Plugin Thoughts Episode Two – Use Filters for Plugin Text

7 comments on “Plugin Thoughts Episode Two – Use Filters for Plugin Text”

1. up84 says:

   April 1, 2012 at 6:54 am

   Hi Pippin. I just signed up, cool tutorials you have there. I’m not sure if we need to use filter in such case. Why can’t we use the main localization file to provide another text? We’re not translating the plugin doing this, but I think it’s ok. Curious to hear your thoughts.

   Reply
   • Pippin says:

     April 1, 2012 at 10:10 am

     I’ve heard both sides and personally feel it is better to provide both. Let’s say that a user using your plugin in the same language it was written in wants to change the text, it is much easier for them to change it via a filter than it is by translating the MO files, especially since they may only need to change that one line. If a user is using the plugin not in the language it was written, then they can translate the entire plugin AND change the text at the same time.
   • up84 says:

     April 1, 2012 at 10:22 am

     I see.

     I would just open the file ( en_US.po ) using PoEdit and “translate” Register New Account into “Membership Application”. It’s not a translation, but it seems to work

     Do you think it’s wrong if the user doesn’t want to translate a plugin, but just needs to modify the text using MO file? Is it ok to use MO files for something other than translations?
   • Pippin says:

     April 1, 2012 at 10:30 am

     I don’t know that either way is necessarily right or wrong, but they both definitely work.
   • up84 says:

     April 1, 2012 at 10:33 am

     Cool. Just wanted to know your opinion. Thanks
2. Andrew says:

   October 23, 2012 at 11:15 pm

   In your example, you have a parameter called $header – where does that come from? I think it’s something that always confuses me with filters. I couldn’t see a $header in member-forms.php either. Would it have worked without the $header?

   Reply
   • Pippin says:

     October 24, 2012 at 9:38 am

     $header comes from where the original filter was setup. In this case, Restrict Content Pro (the plugin being used as a demo), does this:

     1	<?php echo apply_filters( 'rcp_registration_header_logged_in', __( 'Register New Account', 'rcp' ) ); ?>

     The first parameter in apply_filters() is the name of the filter and the second is the value passed to the filter ($header). So $header is this:

     1	__( 'Register New Account', 'rcp' )

     Note that the name of the parameter can be anything. I used $header simply because it made logical sense, but you could have just as easily used $text.

     Make sense?