Review posted by PatrickHenry on at

Can't live without it!

PatrickHenry
Thank you so much for making this Jordan! I have a little PHP skill, and this add-on allows me to put my meager skills to highly useful custom block creations. LOVE IT!
Jordan, you are the man!
Review posted by juliandale on at

The Essential Add-On for any Developer - Pro or Novice

juliandale
This is excellent for developers of all standards. The only time you need to play with the code it generates is to use IF statements when you have added a Select field to your block, and any novice developer can figure that out. The rest is simply applying some CSS styling, which is a piece of cake. Well done Jordan :-)
Review posted by 3hawk on at

A standard add-on for all my sites. Indispensible!

3hawk
This add-on is amazingly powerful, and to be able to use it free is just incredible. Thank you Jordan!
Review posted by digievo on at

Indespensable - best Concrete5 block

digievo
Without doubt the first block I install on any project I setup. I am able to create custom blocks with ease. Convert jquery scripts to editable blocks and much more. Thank you Jordan!!!
Review posted by earthloom on at

An absolute essential

earthloom
I use this block in virtually every site I create.
Review posted by jpcharrier on at

Brilliant!!

jpcharrier
Awesome add-on, so so so so helpful to quickly create some custom blocks that would otherwise be very tedious to replicate for an end user. Extremely flexible and excellent support from the man himself!
Review posted by arunthampiklm on at

Blessing For C5 developer

arunthampiklm
This module is really a blessing for c5 developers,Brilliant
Review posted by webpresso on at

Best Addon for C5

webpresso
So this is definitely the best block on concrete5. We love this and use it in every project.
Review posted by AngusHume on at

Brilliant

AngusHume
Could not work without this.
Review posted by mikedurbin on at

The best addon for C5

mikedurbin
Seriously, amazing. Thank you so much for making this amazing add on and making it free no less. I have also learned a tremendous amount from the authors numerous forum posts. Cant thank you enough!
Review posted by gregaltmann on at

Just another 5 star review...

gregaltmann
Pushed me up the learning curve 3x faster.

I saw someone else mention checkboxes, which would be awesome. What I'm wondering about it setting up a picklist in one DC object to pick up an instance of another DC object... so if a Dog is a DC object, and Owner is a DC object, I'd like to pick a Dog's Owner from a dropdown. Just a thought, and without it this thing is still a 9-star addon.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks for the great review, and I'm glad you found the addon helpful. Checkboxes are still on my "todo" list, but still have no idea when I'll be able to get to it. As for the "choosing one DC block from another" thing... this is rather complicated. You might try posting a message to the "Building with Concrete5" forum to see if someone can help you there.
Review posted by slafleche on at

The first add-on I add to all my Concrete5 websites

slafleche
Really great add-on. The only little complaint I have is it would be fun to be able to edit existing blocks made with this add-on through the interface. However, that's a minor hickup. It's so easy to make a new block if you don't want to change the code. Always the first add-on I install on a new site.
Review posted by keeasti on at

Phenomenal

keeasti
There should be a sixth star just for this add-on. Not only has it proved to be a fantastic tool for creating/updating complex yet easy to easy to use user-editable blocks, it also sheds a light on how to create blocks from scratch. Jordan is truly a Prince among men!
Review posted by cioclod on at

Amazing Addon

cioclod
Without this addon it would be a pain to explain to my clients how to edit their site. Simply amazing.
Review posted by moonshark on at

Awesome

moonshark
This add on helped me so much to build my site. I was struggling with getting the right blocks on the page until I found this. BRILLIANT!
Review posted by imJack on at

BEYOND PERFECT!

imJack
Even tho the the site I am using this on is in development stages, can I just OMG I ♥ this addon!

Well DONE!
Review posted by BisonSatellite on at

Perfect

BisonSatellite
This add-on is amazing, and not just for being free! With my mild knowledge in PHP and extensive HTML knowledge I can now create blocks for my clients without trying to train them to do so much styling or hard-code HTML. The add-on makes me feel like somewhat of a developer rather than just a designer. It's perfect for my clients.

And not only my clients. It's perfect for my own website, just to make things more convenient and avoid my own over-styling and hard-code in "Content" blocks or excessive "HTML" blocks. Plus, it's helping me understand how custom blocks work via the core files. Maybe it can help me one day create my own add-ons to contribute to the community! ;)

Thank you!
Review posted by laaaamb on at

Incredibly useful

laaaamb
I'm a newcomer to C5 and this add-on has me sold. Works as it should, saves so much time that would otherwise be spent advising how to use the default editor.

