Textpattern Plugin Preferences With set_pref

jake on 2008.01.23
at 05:57 pm

To insert preferences into the Textpattern database you use a function called set_pref. There is one area of the command that generated confusion while I was working on my latest plugin.

set_pref($name, $val, $event, $type)

Most of the information you pass to set_pref is straightforward. The $name and $val are simply the name of the variable for the database and the value of that variable. $event is what the preference is associated with, in this case the name of my plugin. But it’s harder to surmise the effect of $type. And a search through Google and the Textpattern forums returns no explanation.

Originally I copied another developer and set this value to 0. While this works it also adds all the settings alphabetically to the main preferences tab. Because I already have a separate tab for my plugin (and this option adds clutter) having all the settings duplicated and unformatted is not ideal.

Setting the $type variable to 2 creates a hidden preference. No more list in the main preferences yet I can access the information. This is how my plugin is now set up.

I have not made attempts to set the value to 1 nor do I know if there are other possibilities. Please leave a comment if you can explain this further and help other developers.

Update:

Thanks to Mary we now have clarification on the $type setting. If you go into Admin->Preferences you’ll see Basic and Advanced tabs. The 0 and 1 are to place preferences on these respective pages. The Basic tab is primarily for system settings. But the advanced can be used for a few, relevant options.In most circumstances managing the preferences on another page and using the 2 (hidden) setting makes the most sense.

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