Last tested 3-19-2012 using:

Gravity Forms 1.6.3.2.1
Gravity Forms & Custom Post Types 3.0.1
The Events Calendar 2.0.4
Events Calendar Pro 2.0.4
Wordpress 3.3.1

Click here for an example  - please do not submit tests, this is a live form.

Step 1: Install the Plugins

In order to pull this off, you’re going to need a few things:

• Gravity Forms WordPress plugin ($39 Personal License – well worth it)
• Gravity Forms + Custom Post Types WordPress plugin (Free – WP Plugin Directory)
• Events Calendar Pro ($50 Personal License – absolutely worth it)
• The Events Calendar (Free – WP Plugin Directory)

Step 2: Download the boilerplate form

Tim Bowen at Creative Slice wrote a great tutorial explaining the setup of the form fields in Gravity Forms.

Using Tim’s tutorial as a starting point, I’ve created a boilerplate GF form that can be imported into your copy of Gravity Forms. All of the required plugins must be installed and up-to-date for this part to work.

Download GF+ECP boilerplate form

Download and install this GF form through the Import/Export option in the Gravity Forms settings.

Step 3: Copy the code

The following code handles the formatting and saving of Gravity Forms data for Events Calendar Pro metadata.

View the complete code

Copy this code into your functions.php file (don’t include the starting and ending PHP tags).

Change ”gform_pre_submission_1″ from “1″ to the value of your GF form ID. If you already had existing forms before importing this one, then the form ID will be higher than 1. Example: If GF form ID is 15, then “gform_pre_submission_15″

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//  Add the action hook to format the GF form data into ECP event meta
//  The GF form id is added to the "gform_pre_submission" hook so it only fires when that form is submitted
add_action("gform_pre_submission_1", "format_tec_event_meta_from_gravity");

Put the form on a page and test it out. If you want to disable a field, remove it from the form (or change the form type to “Hidden”).

Step 4: The Code Explained

Please use the complete code above – the explanation below doesn’t contain the full code.

Contributors: Tim Bowen, Sam Devore, jqvisual, john, Rob La Gatta, Jamie, Christina, and Anthony DiSpezio (myself)

Setting the Gravity Form variables

The variables must be set to match their corresponding Gravity Forms field IDs. Most of the form fields are just passing values – Events Calendar Pro does the heavy lifting by interpreting those values through its API.

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	/*  VARIABLES - The following variables should correspond to their respective GF form elements IDs */
 
	// All day event
	$eventAllDay = 3;
 
	// Start and end dates (and times if the event is not all day)
	$startDateFormId = 4;
	$startTimeFormId = 5;
	$endDateFormId = 6;
	$endTimeFormId = 7;
 
	// Event recurrence type
	$recType = 8;
 
	// Recurrence ends "On" a speceific date or "After" a certain number of occurrences
	$recEndType = 9;
 
	// End date for event recurrence (if "On" is selected)
	$recEnd = 10;
 
	// A different "After" multiplier exists for each possible recurrence type (if "After" is selected)
	$recEndCounts = array(
		'Every Day' => 11,
		'Every Week' => 12,
		'Every Month' => 13,
		'Every Year' => 14,
		);
 
	// Venue details
	$venueName = 18;
	$venueAddress = 19;
	$venueCity = 20;
	$venueCountry = 21;
 
	// for neither US or Canada, use province text field
	$venueProvince = 22;
 
	// for US, use state dropdown (two letter values have been added to match ECP meta)
	$venueState = 23;
 
	// for Canada, use province/territory dropdown
	$venueCaProvince = 24;
 
	$venueZip = 25;
	$venuePhone = 36;
 
	// Google Maps
	$showGoogleMapLink = 26;
	$showGoogleMap = 27;
 
	//Organizer details
	$organizerName = 29;
	$organizerPhone = 30;
	$organizerWebsite = 31;
	$organizerEmail = 32;

Format the Dates and Times

The dates and times are formatted to match the ECP metadata (now that Gravity Forms has an advanced date field with the correct formatting, I’m not sure if it is needed).