Thanks so much for giving this away.
Review posted by adajad on at

Probably the most useful package out there

adajad
With this add-on you have your starting points on virtually anything. It could as well be called 'Developer Starter' as 'Designer Content', as you can develop small but useful blocks around the output in no time.

If I could, I would give you yet another star for this excellent package.
Review posted by willycan on at

A Brilliant Add-on!

willycan
Designer Content makes Concrete5 fun to work with. Absolutely essential!
And Many Thanks
Review posted by benske on at

Fantastic

benske
Thanks for giving the community this great and useful add-on!
Review posted by Michaeldegreef on at

The solution to my problems

Michaeldegreef
It was a bit difficult for me to understand how it all worked at first, but once I got the hang of it it was all smooth sailing and now I can't imagine going without it.

Thanks a ton!
Review posted by wab on at

Wonderful

wab
This will be the best-seller!
Review posted by theonlypolo on at

Excellent

theonlypolo
An essential download for any developer. Saves soo much time!
Review posted by chuacha on at

Extremely Usefull

chuacha
Thank you Jordan, this add-on so amazingly thoughtful developed and so useful, that is makes website creation so easy.
The Best!
Review posted by fruitfullife on at

Thank you so much!

fruitfullife
This is such a valuable tool when making custom blocks! Gives me a great starting point and saves a lot of time.

The only thing I've been missing so far is the ability to add checkboxes. Either single or in group.

Oh yeah, and it would be great to be able to name the fields of the block. Makes it easier to know which is which when modifying it.

But other than that it's really great!
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks for the nice review. I've gotten a couple of requests for the checkbox list, and hope to include that in a future update.
(Unfortunately I can't commit to a specific time on that as I'm extremely busy these days... but it is on the radar).

-Jordan
Review posted by PatrickCassidy on at

Wow! This is great!

PatrickCassidy
Far out, I wish I had known about this sooner! What a great idea, and relatively easy to implement too!
Review posted by gd42 on at

Excellent!

gd42
This is a huge time-saver.
Review posted by landollweb on at

Schweeeet!!!

landollweb
Great solution!
Review posted by rainmaker on at

Great addon that worked like a charm

rainmaker
This was EXACTLY what I was looking for. Ever have one of those areas of content (that has multiple dynamic areas) that is repeated many times and you want the user to have control of how many without manipulating an addon until your brain goes BOOM!? Well this is the perfect addon for you! :) Create custom blocks where the end user can add as many as they want! It's perfect!
Review posted by brianh781 on at

Perfect!

brianh781
This will completely eliminate 99% of the custom coding I have to do for CMS work. This block alone makes Concrete a winner in the CMS space, in my opinion.
Review posted by yoeasybiz on at

A Great Tool!

yoeasybiz
What a perfectly-conceived tool! I can (and have) built all kinds of special blocks that lets me keep my site looking good even while editors of all skills edit the blocks.

Can't say enough. Thank you jordanlev!
Review posted by okapi on at

Priceless tool!

okapi
Now that we can freely export created blocks (as there is no need any more to keep the Designer Content package installed with the latest versions of C5 and Designer Content) this great tool has become even more precious!
Review posted by mikedurbin on at

Amazing!

mikedurbin
Having just picked up C5, this was an invaluable tool. I was able to create blocks with very little internal knowledge and was able to modify the resulting files in a more comfortable standard PHP manner. Thank you so much :) You may have just turned me into a C5 convert 100% !
Review posted by Abs0lute on at

A must have!

Abs0lute
This is an awesome add-on! While I'm okay w/ PHP programming, I'm new to the whole OOP & MVC approach of c5, but certainly see it's value. This block allows me to start a basic block setup and create my own with my meager PHP knowledge. Even better, lots of times when I'm developing a site locally, I'll want my links to be dynamic, but you need PHP to do that, which you can't do in the content editor.
This add-on allows you to make your content as a block how you need it, w/ PHP links etc. so when I make it live, I don't have to worry about going in and fixing a bunch of links.
Love it! Thanks Jordan!
Review posted by sylbal on at

Great addon

sylbal
I'll continue the list of happy people using this addon. Definitely a "must have" if you like to work with structured content.
I'm impatient that we'll have the ability to edit a structure at least to add a field, I imagine modifying or deleting field could be messy if content already exist.
One remark, I was not able to install the add-on from "inside C5" (v5.5.2.1), I add to download the zip and upload it in the required place.
Review posted by citytech2 on at

A great add-on without any cost.

citytech2
This is such kind of add-ons which can save anyone's time in C5. It is very very helpful add-ons. Thanks to jordanlev for giving us such an extremely helpful add-on.

