Josh Highland's Blog

I love my friends

Josh Highland — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 01:25:52 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

All of these guys are really good friends of mine. I love my friends, I love music, I love the redlands music scene.

How I do layouts and views in CodeIgniter

Josh Highland — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 03:07:53 +0000

I have been a loyal fan of the kick-ass php framework, codeIgniter, for some time now. A while back I made a post on how to improve the view handling of codeIgniter. I would like to retract that post. Through the comments on that post I found out about an undocumented parameter (as of version 1.7, it has been documented) that allows view to be rendered into a variable. This changes everything, and totally negates any of the complaint I had about how CI handles layouts and views.

Below is an example of live code I have running at loudson.gs. It shows how I have been able to take advantage of of this powerful third parameter that stops CI from rendering a view to the screen when loading it.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Inside of my controller

function index()
{
$base_url = base_url();

//what the nav needs
$navigation_data['navTab'] = “home”;

//basic info for the header
$layout_data['pageTitle'] = “LoudSon.gs”;
$layout_data['meta_description'] = “Under Ground Lyrics, hardcore, metal, emo, rock”;
$layout_data['meta_keywords'] = “lyrics,song,songs,words,hardore,metal,emo,rock”;
$layout_data['meta_url'] = “$base_url”;
$layout_data['meta_classification'] = “home”;
$layout_data['searchInput'] = “”;
$layout_data['searchOptions'] = “”;

$this->load->model(’search’);
$lastest_albums = $this->search->last_n_albumsAdded(10);
$popular_songs = $this->search->popular_n_songs(10);

//get the featured Albums
$featuredAlbums = $this->search->getFeaturedAlbums();

$body_data['featured'] = $featuredAlbums;
$body_data['newest'] = $lastest_albums;
$body_data['popular'] = $popular_songs;

//load the content variables
$layout_data['content_navigation'] = $this->load->view(’navigation’, $navigation_data, true);
$layout_data['content_body'] = $this->load->view(’home/homePage’, $body_data, true);

$this->load->view(’layouts/main’, $layout_data);
}

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
/views/navigation.php

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
/views/home/homePage.php

Thanks for visiting LoudSongs

We are trying to build a maintain a collection of punk rock, hardcore, emo, metal and other lyrics.
This website is free and open to all.
Please help us by contributing to the collection.

load->view(’home/featuredAlbums’); ?>

load->view(’home/recentlyAdded’); ?>

load->view(’home/mostPopularSongs’); ?>

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
/views/layouts/main.php

”>
”>

” />

includes/styles/lyrics.css” rel=”stylesheet” type=”text/css” media=”screen” title=”default”>

<?= $pageTitle ?>

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

wow, ok, so that might be a lot to digest. The bottom line is this, CI doesnt have “layouts” like other frameworks, so you have to become creative and use a view AS a layout by using the mythical 3rd parameter when loading a view. We load data into the navigation view and store all of that into the $layout_data array, then we load a view named homePage and pass data into it, and stor it into the $layout_data array. When we are done loading all of the views into the array, we pass that array into another view. This view acts as our layout. easy as that! check it out below:

$this->load->view(’layouts/main’, $layout_data);

I hope this helps someone understand how codeigniter does have layout and view functionality, you just have to structure it that way in your code.

post some comments if you need more clarification.

Highland’s Island

Josh Highland — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 08:12:34 +0000

I love halloween. Halloween is my favorite. This year was extra special because my costume was part of a group. I have done halloween costumes with my former band, and with xFLORIDAx in the past, but this year my wife, Amy got involved.

Together we went as the cast of “Giligan’s Island”. I was gilligan, florida was the skipper and amy was mary ann.

We all wet to a party and had a great time there. I was actually suprised by the general lack of knowledge about Gilligan’s Island, but then again I am a geek with tons of usless knowledge in my head.

If you want to see more party pictures, please check out the Halloween 2008 Photo Set on flickr

LoudSon.gs : i

Josh Highland — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 02:40:30 +0000

LoudSon.gs is a website that I recently threw together in my attempt to tighten my strangle hold on teh interwebz (by the way, I’m losing)

LoudSon.gs is a lyrics website that focuses on hard to find album artwork and lyrics, mostly for punk, hardcore and emo bands, but the door is open for all types of music.

On the technical site, the site is built using PHP, MySQL, and is the first site that I have built using the codeIgniter framework. There is also some code integration with amazon for the album art, along with some other code wizardry.

But isn’t the internet full of lyric sites already?

