I was trying to increase the character count of the product short description, and somehow totally screwed it up. I'm not sure exactly how I screwed it up, it should have been a very simple change in the code.
I didn't make a backup of the file, because I figured I could just ctrl+z - well the jokes on me.
The file I was attempting to change was...
/components/com_virtuemart/views/category/tmpl/default.php
the line of code I altered was...
<?php // Product Short Description
if(!empty($product->product_s_desc)) { ?>
<p class="product_s_desc">
<?php echo shopFunctionsF::limitStringByWord($product->product_s_desc, 40, '...') ?>
</p>
<?php } ?>
...I changed the '40' to '500', to allow for more character spaces - at least I thought. But when I made the change, and saved the file - the whole darn thing flipped on its backside, and I don't even recognize the code anymore. Ctrl+z wouldn't even undo my error... I shouldn't have used notepad i guess.
So my question is, do I now have to uninstall all the VM extensions and reinstall, fresh, to make it right again? Doing so wouldn't be a huge problem, since I haven't really started on any content for the store yet. Or does anyone have any other suggestions on how to fix this?
Also, and more importantly, what the heck did I do wrong??? I have very little experience with PhP and MySQL databases, but I understand it all. Should I have used Notepad++ or Dreamweaver instead? Why would Notepad flip out on a PhP file like that? Or did I just plain do something incorrect.
I appreciate everyone taking the time to read my questions, I eagerly await your responses...
Joomla! Version 2.5 / VM2
Hi Leneux,
2 solutions...
- Download a fresh copy of VM (same version tho), extract it onto your computer, find the file and copy it over.
- go through the SVN repository and grab the code from there.
You shouldn't need to re-install VM. BUT if these solutions don't work, you may have another underlying issue. Be sure to check your error.log.
Good luck. ;D
Excellent! I'm back in business.
I did toy with that idea, but figured there is no way it would be compatible with all the changes I've made so far - I didn't think it would be the "same" file anymore. But it is!
Thank you so much for your help :)
P.S. I realize now I should have probably posted this in the general channel, as this one focuses on problems Virtuemart causes, rather than the ones that I do. lol apologies.
One additional update...
I just succeeded in changing short product description from 40 characters to 500. The problem was that I was using regular Notepad to make changes to the default.php file. So if I've learned anything through all this its Notepad++, Dreamweaver or nothing. Don't edit PhP files with Notepad.
yes, notepad++ is quite nice, but I like the notepad2 more.
and next time, use this http://dev.virtuemart.net/projects/virtuemart/wiki/Hints_for_the_use_of_the_template_system.