Flash Node

If you just want to add Flash content to nodes without having to worry about writing any HTML or PHP then this module is for you! Create a flash node, upload an swf file, and hit submit, and you have flash on your site.

For more advanced use you can combine flash node with SWF Tools and flash node will accept flv and mp3 files for easy playback. You can use the flash node input filter to re-use your flash content in other nodes. Or use PHP to construct flashvars strings to let flash elements react to your site.

Now with Views!

After many requests the first releases of flash node with support for Views is available. Views support is available for both flash node 5 and flash node 6. Using the Views capability you can define customised views that include flash content. You can pass parameters to the flash content as you would with a flash node macro, so you can scale the content to a size to suit your needs. Documentation for Views support isn't in place yet, but hopefully it is fairly self explanatory.

Changes to permissions

Note that in flash node 5.x-6.0 and 6.x-3.0 the permission system has been changed compared to earlier versions. Previously you granted a permission that actually hid access to the basic settings, display settings or advanced settings. This is "back to front" when compared to other Drupal modules. In the new releases the permissions are the right way round - assigning them grants access. This means that for users that are allowed to create flash node content you will need to update the user permissions to let them see the settings.

Important notes for upgrading from flash node 5 to flash node 6

If you are upgrading an existing Drupal 5 site then please make sure to read the update instructions before starting your site migration. If you are using flash node 5.x.3.1 or earlier and don't follow the instructions your flash node content will break!

Second, there are some new features in flash node, such as the ability to import flash content that has been uploaded by other methods, e.g. FTP. Access controls are now more granular, in keeping with the changes elsewhere in Drupal 6. It is now possible to limit access to some of the settings on the node page so you can allow users to upload flash content but not necessarily access other settings. It is also now possible to limit the size of a displayed movie in teaser view in addition to limiting the size in full view. The settings page now lets you specify what types of file different user roles are able to upload, and also shares upload limits with the upload module, so you can limit the size of file that a user can supply, and also limit the total amount of data they can upload.

Third, if you are updating from flash node 6.x-1.x then remember to run update.php as there is a change to the data table in order to support the new ability to pass parameters such as wmode.

Finally, if you are looking for a quick and easy way to put flash on your site without needing to write any code then flash node still does that just as easily as it always did. For simple display you still shouldn't need to do anything more than choose the file you want to display!

Overview of Flashnode

First and foremost, Flashnode is designed to make it very easy to add flash content to your Drupal site. When you install the module a new content type 'Flash' is added. When you create Flash content you simply choose the swf, flv or mp3 file you want to upload and specify whether the content should be displayed in the teaser, the full view, or both. When you hit submit your content will be displayed. That's all there is to it!

The module adds a new filter that you can add to your input filters. This lets you re-use flash content in other nodes by using the format [flashnode|nid=nn]. The filter includes options to size and scale the content where it is re-used. The filter can also be used to pass flashvars parameters to a flash file, for example, to run a flash audio player. A help page is included in the module that details the available options in the filter.

For more advanced content you can assign flashvars on the node creation page, and you can generate flashvars via PHP code if the input format allows it. Javascript substitution text is user definable for more advanced content display. To help with movies such as media players, image rotators or xml based content flash node supports the base parameter to help the Flash player find related files. This means flash node integrates nicely with the upload module to provide management of all the files associated with an item of flash content.

If you upload flv or mp3 content and have SWF Tools enabled then the file will be rendered using the player that you choose via the SWF Tools configuration page. SWF Tools comes with its own basic players, or you can download and activate others.

CVS strategy

If you are using CVS to pick up flash node then you might find it helpful to understand how the branches are currently arranged, so that you can pick up the code that best suits your needs.

DRUPAL-5--6 is the current stable branch for flash node 5. The end of this branch will contain the latest bug fixes. Code from this branch should always be stable and contain the very latest fixes that haven't yet been released. Use CHANGELOG.txt to work out what is in there.

At present there is no development branch for flash node 5 as there are no new feature plans.

DRUPAL-6--3 is the current stable branch for flash node 6. As for the D5 equivalent, this is stable code but it will contain the latest bug fixes that are ready for testing prior to a new release.

HEAD is currently tracking new feature work for flash node 6. The code is usually stable, but it may break at times. At present there are no new feature plans so HEAD is currently not under active development.

When Drupal 7 starts to stabilise then HEAD will be used for flash node 7 development, but that is a while off yet!!

Flash node in CCK?

A few users have asked if it is possible to have flash node features available for CCK. This is now underway as a separate project, FlashField. That project is in the early stages of development, and is only available for Drupal 6, but you are welcome to try it. However, it is not production ready!