CCT

Custom Computer Tools

Making the right tools for the right job.

My dad always told me, “make sure you have the right tool for the job! The wrong tool will take longer to get the job done, and usually will make a mess of it.” I have always lived by that rule. Unfortunately, many people tackle their computer jobs with tools (programs) that are not appropriate for the task. Custom Computer Tools is working to help with this problem.

At Custom Computer Tools, we are putting together tools to help you use your computer more efficiently. The right tool makes all the difference. Please browse what we have or contact us with your special needs for an estimate on costs. We are here to serve you.

WordPress Script Manager

Have you ever created a new script for adding to your WordPress site by editing the functions.php file or using a plugin like “MaGiKS Proper PHP Include”? It is a great plugin and I used it for several years. It had one problem that kept bugging me. Every time I updated my theme with the automatic updates, I lost my PHP files! I would often forget and have to re-upload the files. Lost scripts are no longer a problem with WordPress Script Manager.

WordPress Script Manager keeps all of the scripts in the database for safe keeping. You can update WordPress, themes, and plugins without ever worrying if you forgot to save something. You can work with WordPress PHP, Javascript, SQL tables, CSS, and Less scripts and embed them anywhere in WordPress with a shortcode. You can also show off your code with a code highlighting shortcode. WordPress Script Manager also has a widget for placing your code in any side bar.

If you need to tweak a WordPress Filter or Action, you can even create scripts for that. WordPress Script Manager is powerful enough to create full plugins to really get your job done right.

Alfred Workflows

If you are on a Mac OSX computer, you need to get Alfred. Alfred is Spotlight on steroids and is a great tool for getting a lot of work done. The lastest version is Alfred 2. With this new version, you can create workflows to extend or supplement the things that Alfred can do. It is a very flexible and powerful system. Here is where I am sharing the workflows that I have made.

Web API WordPress Plugin

Many times when a site powered by WordPress wants to supply a Web API for their site, they will work outside of WordPress using either PHP or Ruby on Rails. Then they have to write their own functions to get to the information inside the database for their WordPress site. I always thought that was a little backwards. That is why I wrote the Web API plugin for WordPress. With the Web API plugin, you no longer have to do that. This plugin creates a custom post type called API. When you create an API post, all of the content will be executed as PHP code just before the theme stuff is executed in WordPress. Therefore, you have full access to all the WordPress PHP functions to create whatever you want: JASON output, HTML sniplets, full HTML pages without any of the sites theme or code, or anything else you can imagine. After the code on the page is executed, then the PHP session will be ended.

Dropzone Destinations

I really like the new tool: Dropzone! Check out my resourses about this wonderful tool!

Textsoap Cleaners

Since I process a lot of text documents, I really like tools to make that job easier! I found the best one around: Textsoap! Check out what I have about this great tool!

Popclip Extensions

I always love finding new tools. Popclip puts a little, context sensitive menu right at your cursor that you can extend as much as you like. It really is a time saver! Check out what I have written for it.

FoldingText Extensions

FoldingText has become my markdown editor of choice these days. I love coding, so naturally I have created extensions. You can check them out here. I also have an Alfred 2 workflow for FoldingText. Check them out!

LaunchBar Actions

LaunchBar 6 is a handy assistant on the Mac similar to Alfred 2. I have been asked to port my Alfred 2 workflows to LaunchBar. Therefore, I have a page listing the actions I have made.

fman File Manager

My favorite file manager is fman because I can add functionality using Python extensions. Here is a collect of extensions that I have created.

BitBar

BitBar is a free program for placing information into the macOS menu bar. Here are some scripts I’ve created for the program.

eLisp

This page describes all the eLisp extensions I’ve written for Emacs. I’ve gone back to using Emacs with the DoomEmacs configuration. This setup is very easy to use and very fast. I would highly recommend it to anyone using Emacs.