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	/*  DATE & TIME FORMATTING - Format the date and time from GF to match ECP meta */
 
	// break the dates into arrays
	$startDate = date_parse($_POST['input_'. $startDateFormId]);
	$endDate = date_parse($_POST['input_'. $endDateFormId]);
 
	// sql format the result
	$startDateString = $startDate['year'] . '-' . str_pad($startDate['month'], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT) . '-' . str_pad($startDate['day'], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT);
	$endDateString = $endDate['year'] . '-' . str_pad($endDate['month'], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT) . '-' . str_pad($endDate['day'], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT);
 
	// get the start/end times
	$startTime = $_POST['input_'. $startTimeFormId];
	$endTime = $_POST['input_'. $endTimeFormId];

Set the ECP form values for saving

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	/* SET ECP FORM VALUES - Set the ECP form values to match their respective GF fields */
 
	$_POST['EventAllDay'] = $_POST['input_'. $eventAllDay];	
 
	$_POST['EventStartDate'] = $startDateString;
	$_POST['EventStartHour'] = str_pad($startTime[0], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT);
	$_POST['EventStartMinute'] = str_pad($startTime[1], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT);
	$_POST['EventStartMeridian'] = $startTime[2];
 
	$_POST['EventEndDate'] = $endDateString;
	$_POST['EventEndHour'] = str_pad($endTime[0], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT);
	$_POST['EventEndMinute'] = str_pad($endTime[1], 2, "0", STR_PAD_LEFT);
	$_POST['EventEndMeridian'] = $endTime[2];
 
	$_POST['recurrence']['type'] = $_POST['input_'. $recType];
	$_POST['recurrence']['end-type'] = $_POST['input_'. $recEndType];
	$_POST['recurrence']['end'] = $_POST['input_'. $recEnd];
 
	// Match the correct recurrence multiplier with the correct recurrence type
	foreach($recEndCounts as $recTypeName => $recEndCount){
		if ($_POST['input_'. $recType] == $recTypeName) {
			$_POST['recurrence']['end-count'] = $_POST['input_'. $recEndCount];
		}
	}

Check if venue and organizer already exist

The missing venue fix discussed here kept creating new venues and organizers with the same title (instead of using the existing venues/organizers). The following code checks for the existence of a venue/organizer based on its tile. This method will force ECP to use the information of the venue already stored with the same name.

For those who want users to be able to select from a dropdown of venues, read through Jamie’s posts.

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	// Check for the existence of the submitted venue and organization by title
	$savedVenue = get_page_by_title($_POST['input_'. $venueName], 'OBJECT', 'tribe_venue');
	$savedOrganizer = get_page_by_title($_POST['input_'. $organizerName], 'OBJECT', 'tribe_organizer');
 
	// If the venue already exists, pass along the exising venue ID
	if (isset($savedVenue)){
		$_POST['venue']['VenueID'] = $savedVenue->ID;
	// If the venue doesn't exist, pass the venue meta needed to create a new venue
	} else {
		// Required for venue info to be stored
		$_POST['EventVenue'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueName];
		$_POST['post_title'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueName];
 
		// Pass remaining venue meta
		$_POST['venue']['Venue'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueName];
		$_POST['venue']['Address'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueAddress];
		$_POST['venue']['City'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueCity];
		$_POST['venue']['Country'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueCountry];
		// Ensure that the correct state or province field is populated
		switch($_POST['input_'. $venueCountry]) {
			case 'United States':
				$_POST['venue']['State'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueState];
				break;
			case 'Canada':
				$_POST['venue']['Province'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueCaProvince];
				break;
			default:
				$_POST['venue']['Province'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueProvince];
				break;
		}
		$_POST['venue']['Zip'] = $_POST['input_'. $venueZip];
		$_POST['venue']['Phone'] = $_POST['input_'. $venuePhone];
	}

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	// If the organizer already exists, pass along the exising organizer ID
	if (isset($savedOrganizer)){
		$_POST['organizer']['OrganizerID'] = $savedOrganizer->ID;
	} else {
		// If the venue doesn't exist, pass the venue meta needed to create a new venue
		$_POST['organizer']['Organizer'] = $_POST['input_'. $organizerName];
		$_POST['organizer']['Phone'] = $_POST['input_'. $organizerPhone];
 
		//If the user doesn't put in a web address we want to make the website '' instead of 'http://' since that's what Gravity Forms adds by default
		$_POST['organizer']['Website'] = $_POST['input_'. $organizerWebsite] == 'http://' ? '' : $_POST['input_'. $organizerWebsite];
 
		$_POST['organizer']['Email'] = $_POST['input_'. $organizerEmail];
	}

Save ECP meta from GF form values

The last bit of code allows for use with Gravity Forms with Events Calendar Pro 2.0. This fix comes from the ECP team, Modern Tribe.

