More Questions » How to handle Ditto calls messed up by TinyMCE

Messed up / Garbled Ditto Calls by TinyMCE

TinyMCE is a great WYSIWIG editor that helps users handle content easier.

Unfortunately it isn't like Microsoft Word or something else that has taken decades and millions of dollars to build. TinyMCE does for most of the time a good job. However, it will have its litte quirks as do most other WYSIWIG editors out there e.g. FCKeditor

Below is a small tutorial that will you help you know what to do if TinyMCE 'garbles' some code on your web page e.g. a Ditto call.(or any other programming code string)

THE SITUATION

Sometimes one will edit a page on a CMS system that has special code in it. (E.g. AMx which is based on the excellent MODx framework - BTW, Thanks guys, you rock!) - See below image

How a ditto call looks like in TinyMCE

One should edit such a page by turning off TinyMCE and just treat the page as 'pure text'

TinyMCE turned off

However sometimes, as soon as one turns off TinyMCE the '&' and other special characters have been replaced already

(The Ditto call has been 'messed up' - It has been 'converted) - See image below

Garbled Ditto Call

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?

TinyMCE does this to 'protect' special characters like '&'

However, because all the '&' (ampersands) have been replaced by '&' this will then break the Ditto call as inside of that 'Ditto code string' the '&' is a necessary parameter

The Solution:

One has to first 'back up' the original Ditto string (Copy it temporarily into e.g. Notepad)

THEN edit the page (With or without TinyMCE turned on - doesn't matter)
And lastly, switch into editing with TinyMCE turned OFF and paste back the original Ditto string and thus replacing the 'garbled' Ditto string(the one that has lots of '&' in it)

REPLACE this string;

LAST WORDS

This is just how tools on the web works sometimes when certain code or programming calls are on a page that uses a WYSIWIG editor like TinyMCE. It is not always easy to mix ease of use for the end-user together with code that will create 'the magic' that makes things easy for the end-user in the first place.

A more elegant solution can most likely be devised but that would take more time spent on programming and is outside the scope of this tutorial.

We hope this has been of help to you.

Happy editing!!

The AskMorris Team

Messed up / Garbled Ditto Calls by TinyMCE

The Solution:

Powered by

Contact Information