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Text formats

From MoodleDocs

Some points:

A- Fix places without "format"

a) inline format info (like trusttest -> Sam)
b) add formatxxx fields in all missing places. Naming schema "xxxformat" (exam. "descriptionformat").
- db new fields.
- upgrade
- forms modification (combined element)
- backup & restore
- Need conversion to HTML format (always enabled plugin) from all formats
- convert all the old format fields to use the new naming schema.
- backup and restore
- forms modification
c) to decide: move also the trustext bits to fields?

B- Make them modular (pluggable. OOP) (lib/format and lib/formatlib.php, get_format()->do_stuff())

C- Enable at site/course levels?

D- Upgrade to detect formats must be clever detecting current formats (and will be heavy!)

E- Each format can have ONE and only ONE "especial editor" attached.

F- Can have "special" editors for other formats.

G- User preferences to a) Choose format and b) "Use special text editor if available" yes/no.

- USED formats have precedence over USER settings, so editing existing texts won't change the format at all.
- Only new texts can select (user setting) the format.
- If the user voluntary has disabled "use text editor" above, format won't change when editing new fields.
- If the user lacks the requirements of the editor => switch to FORMAT_MOODLE
- New installs/users will default to FORMAT_MOODLE + enabled editor.

H- Wiki format (mediawiki). Coming from nwiki hopefully.

I - Conflicts between formats and some filters sharing same syntax:

a) make filters to use prefixes and allow them to be automatically informed to the formats. Complex.
b) Use some alternate syntax (a safe one) (link to discussion)
These premises will continue being valid and implementd under 2.0, in any case:
1) Should share open/close tags and prefixes.
2) Support and alternate (non colliding and easy) syntax.
3) Continue being processed after format_text()

(not related with formats at all, btw)

J - Filters: Any relation with formats? Enable/disable them by format?

K - Offtopic: Posibility to enable/disable filters by context.

L - Is a format the same than a parser (in nwiki slang). Note wiki module, for compatibility will have various parsers (ewiki, mediawiki, simplewiki...)

M - Some modules can "enforce" the use of one format for everybody (like wiki) ?

--Eloy Lafuente (stronk7) 03:29, 15 October 2008 (CDT)


Following on from J and M, one idea was to allow filters (and perhaps allowed formats) to be configured by context, so, for example, you could choose to enable the TeX filter only in category Maths, or choose to diable the Glossary auto-linking filter just in the End of coures quiz. It would be cool if this could be integrated into these proposals.--Tim Hunt 04:38, 20 October 2008 (CDT)

See also