Two new screencasts have been released to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers today. The first covers the symTune Image Slider plugin from SymfoniP, which replicates the look and feel of the image slider in the iTunes Music Store. It’s provides a great way of featuring content on your website, and offers a really slick presentation of images.

The second tutorial release is located under the “How to...” lesson in Section 301, and it walks-through the process of splitting a RapidWeaver website into multiple project files. This is great to understand when building large, or media-intensive websites.

These tutorials are now available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. Not a subscriber? Register now or learn more about RapidWeaver Classroom!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, screencasts, RapidWeaver video tutorials, SymfoniP, symTune Image Slider, Split a RapidWeaver Website

A new tutorial covering the Speech Bubbles Stack from Joe Workman is now available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. This is a pretty awesome stack that creates speech bubbles with rounded corners for your content. It’s very easy to use and accomplishes something that was once more complex to achieve -- I know from personal experience, having added speech bubbles to RapidWeaver Classroom, and trust me when I say that it wasn’t nearly this easy! Thanks to Joe for another great stack, and I’m sure most of us can find good use for it in our projects.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, Joe Workman Stacks, Speech Bubbles Stack, stacks

Two new tutorials are now available that cover the Doo-Daily and Doo-Spin stacks from DooBox. Both of these stacks allow you to add dynamic content to your pages, either by having different content load randomly with each visit, or by having content set to appear depending on the day of the week. These new tutorials are available now to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, stacks, DooBox, screencasts, RapidWeaver video tutorials

A new tutorial is now available covering the symMedia5 plugin from SymfoniP. This is an outstanding plugin that allows you to add both video and audio files to a single page, and have them play in a single player, with a nice scroll bar to navigate through and play the added media. In addition, this plugin supports HTML5 video playback, and if you aren’t familiar with the significance of HTML5 video then you will learn a bit about that as well in this tutorial.

This is the first tutorial on a plugin from SymfoniP here at RapidWeaver Classroom, though there is a FlowBox Stack tutorial available. SymfoniP has been producing some great RapidWeaver plugins for mixed media (photo, audio, and video) -- so they all will be covered in the coming weeks.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, screencasts, symMedia5 plugin, SymfoniP, RapidWeaver video tutorials

I am happy to announce the release of a new tutorial series called “Choosing a RapidWeaver Theme.” This series is comprised of 5 screencasts that total about 45 minutes -- discussing how to find themes, along with tips and strategies to use when looking for the best theme for your project. With the release of this series I have re-organized the curriculum listing a bit, placing these tutorials just below the lessons for RapidWeaver, along with the ExtraContent and BlocksBox tutorials, since these are all theme-related screencasts.

Subscribers to RapidWeaver Classroom can now view this new series. Additionally, several more screencasts have already been produced on another topic, so another new release is coming very, very soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver themes, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts

I have published the 6th screencast to the Complete Design Demonstration series -- this tutorial demonstrates how the Learn More page was created. The most unique part to this page is the use of a free Table Stack created by Phil Warrender.

There are still a couple of screencasts left to go in this series, and I am working on quite a few new tutorials for custom stacks as well, so check back soon for more!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts

A 5th tutorial has been added to the Complete Design Demonstration series. This video demonstrates the creation of some features of the members' page. Specifically:

• Adding 5 columns of images and text to an ExtraContent area
• creating anchors
• linking text to video that displays in a Lightbox

This tutorial demonstrates the use of snippets for ExtraContent and the Lightbox stacks from Joe Workman. It is a lengthy 18-minute video with a lot of information packed-in! Look for more tutorials in this series to appear next week.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, stacks, ExtraContent, lightbox

I am very excited to begin offering a new series that incorporates much of what is taught here at RapidWeaver Classroom. The Complete Design Demonstration series takes you through the process of designing a website from start to finish, using many of the different 3rd-party plugins and theme features such as ExtraContent. In this first C.D.D. series, you will see how many of the pages here at RapidWeaver Classroom were developed, using 3rd-party plugins such as Stacks, PlusKit, Carousel, Accordion, and EasyTube Gallery.

This series is best viewed after you have made your way through all of the RapidWeaver and 3rd-party plugin tutorials, so that you are familiar with the interface of the different plugins. The purpose of this series is to demonstrate the usage of plugins and other features in a real-world scenario, and to break-down designs that are seemingly complex into something much more simple.

I have published the first 4 videos (45 minutes) of this series to start, and more screencasts will be added in the coming weeks as I demonstrate how to build a majority of the pages found here at RapidWeaver Classroom. You may also notice that I titled the series with a number 1, as my intention is to create multiple series over time that demonstrate the usage of different plugins and strategies.

I hope you enjoy this new series and find it helpful as you explore how different plugins can be used in your own projects. There will be more to come soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, stacks, EasyTube Gallery plugin, 3rd-party RapidWeaver plugin tutorials

2 new tutorials on Joe Workman Stacks have been released today. Tutorials on the MovingBox Stack and Link & Anchor Stacks are now available. Joe has been generous enough to offer the Link & Anchor Stacks for free, so visit his website to download the stacks and view his other incredible offerings.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, stacks, screencasts, Joe Workman Stacks, RapidWeaver video tutorials

I have published 5 new screencasts on troubleshooting RapidWeaver issues. This is an important series because RapidWeaver, like most software, can have issues that result in lost work and/or great frustration. I may add additional troubleshooting tutorials in the future, so if you have any tips that I’ve left out then please let me know.

