I’ve used the plugin on a client’s static site, but wanted to figure out a way to have a jquery plugin, specifically Nivo Slider (because I really like it), integrate with WordPress in a non-obtrusive way.

That said, there is already a WordPress plugin for Nivo Slider, but you have to use a photo uploader on the sidebar, and I’m really particular about NOT confusing my clients, some of whom are scared to death of computers and the web

I really just wanted a way for a client to be able to add a new post, upload a photo from the standard photo uploader, select a category, and have their photo added to the slideshow. No muss, no fuss…and no extra instructions.

As I was thinking about how to get a post photo to show up automatically, I thought about a plugin for WordPress that I already use quite frequently, The Attached Image. This great little plugin allows you to pull the first photo from your content and do a variety of things with it in your theme templates. I love it especially for adding thumbnails to article lists and the like, but I thought it might serve my purpose here as well.

You can see the working version at Waltrich.com, a great client who sells lawn chair webbing as well as old school aluminum webbed lawn chairs.

First, I created a slideshow category under Posts > Categories, so that a user could assign this category to the post.

Next, I double checked the category ID for use in my template ( Category ID 3 in this case), and added the following code.

<div id="slider">

<?php $recent = new WP_Query("cat=3&showposts=100"); while($recent->have_posts()) : $recent->the_post();?>

<?php the_attached_image('img_size=full', $recent); ?>

<?php endwhile; ?>

</div><!--/slider-->

The slider id is called in the javascript and the WordPress query, “recent” is asking for the latest 100 (add your own number here) posts in the slideshow category.

The attached image code asked for the full sized image in the post, and displays each one from the loop.

After you’ve gotten this code installed, make sure you follow the usage instructions found on Nivo Slider’s website. You can use the following code in your header (inside the head tag) if you like. It’s a pretty basic install really.

<link rel="stylesheet" href="yourdomain.com/nivo-slider.css" type="text/css" media="screen" />

<script src="yourdomain.com/jquery-1.4.2.min.js" type="text/javascript"></script>

<script src="yourdomain.com/jquery.nivo.slider.pack.js" type="text/javascript"></script>

<script type="text/javascript">

$(window).load(function() {

$('#slider').nivoSlider({

effect:'sliceDown', //Specify sets like: 'fold,fade,sliceDown'

slices:15,

animSpeed:500,

pauseTime:5000,

startSlide:0, //Set starting Slide (0 index)

directionNav:false, //Next & Prev

directionNavHide:false, //Only show on hover

controlNav:false, //1,2,3...

controlNavThumbs:false, //Use thumbnails for Control Nav

controlNavThumbsFromRel:false, //Use image rel for thumbs

controlNavThumbsSearch: '.jpg', //Replace this with...

controlNavThumbsReplace: '_thumb.jpg', //...this in thumb Image src

keyboardNav:true, //Use left & right arrows

pauseOnHover:false, //Stop animation while hovering

manualAdvance:false, //Force manual transitions

captionOpacity:0.8, //Universal caption opacity

beforeChange: function(){},

afterChange: function(){},

slideshowEnd: function(){} //Triggers after all slides have been shown

});

});

</script>

Style to taste, and VOILA! If you have any issues with either The Attached Image or Nivo Slider, they have extensive documentation and help for you. I’m not a guru for either, so forgive me if my help is slow in coming or ill-informed.

Bank of Dudley is one of the most financially sound banks in Georgia, and has enjoyed over 100 years of serving the people of Dublin and the surrounding area.

While their company enjoyed satisfied customers and success, they were looking for a way to update their website and move towards unifying their marketing efforts.

Richmond Hill Media was brought on to design the new site to be clean and easy to use, as well as informative and functional for both new and existing customers. The new site features more than double the informational pages of the previous site, and includes a frontpage slideshow, linking to deals and specials; online banking login from the front page; secure online forms to begin the account application process from anywhere; financial calculators on a number of different loans and mortgage scenarios to help consumers plan wisely; a list of bank-owned properties to help buyers looking for a great deal; and much more.

RHM worked with Farin, who specializes in secure hosting for banks and provided the webhosting, financial calculators and ssl security for the site.

