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Sat 09 May 2009 |

Using Windows Live Writer with Joomla

Written by David Towers

Windows! Windows Live Writer? You might be surprised to find us recommending a Microsoft product, but Windows Live Writer is brilliant desktop blogging application that is amazingly simple to use and outputs surprisingly clean code. In todays post we will be explaining how to setup Windows Live Writer with your Joomla website by using the MovableType XML-RPC plugin.

### What is Windows Live Writer?

Windows Live Writer is a desktop blogging application that enables you to write content for your website from the Windows Live Writer application.

### Why use Windows Live Writer with Joomla?

Windows Live Writer makes the process of adding content to your website a breeze.

Rather than having to log into the Joomla backend and write your new content in a cumbersome WYSIWYG editor, you can use the familiar office style writing environment. Once you have written your content, you simply need to press "publish" button from within Windows Live Writer and your article will be online.

## How to setup Windows Live Writer in Joomla 1.5

### Download and Setup the XML-RPC Plugin

- Download the MovableType XML-RPC plugin
- Log into your Joomla websites administrative backend and select: Extensions > Install/Uninstall
- Enable the plugin: Extensions > Plugin Manager > XML-RPC - MovableType API
- Enable Site > Global Configuration > System > System Settings > Enable Web Services [Yes]

## Install and setup Windows Live Writer on your PC

- If you havent done so already, download and install Windows Live Writer installed on your computer
- Open Windows Live Writer and enter in your blog and login details

- What blog service do you use? Other blog service
- Web address of your blog: Your Joomla Website URL e.g. http://www.goodwebpractices.com
  Username: Your Joomla backend username
  Password: Your Joomla backend password
- Type of blog that you are using: Movable Type API
  Remote posting URL for your blog: Your Joomla website URL with /xmlrpc/index.php added to the end e.g. http://www.goodwebpractices.com/xmlrpc/index.php
- Blog nickname: Name you would like to give your blog in Windows Live Writer
- Thats it! You are now ready to start writing your blog posts from Windows Live Writer!

#### What do you think?

Have you used Windows Live Writer on your Joomla blog? What do you think of it?

Comments (37)
Chris
May 09, 2009
68.53.19.121
Votes: +5

...

So when i try to set up Windows Live Writer, when I choose the blog type and enter the posting URL I get an error that says:
An error occured while attempting to connect to your blog:
Invalid Server Response - The response to the blogger.getUsersBlogs method received from the blog server was invalid:
Invalid response document returned from XmlRpc server
You must correct this error before proceeding.
Any ideas how to correct this?

Jeetu.K
May 10, 2009
59.164.37.47
Votes: +0

...

Awesome, Never Even Thought Windows Live Writer Could/Should Be Used To Write Content On Joomla Website.
Great Post

David Towers
May 10, 2009
94.192.221.190
Votes: +1

...

@Chris Cool looking site man! Have you definitely enabled the plugin and enabled Web Services in the Joomla Global Configuration settings?
@Jeetu Yeah I was surprised myself when I discovered how user friendly and simply WLW was! I do really think its a good and easy solution to uploading content to J! sites!

Chris
May 10, 2009
68.53.19.121
Votes: +0

...

Definately. I'm currently reinstalling the site I want to use this on. It originally was Joomla 1.5.3 that I upgraded to 1.5.10. So I'm installing 1.5.10 directly and then I'll try it again.

David Towers
May 10, 2009
94.192.221.190
Votes: -1

...

OK Chris let us know how you get on once you have tried on the fresh install... I use WLW on a few different sites without any problems so it should be possible to get it working on your site too.

Johnny
May 11, 2009
200.88.9.55
Votes: +0

...

Hey, mate , thanks for sharing this, never thought this was possible, I was crazy looking for some joomla from desktop post's. It takes ages to move around the joomla BAckend.
Thanks, !

Kille
May 12, 2009
217.205.197.194
Votes: +0

...

I love it as it took me just 15 minutes to install and publishing my first article.
I was really impressed.
Thanks for that

Maultrommel
May 12, 2009
82.32.136.134
Votes: +0

...

Great job! I'm absolutely dumbstruck and will keep using this solution.
Just one drawback I experienced: I've been unable so far to publish directly to the frontpage? Am I missing something?

Duke3D
May 18, 2009
67.182.222.138
Votes: +0

...

Excellent Concept & Article.
Unfortunately the Moveable Type extension has been removed from the JED. In not familiar with the workings of XML-RPC, will the one built into Joomla 1-5-10 work or are there others?
Looking forward to giving this a go!

