The Alternative Interface (ai.cmx)

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An Alternative (additional) Interface

Overview

Following the release of the responsive default website for CumulusMX, I have now developed an alternative interface pack so that both your live site and your CumulusMX Console site look similar. The general layout is the same but without a sidebar. The header and footer are static by default but both can be made to scroll if preferred.

Like the default website, you can change the theme with impacts all elements on the pages including tooltips and calendars. Unlike the default site, you get nearly 30 colour themes included which can also be used with the default site.

How it fits with the existing inteface

It has been developed to run in tandem with the existing Interface, has the same pages (plus one to manage the themes), and each page does the same as the Interface. This is a deliberate choice so that you don't need to do anything differently. The menu is however organised a little differently; I have grouped together pages that just show you your weather data and those that enable you to configure or edit it. My reasoning is simply to reduce the width of the menu for smaller screens.

One other alteration is on the main dashboard. I have moved the alarms panel to just underneath the sun and moon times. When using the Interface I like to be made aware of any alarms without scrolling; especially ones about the system. This page is already being modified to improve its layout - I am keen to also get the weather records displayed.

infact and provides similar facilities. It's primary purpose at this stage is to make its style fit with the default website and provide the facility to change the colour theme used throughout the site. Some pages have had some cosmetic or layout changes and the menu has been condensed.

Here are some screenshots of the AI.

  • The Alarm Setting page. It is now responsive.

  • A reworked dashboard. Alarms ar at the top. Looking to include records as well.

  • The Data Logs Editor page. The table scrolls sideways within the page frame.

  • A re-designed diary editor. The calendar also uses the theme colours.

  • This and most pages that use 'alpaca' forms are generally unchanged apart from the theming. Also shows one of the dropdown menus.

  • The standard Gauges page but now the tooltips reflect the theme colours.

  • The data log editor

  • The included theme selector. Themes can be temporary or permanent - it's up to you.

Note: Better screenshots will be provided shortly.

You can download the alternative theme using this link Alternative Interface for CumulusMX. It is also available on the Forum under CumulusMX ~ Alternative Interfaces.

Installation

Once you have downloaded the zip file, extract it somewhere other than your CumulusMX installation. This will avoid accidentally overwriting your existing Interface contents.

The Extracted package should consist of a single folder - ai.cmx, which can then be copied into the existing Interface folder so it shows as a sub-folder.

You are there ready to start using it. If you use the url: http://localhost:8998/ to run your normal interface, you can simply add the folder name to the end like so: http://localhost:8998/ai.cmx/.

Of course localhost can be replaced with the IP address of the machine running CumulusMX.

You still have access to the default interface if you want. It can also be run from the alternative interface - there is a menu item at the right end to do this.

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