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  1. recision
    Member

    I am using the Misty-View theme on my blog and an very happy with it is general.
    But have had a couple of thoughts about ways I would like to customize and improve it.
    Specifically, I would love to have a hover/preview function for "recent posts".
    So that if a visitor hovers their cursor over a Post title in the Recent-Posts column, then they could see a summary, or preveiw, or first paragraph, of that post.

    Is that something that would be straightforward?
    Could that be done in CSS?
    Could Sadish, or WordPress add that to the widget options?
    Is there another Theme that offers that already?

    Cheers ~R

    The blog I need help with is recision.wordpress.com.

  2. timethief
    Member

    Hello there,
    We cannot edit templates and themes on WordPress.com blogs and CSS editing cannot be used to change how any theme here functions. Custom Design - Frequently Asked Questions

    ... a hover/preview function for "recent posts" ...Is there another Theme that offers that already?

    No there isn't.

  3. recision
    Member

    OK...
    Is there a way to ask WordPress for that functionality to be considered or added?

    Certainly there is a preview ability for some other functions.
    So there isn't a technical prohibition to this.

    Is there a policy issue involved?

    Cheers ~R

  4. recision
    Member

    Hi Timethief,

    I was reading some of your other replies to other peoples questions in Forums and Support, as well as replies by WordPress administrators.

    And apparently you CAN use CSS editing to change how any theme here functions...

    But WordPress actively discourages this and asks for people not to do so.

    Which isn't quite the same thing.

    Well, ok, I can live with the rules - as long as they are clearly explained and we can get a clear explanation as to why things are the way they are.
    And there is a credible mechanism for contacting WordPress and getting feedback.

    I understand that they have to deal with a lot of bloggers (and dumb questions), but frankly the layout and user friendliness leave a lot to be desired.

    ~R

  5. justpi
    Member

    And apparently you CAN use CSS editing to change how any theme here functions...

    No you cannot. The "SS" in CSS stands for stylesheet. CSS editing allows you to change the styling, that is the appearance of a theme (fonts, colors, sizes etc), not the way it functions.

  6. recision
    Member

    But OK, point taken.

    Although I guess that depends how you define the word "functions".
    CSS wont add "functionality" like Hover.
    But it can affect whether some things actually appear on the page or not.

  7. jackiedana
    Staff

    recision, you're correct. Some aspects of a theme can certainly be modified by the CSS, but other aspects - particularly those affect the functionality of the theme rather than design - require modification of the php template files or the installation of a plugin. These options are available for themes on a self-hosted WordPress.org site, but is not available for sites on WordPress.com.

    What you're looking for would require modification of code rather than just the modification of the CSS, and therefore would not be possible on WordPress.com.

  8. timethief
    Member

    Indeed and we have all come full circle back to:

    Does the Custom Design upgrade let me edit HTML?
    No. The Custom Design upgrade allows you to edit fonts and CSS only. You can change the appearance of a theme, but not its HTML markup, PHP code, or content. Read more about why here. You can choose to apply your custom fonts or custom stylesheet to any of the themes available on WordPress.com. Some themes, like the plain but versatile Sandbox and Toolbox, are blank canvases waiting for your custom fonts, CSS and images.
    From: Custom Design - Frequently Asked Questions

  9. raincoaster
    Member

    CSS can be used to hide functions, but not to make visible functions that do not already exist.

  10. timethief
    Member

    @raincoaster
    Succinctly stated - well done. :)

  11. recision
    Member

    Thanks for all your replies.
    Appreciate the time everyone have taken to respond to my questions.
    (and for the links)
    Cheers.

  12. 1tess
    Moderator

    Indeed, you cannot use CSS to make a hover preview of your recent posts.

    But if you use a links widget, and update it manually with links and descriptions of your recent posts, then you can have a text summary of recent posts in your sidebar.
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/blogroll/link-categories/
    (make a category called "recent posts")
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/widgets/links-widget/
    (manually add links to your posts and type in a description or first paragraph which will appear on MistyLook on hover)

    Or you could use an RSS widget with feed to your own blog, then a beginning of your recent posts will appear in your sidebar.
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/widgets/rss-widget/
    Choose to display item content.
    feed for your blog is http://YOUR_BLOG.wordpress.com/feed

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