1. Field/CCK Formatters
“God has given you one face, and you make yourself another.”
- Fortune cookie in my desk drawer
Helior Colorado
ihatespam@helior.info

2. What are Field Formatters?

3. What are Field Formatters?
• Means to present field data in a
displaying entity

4. What are Field Formatters?
• Means to present field data in a
displaying entity
• Is pluggable

5. What are Field Formatters?
• Means to present field data in a
displaying entity
• Is pluggable
• Provides a layer of configurability

6. What are Field Formatters?
• Means to present field data in a
displaying entity
• Is pluggable
• Provides a layer of configurability
• Is extendable via various methods

7. What are Field Formatters?
• Means to present field data in a
displaying entity
• Is pluggable
• Provides a layer of configurability
• Is extendable via various methods
• If done right, can be reused in any
site

8. Defining a Field Formatter:
hook_field_formatter_info()
label
description
field types
multiple values
settings

9. Rendering a Field Formatter:
hook_field_formatter_view()
Return an array or renderable
arrays – “N is the only number”

10. Providing configurations:
hook_field_formatter_settings_form()
Standard Form API stuff.
Returning a new form element.
This will help:
$display = $instance['display'][$view_mode];
$settings = $display['settings'];

11. Displaying configuration summary:
hook_field_formatter_settings_summary()
Output a string of whatever you
think is meaningful.

12. Pre-build formatter processing:
hook_field_prepare_view()
Custom data massaging goes
here.
Rarely used.

13. Review the steps:

14. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()

15. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()
• Return array of renderable arrays
hook_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)

16. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()
• Return array of renderable arrays
hook_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
• Optionally provide settings
hook_field_formatter_settings_form($field, $instance, $view_mode, $form, &
$form_state)

17. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()
• Return array of renderable arrays
hook_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
• Optionally provide settings
hook_field_formatter_settings_form($field, $instance, $view_mode, $form, &
$form_state)
• Optionally display settings summary
hook_field_formatter_settings_summary($field, $instance, $view_mode)

18. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()
• Return array of renderable arrays
hook_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
• Optionally provide settings
hook_field_formatter_settings_form($field, $instance, $view_mode, $form, &
$form_state)
• Optionally display settings summary
hook_field_formatter_settings_summary($field, $instance, $view_mode)
• Optionally prepare data before build
hook_field_prepare_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)

19. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()
• Return array of renderable arrays
hook_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
• Optionally provide settings
hook_field_formatter_settings_form($field, $instance, $view_mode, $form, &
$form_state)
• Optionally display settings summary
hook_field_formatter_settings_summary($field, $instance, $view_mode)
• Optionally prepare data before build
hook_field_prepare_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
Useful helpers:

20. Review the steps:
• Define formatter
hook_field_formatter_info()
• Return array of renderable arrays
hook_field_formatter_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
• Optionally provide settings
hook_field_formatter_settings_form($field, $instance, $view_mode, $form, &
$form_state)
• Optionally display settings summary
hook_field_formatter_settings_summary($field, $instance, $view_mode)
• Optionally prepare data before build
hook_field_prepare_view($entity_type, $entities, $field, $instances, $langcode, &
$items, $display)
Useful helpers:
• field_info_formatter_types()
• field_info_formatter_settings()
• field_view_field()
• field_view_value()

21. Ideas for Workshop
★ HTML5 Audio playback controller ★ Lightbox-likegallery for images
★ Email address “mailto:” link ★ Custom date from timestamp
★ Link to Twitter account with selectable ★ Fully customizable link from a path
styles