What is PHP

PHP ("PHP Hypertext Pre-processor) is a widely used web site programming language having the important characteristic that it generates web pages before (and hence the word "preprocessor") they are presented to you for viewing. That feature is what makes PHP so valuable for displaying news feeds on web sites.

Here's how it works: A PHP script (computer program) that Enfeedia provides "reads" cryptic XML news feed files and translates them into web site code that in turn presents those feeds in human-readable form. That's what "news readers" are all about. When you use the script that Enfeedia developed, you are implementing a news reader right on your site. You accomplish this by placing a small snippet of PHP code on your web page where you want your feed to be seen. When that snippet is executed, it triggers the script. The script reads the feed and translates it into HTML code (the underlying programming language of all websites).

This is what we call "NewsOnSite". Your news feed is displayed directly on your site; the site visitor doesn't have to click anything to see it, the page loads with that feed displayed automatically.

Because that feed is inserted on a web page of yours before the page is served, search engines "see" the content of your feed, giving you advantages regarding placement on search results pages. If you are interested in surfers finding your website when they do searches, this feature is very valuabvle to you.

For you to exploit these advantages to display your news on your site, your server must support PHP. Because PHP is so popular it's very likely that your server does indeed support PHP. But what exactly does that mean?

What "PHP Support" Means

First, it means that the server includes the ability to execute PHP code on your web page. If your webmaster simply says that the server does support PHP, at least versions 4.3.4, then you are OK so far.

Second, the PHP support must specifically support what are called "PHP Includes". Don't panic. This simply means that the server properly executes the PHP Include statement causing another file to be accessed (i.e., to be included in the program that contains the "Include"). The snippet mentioned above is an Include that access your news feed file that is hosted on Enfeedia, and also, if you select the "remote reader" option (more on that below), the news read script mentioned above.

Finally, the web page on which you want to display the feed must end with the extension .php (e.g., AboutUs.php) to indicate it contains PHP code, or alternatively, the PHP system must be set up to inspect files for PHP code regardless of extension. (Common practice, for home pages, is to name it "index.php" but address the page without specifically refering to that file (e.g., http://www.mysite.com). If not, then the .htaccess file must be modifed as follows; this will direct files with extensions .html and .htm to be parsed by the server PHP Processor before delivering the webpage across sthe internet to browsers:

For web servers using PHP as apache module: AddType application/x-httpd-php .html .htm
For web servers running PHP as CGI: AddHandler application/x-httpd-php .html .htm

Don't worry, your webmaster will understand this and be able to help you.

Remote vs Local Readers

You may have a choice as to accessing Enfeedia's news reader script. If you are an Enterprise member, you can use the script located on the Enfeedia site ("remote"), in which case it is automatically loaded from the Enfeedia site to your site, or it can be located on your site, in which case it is "local" to your site. You need to consider the tradeoffs to make a choice that's best for you.

Enterprise members only: If you choose "remote", then the server must support "Remote Includes" aka "External Includes". If so, then you never need to worry about whether the most current version of the news reader script is being used. (The script may be updated from time to time to add features or fix bugs).

If you choose "local", then there is no need for your website server to support Remote Includes. But you must upload a copy of the reader script to your site so that there is a local copy for the snippet to access. Enfeedia provides a mechanism for downloading the script from the Enfeedia website. You then ask your webmaster to upload it to your site, to the directory that contains the web page on which you want to display your feed.

Summary

To display your feed on your site using Enfeedia's NewsOnSite feature,

1. Your website server must support PHP and PHP "includes".

2a. If you are an Enterprise member and you wish to use the news reader script on the Enfeedia site, your website server must support "Remote Includes". This is not a requirement if you choose the "local" option (i.e., to load the script onto your site).

2b. If you choose to use a "local" copy of the news reader script on your site, you must upload the reader script onto your site. The script is called "shootOnSite_Fns.php" and tell Enfeedia where it is located within your site when you fill out the form.

3. You must insert the Enfeedia-supplied code snippet (it's PHP code) onto the web page on which you want your feed to appear, and in the specific place on the page where you want it to appear.

To get your code snippet and the shootOnSite.php script, go to Stylize & Promote Feeds on Enfeedia and follow the instructions.