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// Store the new form values as ECP metadata when saving
add_action('save_post', 'save_ecp_event_meta_from_gravity', 11, 2);
 
function save_ecp_event_meta_from_gravity($postId, $post) {
	if( class_exists('TribeEvents') ) {
 
	// only continue if it's an event post
	if ( $post->post_type != TribeEvents::POSTTYPE || defined('DOING_AJAX') ) {
		return;
	}
 
	// don't do anything on autosave or auto-draft either or massupdates
	//if ( wp_is_post_autosave( $postId ) || isset($_GET['bulk_edit']) )
	if ( wp_is_post_autosave( $postId ) || $post->post_status == 'auto-draft' || isset($_GET['bulk_edit']) || $_REQUEST['action'] == 'inline-save' )
	{
		return;
	}
 
	if( class_exists('TribeEventsAPI') ) {
		$_POST['Organizer'] = stripslashes_deep($_POST['organizer']);
		$_POST['Venue'] = stripslashes_deep($_POST['venue']);
		$_POST['Recurrence'] = stripslashes_deep($_POST['recurrence']);
 
		if( !empty($_POST['Venue']['VenueID']) )
		$_POST['Venue'] = array('VenueID' => $_POST['Venue']['VenueID']);
 
		if( !empty($_POST['Organizer']['OrganizerID']) )
		$_POST['Organizer'] = array('OrganizerID' => $_POST['Organizer']['OrganizerID']);
 
		TribeEventsAPI::saveEventMeta($postId, $_POST, $post);
		}
	}
}

Known Issues

• No “custom” recurrence capabilities (yet)
• New venues/organizers with an existing title will use the information of the existing venue/organizer – this is not really an “issue” and can be addressed with two alternatives:
• Comment out the conditionals that check for an existing venue/organizer so that a new venue/organizer is create every time regardless of duplicate venue names
• Use Jamie’s suggestion to create post relationship fields that allow the user to select existing venues/organizers from dropdown menus
• Submitted events will not display the recurrence units (ie: days, weeks, etc) – appears to be cosmetic only

The trick is to let meta_query handle the actual filtering and include meta_key to pass a different meta field to the orderby argument.

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$args = array(
	'post_type' => 'put_post_type_here',
	/* use the new meta_query in WP 3.1 for filtering */
	'meta_query' => array(
		array(
			'key' => 'put_filter_meta_key_here',
			'value' => 'put_filter_meta_value_here',
			'compare' => '='
		)
	),
	/* use meta_key for sorting - but don't specify a meta value */
	'meta_key' => 'put_sorting_meta_value_here',
	/* then order by the meta_key above - use meta_value_num for numbers */
	'orderby' => 'meta_value',
	'order' => 'ASC',
 );
query_posts( $args );

Keep in mind:

• This query only works for sorting by one meta value. Nested sorting will require a SQL query.
• Dates and times should be in a valid format for chronological sorting (you don’t want the system to misinterpret AM/PM

The app core was designed using jQuery and the UI is handled by jQuery UI.

Try out the app here!

Users can switch between flag hoisted signals and semaphore flags.

The app provides useful learning links for understanding semaphores.

The app sends the users encoded message url to Twitter for posting.

The generated puzzle can then be solved by other users with the link.

Users can bring up a legend to help with decryption.

The interactivity was built using the jQuery Mobile framework and ported with the AppMakr kit.

View in the app store!

This is one of the web analytics reports designed for sales, press, and internal use. These reports are made from different projections of our substantial reporting data.

On April 12th the Cape Cod Life app was launched on the Apple App Store. We have received great enthusiasm surrounding our push to bring niche-publishing magazines into the next generation of content delivery and interactive capabilities.

PRESS

• View Cape Cod LIFE in the App Store
• App review on AOL’s patch.com
• iPad App – Cape Cod LIFE debut

Cape Cod Life? There’s an App for That!

A Cape Cod tradition dives headfirst into the future of publishing.

In the Wild West environment of the early years of the World Wide Web, up and coming, tech-savvy 20 – and 30 – somethings became accustomed to getting their content online, anywhere, anytime, for free.

As a result, many print magazines went out of business, not so much because subscription bases went down, but because advertisers jumped ship, in search of eyeballs on the Internet.

Then came e-readers and pay walls, indicating people were ready to pay for quality content (or rather that quality content providers could not survive without subscriber revenue).

Then the iPad was born. Our very own Cape Cod Life magazine may just be among the very few forward-thinking beacons that see the promise of this new medium. (Despite the raging popularity of the iPad, it’s still ahead of its time; Google “iPad, what’s the point” and you get 3,120,000 page hits linking to skeptics).