Citytech
Review posted by scalait on at

perfect idea!

scalait
this is for sure one of the best add-ons ever made for c5 ;-)
Review posted by Mainio on at

A tool you cannot live without

Mainio
Just noticed that I haven't yet added a review to this add-on although I use it almost in every second project with concrete5.

Simply put: Saves you A LOT of time!

Great work, keep them coming Jordan!
Review posted by bridgetdesigns on at

Brilliant!

bridgetdesigns
Perfect, exactly what I was looking for! Saved a huge amount of time and stress! Could do with some way to edit a new block once you have created it - or am I missing something?
Review posted by ellahorswell on at

Brilliant tool!!

ellahorswell
Fantastic tool for quickly creating new content areas without any help from developers!
Review posted by MysteriousCleon on at

Great!

MysteriousCleon
I love that add-on! And I mean that! :)
Review posted by grovesk on at

My 'Go To' Add On From Now On!

grovesk
I see everyone feels the same way I do about this add-on. It's now an essential weapon in my arsenal.

This just solved a design problem that was driving me completely barmy. Major props to the author for letting me know about its existence. The UI for creating the blocks is easy to understand and it just works.

Once I created the block, it was just a quick matter of creating some css to style it. This solved in ten minutes what I had struggled with for hours. Documentation is great too.

Brilliant add-on.

Karen
Review posted by WebcentricLtd on at

Rather good!

WebcentricLtd
ok - so I was leaving out the superlatives.
This block is extremely, extremely useful - and the fact that it is free just beggars belief.

I have now used it on a number of sites (5.4.1 - 5.4.2.1 and 2.2) and have just let clients loose with it.

It took me a few attempts to get completely into the logic (was being a bit dim I think). The fact that you can add an editor element - wrap it before and after with some html and just save it as a block and reuse it through the blocks interface probably took me by surprise in it's simplicity.

The only thing that is missing is the ability to edit DC created blocks through the GUI - but the functionality as is more than makes up for that (plus it is easy to edit the code produced).

I just used it on a 5.5.1 site and it works fine as well - so thought I'd finally give it a review having used it in a number of scenarios.

Superlative work.
Review posted by vincedelaking on at

A must have block for every concrete5 sitebuilder.

vincedelaking
Where is the 6 star rating button?
Review posted by BinaryFold4 on at

Can't build a site without it!

BinaryFold4
This is easily the most useful add-on available for C5. It's the first thing I add to a new site and it makes building sites so much easier and more streamlined, as well as making it so much easier for the end-user to update the site.

Now I've worked out how to edit the code that the blocks produce (I'm a fairly novice PHP coder) the sky's the limit!

Absolutely brilliant - thank you!
Review posted by lifebegins on at

ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS!

lifebegins
I am building my first C5 site - having been developing hand coded HTML/CSS with javascripts thrown in, for a few years. So, not a PHP programmer. Whilst I have been able to clearly see the great potential in C5 from the very beginning the C5 learning curve has been more of a rocky road! But I'm getting there and with the help of this FANTASTIC addon I'm beginning to get excited and enjoy the process of using this CMS.

Thank you Jordan - I am seeing your ever friendly and knowledgeable postings all over the forums and documentation - us C5 users are very grateful. I stumbled across this addon by accident - I hope others find it sooner rather than later as well - it has transformed my experience using C5.
Review posted by keeskluskens on at

Easy to use and produces good code

keeskluskens
I installed this add-on because I didn't know how to create blocks that have the ability to upload images.

The interface is clear; it's simple, yet very powerful. With a few clicks you can insert a WYSIWYG-editor or an image-uploader! You can even wrap the entire block in a <div> or whatever.

When I was done creating a block, I needed to add some advanced code to the block. Even that wasn't a problem: you can find the block in the /blocks/ folder.