In meeting with other developers, we felt like we would be just another number, but Doy gave us the same “Home Town” service we strive to give our customers. Unlike most financial institution sites which are template driven, Doy created our site from the ground up. We are very pleased with the clean design and functionality of our new site.
Jeremy Beall
IT Officer, Bank of Dudley

Celebration Church was a church start in Dothan, Alabama, when they asked Richmond Hill Media to design a logo that would capture the excitement of the new church start, but also grasp something original in the logo.

This was no small task, as there are a great amount of churches in the U.S. with the name “celebration.”

Approaching the design from a regional standpoint, Richmond Hill Media researched a variety of angles for the logo, finally settling on Dothan’s renown as part of the “wiregrass region” of Alabama.

Taking a cue from the plume effect of wiregrass, the logo presented itself, and not only represented the region in which the church was planted, but also lends itself to the idea of a celebration as well.

Crosspoint Church is a dynamic, creative community of believers in Gulfport, Mississippi.

When starting this new venture, Israel Cox, pastor of Crosspoint, asked Richmond Hill Media to design a simple logo that not only communicated the name of the church, but also of the church’s mission to introduce people to a connection to God.

Richmond Hill Media conceived a simple brand mark that succinctly described the name and mission of the church, and is still flexible enough to be used in the church’s changing marketing materials.

Estes Public Relations is a company that focuses on relationship marketing to establish its clients as leaders in their fields. With offices in Louisville and Chicago and a geographically diverse client list, Estes Public Relations is a far-reaching and established name in culinary and lifestyle public relations. Renowned culinary stars like Rick Tramonto of Tru in Chicago, Marcel Desaulniers of the Trellis in Williamsburg, Va., Bob Kinkead of Kinkead’s in Washington, D.C. and Sibling Rivalry in Boston have entrusted their publicity to Estes.

While the company has established itself as a huge player in the market, their previous website didn’t allow them the flexibility to make updates and didn’t reflect the current direction the company wanted to take on the web. In addition, the company’s search engine results were less than stellar.

With a new site built in a content management system, Estes not only has the ability to showcase a range of clients and services, but also has the ability to write articles and blog entries about clients, public relations and the like, sharing their minds on the web. The site is also very search engine friendly, and has plugins built in to take advantage of seo on the web.

The move has been a great success for the company, and in only two or three months into their new site, they are ranked on page one in Google when searching for “food and lifestyle pr” and rank highly in other related and regional searches as well.

There are so many variables in the process of building a website. Our online identity is very important to us, and we wanted to make sure to get everything right, from color scheme to layout. Working with Doy was great because he offered us different options so we could visualize the potential of the finished product. Since we launched our new website, Doy has constantly supported us to ensure that we are using all the functions to the maximum benefit for the company. Julie Brooks
Office Manager, Estes Public Relations

The Appraisal Institute is a national organization dedicated to real estate appraisers, allowing them not only to benefit from meeting and networking together, but providing ongoing training, certifications and other merits necessary to excel in their field.

The Savannah Chapter of the Appraisal Institute wanted to better reflect the national organization in their website, adding much needed functionality in the process.

The site includes class listings, upcoming events and calendar, a membership registration and directory, as well as an email blast module that allows the local leadership to contact members for special announcements, newsletters and the like.

Doy Cave worked diligently with the Savannah Chapter of the Appraisal Institute to redesign our website and contact platform. His knowledge, attention to detail, and high level of customer service was exactly what our organization needed. We retain Doy for our ongoing maintenance and creative insight. Aaron Carone
Savannah Chapter of the Appraisal Institute

The mission of the CVB is to market and promote Richmond Hill as a competitive meeting and leisure destination among its peers, encompassing its unique blend of culture and heritage in a manner that supports the interests of both its local hospitality industry and our residents, thereby encouraging economic growth for the community.

The organization’s previous site was static, with little updating content or interactivity.

The new site utilizes a commercial class content management system, which has allowed them a variety of features, including a calendar, article and announcement manager, guestbook and business directory.

The Richmond Hill CVB also utilizes a mobile site for cell phone visitors, powered by the main sites RSS feeds.

Doy is customer-driven and has created a site for the RHCVB that is both attractive and adaptable to our changing business environment. Chris Sheppard
Richmond Hill CVB Administrator