Justblair
May 19, 2009
90.194.194.3
Votes: +0

...

http://www.joomler.net/compone.../Itemid,2/
I think this may be the plugin that you are looking for. Recently updated as well I think

tiago
May 27, 2009
83.240.134.164
Votes: +1

...

i cant make it work with pictures?!
what seems to be the problem?!?!
i always get these piece of code instead of the picture
[pa rel="nofollow" href="/ link to picture ]
I've tried FTP and the other option neither both worked ....

Brad Cleghorn
June 03, 2009
71.90.105.177
Votes: +1

...

I get the same error that Chris gets. Web services enabled, plugin enabled, and yet:
An error occured while attempting to connect to your blog:
Invalid Server Response - The response to the blogger.getUsersBlogs method received from the blog server was invalid:
Invalid response document returned from XmlRpc server
You must correct this error before proceeding.

Pete
June 10, 2009
165.72.200.11
Votes: +0

...

Hi David
I also didn't get it to work with the MovableType API Plugin, I then came across the metaWeblog API Plugin and had go with this and it worked straight away, I'm not quit sure if its just a config issue in the movabletype Plugin Params I will need to test run this...
Cheers
Pete

Heidi
July 02, 2009
71.63.153.95
Votes: +0

...

For those getting an invalid server reponse, you might have forgotten this step:
Enable Site > Global Configuration > System > System Settings > Enable Web Services [Yes]
I got the error initially then reread directions and set this to yes and it worked.
Also, I like the fact that plugin setting has a security feature where you can only submit from a certain ip.

Tracy
July 15, 2009
76.200.180.26
Votes: +1

...

I'm using Joomla 1.5.12 and getting the Invalid Server response error as well. I looked around and found the following solution.
Download metaweblog from here
http://joomlacode.org/gf/project/metaweblogapi/frs/?action=FrsReleaseView&release_id=6708
Install and Enable metaweblog.zip in the plugins manager.
disable the moveable rpc if you've installed it.
make sure web services are enabled..
with Windows Live Writer use MetaWebLog instead of Movable API.
All other settings are as stated in directions at top.
if you're having discovery issues you can possible fix it with this plugin RSD.zip (Real Simple Discovery) which can be found here.
http://joomlacode.org/gf/project/rsd/frs/?action=FrsReleaseView&release_id=7080
again this works for me using Joomla 1.5.12 currently.
have at it...
Tracy Thibault

Jonas Sevelin
August 18, 2009
193.235.3.218
Votes: +0

...

Must agree with you guys above. Nice work and tx for sharing it with us.
I can publish a post on my Joomla site but seems not to be able to get it on the frontpage without manually activate this button from inside back-end.
Something i missed?

andrew munro
September 02, 2009
62.173.80.122
Votes: +0

...

oh my god - how good is this tip - brilliant work

Nicolas
September 05, 2009
41.211.225.144
Votes: +0

...

Thanks for the article. I'm about to install and try Writer. By the way, I like the screen captures gallery on this page. Can I know how you got that Zoom out effect when clicking on the picture? Is that a Joomla extension? Thanks.

David T
September 05, 2009
94.192.221.190
Votes: +0

...

Glad you found it helpful Nicolas.
The extension for the screenshots is HighSlide for Joomla.

Nicolas
September 05, 2009
41.211.225.203
Votes: +0

...

Thanks ++++. I'll check it out.

Beres bartlett
October 04, 2009
98.240.56.209
Votes: +1

...

Looks Great - fails with sections.
Got an 801 error - section not found.
Sections works well in backend.
Too bad - looked great.

Randall
October 08, 2009
76.168.207.100
Votes: +1

...

Beres, I have the same problem. Also, Windows Live Writer was unable to import the theme I'm using.

Marlon
October 13, 2009
124.6.181.139
Votes: +0

...

hi, i tried this as this would have been very cool.. unfortunately i get a 500 internal server error. i wonder why this is so.
i am running a realty component as test for this site and one module had to run on legacy mode. i tried with native and legacy and both wont work - moveable type and meta weblog type.
i am running joomla 1.5.14 - i wonder if this is a bug or it is just my system.
i also followed the instructions in setting up global config and the plugin. help needed. thanks

cherry
November 28, 2009
122.174.91.144
Votes: +0

...

hi..can anybody solve my problem
i have done a website in joomla i applied seo settings to my site all articles and modules are working properly but components are not working ,i installed componets through installed process after its working ..can anybody tell me what is the difference ..how to set seo settings for windows server project in joomla..
please help me..

nelsonenzo
December 03, 2009
69.115.193.58
Votes: +0

...

commentor Tracy,
Thanks for posting a great alternative. It doesn't have as many options, but it actually worked!
As any agile developer knows - working with less is better than stuck with more.
Also, thanks to the original article poster for taking the time to post!