It has one con. When I'm done developing, I need to keep the add-on installed on my site or otherwise I won't be able to edit/add a block.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks for the thoughtful review, and I'm glad you find the addon useful.

To address your "con" -- I agree that this is not an ideal situation, but the reason it needs to stay installed is because there are bugs in the Concrete5 system itself. So if you look at it another way, it's actually a "pro", because the addon is allowing you to do things with Concrete5 that you would not be able to do on your own (for example, combining a link-to-page selector with a WYSIWYG editor). That being said, I would love to have these system bugs fixed, and hope it happens in the future (when I have time to spare I will try to work on them myself).

Thanks again.

-Jordan

Before 2.0

Review posted by zoinks on at

UNBELIEVABLE! This is practically ALL YOU NEED!

zoinks
The C5 guys are brilliant (and I'm not), but THIS is a block that should have been in the basic installation of C5 from the beginning!

Why do I say this? Because, while the other blocks do this or that, if you're not a php genius, it's pretty hard to tweak them and modify them for what you need.

On the other hand, THIS package I stumbled on yesterday by accident. After much frustration trying to get a TinyMCE custom template to function how I wanted, I decided to try to figure this out. I was already in a somewhat frazzled state and not feeling too good about the learning curve, but there really was no learning curve. You just install it in your packages directory and then go to Pages and Themes > Designer Content and start making your block.

You can take absolutely any bit of pre-design HTML and just cut it up into a Designer Content block. Believe me, if I can do it with next to no PHP knowledge, you can do it.

ONE CHALLENGE:
Anchor links are pretty difficult to explain to clients, but if you have a really tight layout that you don't want them to screw up, this package can make it much easier. Here's how I solved the anchor links to jump from a bulleted list at the top of the page to the appropriate sections lower on the page:

1. I made a Designer Content block for the top of the page with a styled image, a headline and a bunch of links. In the controller, all the client has to do is select an image, type in the headline and then for the anchor links, there is a WYSIWYG section with a default set of links in there that they can modify!

2. For the bottom areas where the different content sections and anchors are, I made a separate Designer Content block called "blurb" which allows you to add the anchor, a title, a blurb of text, a link to the full article and an image.

The trickiest part was in #2 where they type in the anchor in a TEXTFIELD... how could I make it super simple? Well, the Designer Content package basically gives you a space to type in directions for the user, so above the TEXTFIELD, I wrote:
"ANCHOR (same as corresponding bullet link #name above but without the # ...EXAMPLE: "#name" becomes "name"

With a little printout and an in-person demonstration, this becomes very easy.

So... they type their anchor in the TEXTFIELD... but how do we wrap it with the <a id="..."></a> tags so that it actually functions like an anchor?

SIMPLE! This Designer Content package has a section called STATIC HTML that lets you just type in the opening and closing HTML before and after every item you insert!

So, as I was creating the block, it was like this....

STATIC HTML:
<a id="

TEXTFIELD:
ANCHOR (same as corresponding bullet link #name above but without the # ...EXAMPLE: "#name" becomes "name"

STATIC HTML:
"></a>

...when the client fills out the block, it spits out this:

<a id="

anchorname

"></a>

Which does actually work in Firefox, but it probably shouldn't. It doesn't work in Safari or Chrome.

So, I asked JordanLev (the creator) how I could solve this problem...

Again, VERY SIMPLE! You just go to root > blocks > YourNewBlockDirectory (whatever you called your block) and find the view.php file. From there, you just delete the spacing so that there are no extra spaces. Here's what mine looked like once I fixed it:

<a id="<?php if (!empty($field_2_textbox_text)): ?><?php echo htmlspecialchars($field_2_textbox_text, ENT_QUOTES, APP_CHARSET); ?><?php endif; ?>"></a>

So, there you have it. Until you edit this view.php file, any anchor content you make with the block will only work in Firefox. :)

------
So, to sum up, I am pretty sure you could use this for just about anything. With a little thought, you could probably take various slideshows and plugins that are hard-coded in your original HTML template and just sort of slice them into Designer Content blocks by using the Static HTML area for the hard-coding and the User Input fields for specifying Image, Page Link, Textfields or a WYSIWYG editor.

All around amazing. This package allows probably the most customizability and complexity of any package I've seen and yet it's super simple.

