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I recently wrote a desktop application in PHP-GTK 2 that implements the OnForce web services API.

After a few hours of coding, I was able to create a desktop application that lets me put together a batch of work orders while I am offline and send them when I get connected again. Also, when I am online, I can pull down work order data, close work orders, increase the spend limit and get and add notes. And what’s best is that it is all organized in a way that make it easier for me to focus on one task or piece of data at a time.

I like the idea of taking something that is normally web based and putting it on the user’s desktop. This way things can be made a little more intuitive and comfortable for the user because the application
isn’t constrained by the web browser any more. Not having to connect to a server to change the current interface or display different data allows the application to organize things differently and break data down into more managable chunks.

If you’d like to see what the application looks like (or want to give it a try) you can find it here. I’d be interested to see what other tools you guys can create using the OnForce API. Who knows, maybe your new Ajax enabled way to organize work order data or your Java application to streamline the
importing or work orders may just spark some imagination here at OnForce and inspire the next version of our system. Check out the OnForce Developer’s area for more information on working with the OnForce API.

* Please note, this is not an OnForce application. It is an application
that I wrote and provide support for that uses the OnForce public API.
If you have questions about it, please don’t call OnForce, send me an email.

** Also note, this post is an excerpt from a blog post on the OnForce blog. Sorry if it seems out of place here.

It’s been a while, but I finally have some time to get back to summing up the world of PHP-GTK. Things have slowed down a little in the past few months on the development side but that doesn’t mean that the world of PHP-GTK 2 has stood still.

Development

A Call for Help:
The number of developers actively writing C code for the PHP-GTK 2 extension stands at a whopping 4! And of course all four are rather busy as of late. If you feel comfortable writing C code and are looking for an opportunity to contribute to the project please contact the developer’s mailing list and ask how to lend a hand. There are plenty of little features that need to be implemented and some bugs that need to be fixed that will give you more than enough opportunity to learn and contribute.

General

Taking Conferences by Storm:
It’s conference season in the PHP world and no PHP conference would be complete without a PHP-GTK 2 presenetation (you hear that DCPHP!). First up, and going on right now, is PHP|Works in Toronto. Andrei, is scheduled to speak Friday morning (Sept. 15th). He will be demonstrating how easy it is to create powerful desktop applications with PHP-GTK 2. Next, in October, I will be speaking at the Zend/PHP Conference. My talk will look at wrapping a web service API in PHP-GTK 2 to make life easier for yourself and your users. Finally, in early November, Steph will talk about the new features of PHP-GTK 2 at the International PHP Conference and demonstrate how to make lightweight cross-platform applications.

PHP-GTK 2 in Print:
The word of PHP-GTK 2 has been spreading in magazines lately too. For all you German-speaking programmers out there, an article by Christian Weiske has been published in PHPMagzin. The article is now available online for everyone to read. Not to be outdone, PHP|Architect published a two part article on developing PHP-GTK 2 applications by Anant Narayanan. The article can be found in the July and August issues of PHP|A.

Online Help:
A new set of online tutorials has sprung up recently kksou.com. The tutorials are short and to the point. They cover those nagging issues that don’t necessarily prevent you from completing your application, but add a great deal to the finished product. I highly recommend even the most accomplished PHP-GTK developers to check them out.

After waiting for what seemed like a year, I finally received notice that I will be presenting at this year’s Zend/PHP Conference & Expo in San Jose. I am very excited for the opportunity not only to speak to a larger audience than a local user’s group but also to finally put a face to some of the names I have worked with for so long.

My session, “Consusming Web Services with PHP-GTK 2″ will be a look at how to turn a web services API into a desktop application. I only have fifty minutes so it won’t be very heavy on implementation details. Instead it will look more at representing different data structures, collecting different types of data and how creating a desktop application can make life easier for the company and the end user.

Even though PHP-GTK News is still on hiatus, there are somethings that can’t wait. First, congratulations to Anant Narayanan for the cover story of this month’s PHP|Architect. His article, “Application Development with PHP-GTK 2“, is a well written look at getting started with PHP-GTK 2. This month’s article is just part one. Next month’s issue will continue with a more indepth look at the widgets available to developers and how to build interfaces using Glade.

Secondly, and by no means of any less significance, is the announcement of the International PHP Conference speakers list which includes Steph Fox. Her talk, “Maturing Nicely - PHP-GTK 2“, will cover the improvements PHP-GTK 2 brings to the table. Anyone that wants to hear about PHP-GTK 2 from the woman who knows it inside and out should definitely make plans to hear Steph talk.

With the announcement of the PHP-GTK 2 Alpha release, PHP-GTK News will be going on a short break so that I can focus on a few higher priority items (namely work). Until the return of the news, anyone who wishes to stay up to date with all of the latest PHP-GTK happenings should subscribe to the PHP-GTK mailing lists or sign on to the #php-gtk channel on IRC. See http://gtk.php.net/resources.php for more details.