Next week will see new custom stacks tutorials from Joe Workman, so stay tuned!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, troubleshooting RapidWeaver

I am happy to announce the release of 3 new tutorials on Joe Workman Stacks. Joe Workman has been developing for the Stacks plugin for some time now, and a couple of months ago I produced a tutorial on 13 Video Stacks that were developed by Joe. Today’s release adds 3 more stacks to the curriculum, and I have separated Joe’s stacks into their own section, whereas before all custom stacks tutorials were located under the Stacks plugin listing.

The following tutorials are now available:

Lightbox Stack - Easily add a Lightbox effect that displays any type of content.

Translate Stack - Allows visitors to read your website in any language.

Curtain Call Stack - Provide your visitors with a unique presentation of content -- especially great for video or special promotions.

Of course you can expect to see coverage of many more Joe Workman Stacks in the future!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, stacks, Joe Workman Stacks, screencasts

I recently published a new video tutorial on the FaqMaker plugin from Loghound. This plugin has actually been around for quite a while, but I have recently rediscovered it myself and made it a part of my toolset. FaqMaker provides some great flexibility in creating a highly functional -- and even creative -- FAQ for your website. FaqMaker can utilize anchors or even a Lightbox to provide information to your visitors. Most websites need an FAQ of some kind, so FaqMaker is a great solution for this purpose.

This screencast is available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers and can be found underneath the section of Loghound plugins. Enjoy!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, FaqMaker plugin

You can now own all the available RapidWeaver Classroom tutorials as part of the "RapidWeaver Classroom: The Complete Library" DVD. This DVD is created on-demand, so all of the tutorials available at the time of purchase will be included on the DVD. These are the same high-resolution videos available with a RapidWeaver Classroom membership. The previous DVD offering still remains and is now called "The Essentials" -- and includes just over 100 of the RapidWeaver Classroom tutorials.

The RapidWeaver Classroom DVD is a great option for those who have limited internet access or travel often, or those with ISP bandwidth restrictions. Of course, for those who want access to the latest RapidWeaver Classroom screencasts, then a subscription is the best choice.

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver DVD, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts

I am happy to announce that RapidWeaver Classroom is now covering plugin releases from another fantastic RapidWeaver plugin developer, Greg Barchard. Our first tutorial release covers the weaverPix plugin, which provides a very flexible Flash slideshow feature to your RapidWeaver projects. There are two tutorials on the plugin and you will surely be impressed with the options it provides over the Photo Album plugin's Flash slideshow feature.

Be on the lookout for more screencasts on Greg's projects in the future!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, weaverPix, RapidWeaver training

RapidWeaver Classroom has been on Facebook and Twitter for a while now, but I haven't really promoted it and so I thought it would be worth blogging about. If you are an avid Facebook and/or Twitter user, then become a fan or follow RapidWeaver Classroom to stay updated with the latest tutorial releases and other news. I've also added some widgets to the blog sidebar, for quick access to the Twitter and Facebook pages. You never know, there might even be the occassional promotion especially for our Twitter followers and Facebook fans!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, Twitter, Facebook, social networking

I am happy to announce the release of 3 new video tutorials covering the excellent RapidCart 2 plugin. This is an update to the RapidCart plugin that has already received the RapidWeaver Classroom treatment. RapidCart 2 adds a ton of enhancements that really makes it stand-out as an exceptional e-commerce plugin for RapidWeaver. You can enable multiple payment processors, such as PayPal and Google Checkout, and there is a lot of flexibility and customization options for your e-commerce page in RapidCart 2.

These new screencasts are available to subscribing RapidWeaver Classroom students. Enjoy!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidCart 2, screencasts, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Two new screencasts have been produced and both involve ways to add video to your RapidWeaver website. The first screencast covers the new EasyTube Gallery plugin, which provides a great way of displaying videos from YouTube. The second screencast covers a bundle of Video Stacks, to be used in conjunction with the Stacks plugin. There are 13 stacks in all that can be used to embed video from YouTube, Viddler, Flickr, Vimeo, QuickTime and Twitter-related video services. These two screencasts are now available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers.