The only thing I don't like is that you've got to be super careful when you're making the block because if you screw up, there's no simple way to go back and fix it. You either have to go into the files and code it yourself or just delete the block and start over. (TIP: if you do delete a block and try to recreate it, you MUST give it a different name. C5 keeps the old block id in the database for some reason; this seems to be a core issue, not an issue with this specific package.)

Thanks so much for making this package and giving it away for free. I would certainly buy a more advanced, re-editable version in the future!
Review posted by jmcgarvey on at

Saved my life!

jmcgarvey
This add-on has solved many issues for me, and Jordan is super-helpful. Thanks so much!
Review posted by coaster3000 on at

Amazing

coaster3000
This should get awards. and such this is very simple to add custom blocks without all the programming knowledge. It will greatly help anyone in need of more customizable blocks for use. I agree with others Deserves more then 5 stars!
Review posted by olacom on at

Jordan is THE man!

olacom
The best Package of the Year!

Don't stop enhancing it!!!

A++++
Review posted by brothersjef on at

INDISPENSABLE!!!

brothersjef
5 stars are not enough. Anyone with even a smidgin of html know how can create clean, valid, semantic custom blocks. A million thanks!
Review posted by shadowcomputers on at

It is just sooo good

shadowcomputers
This add-on makes creating those specialised areas so much easier for my clients to manage... no more special templates or them getting me to update particular pages as they needed to be entered as HTML etc.

The only thing I wish there was is a way to edit the layouts once they have been created.

Thank you for a wonderful add-on.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Hi Steve,
Thanks for the great review. You can easily edit the layouts once they have been created by editing the view.php file in the block directory (assuming you're familiar with HTML/CSS, which it looks like you are). Feel free to post to the forum if you have any questions about this:
http://www.concrete5.org/marketplace/addons/designer-content/forums...
Review posted by MrNiceGaius on at

The best addon for c5? I say YES

MrNiceGaius
Starting out with c5 was like discovering gold... finding the Designer Content block was double gold.

One of the first things I wanted to do was create my own custom blocks but reading the tutorial was just the beginning and I quickly realized I had a lot of learning to do before I could wrap my head around adding an image upload form, various text inputs, a WYSIWYG editor not to mention the controller.php file functions etc etc. Designer Content does all of this for me! I can create pretty cool blocks that allow my client to edit heavily designed HTML without them being able to mess anything up. Plus, this Addon has been an excellent resource for learning about the blocks in general and I've used it to make a custom block with quite a bit more added functionality than what the block offers... basically using the block as a starting point.

I would like the ability to add a block icon image from within the dashboard when creating blocks. Plus, I would like the ability to add javascript & css files to the head of the page. Although the block is most likely not intended to become a full featured custom block creator... it would be cool :)

Thanks Jordanlev, you truly rock!
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Hey Aaron, thanks for the great review -- I'm glad it has been so helpful to you (and I use it all the time to generate skeleton code for more complex blocks so you're totally on the money there).

As for your feature suggestions, I am probably not going to implement those because I'm trying to keep the UI as streamlined and straightforward as possible. But they can both be easily achieved even without being built into the addon. Adding an icon to a block is as simple as dropping the icon into the block directory, and adding javascript and css files to the head of the page is as simple as adding this code to your block's controller.php file:
public function on_page_view() {
   $html = Loader::helper('html');            
   $bv = new BlockView();
   $bv->setBlockObject($this->getBlockObject());
   $this->addHeaderItem($html->css($bv->getBlockURL() . '/yourstylesheet.css'));
   $this->addHeaderItem($html->javascript($bv->getBlockURL() . '/yourjavascript.js'));
}

(and putting those js/css files into the block directory of course).

Hope that works for you.

-Jordan
Review posted by carlos123 on at

I gotta say...AWESOME!

carlos123
Your add-on is AWESOME Jordan (now that I have had a chance to play with it some). Got no idea how in the world you figured out the internals of C5 sufficiently to be able to create your add-on but...I am thankful that you did.

Add-ons like this make me want to continue with C5 even if there are some other things about C5 that I really don't like at all.

And your making it free for all to use?

That's cream on top of my cake. In this case I can have the cake and eat it too!

Carlos
Review posted by webgyo on at

Good!

webgyo
This is wonderful.
Review posted by mikefatty on at

Love it! soooo easy to use!!

mikefatty
awesome addon!! u really make it easy for the designer, ive used your addon on one of my site:http://www.concrete5.org/about/showcase/design/spot-on-nyc-we-love-...