At the beginning of this month, Cape Cod Life became the first Cape and Islands lifestyle magazine with an iPad app and the first Cape and Islands publication with a magazine app to deliver content. Cape Cod Life and Cape Cod Home apps are now live on the Apple app store.

Cape Cod Life’s Expansion into the Ether

Fans of Cape Cod Life can now access the magazines in four ways: the more traditional, glossy magazine, via the web site, as a downloadable digital edition and with the iPad app.

“We hear a lot of stories about how people have saved every issue we’ve ever published,” says Susan Dewey, Associate Publisher of Cape Cod Life Publications, illustrating that people still like to hold, and hold on to, the magazine.

Readers can also access content via the web site, which after its redesign in November 2010 saw a dramatic growth in visitors. “There has been a humongous increase in readership” according to Anthony DiSpezio, Cape Cod Life’s Web & IT guru. “This was so telling on how people are engaging.”

Indeed, after creating a strictly online-based voting process for this year’s highly anticipated “Best of the Cape & Islands Readers Choice” issue, voting numbers tripled.

While accessing web content is as interactive as the design team wants to make it, the web site content doesn’t mirror the design and layout of the print copy. Readers bothered by full-page print ads would do well on the web site.

That’s where the digital version comes in. Downloadable via the web site, the digital edition uses Adobe Flash to allow readers to view an identical – including advertisements – version of the print magazine. The digital edition offers an experience mimicking reading print (page turning) while providing the convenience of a web site (access to additional information, details, merchandise).As a bonus, at $15 annually, the digital edition costs less than the newsstand subscription price of $25.

The iPad, which does not support Adobe Flash, offers a whole new interactive environment offering “shortcuts” that open doors to both the consumer and the advertiser. Advertisers may one day choose to optimize their content by embedding video into an advertisement, by linking directly to their web sites or by providing links that allow the viewer to purchase an item with one tap.

“We are enlightening our advertisers as to what they can do, and we can make it happen,” says DiSpezio enthusiastically.

For consumers, information on that garden trestle, recipe, art gallery or restaurant is just one tap away. “We are at such a level of convenience – the fact that you can just tap it and you’re there is huge,” states Dewey. “It enhances what we offer with the magazine by offering opportunities that weren’t available with other mediums.”

In short, consumers now have increasing options of personalizing the way they receive content, while advertisers have new tools that help them draw eyeballs to their products. It’s a win-win situation, not least of all for the publishing industry.

“We’re not here to replace our print content; we understand we have all of these new frontiers,” says DiSpezio. “Who knows where we’ll be going with this in a year from now.”

Cape Cod Life Publications debuts iPad app

Cape Cod Life becomes first Cape and Islands lifestyle magazine to introduce app 

Mashpee, Mass. (April 7, 2011) –  Cape Cod LIFE, the well-known, 32 year-old Cape and Islands lifestyle magazine, introduced its first iPad app this month.  The app will bring each issue of the magazine to life on the iPad, along with additional interactive content.  Cape Cod LIFE, which is distributed nationwide, becomes the first lifestyle publication on Cape Cod and the Islands to roll out an app for the iPad.

The app is available for free on the iTunes App Store; for more information on the app, visit www.capecodlife.com/ipad. It will allow iPad users complete access to each issue of Cape Cod LIFE and its special editions, including Cape Cod GARDENS and Cape Cod ART.  The first issue available for download is the Cape Cod LIFE 2010 Annual Guide, which is accessible for free. Cape Cod LIFE’s sister publication – Cape Cod HOME – will have its own iPad app, which will be launched in late April.

In addition to all of the content from the magazines, the app will provide bonus features such as videos, audio clips, additional photography, recipes and the ability to click through to advertisers and other sites of interest.  Each issue will be optimized for easy reading and intuitive scrolling on the iPad screen.

“The app enhances the depth of our diverse offerings and will provide even greater resources for anyone living on or visiting the Cape and Islands, particularly those who don’t have access to newsstands where they would traditionally pick up one of our printed magazines,” says Cape Cod Life Associate Publisher and Editor Susan Dewey. “As the industry evolves and people change the way they find information, we want to be at the forefront.  The advent of these new media platforms allows us to deliver even more content and gives our readers more ways to find what they need.”

The new app is just one part of Cape Cod Life’s overall new media strategy.  Digital editions, which are online versions of the entire print magazines, are now available on the completely redesigned web site with additional bonus content.  Videos featuring cooking demos, gardening how-to’s and interviews will soon be a mainstay on the web site.