While on the subject of add-ons for the Stacks plugin, these add-ons or “custom stacks” have really taken off over the last couple of months. I’m really excited about this as these stacks are providing all kinds of functionality that is very easy to implement. As a result I will be producing more screencasts on what I consider to be the best of these custom stacks, so expect to see more tutorials in this area very soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, video with RapidWeaver

I have released a new tutorial in the “How to...” lesson. The tutorials covers the creation of anchors. An anchor is used to link text or an image to another location on the same webpage. It’s great for an FAQ, or for a long page divided into sections. This tutorial is specific to RapidWeaver 4.0, which allows you to add custom attributes in the Add Link panel. It’s very simple to do and can be very handy!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, anchors

Today marks the release of a new lesson of “How to...” tutorials at RapidWeaver Classroom. These tutorials are found under Section 301 in the RapidWeaver Curriculum, and it’s an area that will be added to very consistently in the future. I love teaching new 3rd-party plugins as they are released, but it’s important to cover different methods of accomplishing needs, and so that’s what I hope to address with the “How to...” lesson. Three new tutorials have been produced to kick-start the lesson, and these cover:

1. customizing a header
2. creating a sign-up form
3. accepting payment or donations through your website

For quite a while I have been accepting feedback from RapidWeaver Classroom students, and as part of the feedback I ask what types of tutorials they would like to see in the future. This is one area where these types of requests may be fulfilled, so I’m excited to hear what all of you are wanting to learn and I will do my best to satisfy as many request as possible!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, how-to

It’s been a busy week that has culminated in the release of video tutorials on 3 separate RapidWeaver plugins. Yesterday saw the release of tutorials covering GoogaLoom and RapidCart, and now there are new tutorials available for the TabLoom plugin -- YabDab Software’s latest offering. TabLoom provides a great method for organizing a lot of content on a single page, by breaking the content into separate sections inside of a nice, tabbed interface. A total of 3 videos are available on TabLoom -- combine those with the 3 others released yesterday and that’s a total of 6 new screencasts this week totaling close to an hour of new training!

With the TabLoom and GoogaLoom tutorials now available, RapidWeaver Classroom is up-to-date on all the current offerings from YabDab Software. The goal of covering all major RapidWeaver plugins at RapidWeaver Classroom is getting very close to completion, so check back often for announcements on more new tutorials coming soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, TabLoom plugin

Several new screencasts have been published on the GoogaLoom and RapidCart plugins. Both plugins provide e-commerce solutions for RapidWeaver. GoogaLoom comes from Yabdab Software, maker of the “Loom” plugins, including PayLoom and FormLoom which are already covered here at RapidWeaver Classroom. GoogaLoom differs from PayLoom in a few ways, the most obvious being that it utilizes the Google Checkout system instead of PayPal. Another unique benefit to GoogaLoom is that it supports digital products for download.

RapidCart is another e-commerce plugin for RapidWeaver, and it is from omnidea. RapidCart utilizes PayPal as well, but it also boasts some really nice eye-candy, in the way of animations and a built-in shopping cart feature that keeps visitors on your page until they go to checkout. It’s a very nice implementation with a unique style, and I’m happy to have it included here as a part of RapidWeaver Classroom.

More screencasts are on their way very soon, as in less than 24 hours, so stay tuned for another announcement!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, GoogaLoom, RapidCart, E-Commerce

It's been several weeks now since the RapidWeaver Classroom DVD has been made available, but I haven't actually given it much mention here. The DVD contains about 90 of the video tutorials, including all of the mandatory lessons on RapidWeaver itself. I consider it to be an especially attractive option for those with inconsistent or unreliable Internet access, or for those who have bandwidth capping imposed by their ISP. Of course it's available to everyone, regardless of whether you have an active subscription to the website.

Thanks to those of you who have already purchased the DVD! I've just added an option for USPS Priority shipping which expedites the delivery to 2-3 days. Please note that the DVD is only available to residents of North America, on account of the expensive cost to ship overseas. Then again, if the additional expense doesn't matter to you then you're welcome to contact me about shipping rates to your part of the world.

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, RapidWeaver DVD

Last week I updated the RapidWeaver video training library with all-new Stacks screencasts. Now you may be confused because there were already Stacks screencasts there before, but those were ones created by YourHead, and now that they have received the RapidWeaver Classroom treatment, I have replaced the YourHead versions with my own. So you will now receive the detail and explanation for Stacks that you are used to getting with the other plugin tutorials! Thanks to Isaiah at YourHead for letting me post his video tutorials until I had completed them myself.

Speaking of Stacks, did I mention that it is the greatest plugin I've ever used?! Now that's completely my opinion, but I absolutely LOVE this plugin! As an aside, this new RapidWeaver Classroom design is done almost entirely with Stacks. So what are you waiting for? Go watch the new tutorials on this awesome plugin!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, stacks

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a topic of such frequent discussion that I felt the new SEO tutorials here at RapidWeaver Classroom should be available for free for everyone to view. The SEO tutorials are now available for viewing in both the subscribers' area and for free on the Curriculum page (scroll to the bottom of the page). Note that the free videos are hosted by Vimeo in HD, but enrolled students should watch them in the subscribers' area to view them in a bit better quality.

Feel free to leave comments here on these videos, and let me know what kinds of questions I did not address. SEO is such a huge topic that it could certainly warrant more video instruction in the future.

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, seo, screencasts, search engine optimization

I have added a new set of tutorials covering Search Engine Optimization (SEO) with RapidWeaver. There are a total of 7 tutorials covering many different aspects of SEO, and this is an important topic for anyone building a website. It's also a controversial topic, with many conflicting thoughts and opinions on how to best optimize your website for search engines. Part of this is because SEO is a constantly changing science, with search engines becoming smarter and modifying their algorithms in order to produce more accurate and valid results.