Looking forward for the next update;-)
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks -- that's a very nice website. I think those boxes on the homepage that have the shadow underneath them are a *perfect* use case for Designer Content.

I'm looking forward to the next update as well -- I hope I can get to it sooner than later :)
Review posted by Tao on at

So useful!

Tao
Very useful!
But, this is not translated to Japanese yet.

We create language file and send to you soon later.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
The addon has just been updated to include Tao's Japanese translation -- thank you!
Review posted by aghouseh on at

So useful and time-saving..

aghouseh
Even as a great block starting point, this tool is invaluable. I was slaving over the intricacies of creating my own custom blocks with limited knowledge, but this saved me so much headache.

Again.. awesome job Jordan!
Review posted by madesimplemedia on at

A Designers Dream

madesimplemedia
This is awesome, thanks so much for making it!
It's an absolute dream for a designer, I can just mockup my HTML and CSS and then quickly make my block using Designer Content.
It's been so handy and the customers love how easy it is to edit their blocks!
Review posted by jeckerman on at

Excellent!

jeckerman
My clients love this... as do I. No more layouts being incorrectly edited, and less tech. support for myself so I can keep improving my work. Well done.
Review posted by ctinteriors on at

A Serious Time Saver for designer/developers

ctinteriors
Have custom content blocks up in seconds! Instead of leaving all of your content formatting up to the WYSIWYG editor I can create custom blocks that allow me to format the html just how I want with the client only being able to input what matters, their content!

It's also a great way to start my own custom blocks, I use Jordans Designer Content to create my block and then I can edit the block files from there which saves me so much time not having to setup all of the basic block functionality.

This block will be something I use on every project for sure.

I love this block, it should be included in the core IMO
Review posted by strato on at

Great Concept, Should Become Part of Core Package But..

strato
The idea is great and the applications are limitless but I can't for the life of me figure out how to delete custom blocks once they are made using this add-on.

I made the mistake of simply deleting the block via FTP in the blocks directory without deleting the table in the database.

Is there any way to delete a block successfully within this add-on or should I delete it manually from the database?
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
You delete them just like any other block: go to Dashboard, click "Add Functionality" in the sidebar, find the block in the list, click the "Edit" button next to it, click the "uninstall" button.

If you run into any other problems or have other questions, feel free to post a question to the addon's forum or submit a support request (see the sidebar links on the Designer Content marketplace page). You may also want to check out the documentation, which is fairly extensive (for C5 marketplace standards anyway):http://www.concrete5.org/marketplace/addons/designer-content/docume...
Review posted by fjhadd on at

Great Add On

fjhadd
It is a great add on. It is just field the blanks for the client.
Excelent work.

The only thing if there is a way to edit the block without going to the block code?
Review posted by tallacman on at

Love this block

tallacman
I can hack php all day. In fact it usually takes me all day to figure out how to do something really simple. Enter my new BFF Block, Designer Content. It lets me create my own blocks without having to do that painful switch to the right side of my brain. …Or is it the left?

Created the rollover effect on this people page with this beauty:http://www.helm.com/about/people/...

Steve
Review posted by agedman on at

Awesome!

agedman
Great idea! Maybe this could be integrated into the core at some point...
Review posted by ideasponge on at

Fracking Genius

ideasponge
'Nuff said really.
Review posted by JohntheFish on at

Excellent - helps solve many problems

JohntheFish
This solves so many problems. I can now create customer proof editable content with standardised format. I am sure I will also use it to generate a starting point for some bespoke blocks I need to develop.

I look forward to when this is extended so created block types can be revised.

Some other thoughts for future enhancement:
- A text area with a configurable replacement for \n (or other characters/regexes), so a users free format plain text input can be mashed into whatever takes my fancy.
- Placing constraints on fields (max characters)
- Configurable validation of fields
(I guess I can already do both of these using jQuery within the field prefix/postfix, but have not tried it yet)

This plugin has so many possibilities that I would even like it to have its own small plugin facility, so I can cook up my own custom fields for it and just add them on.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks John, I'm glad you find it as useful as I have. And I think your suggestions are really good ones (the text area that replaces \n with <br> is actually on my todo list as it's something I've come across needing). Validation won't work in the prefix/postfix html because that is only for the view that visitors see when browsing the site, not what is put into the add/edit form -- but you can easily modify the block's auto.js file to add in your own validations.
If you are a programmer and want to try improving the addon, the code is up on github --https://github.com/jordanlev/c5_designer_content...
Review posted by hereNT on at