Yeah, it is, but none of them specialize in the kind of music that speaks to me, so I built one.

The project started out as something personal for myself in 2004, then became part of notpopular.com in 2005. The original version lived for years at notPopular.com/lyrics, and was build out of some really bad php code and used a really sketch database. Instead of taking it down, I allow it to live on, but all new additions get added to LoudSon.gs.

I also decided to do some different things with this site. In an attempt to make the domain name a bit more memorable, I bought a non .com domain, sort of like del.icio.us. For easy, and for n00bz, you can also get to the site from LoudSongs.com. I also used some SES (search engine safe) URLS. The CodeIgniter framwork made that really easy to do.

Overall, this was probably one if the funnest projects I have worked on in a while. It’s a real labor of love on my part. The site takes time every day to maintain, the only way I will ever mak money from the site is throught the google ads.

Music is a huge part of my life. You can see the “about section” of LoudSon.gs to read more about that. LoudSon.gs sums up a lot about me, code, the internet and music.

Great Depression 2.0?

Josh Highland — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 00:04:14 +0000

I saw this comic, and I really think it hits the nail on the head. My friend Henrik Joreteg is smart with financial type stuff and has been giving me some insight to the economic mess the world has gotten itself into… crazy stuff. Henrik has decided to start blogging about the state of the economy, and once he gives me the green light I will post some links to hims new site.

For now, enjoy the comic and LOL. (click for a larger version)

iPhone 2.1 SMS Reminder Annoyances

Josh Highland — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 23:50:03 +0000

There was a new feature introduced with the iPhone 2.1 firmware update that is driving me crazy and making me curse apple an my iPhone daily. I am talking about the SMS multi reminder.

The SMS multi reminder is designed to notify you with an alert if you have an unread SMS (text) message. Sounds good in theory, but trust me, it horrible in practice.

When you receive a new SMS message to your iPhone, the first few lines are displayed in what I can best describe as a pop up box. Often if the message is short, “hey I’m running late”, you see the entire message. This is where the trouble lies. If you get an SMS message and you don’t unlock the phone, open the SMS app, then open the specific SMS thread, the iPhone thinks you haven’t gotten the message, so it will remind you 5 minutes later, and 10 minutes later that you have an unread message, for a total of 3 alerts in 10 minutes for a message you might have already seen.

Example of why this is annoying:
I’m sitting here working on my blog, “PING!”, ah I have a new SMS message on my iPhone, the screen is lit up and the preview box is showing. “From TWITTER: xFLORIDAx - I look like a shaved ape”. Ok, no response needed, I set my phone down. 5 minutes later “PING!” ah! I must have a new SMS message… strange my screen isnt lit up, turn on the screen. no new SMS messages, weird. 5 minutes after that, “PING!”…. so in 10 minutes, I have been alerted 3 times for a message I have already read. ANNOYING! I don’t want to unlock my phone for every little message that is sent to me.

I understand how this could be useful for someone who gets 1-5 text message a day… I average over 200 a day. Most messages come from twitter and don’t require a response. I would disable the multi reminder if I could, but apple doesn’t allow you to change the setting for it. It’s just on, like it or not. The only way to prevent the SMS multi reminder is to disable text notifications all together, and I’m not going to do that. I like getting one and only one notification when I get a new message.

If im in a meeting, should my pocket buzz 6 times in 20 minutes to let me know I have 2 text messages? GTFO! I should only be notified two times.

I really hope that Apple allows people to turn the SMS multi reminder on and off in the next update. I can’t imagine it’s to hard to do.

Auto Suggested?

Josh Highland — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 20:53:45 +0000

My friend Kalen Gibbons pointed this out. Insanity if you ask me.

29 And Doing Fine

Josh Highland — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:01:12 +0000

My birthday is September 25th, I just turned 29 years old. I don’t feel 29 years old.

My good friend Eric Raj has connections over at the E! television network. For a birthday present, he arranged for us to go see our favorite E! show being taped, The Soup.

To celebrate my 29th, I took a half day off of work and hung out with my wife. The E! channel is in Los Angeles, so we headed down there early to beat traffic. We hung out on Melrose for a while, didn’t buy anything. After shopping we ate vegan hot dogs and drank cokes at the world famous pinks.

We got to the E! studios about an hour early, so we hung out and walked around. I was blown away that the channel G4 and E! are in the same building. I love G4 even though it has been going down hill for years. I would love to be a host on x-play or attack of the show, or heck, even have my own show! I looked high and low for Olivia Mund, but came up empty.

