Creating a Google +1 Part and Custom Module in Orchard CMS - Part 1

Earlier we mentioned how we upgraded our Orchard Website to Version 1.2. At the same time we added Google +1 and Twitter Icons to Orchard blog posts by modifying the shapes that compose a blog post. In that post we mentioned that modifying the shapes was only 1 way to add social networking icons to Orchard blog posts and developers could certainly create custom Orchard Content Parts and Widgets to do the same thing. Well, in this series of blog posts we will show you how to create a simple Google +1 Content Part in a custom Orchard Module to display Google +1 Buttons on your Orchard Pages, Blog Posts, and other Content Types!

Google +1 Button On Orchard Blog Posts

Let's first start with the results. The goal is to have a Google +1 Button on all Orchard Blog Posts.

To make this easy, we will develop a Google +1 Content Part that we can attach to any Content Type. Here is the Google +1 Part ( Google Plus1 ) attached to the Blog Post Content Type.

Content Parts can be added via custom Orchard Modules that you install either through the Orchard Gallery or manually copy to the Modules Directory of your Orchard Website. We will create a custom Google +1 Module that installs and enables the Google +1 Part in the Orchard Website.

Google +1 Custom Orchard Module

During the development of this Google +1 Content Part and custom Orchard Module we will be creating a few items that will get you familiar with Orchard Development.

By the end of the blog post series you will understand the basics of creating a Content Part ( GooglePlus1Part.cs ) and registering it with Orchard via the Migration.cs file. You will understand how the Content Part Driver ( GooglePlus1PartDriver.cs ) renders the shape ( GooglePlus1Part.cshtml) and how the Placement.info file helps determine where the shape gets rendered in the final blog post or page. Last, we will customize and package the module and add it to the Orchard Gallery.

We hope you follow along!