Just start tinkering! I mean, PHP is kinda just like javascript in that it does some logic to make stuff happen on a web page. An IF is still an IF. Same with a FOR or a WHILE or just about any other thing that javascript uses. Some differences of course, but hey if you can get the hang of javascript you can get the hang of PHP. http://www.php.net/ will become your friend eventually as you seek to understand the actual PHP bits inside b2evolution.

Oh and one day you'll find http://doc.b2evolution.net/v-2-4/elementindex.html cumbersome but oh-so-helpful to figure out some of the stuff you can do with b2evolution. As you tinker with b2evo you'll be learning a bit more about PHP, so it's kinda neat.

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"Winning converts" doesn't really appeal to me, but one must dig on the history to understand what the deal is. WP had 2 good breaks early on. First it was deemed the "official" successor to plain old b2, and second somebody with a lot of 'web cred' decided it was the cats meow. To help promote b2evolution simply use it. As you learn PHP you'll find stuff that you think b2evo should do, so you can write "improvements" and share them, or even plugins. The thing is it's kinda like a critical mass thing. When there are only a few users there are only a few options available, so it doesn't have wider appeal. Funny that with a million plugins for WP most folk are only gonna use ten or twelve ... and whine that b2evolution doesn't have a million of 'em.

Plus dig on how they are really totally different. I personally think b2evo is way better because I like (liked?) how the code was nicely commented and I could follow it. I learned what little I know of PHP by getting my hands dirty in b2evolution :) Anyway wordpress says, among other things, on their home page "a focus on aesthetics". They have a multiblog thing available, but really they're into being a single blogger's easy answer. b2evolution's home page tells a different mission. "multilingual multiuser multiblog engine". It doesn't try to be pretty, although an effort is made to make it workably friendly. What it does extremely well is allow many/one bloggers to have many/one blogs in many/one languages with any and all combinations of those bits at the same time.

Not that I know anything mind you. I'm just a lifeless forum troll ;)

This is interesting EdB.

Ive asked myself the same question 66cat...How do we get the word out there? I love b2evo but I came across a blog post a little while ago where the Author had reviewed a good dozen or more Blog Softwares. I was pleased to see B2evo in the list but it was unfortunately well dowm and the Author didnt have very much to say about it :'( .

Good on you for considering learning Php. Ive really put it onto the "too hard" basket.

Another thing that sorta has to be thrown into the mix is this thing called "ease of use". Disposable cameras are about the easiest cameras in the world to use, and pretty much suck. But wow they're easy and they do seem to do the job.

Wordpress works. So does b2evolution. Both set up fairly easily ... especially with one-click installers like Fantastico eh? Both let you get to your blogging fairly easily, but both require a bit of learning. NO ONE was born knowing how to use a blog app. Or a forum app. Or an email client. So we learn about it. WP's learning curve is smaller because there is less to it. b2evolution's learning curve is longer because there is more to it. So to me this means you really have to know you need the power that b2evo offers before you're willing to put in the time it takes to learn *how* to use it.

So WP is like a disposable camera. It seems to do the job and hey they're everywhere ... and it's not like you've got a lot invested in it. b2evolution is more like a real camera. You have to actually have an idea of what you're doing, then it blows the doors off the throwaways.

Very interesting post EdB, It's a shame that B2E doesn't get the attention it deserves. I had it up and running on my Win 2003 server under IIS in minutes without having to jump through a ton of hoops to get it working. Let's see wordpress MU do that. And once I got TinyMCE going, our teachers starting posting to their blogs and connecting with their students and our community in no time. I've gotten many comments on how easy it's been for them to learn it with the help of some small tutorials I've created. So I think it's as easy to use as wordpress, and I've been through the code so I absolutely agree that getting what you want out of B2E is really easy to accomplish with a little effort. But, I want to do things like make plugins and help to show people what a awesome community B2E has. Thanks for the resources on PHP btw, I've started looking them over and I hope to find some way to contribute to the software in the future.

Hello 66cat389,

66cat389 wrote:

It's a shame that B2E doesn't get the attention it deserves.

I think a reason for this is our partly obsolete documentation (and possibly the built-in spam links... Somebody I know refused to use b2evo because of this... :-).

And once I got TinyMCE going, our teachers starting posting to their blogs and connecting with their students and our community in no time. I've gotten many comments on how easy it's been for them to learn it with the help of some small tutorials I've created.

Nice to hear that. :-) Would you mind sharing your tutorials? They could be useful for new users.

So I think it's as easy to use as wordpress

I think our user interface could be improved, though.

But, I want to do things like make plugins and help to show people what a awesome community B2E has. Thanks for the resources on PHP btw, I've started looking them over and I hope to find some way to contribute to the software in the future.

Nice to hear that, too! Have fun and good luck.

Tblue wrote:

Somebody I know refused to use b2evo because of this... :-).

Somebody I know refuses of code for them for the very same reason ;)

¥