Tips on what to read?

[DaveL]

I created a few basic mods for vbulletin many years ago and would like to have another shot at creating a mod for xenforo.

Ive got a book on php and mysql which im going to dig out and have a read thorugh, just wondering if anyone had any other tips on what would be the most benefical to read up on when creating mods for xenforo?

Im starting to read through the development section and it all looks slightly confusing at the moment!

 

[Floris]

I tend to read tutorials like these, and then try to turn it into a plugin; and figuring out how I can extend it in a way that benefits everybody.

http://xenforo.com/community/thread...nsert-tabs-in-profile-page-using-hooks.21205/

I slowly learn the xenforo system, how the phrases, templates, and their variables and if conditional work.
And how to use that within the .php files, and how to query the database, etc.

Baby steps. The dev discussion forum has some great discussions and are motivators and good starting points.

And of course, I just ask around - If I were to make a mod like this, what do you think is involved? .. I write out the steps, put it in a project manager and slowly get started.

I am not a good coder, and I am despite many years of experience customizing for board software, still very inexperienced, so I do what I can. Just being active with it creates comfort, which motivates me to dive into deeper and more complex functions and features.

 

[DaveL]

Thanks Floris.

Read some interesting threads so far. I really enjoy the kind of posts which explain what the different sections do like the one below:
When creating an add-on...?

This is the add-on I would like to create -http://www.xenforo.com/community/threads/thread-creation-from-rss-feeds.20886

I have a basic idea of what I would need, but considering im trying to work out how to create a new page for an add-on, I think it could take me a long long long time! (Would the page be a php page, or a template? If a template, how would I include it in the add-on? etc...so many questions already!)

 

[DaveL]

Right, Ive found out how to create the page, which is a start! The one thing im not really understanding at the moment is the "PHP callback" Class and Method.

Im still browsing through a lot of topics, but was just wondering if anyone had seen a guide explaining this.

 

[DaveL]

Spent the night shift on my phone browsing various topics and threads and looking at how things come together - Seems like theres a fair bit to learn!

Just gone to the library and ordered in

Zend framework on action
PHP 5 for dummies


Ive got a php & mysql book upstairs in the cupboard which I bought a few years back when I wrote a mod for vbulletin. Will have a look over that while waiting for my books to come in, although everything in xenforo seems a bit different to what is in that book!

I also got out a book on Javascript whilst waiting for books to arrive? Will that help me at all with xenforo? Flicking through the pages it seems a lot of the commands are pretty similar?