New “Add Media” button here on MU Talk!

Short & to the point version

Howdy all! We have a new Add Media button that you’ll notice in the upper-right of the text entry box. With the previous version of MU/T you could do everything right here on the frontend, except add a picture! 😛 Who ever wants to do that??? 🙁

Enjoy!

Long, Boring Version (TMI / TLDR;)

MU/Talk uses Frontend posting. It means you don’t have to go to the Backend aka The Post Editor to write stuff. For longer works the backend is great, but for shorter information & discussion like here on MU/Talk, it’s just easier to punch-in on the frontend and be done with it.

The primary way WordPress users do Frontend Posting is with a theme called P2. P2 is great, but it’s not Responsive (adaptive to different screens, like Laptops & Phones) and it’s visually a bit clunky. So we’ve been using a P2 Child Theme called Houston. Houston is prettier and it is responsive, but yesterday when ETS tried to post an update, well,

Houston, we have a problem

I haven’t really figured out what that problem was, but it seems to be in the Houston child theme itself. As far as I know, there are 4 Frontend posting options:

  1. P2 – works pretty well, but not responsive, and not so pretty
  2. Houston – P2 Child Theme that is prettier & responsive, but might have a bug, and doesn’t allow Frontend Image posting
  3. Roundtable – P2 Child Theme that’s prettier than P2, does allow Image posting, but isn’t responsive
  4. Mercury – P2 Child theme, might look better than P2, does support Frontend images, and is responsive

We’re changing mostly because of the apparent bug with Houston, but in the switch, we’re also gaining the super-useful Frontend image posting that all themes except Houston support. I think what it is, is that P2 didn’t initially support Frontend Images. Houston is the most dramatic redesign of P2. So when P2 added images, Houston never got redesigned to accommodate that in it’s alt text entry box. Because Mercury & Roundtable were less dramatic restylings of P2, when P2 added image support, it just carried over to Mercury & RT since they used the standard P2 text entry box.

So:

• Houston seems to have a bug, and doesn’t support frontend images.
• P2 & Roundtable are not responsive
• Mercury is the only Frontend posting theme (I know of) that is responsive and also supports frontend image posting (and doesn’t appear to have any bugs ATM)

So:
Mercury is our MU Talk theme now! 😀