I like it but...

hereNT
It would be nice if the blocks actually functioned without designer content installed - if they were stand alone blocks so I could install designer content, create the blocks I need, then uninstall designer content so my client doesn't break their site :)
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
I couldn't agree more!! It scares the bejeziz out of me when I give a site to a client and think about them mucking around in the "Add Functionality" page. When I have time I am going to integrate the fixes from this package back into the core system so they will be included in the next release of C5 (and hence you won't need to keep this installed), but until then, we just have to keep our fingers crossed :)
Review posted by agrajag on at

Fantastic!

agrajag
What a great addon! After dealing with the nightmare we know as TinyMCE, I had to find an alternative that was truly functional and, more importantly, easy to use by my clients.

Enter Designer Content. So easy to create the blocks I need, and it's incredibly easy for my clients to modify and create blocks. Thanks a bundle!
Review posted by TheRealSean on at

Very Nice

TheRealSean
So often I find myself creating custom blocks for clients.
This Addon allows me to create a great starting point then it only needs minor tweaks to fit the job.

This now finds its way into every site I am building only extra I would like is the ability to run as my ftp user not apache, otherwise I have to root into to change permissions or have the group be the same as my user with 0775 access. (I dont even know if this is possible in C5)

Overall though a great time saver and a job well done.
Thank you
Sean
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks Sean, glad you like it. Allowing the web server (apache, etc.) to change permissions on the server is a huge security risk, so it is never set up to be able to do so. Ideally this addon is run from your local computer while you're developing the site (in WAMP, MAMP, etc.) in which case it's not a problem to write to the blocks directory. But if you are developing on the server, then there is no way to work around the fact that you will need to temporarily change permissions via FTP or CPanel -- it's not a C5 thing, but a general server thing.
Review posted by okapi on at

I have been waiting for that add-on!

okapi
Flexibility rocks! For me this Add-On is a must-have. It's very helpful and very easy to use. A big "thank you" to Jordan for providing this for free!
Just a question regarding even more flexibility... will it ever be possible to use multiple WYSIWYG fields?
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
It depends on if the core system code is ever cleaned up to allow this. I personally don't ever need more than 1 per block so it's not something I'm too keen to spend my own time on. If some other developer out there wanted to address this they could do so by forking the project on github and submitting a pull request when they've completed it -- but I have no idea if/when that would ever happen. Sorry :(
Review posted by Slentz on at

Thank you!

Slentz
With multiple site editors this is FABULOUS!!!
Review posted by moosh on at

Nice one but...

moosh
Hello !

Good job with this addon, this avoid to create custom block when you need to create specific one.

It would be nice if we can add files field in your "Designer content", and perhaps a multiple file upload block, I'm looking for something like that since a while.

Maybe it's time to bring my contribution to C5 ^^.

See you and thank you again for all your contributions.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
A file field is definitely going to be added soon (see the "Roadmap" page). I don't think multiple-file-uploads is going to be added though, because it's too complex for the kinds of problems this addon solves.

2.0 - 2.1.3

Review posted by Zaxuhe on at

Best add-on ever and free!

Zaxuhe
This is the best add-on, helps you on developing sites, its free and super easy, reduced my developing times a lot! thank you! using on every site I develop on c5!
Review posted by Ulf on at

Best Add-On Hands Down. Using it on EVERY site I build now. FREE!

Ulf
Don't think twice. If you've never used it and don't know what it is, you still need it. Amazing add on for designers and developers alike.
Review posted by watzlav on at

Thank you!

watzlav
This saved my life, I was about to go crazy because tinyMCE keeps ignoring typography.css but this solved all my problems and enabled me to simplify the work my clients have to do! THANK YOU!
Review posted by bcbounders on at

Awesome tool for us newbie C5'ers

bcbounders
Not only a great tool for enabling admins to dynamically & visually create new blocks, but a great learning tool, too!

Can't thank Jordan enough for providing this awesome tool!
Review posted by cayercreative on at

Time Saver. Helps to Quickly client proof a block!!

cayercreative
This add-on is awesome. need to create a featured service or bio block. It's just seconds away with this add-on. keeps the client from breaking the layout (or styles) and save you a whole lot of time... especially with clients that are always changing their minds. The to style your block it a few tweaks to the css and presto!

high recommended.
Review posted by beebs93 on at

Should be part of the core

beebs93
Such a powerful and effective tool that it deserves permanent integration into the c5 core.