Finally one of the Soup staff members came into the waiting area and told us that the crew was having difficulties, and it would be another hour. We waited patiently, and our patience paid off! Joel McHale, the host of The Soup came out and hung out with everyone. It was awesome watching him make fun a a drunk guy and his wife to their faces, and not have them realize it because they were so star struck/drunk. The drunk dude took our picture with Joel though.

I talked to Joel about how our dogs, Moose and Samson are friends with the producers dog, Lou, on myspace. It was a totally random conversation. Amy and I were both bummed out when we found out that Lou wasn’t going to be on the set for our taping. Amy had plans to steal him away when no one was looking. It was going to be the perfect crime.

They finally let us in and the taping began. It reminded me a lot of how Florida and I record the notpop podcast. They didn’t really stop unless something really went wrong. That made recording the 20 minute show take only about an hour to film.

Over all we had a great time, and I look forward to doing it again if we get the chance. Maybe the next time that I go back to the studio, it will be for a show on G4. ha!

I don’t look 29… do I?

Thank you Eric Raj for the rad birthday present!

more blogging is required

Josh Highland — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 02:17:11 +0000

Dear blog,

I have been very busy lately trying to get my new business launched and off the ground. In the last few months I have not been spending as much time with you as I should be. Please let me apologize. You have been there for me for the last 4+ years now (my how time flies). There is a lot of topics that I am planning to blog about very soon. Here is a short list:

My new lyrics site LoudSon.gs
My trip to mind share in LA last month
Adagio Teas
My theory on how Glen Danzig is the Elvis of punk rock
How twitter is awesome and I am obsessed with it
How my wii is fun (and in violation of the DMCA now)

I will get to these blogs, and more like them very shortly. Again, I apologize for your neglect and lack of updates. Who knows, I may just give you an entire makeover and a new theme! Only time will tell my friend.

Yours truly,
Josh Highland

Hold Fast Pomade - Another Josh Highland Company

Josh Highland — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 01:51:41 +0000

In high school, my physics teacher/computer mentor told me something that stuck with me, “Josh, one day you are going to make a million dollars, or serve a million days in prison”. He of course was talking about my computer activities, but I think it still applies in this situation.

I have started another new business! Unlike my pervious envevors, this one has a business model, and tangible items for sale. I have developed and started to sell my own brand of pomade for men! “pomade, you mean hair grease?” That’s exactly what I mean!

Hold Fast Premium Water Based Pomade

So here is the story….

My good friend, Dylan Johnson is a classically trained barber (straight razor shaves and all that). I have been going to him for years to get my hair cut. Over all, I have been using pomade in my hair for almost 6 years now.

I’ve tried Murray’s and other petroleum based pomades. They gave me acne, got on my clothes and my pillow, and most of all they were very hard to wash out of my hair. Water based pomades are the alternative, they don’t give you acne and they wash out with just water.

Clubman made an awesome water based pomade that I loved, but they stopped making it. In response to that, other water based pomades came out, and I used them. I thought they were okay at best. I didn’t like the smell of most of them, or how they would dry out and become stiff like gel as the day went on.

Upset by the hair products and some other situations in my life, I grew my hair out for 2 years. Once I realized I looked stupid with long hair, I went to Dylan and had him make me look like a man again.

With short hair once again, I was back using pomade. I was really disappointed with my pomade options, so I started sampling various water based pomades again, to try to find the one I really liked. In every pomade I tired, there was something that I liked, and something that I hated.

Over time I became so frustrated by the lack of options, that I decided to take the best parts of the various pomades I had tried and create my own premium pomade.

I hired some scientists to create a pomade with the qualities and scent that I wanted (I wish I knew how to cook this stuff in my bathtub!)

After a year of research and tons of samples, I found what i believe to be the winning formula.

A few of the highlights:

It smells good (slight citrus scent)
Holds your hair all day
Stays soft and comb-able
Washes out with water
Contains proteins and vitamins (its good for your hair!)

The packaging art and design are original works by the legendary Dave Quiggle

It’s a gamble, but I’m very happy and proud of my product.

I really don’t care if I don’t sell a single jar of my pomade, I’m just happy that I have a hair product to use that has all the qualities that I want. Maybe some other people will will feel the same way about it and buy a few.

That’s the story of Hold Fast Pomade. Pick some up, try it out.,,, I need a new computer, and a house

http://www.HoldFastHair.com
http://www.HoldFastHair.com
http://www.HoldFastHair.com
http://www.HoldFastHair.com
http://www.HoldFastHair.com
http://www.HoldFastHair.com