http://youtube.com/watch?v=HbMpqzEW7Po

“How to add a PayPal button to a wordpress hosted blog. Using Tom Evans PayPal button generator”

Sites mentioned in screencast:

• JustGiving.org
• Tom Evans PayPal button generator

Unfortunately, it looks like the site mentioned for generating PayPal buttons is long gone, but there are others listed on these pages:

• PayPal 3rd Party Resources
• PHP PayPal Button Generator

What if you don’t use WordPress sidebar widgets? No problem, we still have you covered. Just paste your snippet into the Admin Options Pledge Drive form (or edit the default Schlomo Simpleton mentioned above) and insert the following PHP code anywhere in your theme’s template files (most likely in your own “sidebars” or, perhaps, a header). This will output your snippet, after the Pledge Drive plugin replaces all the variables in you snippet with their current values based on your supporters donations and subscriptions.

<?php print pd2_progress_meter() ?>

Eventually, I would like to establish a gallery or garden of snippets that people can choose from. In that case, we will have to name each one so that they can be listed in drop-down, combo boxes (I like saying that). I’d like to christen the first one with a classic name and for a classic vlogger. This is the “Schlomo Simpleton” (sans the example descriptive text below the meter).

<style>
.pd2_progress {font-family: arial;
  font-size: 12pt;
  font-weight: bold;
  margin: 5px 20px 0 0;
  padding: 10px;
  text-align: center;
  width: 50px;
  color: white;
  background-color: #c7c9f3;
  border: thick solid #9d9fca;}
.money, .percentage, .contributions {padding: 3px;}
.meter {height: 200px;}
.money:before {content: "$";}
.percentage:after {content: "%";}
.contributions:after {content: " gifts";}
.remaining {min-height: %percentremaining%%;
  background:
    url(/wp-content/plugins/pledgedrive2/images/blue_v.gif);}
.achived {min-height: %percentraised%%;
  background:
    url(/wp-content/plugins/pledgedrive2/images/green_v.gif);}
</style>
<center>
<div class="pd2_progress">
  <div class="money">%goal%</div>
  <div class="meter">
    <div class="remaining">&nbsp;</div>
    <div class="achieved">&nbsp;</div>
  </div>
  <div class="percentage">%percentraised%</div>
  <div class="money">%amountraised%</div>
  <div class="contributions">%contributions%</div>
</div>
</center>

Rules for customizing snippets:

• Change anything except the names of the %variables%.
• It’s ok to use the %variables% in both HTML content and CSS styles.
• Ok to move CSS to your own stylesheet as long as it has no %variables% in it.
• %variables% are only replaced in snippets inside Pledge Drive 2 Progress Meter widgets.

Thanks to tipClique Counter Bar (GPL) for the background graphics.

You can see the BMaB plugin in action in the side bar and at the bottom of each post or page. This can be controlled on a post-by-post basis, as well as using a default that you can set in the admin options menu.

I prefer the coffee cup icon over the beer mug, but of course you can use your own favorite icon image. Basically, BMaB just builds a standard PayPal payment button. This is not for subscriptions. The payments are reported back to Pledge Drive via PayPal Instant Payment Notifications and so everything is cool.

One concern I have is that there is no license information in the BMaB plugin or on that site that I can find. It appears it was created as a work-for-hire by the SEO blog author of blogclout.com.

There is also a “Buy Me a Pint” site that extends BMaB and charges something like $97 for the code. Google it if you are interested.

Can we do something similar with ChipIn? I think so?

We are in the process of testing our new plugin. If you are interested in helping test or wish to be notified when the plugin is released, please join the Show in a Box Google Group and ask for “Pledge Drive”.

Here is a first post to kick off this vlog and to provide a sandbox for testing and for creating screencasts about Show in a Box and Pledge Drive 2. I’ve started by documenting the Paypal process on the wiki. I will evolve this vlog to add all of the Show in a Box goodness over the next few days as I document the process. For example, there is just a simple “Donate” button in the sidebar right now, but this will be augmented with a progress meter and other related widgets in the next few days.