I have attempted to cover all of the major, valid SEO strategies and make a point to explain the strategies that are most valuable, in addition to including ones that may or may not have great impact. It's certainly an interesting aspect of website design, but it's also very important and so I encourage everyone to go through these new tutorials and execute some of the strategies yourself!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, search engine optimization, seo

New video tutorials covering the SiteMap plugin are now available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. There are 5 tutorials on the subject, and I have gone into great detail to cover all aspects of the plugin. In addition, viewers will learn how to submit the generated sitemap to Google and Yahoo! in order to improve SEO. Sitemaps are important and I recommend all websites have them regardless of the overall size of the site. The SiteMap plugin makes creating a sitemap a breeze, so check out the tutorials to learn more!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, SiteMap

As you've probably noticed, RapidWeaver Classroom has been completely redesigned, resulting in a dramatic improvement over the original design and layout. I have utilized some of the latest RapidWeaver has to offer with this update: an ExtraContent theme, Stacks, Collage 2 and PayLoom. My hope is that everyone will find it to be better-organized and more functional than before.

Purchase RapidWeaver Classroom on DVD

That's right, RapidWeaver Classroom's video tutorials can now be purchased on DVD for viewing on your computer or portable device without an internet connection. 87 of the tutorials found on the website are included on the DVD. This is perfect for those with inconsistent internet connections, or for those who are on the road a lot and don't always have internet access.

What's next?

There is certainly much more to come by way of screencasts. So many of the available plugins are covered, but there are a few more that need to be addressed, and the Continuing Education section will be seeing a lot of activity in the coming months. Expect to see weekly releases of new video tutorials!

Thanks

What a great time to say "thank you" to all our supporters. RapidWeaver Classroom is nearly a year old, and it's been an awesome first year. I've heard great things from so many of you these past months, and I've posted some samples on the Testimonials page. I love the feedback, so keep it up!

A special thanks goes out to Adam Merrifield at seyDesign for being very generous with his time to help customize this new theme for RapidWeaver Classroom. It's no secret that I love his themes and the ExtraContent feature that he has helped bring to the community, so show him some love and stop by his site to look at (and possibly purchase) his amazing themes!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

New screencasts have been added on the excellent RapidBlog plugin from Loghound.com. RapidBlog syncs with Google's Blogger to allow remote blog posting from anywhere. It's a great solution for those who need to blog outside of RapidWeaver. These tutorials are now available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, RapidBlog

The RWmultitool section has been updated with a new screencast covering the full version of RWmultitool. This full version provides a lot of features not available in the free, Lite version of the application. This screencast is available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers only.

Stay tuned for new tutorials coming next week!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, RWmultitool, screencasts

I have added a new video tutorial covering RWmultitool Lite, the free version of this great tool. RWmultitool allows you to easily modify images in a theme without needing to modify the theme directly, and without needing a graphic design application like Photoshop.

The full version of RWmultitool will be covered in future screencasts, so stay tuned for more!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, RWmultitool

I have added a new series of screencasts on the excellent FormLoom plugin from yabdab software. FormLoom is a more powerful contact form plugin for RapidWeaver, and it includes a lot of great features to offer flexibility that the built-in Contact Form plugin doesn't include. There are currently 3 FormLoom screencasts available and one more will likely be produced in the near future. Current RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers can immediately access these tutorials for viewing!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, RapidWeaver training, screencasts, FormLoom

I have added a new screencast today to the Carousel lesson, covering the creation of a custom Carousel Style. Carousel allows you to create your own style using images for the background and buttons, so if you are comfortable with creating these graphics then you can have a very custom carousel to display on your website.

Stay tuned for more soon on the GoogaLoom and FormLoom plugins.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, Carousel

New screencasts have been added covering the great Carousel plugin from YourHead Software. There are currently 3 tutorials available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers, and one or two more are likely to be produced in the near future. Check back often as new video tutorials are added weekly!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, Carousel, yourhead software

Back in January I made an informal announcement here on the blog that RapidWeaver Classroom had surpassed the milestone of 100 video tutorials. Well, an official announcement and special offer has been posted over at the RealMac Software Support Forum, and to spoil the surprise a bit I will tell you that there is a discount involved! So jump over to the announcement thread, leave a comment and take advantage of this limited-time special!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts

I am pleased to announce that 5 new tutorials have been added for the new Stacks plugin from YourHead Software. This is a first for RapidWeaver Classroom as these tutorials are produced by Isaiah himself! He did such a great job that we wanted to make them available to all RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers and visitors -- so these tutorials can be viewed publicly from the Curriculum page or from the members' area.

I am likely to produce our own RapidWeaver Classroom tutorials on Stacks in the future, but for now these tutorials provide a great overview of the plugin, along with some specific uses. Thanks to Isaiah for the screencasts on this great new plugin, and for all of his contributions to the RapidWeaver community!

