Bamboo Invoice update 2007 : DerekAllard.com

Bamboo Invoice update 2007

January 8^th, 2007

BambooInvoice is still alive and kicking. I've been exploring a few professional opportunities that haven't left me with much time to devote to Bamboo, but more is coming soon. My plans are:

Upgrade to the newest version of Code Igniter.
Models - move relevant database logic into models. Bamboo was originally written before models were a formal part of Code Igniter. Now that they are around, I want to move it all into that.
Bug squashing - a bunch of new squashed bugs
Cleaner code - there are a few inconsistencies I want ironed out.
Better login system - Yeah, the login system right now is an evolutionary nightmare. It evolved out of another project, and then I removed features, and... blah. The classic problem? If you look at the database schema you'll see that Bamboo has both an email field, and a username field. Logic would tell you that username is used to login... but that'd be wrong. I've got to fix that.
Better installer - the installer has been the number 1 problem for people who find Bamboo but aren't familar with MVC style coding. I'll fix this up.

Things that won't be making into the next release? I have no intention of adding direct credit card withdrawals, sorry to everyone who requested it. I won't be offering a formal, paid, commercial version with support. I don't think it would be worth it financially, and I don't see myself able to devote the kind of time towards it that it would require. Along the same lines, I have no intention of offering a hosted version for business use. Those are all notable goals, but that's not where Bamboo falls into things. Again, sorry.

I'm in the middle of something pretty big right now, so probably it won't happen until the end of the quarter.

Are there features or bug fixes that you'd like to see in there? Let me know or comment below!

Comments

Yannick wrote on January 8^th, 2007 @ 4:14

Cool, it will be good to see these updates and the code behind it. One of the things I’ve always liked was the fact that you made the source available, that way persons who want to learn how to use CI, can see how a complete application is done. :)

Keep up the good work Derek.

rk99 wrote on January 8^th, 2007 @ 16:16

Great News! Looking forward to the seeing the revised login system and model integration.

BambooInvoice is an excellent learning tool for CI and should be a prerequisite for anyone starting out with CI :)

Nick C wrote on January 10^th, 2007 @ 22:06

Great stuff Derek - I don’t check into the CI forums as much as I used to, but thought I’d let you know that I still check in on CodeIgniter and Bamboo Invoice and am thrilled to see they’ve both evolved a lot since their birth.

Do keep on ploughing away with Bamboo; it’s an excellent app and resource alike, and feel free to drop me a line at my (new) email above if you feel the need.

Vipin wrote on January 14^th, 2007 @ 20:04

Hi Derek,

I just want to incluse a Logo image and banner in Invoice PDF and Email we sent. So how can that be done?

Any specific file to look at ? I am PHP newbie so dont laugh at silly question

Thanks

VIpin

Derek wrote on January 15^th, 2007 @ 1:04

Thanks everyone!

@Vipin: The basic code is there, but the ability to add an image right now hasn’t been finished off. This is something I’m hoping to include in the next version.

For now, you could open up system/application/views/invoice/pdf.php and just include an image in the HTML. It should get picked up.

Email me directly with any further questions ok, I’d prefer to keep the blog open for discussion and not support.

Bob wrote on January 16^th, 2007 @ 6:48

Hey Derek! Good to see that BI will be getting an update. I love using it (although I don’t do so very often it seems). It’s very nice and handy…nothing else out there like it in my opinion.

Having said that I made a few very small changes to the last build you posted…if you are interested in "community submitted patches" then I could probably dig out what I did and send it to you.

Thanks agein for sharing BI!

Derek wrote on January 16^th, 2007 @ 8:37

Bob, I’d love community patches, particularly from an experienced Code Igniter programmer like yourself!

Please by all means feel free to send me anything. There are a few things that I’ll need to flat out refuse (I’ve itemized those as "Things that wonâ??t be making into the next release" above).

Thanks again for using BI ;)