Mathew
December 12, 2009
123.238.232.153
Votes: +0

...

Those who fail to configure, please check you have given write permissions to configuration.php before enabling webservices

Courtney
January 04, 2010
92.14.227.140
Votes: +0

...

very useful tip thanks.
Works like a charm, windows live write couldn't detect my theme it keeps saying but it all works so no probs.
thankd

Ming
January 15, 2010
220.255.7.132
Votes: +0

...

Hi all,
Not sure why but I keep getting
Invalid Server Response - The response to the blogger.getUsersBlogs method received from the blog server was invalid:
Invalid response document returned from XmlRpc server
Turned web services on and even tried the metaweblog method by Tracy.
I'm using Joomla 1.5.15. Any ideas?

Ian Scott
February 26, 2010
203.158.35.23
Votes: +0

...

I could only publish text - any picture it would fall over but there's a solution - our Worpress friends have this blog http://www.troublefixers.com/s...mment-5928 which tells how to setup liver writer to ftp the images to the correct folder - works like a charm - thank you all

Sylvain
March 03, 2010
216.221.63.69
Votes: +0

...

@Ming: Well, it looks like that even in 2010, there are still a lot of potential communication problems between Windows Live Writer (WLW) and a XML-RPC blog server.
On my blog, I've recently posted the first part of an article on how to solve many of these problems by first identifying them precisely using the log file of WLW and/or an HTML traffic capturing tool such as Fiddler:
http://coding-paparazzi.sylvainlafontaine.com/2010/02/solving-connection-problems-wlw.html
Beside the log file and Fiddler, this part one covers the specific problems of the presence of a an UTF-8 BOM at the beginning of one of the PHP script files and of the presence of extraneous characters at either the beginning (before the opening tag ) of one of the PHP script files.
This article uses many example from WordPress but much of this stuff apply as well to a Joomla! site.
In the second part (soon to be published), I will cover the problem of the presence of Warning and of Fatal PHP error messages in the XML-RPC response file. Fatal errors are usually the result of some kind of error in the PHP code but you can get a Warning error message simply by having a badly set php.ini file; so it's often simply a local configuration problem of PHP.
The presence of a warning message was exactly what was happening with the previous version of the Movable API available from Joomler.Net when it was used with the latest version of PHP but now, this warning message has been corrected directly in the PHP source code of the latest version of this plugin.
@Courtney: for detecting the theme, the short temporary post sent by WLW must appears on the frontpage in order to be read back by WLW. However, by default, any new post don't automatically appear on the frontpage.
All you have to do is to open the administrative section of Joomla for the Frontpage and when WLW publish its temporary post, you will see it appears if you refresh the list. WLW will try to read it back, it will do so for about 10 seconds, so you have enough time to make this post to appears on the frontpage. I'll try to publish soon a post with some screen capture in order to illustrate the process.

Cathy
March 08, 2010
174.30.19.246
Votes: +0

...

Thank you SOOOO much--this is fantastic and so easy even I managed to figure it out. That is REALLY saying something.

David McCreary
March 15, 2010
70.184.168.11
Votes: +0

...

How to solve this?
801 error - section not found.
I tried seversl section/category options, webservices is turned on.

susinski
March 20, 2010
70.41.14.206
Votes: +0

...

I had the same error
I fixed it by setting access level to public in the module manager

johnwnz
April 11, 2010
118.92.166.58
Votes: +0

...

Guys, fantastic tips, had trouble with the moveble type but the alternative metaweblogapi work 1st time - fantastic.
Wondered if there was a way to be able to set the publish time of an article from within Livemessenger, access level would be a great thing to be able to control as well.

3D Web Design
May 20, 2010
78.128.95.67
Votes: +0

...

Software like Post by email for joomla http://extensions.joomla.org/e...ging/12215 work perfect too. Options are to post in content, kunena, agora or on jomsocial walls.

Lu
July 18, 2010
201.33.185.128
Votes: +0

...

Thanks, It worked nicely!

live order taking services
August 03, 2010
122.168.70.45
Votes: +0

...

Windows Live Writer is a very interesting software which is used for the desktop commenting services. I am surely going to install it on my pc.

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