Tags: stacks, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, yourhead software, screencasts

Another ExtraContent tutorial has been released, detailing the new PlayMore theme from seyDesign. PlayMore offers three ExtraContent areas that provide all kinds of flexibility for presenting content. Thanks to Adam Merrifield at seyDesign for his outstanding RapidWeaver themes!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, Playmore, seydesign

New video releases continue today with the introduction of the Accordion plugin from YourHead Software. Two Accordion screencasts are now available and one or two more will likely be added to conclude that series. Accordion is a very useful plugin, and we use it right here at RapidWeaver Classroom to present our FAQ. Enjoy!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts

A new feature called ExtraContent is appearing in newer 3rd-party RapidWeaver themes, and RapidWeaver Classroom has you covered. A new category of screencasts has been created to show you the benefits of this feature and how you can utilize it for more flexibility in your website designs. The first screencast in this series covers the excellent Gotem theme from seyDesign, and there will be more tutorials made available soon.

Speaking of seyDesign, a new promotion is currently underway for RapidWeaver Classroom members and new subscribers. New subscribers will receive a coupon code for 50% off all seyDesign themes until February 15th, and current subscribers will receive 20% off all seyDesign themes. Current subscribers can find the coupon code in the members’ area of RapidWeaver Classroom. Thanks to Adam Merrifield at seyDesign for partnering with us for this promotion!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, ExtraContent, Promotion

At some point in recent weeks RapidWeaver Classroom passed a major milestone of over 100 RapidWeaver screencasts! There is now over 14 hours of RapidWeaver video tutorials available! Still, there is much left to be done and 2009 promises to be HUGE as there are plans to produce another 100 screencasts by the end of the year, and hopefully much more.

So as always, drop by the blog here once a week or so to stay updated with the latest, or check out the Curriculum page to see what’s new!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver training, RapidWeaver video tutorials

I have released a new tutorial for RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers covering Shadowbox with video. Shadowbox is a javascript box that is similar to the Greybox that has already been covered here, but it provides a bit of a different visual effect and it is increasing in popularity as a method of displaying video. In addition to the video tutorial I have provided the necessary Shadowbox files for download, along with a set of snippets to simplify the setup.

More screencasts are coming soon, including coverage of the new GoogaLoom plugin. Stay tuned!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, shadowbox

Three new screencasts covering the Collage 2 plugin have been added to the members’ area of RapidWeaver Classroom. Collage 2 is a fantastic plugin from YourHead Software that is exclusive to RapidWeaver 4.0, while the original Collage plugin is still available for RapidWeaver 3.6 and earlier. Collage 2 has a multitude of uses, so check-out the Collage 2 screencasts to learn more!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, Collage 2

I have published one more screencast for the PayLoom plugin that shows an example of how multiple PayLoom pages can be used in a project to sell multiple categories of items. It also shows a working, online example of PayLoom pages and their interaction with PayPal for shopping cart and checkout functionality.

Look for Collage 2 screencasts to begin appearing next week!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, PayLoom, screencasts

Hot on the heels of our Greybox tutorial comes two new screencasts covering the PayLoom plugin. PayLoom lets you easily create an e-commerce store on your website that integrates with PayPal. You really can’t ask for a simpler way to add products for sale to your website. One more PayLoom screencast will be added soon.

You will also notice the Collage 2 logo has been added under the 3rd-party plugins section. This plugin will be covered next, so keep an eye out for more information!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, screencasts, PayLoom

A new set of RapidWeaver screencasts are being added to the Continuing Education section, covering the popular javascript boxes: Greybox, Lightbox and Shadowbox. These javascript boxes are very trendy at the moment and add an impressive feature to your website. Whether you want to display images, video or other webpages, these video tutorials will take you through the process. It’s a bit more advanced than prior lessons, so along with the screencasts I will be providing snippets for download along with each tutorial.

The first screencast for this topic is now available, covering how to show a video in a Greybox, and more will be released in the coming days. Also watch for a screencast or two covering the PayLoom plugin.

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, greybox, lightbox, shadowbox

A second screencast has been added on using an FTP application to manage your website assets as an alternative to RapidWeaver’s built-in Assets panel. It is a brief tutorial that will be beneficial to those building websites with many assets, such as audio and video files.

I’ve also updated the Curriculum page and the Members’ area with estimated viewing times for each lesson. You can find those estimates below the title for each separate lesson, and eventually I plan to include the running times for each individual screencast.

Keep an eye out for new plugin tutorials and screencasts covering more 3rd-party themes!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, FTP

A while has passed since the last video tutorial update, but today brings a new release with many more to follow soon. The latest release is a part of the “Continuing Education” series, and it covers the topic of using an FTP application to publish your RapidWeaver-created website. I consider using an FTP application to be an important part of the website publishing process, and it helps with managing and troubleshooting a website. At least one more screencast will be added to this topic in the coming days, so check back soon.

In addition to these new tutorials, more 3rd-party plugin tutorials will be appearing in the near future, so keep an eye out for more details!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials, FTP

New video tutorials on working with tables in RapidWeaver have been produced and are now available to subscribers. There are currently three videos on the topic that cover different methods of building or placing tables into a website designed with RapidWeaver. This is the first of many lessons to come that fall under the category of “Continuing Education” -- these will be tutorials on various topics that RapidWeaver users should find useful.

