How to add form tag to Typo3 RTE

Obviously it's simple when you know how to do it but it's hard to find on Google. I gave up after seeing a few advices like "use HTML element" or "read documentation". Thing is, I always start with reading documentation. The final resort is usually reading the source which might be a bit more time consuming but always gives definitive answer.

The following solution has been tested in Typo3 version 4.6.4. It should work fine elsewhere. Any feedback welcome, feel free to drop a line in the comments saying "version x.x.x works" or "version x.x.x doesn't work".

Getting to the subject, in order to add form support to RTE in Typo3 you will need to add some TypoScript to your page TSconfig and TypoScript template. The former is to make sure that content is properly saved in the database, the latter to avoid escaping tags in the frontend.

Let's start with page TSconfig:

RTE.default.proc {
  allowTags := addToList(form, fieldset, input, select, option, label)
  allowTagsOutside := addToList(form, fieldset, input, select, option, label)
  denyTags := removeFromList(form, fieldset, input, select, option, label)
  entryHTMLparser_db {
    allowTags < RTE.default.proc.allowTags
  }
}

Feel free to add more tags if you need them.

Now we need to get the frontend sorted. This should go to your TypoScript template:

lib.parseFunc_RTE.allowTags := addToList(form, fieldset, input, select, option, label)

It's a good idea to make sure that the lists of tags from TSconfig and TypoScript template are matching up. Enjoy.

Custom Paragraph Classes in Typo3 RTE

Sometimes it is important to apply custom classes to paragraphs in RTE. Typo3 allows you to customize the "Block style" list easily. All it takes is a few lines of Typo Script in page TSconfig.

Let's add class lead for leading paragraph. We want this class to appear as "Leading paragraph" and be indicated with slightly bigger font on the "Block style" list. Here is how to do it in page TSconfig:

RTE {
   classes.lead {
       name = Leading paragraph
       value = font-size:1.4em;
   }

   default {
       contentCSS = fileadmin/templates/css/rte.css
       proc.allowedClasses = lead
       classesParagraph = lead
   }
}

A few words of explanation:

1. RTE.default.contentCSS defines css file used by RTE to render text in the editing window. It is required that the class we want to add is defined in this file
2. RTE.classes.lead defines the entry for the "Block style" list; the value is inline style used to preview the class in the drop-down
   
3. RTE.default.proc.allowedClasses tells RTE not to strip these classes when saving content to the database
4. RTE.default.classesParagraph associates given class with paragraph, so you can see the selector on the "Block style" list when you choose "Paragraph" from the "Type of block" drop-down.

Further details (and much more) you can find in the page TSconfing documentation.

Custom Frames for Content Elements in Typo3

The "Frame" option for Content Element in Typo3 becomes handy. What if default list does not suit your needs? You need to customize it then.

It is not difficult, event though not very easy to find. The functionality is built upon two different lists. One is a list of frame ids and corresponding labels visible in the BE. For each of these ids the other list defines actual "frame" - wrapper visible in the FE.

The first list is defined in page TSconfig as it is dealing with the back end. Here is an example:

TCEFORM.tt_content.section_frame {
  removeItems = 5,6,10,11,12,20,21
  altLabels.1 = Rounded
  addItems.2 = Highlighted
}

Second line removes all the default items from the list, except for the one with id=1. Third line amends label of that element setting it to 'Rounded'. Finally, the fourth line adds new item to the list with id=2 and label 'Highlighted'.

The second list is defined in TS template as it is dealing with the front end. The example:

tt_content.stdWrap.innerWrap.cObject {
  1 = TEXT
  1.value = <div class="rounded">|</div>
  2 = TEXT
  2.value = <div class="highlighted">|</div>
}