Perch Update 1.8

We’ve updated Perch with a number new features as well as a small bug fixes for issues discovered via our support system.

Please back up your site and database before updating. Run the /perch/update script once you have copied the files, and if upgrading from a version prior to 1.7, be sure to save any region before changing its settings or deleting items due to database changes.

Do I need to install this?

There’s no need to install immediately. You should update when it’s next convenient to do so. This release contains a number of small bug fixes, improvements and new features you may benefit from.

What does it fix?

This release fixes the below issues:

• Fixes an HTML typo in default search template
• A field’s value can now be zero “0”
• Outgoing email now UTF8 encodes the subject line

Users experiencing these issues should update when convenient.

What features does it add?

• The ability to reorder content in multiple item regions with drag and drop
• A setting to collapse and expand the site tree by section when viewing the main Content list
• A new region option to exclude the region from search results
• Delete buttons now confirm the action inline, without redirecting to a second page
• A user can now reset their own password from the login screen
• The perch_content_custom() function now supports automatic pagination or multiple item regions
• A JavaScript keep-alive ping has been added to edit forms to prevent session timeouts when editing
• New authentication plugins enable user accounts to be shared from an different system
• The internal password security has been strengthened with improved hashes
• A new PERCH_MAIL_PARAMS configuration setting for setting parameters for outgoing email
• A new PERCH_UNDO_BUFFER configuration setting to set number of undo items stored in the history
• A new PERCH_CHMOD_FILES configuration setting to change the permissions on files after upload

New features in the templating system include:

• A new replace attribute to perform basic replacements: replace="(c)|©,f|ƒ,hello|goodbye"
• A new <perch:every> conditional tag with count and CSS-style nth-child options
• An improved <perch:if> tag with the ability to match specific values: <perch:if id="text" match="eq" value="Hello">
• A new quality attribute on image tags for setting JPG compression. 0-100.
• A new urlify attribute to create a URL-safe version of a string on the fly
• New uses for the format attribute for formatting numbers (e.g. to 2 decimal places) and currency: format="#:2|.|," and format="$:%.2n"

What impact does it have for my clients?

Editors should not notice any major differences to the interface. If the new setting to collapse the content list is enabled (it’s off by default) it may be worth discussing first so no one gets a nasty surprise when the list is collapsed and it looks like content could be missing.

Where do I get the update?

Log into your account and re-download the files. The download has been replaced with the newest version.

Make a back-up of your files and database.

No, really. Make a back-up. There’s always someone who doesn’t and manages to delete the wrong files – don’t let that be you.

Unzip and replace your existing files with the exception of:

• config
• resources
• templates
• Additional plug-ins in plugins
• Additional apps in apps – just copy apps/content

These contain information specific to your installation and should not be overwritten. There is no need to copy setup, as you’re already up and running.

Then visit /perch/update in your browser. That’s all you need to do – Perch is now updated.

Previous updates

• Update to Perch 1.7.3