Production of 3rd-party plugin tutorials will continue, but I will be going back and forth between these various topics and the lessons covering plugins. Stay tuned for more to come!

Tags: RapidWeaver 3.6, RapidWeaver 4, tables, RapidWeaver video tutorials

I worked extra hard today and completed the remainder of the PlusKit screencasts. There are a total of 8 video tutorials and they are all available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers.

So what’s next? Well, I have some ideas that I’ll be tossing around and I expect that some new tutorials will start appearing late this week or early next week. There’s much more to cover!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, PlusKit plugin tutorials

I’ve added two more PlusKit tutorials to the subscribers’ area today. One covers the Backups feature of PlusKit, allowing you to create incremental backups of your project as you save and make changes. The other is a big one, and probably the most popular feature of PlusKit -- importing pages. If you’re not sure that PlusKit is for you, make sure and check out the Importing Pages screencast!

The remainder of the PlusKit screencasts will be made available early next week. Everyone have a great weekend!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, PlusKit plugin tutorials

PlusKit screencasts are now in production and the first two have been made available online to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. These first video tutorials cover the Lightbox and Fancy Zoom features of PlusKit, which provide a very cool way of displaying full-size images -- perfect for a website photo gallery. These can be added with some advanced coding with javascript, but PlusKit makes it simple to add this effect to any or all of website’s images.

The full curriculum for PlusKit has been added to the website, and the rest of these screencasts will be appearing tomorrow and early next week. Of course I will post another update here as soon as more tutorials are online!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, PlusKit plugin tutorials

RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers can expect the next round of plugin tutorials to be made available soon. The next plugin to be covered is PlusKit from Loghound. PlusKit is a very useful and powerful plugin, and I’ll make sure that you learn how to use it! Watch for these tutorials in the coming days...

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, PlusKit plugin tutorials

All of the Blocks plugin tutorials are now complete and available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. There are a total of nine tutorials detailing all the features of Blocks. It is an outstanding plugin and I encourage all subscribers to go through these to see the potential of what can be achieved with Blocks.

More 3rd-party plugins will be produced soon and an announcement will be made in the coming days on what the next plugin will be. As always, check back often for updated information.

Tags: Blocks plugin tutorials, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Three more Blocks plugin tutorials have been made available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. These tutorials cover some of the different types of blocks that can be added with the plugin.

The goal was to have all Blocks tutorials complete by the end of the week, but I didn’t take into account that Friday is July 4th (Independence Day), so I will try and have as many as possible available by the end of tomorrow -- it may not be all of them, but it should come close!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, Blocks plugin tutorials

RapidWeaver Classroom’s coverage of 3rd-party plugins begins with the Blocks plugin from YourHead Software, and the first video tutorials for Blocks are now available to subscribers. There are three tutorials to get you started, and the remainder will be released by the end of this week. For those of you who have not used the Blocks plugin, you’ll quickly see why it is a favorite amongst the RapidWeaver community!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, Blocks plugin tutorials

The server issues causing the slow-down RapidWeaver Classroom was experiencing earlier today have been resolved and everything is back to normal. For any of you who were affected by this, thank you for your patience while the matter was resolved!

Tomorrow will bring at least the first two Blocks video tutorials, and the curriculum has been updated to reflect the videos that I am planning to make available. As always, you will find the latest information on updates here.

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

Some of you might currently experience slow performance on the website. I’ve spoken with the hosting provider -- they are aware of the issue and working to fix it as quickly as possible. I apologize to any subscribers who are experiencing slow performance when viewing the video tutorials, and I will post another update as soon as things are back to normal.

Better news is that Blocks tutorials are currently under production and those will be made available over the course of this week!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

Production of video tutorials for 3rd-party RapidWeaver plugins has begun and subscribers now have access to two new tutorials that provide an introduction to 3rd-party plugins in RapidWeaver. The Blocks plugin from YourHead Software will be the first plugin covered, and those tutorials will appear over the course of the next week. A listing of those coming tutorials will be made available soon -- I have currently decided on ten inidividual video tutorials, but that number could potentally increase, so you can be guaranteed there will be a lot of information on this outstanding plugin!

Tags: 3rd-party RapidWeaver plugin tutorials, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Now that the RapidWeaver 3.6 and 4.0 video tutorials are complete, I am looking for feedback from subscribers and potential future RapidWeaver Classroom students. For subscribers, you will notice a new link entitled “Provide Feedback” in the Control Panel of the members’ section -- I would greatly appreciate getting your responses to a short list of questions there.

If you are thinking about subscribing but waiting for tutorials on specific 3rd-party plugins, then visit this thread in the RealMac Support Forums and cast your vote for one of the six plugins listed there. Of course it’s not an all-inclusive list of options, but it’s a start.

Thanks to everyone who provides feedback, and check back soon for info on the coming 3rd-party plugin tutorials!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

Lesson 2 for RapidWeaver 4.0 is now complete, consisting of four video tutorials covering the updated features in the new version. This completes the tutorials that are needed to cover Rapidweaver 4.0, the remainder of the tutorials for version 3.6 will also apply to version 4.0.

