HTML Special Characters Helper
- Author:Scott Reilly
- Version:1.0
- Last update:08 April 2008
- Compatibility:WP 2.0+, 2.1+, 2.2+, 2.3+ and 2.5+
- Comments:go here
- Download:[ zip ]
- Description:
Adds a tool to the Write Post page for inserting HTML encodings of special characters into the post.
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Extended Description
The helper box is labeled “HTML Special Characters” and is present in the admin Write Post and Write Page pages. Clicking on any special character in the box causes its character encoding to be inserted into the post body text field at the current cursor location (or at the end of the post if the cursor isn’t located in the post body field). Hovering over any of the special characters causes a hover text box to appear that shows the HTML entity encoding for the character as well as the name of the character.
The helper is available for both the non-visual editor and the visual editor modes.
In the visual editor mode, an additional interface for the HTML special characters is accessible via the editor’s toolbar: a new button with an ampersand, &, on it. Pressing that button displays a popup that behaves just like the sidebar box. Note that in the visual editor mode that the special character itself is added to the post body. Also note that the visual editor has its own special characters popup helper accessible via the advanced toolbar, which depending on your usage, may make this plugin unnecessary for you. In truth, the plugin is intended more for the non-visual mode as that is the mode I (the plugin author) use.
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Screenshots
The HTML Special Characters helper box in its default state
The HTML Special Characters helper box when “Toggle More” is clicked to display more special characters. Note all characters are categorized into labeled sections
The HTML Special Characters helper box after “Help?” is clicked
The HTML Special Characters helper box when the mouse is hovering over one of the special characters. The hover text that appears shows the HTML entity encoding for the character as well as the name of the character
The HTML Special Characters popup helper box used with the visual editor. Special characters appear as the special character in the visual editor. The popup box is accessible via the `&` editor toolbar button and behaves just like the sidebar box.
Installation
Download the file html-special-characters-helper.zip and unzip it into your wp-content/plugins/ directory. Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ admin menu in WordPress. Use the new “HTML Special Characters” helper box to insert HTML encodings of special characters into the cursor location of the post body of the post you are writing. In versions of WordPress older than 2.5 this box appears in the sidebar; in WordPress 2.5 it appears below the post entry box.-
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do I use the “HTML Special Characters” helper box to insert special characters into other post fields (such as the post title)?A: You can’t. The plugin only inserts the HTML character encodings into the post body. However, you can certainly hover over the character you want to use to see the HTML encoding for it (it’ll start with an ampersand, &, and end with a semi-color, ‘;’) and type that into the field.
Q: I’ve activated the plugin and don’t see the “HTML Special Characters” helper box when I go to write a post; where is it?A: In WP 2.3 the helper box is initially added to the bottom of your admin sidebar. You may want to drag it up the sidebar into a higher position closer to the post entry field. In WP 2.5 the box is located below the post entry field and, unfortunately, is not currently drag-n-droppable.
Release Log
08 Apr 2008 : v2.0 — Release notes.
Copyright & Disclaimer
Copyright © 2007-2008 by Scott Reilly (aka coffee2code)Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the “Software”), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED “AS IS”, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to all those who have contributed feedback and support!