Awesome job, jordan!
Review posted by VidalThemes on at

Brilliant!

VidalThemes
Possibly the single most important invention since electricity........ well maybe thats a bit over the top, but this is a fantastic add on which gives extra legs to an already great CMS.
Review posted by bryanlewis on at

WOW

bryanlewis
5 Stars from me... I work for a design shop; with C5 and this add-on I can make websites exactly the way my designers want them to look. Very nice work, a package that makes blocks is very creative and makes C5 soo much more dynamic than any other block in the marketplace to date.

This is the future of packages! Its magical.
Review posted by reachdigital on at

Awesome 10/10

reachdigital
This is great for creating custom layouts within your template!
Review posted by TheRealSean on at

Love this Addon

TheRealSean
Saves so much dev time, A BIG thank you to Jordan for creating this essential tool
Review posted by testilein on at

Maybe the best Extension for C5

testilein
I'm working the whole day with TYPO3, Drupal, Joomla and other CMS. But this ist the most easy Way to add additional Fields to Content.

Thanks - Thanks - Thanks

PS:
I'll give you my Wishlist for further Versions the next time :D
Review posted by 1db on at

Breathtaking

1db
I'm not given to useless hyperbole...I mean that title literally. When I realized what this thing did, I couldn't breathe for a couple seconds. This block IS Concrete. It's what Concrete was meant to be: the ability not only to add information easily, but also to control what kind of information and how it's organized, just as easily.

For a designer who's just about code illiterate, this is nirvana.
Review posted by MattGreyDesign on at

Perfect.

MattGreyDesign
Im sorry but this may be the greatest add-on for Concrete5 editing which agrees with desingers yet.. and its free. Incredibly simple and easy to implement, just perfect.
Review posted by jmcgarvey on at

Saved my a$$!

jmcgarvey
This add-on is incredibly helpful. I had a pretty complex block I was trying to construct and this saved me hours and hours. What's really nice is that you can go in to the installed block you created and easily modify it to suit your needs - change layout, add custom templates, modify the editor. The code is super-clean and gets out of the way so you can do what you need to do.

Nice job! Thank you so much.
Review posted by yukulelix on at

Amazing add-on

yukulelix
This add-on is not only the missing part of concrete5, it is also free !
It is clearly the indispensable tool for every designer !
Thank you so much jordanlev !

I can't wait for the future improvements (Multiple images ? Multiple links ?)
Review posted by DtotheOR on at

Holy Cannoli

DtotheOR
This add-on is unbelievable. It really should just come with the Concrete5 install. Thank you so much for taking the time to make this add-on!
Review posted by andrew on at

Great

andrew
If you're doing any client work and you need to create custom blocks with different data for design purposes, this add-on is essential. Blocks were never that hard to make, but this makes them trivial. What might have taken 5 hours now takes 5 minutes.
Response by jordanlev on at
jordanlev
Thanks for the great review Andrew. While it's true that blocks are much easier to make in C5 than other CMS's I've used, I would suggest that this is only true for experienced programmers. If you're a designer with no or little php experience, then creating a block is not even realistically possible.
Review posted by kaost on at

Best Block Ever, Bar None!

kaost
You just made my life easier. Awesome!
Review posted by mhzpower on at

Very usefull add-on

mhzpower
This is a very usefull add-on! Thanks a lot
Review posted by madeforspace on at

Wow..what a block

madeforspace
The most useful block I have ever seen.
So versatile and well thought out.

Jordan does it again...and it's free :)
Review posted by drbiskit on at

Just what the doctor ordered...

drbiskit
This block couldn't be any more useful if it tried. It's been very well realised, and is straight forward to use.

Brilliant - Many, many thanks!
Review posted by zoinks on at

Bodhisattva!

zoinks
JordanLev must be my fairy godmother because he introduced this FREE update which saved my ass in the nick of time... AGAIN! I used this Designer Content block to splice up a javascript slideshow with a Headline, smaller text and image, so that the client can add one slide at a time whenever he wishes... and the image will crop to the correct size.
Review posted by Pritam on at

Amazing Block

Pritam
Just Trying out this block left me speechless :D Jordanlev you are the Guru !!

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