You may have also noticed that the BlocksBox tutorials I put together for Jonas Themes are now included in the subscribers’ area. Those of you interested in designing your own theme might want to consider the BlocksBox theme in combination with the excellent Blocks plugin from YourHead Software.

Speaking of the Blocks plugin, I will begin producing video tutorials for the available 3rd-party plugins, and Blocks is first on the list. Stay tuned for more info on this soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Lesson 1 for RapidWeaver 4 is now available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. This lesson covers all the basics of the software and covers the updated interface. There will be a few more videos in the coming days covering the new features with this version, and then it’s on to 3rd-party plugins!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Production of the RapidWeaver 4.0 video tutorials is underway and I’ve posted several of the Lesson 1 videos to the subscribers’ area already. The remaining tutorials for version 4.0 will be made available early next week.

Following the release of the RapidWeaver 4.0 tutorials, I will begin the extensive task of covering the 3rd-party plugins. So there is much, much, much more to come!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials

I have updated the Curriculum page with the RapidWeaver 4.0 video tutorials that I will be making available in the coming days. A majority of the updates to RapidWeaver 4.0 are user interface improvements and changes to the underlying architecture of the software -- meaning that there isn’t much change in terms of functionality. The current RapidWeaver 3.6 tutorials are not outdated with the release of 4.0, so RapidWeaver 4.0 users will be able to view Lessons 2-7 of the 3.6 tutorials to learn the software.

On account of the user interface changes, I will be redoing all of Lesson 1 for version 4.0, in addition to several more tutorials that detail other changes in the update. Expect these tutorials to appear in the coming days.

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Lesson 7 is now complete and available to RapidWeaver Classroom subscribers. These five tutorials will provide you with the knowledge that is necessary to understand how theme modifications can be made to further customize your website. The completion of Lesson 7 should bring you to a point where you understand the functions and structure of RapidWeaver, its plugins and themes, in order to successfully create a complete website with RapidWeaver. The learning doesn’t end there, though! I plan to cover all 3rd-party plugins, which further extend the capabilities of RapidWeaver and offer some very useful, unique and impressive functions for your website.

So what’s next? Well, you may have heard about a little something called RapidWeaver 4.0. RapidWeaver Classroom will bring version 4.0 users up-to-speed with what’s new in the latest version of our favorite application. Not every part of the application has been changed, though, so many of the current 3.6 tutorials will be still be completely relevant for version 4.0 users. Instead of re-doing all seven lessons with RapidWeaver 4.0, I will be covering all the changes that have been made to the application, and then move on to tutorials for the 3rd-party plugins.

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, RapidWeaver 4

The first three tutorials in Lesson 7 have been published and are available to subscribers. Lesson 7 covers the modification of themes in RapidWeaver, and delves into much more advanced areas such as CSS and HTML modification.

There are entire books and websites dedicated to CSS and HTML, so while I can’t cover it all my hope is to get you familiar with the file structure of the RapidWeaver themes and give you a peek inside the stylesheets and HTML documents to start understanding how things work.

I encourage any of you who are making custom modifications to give it a good shot -- trial and error is a great way to learn. If you aren’t having success then the RapidWeaver Support Forums is a great resource with many helpful people. Of course, my one-on-one RapidWeaver Consulting and Training is also available to anyone who would like personal assistance.

The remainder of Lesson 7 will be available soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

It's an exciting day in the RapidWeaver Community as RapidWeaver 4.0 has been released! I'll be working hard to produce brand-new RapidWeaver 4.0 video tutorials for all of our subscribers who are upgrading. RapidWeaver 4.0 introduces an entirely redesigned user interface, and the majority of the new videos will focus on getting you acquainted with this redesign. There are also some new features that will be covered as well.

All that being said, a majority of the existing RapidWeaver video tutorials are full of information that is relevant to the new version as well. Since version 4.0 is Leopard-only, it's important to me to support both 3.6 and 4.0 users with the tutorials, so be on the look-out for new 4.0 tutorials coming soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver 4, RapidWeaver video tutorials

Lesson 6 is now complete and available to subscribers, covering some advanced features offered in RapidWeaver. This concludes what are considered the "core lessons" -- but many more tutorials will be coming soon, including RapidWeaver 4 video tutorials. Lesson 7 will also be coming in the near future, and then the focus will begin on 3rd-party plugins, so there is much, much, much, much more to come!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

If you haven't already noticed, the RapidWeaver 4 countdown has begun. RapidWeaver 4 will be available to Leopard users in less than 24 hours from now, and RapidWeaver Classroom will be producing all-new RapidWeaver 4 video tutorials for those who will be upgrading to version 4.0. All of the changes that have taken place with this version will be covered and these tutorials will start to appear within the first week of the release. Lesson 6 is still the priority at this point and will be available to subscribers by Friday.

It's an exciting time for the RapidWeaver community and I look forward to providing these tutorials for both RapidWeaver 3.6.x and RapidWeaver 4 users! Stay tuned for more soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials, RapidWeaver 4

Hope all of our U.S. subscribers had a great Memorial Day! I spent most of mine playing catch-up after being away last week. I've produced all the video tutorials for Lesson 5 and they are now available online to subscribers. This lesson takes you through the process of building a website from start to finish and basically summarizes all the previous lessons to this point, as well as incorporating a lot of new information as well. Lesson 6 will be coming along in the next couple of days as well, so things are back in full swing around here!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

I've put together a couple of video tutorials for the amazing BlocksBox theme from Jonas Themes, and a few more will be available soon. These videos can currently be viewed here, and in the future I will add them in the high-resolution version to subscribers of RapidWeaver Classroom.

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

Lesson 4 is now complete and available to subscribers. This lesson consists of 6 videos which cover the more advanced functions of editing content through RapidWeaver's Format menu.

Lesson 5 is next and things will start to get really fun! I'll be going from start to finish with a website, from preparation to publishing and covering most all the necessary areas of RapidWeaver with a real project.

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

The MacBook has spent most of its day re-encoding all of the videos presently available to subscribers. The web server is now receiving all 750MB of that data, and late tonight the video tutorials will be made available at a new 960x600 resolution.

There will be a small amount of time when the video tutorials are unavailable, and that time will be between 11pm-12am CST. The down-time shouldn't last more than 10 or 15 minutes, but it's important that I communicate that in advance. Enjoy the new high-resolution tutorials!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

It's coming up on two weeks since RapidWeaver Classroom launched, and I've been listening to the feedback I've received from subscribers and others who have visited the site. The response has been overwhelmingly positive, and for that I'm greatly appreciative because it lets me know I'm doing some things right. Of course I'm not going to do everything right initially, so I must be prepared to make changes if I'm convinced they are in the best interest of the site and its subscribers.

So, with that being said, I am currently making one change and considering two others. The change I'm currently working on is the resolution of the video tutorials. Right now they are at a resolution of 512x320 and I will be increasing that to 960x600. I will be re-encoding the existing videos this week and posting the new ones in this higher-resolution format. At nearly double the resolution the file sizes will also double, but it looks like a majority of my traffic is on high-bandwidth connections, and with Fast Start enabled for internet streaming the videos can be started before the entire clip has downloaded. I hope this is a welcome improvement and I'd appreciate your comments on this change.

Another area I'm researching is the handling of payments. PayPal is currently set to handle payments and subscriptions, and my experience with PayPal has always been great. That doesn't necessarily mean that better options don't exist, so I've been looking at other options to see how they compare with the system currently in place. Once I have made a decision to stay with PayPal or switch to a different payment processor I will be adding two more subscription types: 6-month and 1-year options.

Again, I really do appreciate the feedback I receive, so please take a moment to comment on this post with your views. Thanks to everyone for your support!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

It's an exciting day in the RapidWeaver Community as RapidWeaver 4.0 has been released! I'll be working hard to produce brand-new RapidWeaver 4.0 video tutorials for all of our subscribers who are upgrading. RapidWeaver 4.0 introduces an entirely redesigned user interface, and the majority of the new videos will focus on getting you acquainted with this redesign. There are also some new features that will be covered as well.

All that being said, a majority of the existing RapidWeaver video tutorials are full of information that is relevant to the new version as well. Since version 4.0 is Leopard-only, it's important to me to support both 3.6 and 4.0 users with the tutorials, so be on the look-out for new 4.0 tutorials coming soon!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

Lesson 2 is now complete in its entirety and available for viewing in the members' section. The Blog and Photo Album pages are very feature-rich, so the length of those videos is a bit longer than normal as I wanted to cover all the important aspects of these pages.

Lesson 3 will be coming soon and that will cover some really important information on styling the theme itself to give your website a more customized look and feel. Keep track with the progress here and more info on Lesson 3 will be made available in the coming days!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

Videos for Lesson 2, RapidWeaver Page Types, are becoming available in the members section of the site. Roughly half of this lesson will be available by the end of the day, with the rest going online tomorrow -- then on to Lesson 3!

Welcome to all of you who have already registered for the video tutorials. The special 60-day offer will last a little while longer, but don't hold-out too long if you haven't yet registered!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials

A big hello to the RapidWeaver Community! After over 2 years of building websites with this great application, growing my knowledge in the Forums and contributing there over the past year, I've finally found a new way to contribute with this comprehensive resource of video tutorials. I'm really excited to provide this as a resource for new RapidWeaver users, and even for the ones with some experience who are wanting to go a bit more in-depth.

I'll be launching this site at the same time I'm producing the first set of videos, and with that will be a special offer for those who register early. If you didn't notice on the homepage already, those who "pre-register" will have access to the video tutorials for 60 days opposed to the 30 days that will eventually be standard. I'll be publishing videos very frequently for these next 3-4 weeks, and then consistently after that and I doubt I'll ever really stop. The plan is to have around 50 videos available by the end of May. Here's to hoping my web host is ready with the bandwidth!

If you'd like to keep-up with the release of new content here then be sure to subscribe to the site's RSS Feed. There are many, many plans for video tutorials beyond the ones currently listed on the Curriculum page, so stay-tuned to this blog for more information!

Tags: RapidWeaver video tutorials