Please HELP! How to get my category.php loop to properly paginate?

[Sergei-78]

I am using the Starkers Wordpress theme as a foundation for my website and I am having difficulty getting my category.php to paginate posts properly. I am trying to display 10 posts per each page. When I click the 2,3,4,... post pagination button, it open the page but does not actually load new posts.

Please could you help me to fix this issue?

Please let me know if you need me to clarify anything further.

Below is the code I have in my category.php file:

<?php Starkers_Utilities::get_template_parts( array( 'parts/shared/html-header', 'parts/shared/header' ) );

$paged = (get_query_var('paged')) ? get_query_var('paged') : 1;
$cat = get_query_var('cat');
$catinfo = get_the_category($cat);
?>


<div class="row">
<div class="large-8 small-12 columns">
<h2 class="category-header"><?php echo single_cat_title( '', false );?></h2>

<?php if(1 == $paged) { //check if is page one and display main headlines and subcategories?>

<?php //get category headline
$cat = get_query_var('cat');
$category_headline = ae_get_category_headline($cat);


if ($category_headline) { ?>
<div class="category-headline">

<?php foreach($category_headline as $post) : setup_postdata($post); ?>
	<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" title="<?php the_title(); ?>">
	<h3><?php the_title(); ?></h3></a>
	<?php the_content('Read more...'); ?>		
	<ul class="inline-list main-headline-social">
		<li><?php comments_popup_link('Leave a Comment', 'View Comments (1)', 'View Comments (%)'); ?></li>
		<li class="addthis_toolbox addthis_pill_combo_style"><a addthis:url="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" class="addthis_button_facebook_like"></a><a addthis:url="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" class="addthis_button_tweet"></a><a addthis:url="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" class="addthis_button_compact"></a></li>
	</ul>
<?php endforeach; ?>
<?php wp_reset_postdata(); ?>
</div>

<?php } ?>


     <div class="all-category-posts">
<h4 class="title">All news in <?php echo single_cat_title( '', false );?></h4>
<?php
global $post;

$args = array(
	'posts_per_page' => 50,
	'post_type' => 'post',
	'cat' => $cat,
            'offset' => 1,
	'orderby' => 'post_date',
	'order' => 'desc',
	'post_status' => 'publish',
	'suppress_filters' => true,
	'paged' => $paged,
);


$allposts = get_posts($args);       

    foreach ($allposts as $post) : setup_postdata($post); ?>

<article>
	<header>
		<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>">
		<?php the_post_thumbnail(array(80,80), array('class' => 'alignleft')); ?></a>
		<p class="date"><?php the_time(get_option('date_format')); ?></p>
		<hr class="rule" />
		<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>"><h2><?php the_title(); ?></h2></a>	
	</header>
	<?php the_excerpt(); ?>
</article>

<?php endforeach; ?>
</div>

                <?php if ($cat == 9) { ?>
	<div class="whats-hot-videos">
	<a href="<?php home_url(); ?>/videos/" title="Hot Videos"><h4 class="title">Hot Videos!</h4></a>
	<?php 
	global $post;
	$args = array(
	'ae-video-categories' => 'hot-videos',
	'number_of_posts' => 4,
	'post_type' => 'ae-videos',
	'orderby' => 'post_date',
	'order' => 'desc',
	'post_status' => 'publish',
	'suppress_filters' => true,
);

$videos = get_posts($args); ?>

<ul class="large-block-grid-4 small-block-grid-2">
	<?php foreach ($videos as $post) : setup_postdata($post); ?>
		<?php $videoid = get_post_meta($post->ID, 'videoid', true); ?>
		<li>
		<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=<?php echo $videoid; ?>" rel="wp-video-lightbox" title="<?php the_title();?>">
			<?php the_post_thumbnail(); ?>
			<h6><?php the_title(); ?></h6>
		</a>
		</li>
	<?php endforeach; ?>
</ul>
<div class="all-videos-link"><a href="<?php home_url(); ?>/videos/" title="All Videos">...More videos</a></div>
</div>
<?php } ?>


<ul class="large-block-grid-2 small-block-grid-2 sub-categories">
	<?php $args = array (
		'parent' => $cat,
		'type' => 'post',
		'hide_empty' => 1,
		);

	$subcategories = get_categories($args);

	foreach ($subcategories as $category) { ?>

			<li>

				<div class="sub-category-headlines <?php echo $category->slug; ?>-subcategory">

				<a href="<?php home_url(); ?>/category/<?php echo $category->slug; ?><?php echo "/";  ?>" title="<?php echo $category->name; ?>"><h4 class="title"><?php echo $category->name; ?></h3>

					<?php $subcategory_posts = ae_get_categoryposts($category->slug, 2); ?>

						<ul>

							<?php foreach ($subcategory_posts as $post) : setup_postdata($post); ?>

								<li class="subcategory-headline">

									<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" title="<?php the_title(); ?>">

									<?php the_post_thumbnail(array(150,100), array('class' => 'alignleft')); ?>


									<h3><small><?php the_title(); ?></small></h3>
									</a>

								</li>

							<?php endforeach; ?>


						</ul>
				</div>

			</li>

	<?php } ?>
<?php } //end check if is page one?>	
</ul>

<?php if(function_exists('wp_paginate')) {
    wp_paginate();
} ?>

</div>
	<?php //Include the sidebar... ?>
	<?php get_sidebar('main'); ?>

</div>
<?php Starkers_Utilities::get_template_parts( array( 'parts/shared/footer','parts/shared/html-footer' ) ); ?>

[sneakyimp]

Sergei-78;11045383 wrote:

I am using the Starkers Wordpress theme as a foundation for my website and I am having difficulty getting my category.php to paginate posts properly. I am trying to display 10 posts per each page. When I click the 2,3,4,... post pagination button, it open the page but does not actually load new posts.

I'm not familiar with this theme or how wordpress generally functions. I would point out that the code you've posted refers to functions for which we don't have any definition so we don't really know what they are doing. I'm guessing that when you visit the first page that it works? But then when you click 2,3,4 then it doesn't, but what happens? Does it load the first ten posts instead of the later posts? Or does it fail? How does the url differ between the first page and the subsequent ones?

[Sergei-78]

Thanks for your reply,

Yes, when you visit the first page it works and displays posts ( at this moment I specified

'posts_per_page' => 50

instead of 10, to make all post to be visible on the first page).
But when I specified it

'posts_per_page' => 10,

you click 2,3,4,... it load new page displays page header, footer, sidebar and category Title, but it does not load any posts in the content area at all.

The URL for category FIRST PAGE looks like this /category/sport/, for PAGE 2 /category/sport/page/2/ and for PAGE 3 /category/sport/page/3/, .....

Below is some functions for category page:

//Create a function to grab category posts.
	function ae_get_categoryposts($category, $numposts) {
		global $post;

	$args = array(
		'posts_per_page' => $numposts,
		'category_name' => $category,
		'orderby' => 'post_date',
		'post_status' => 'publish',
		'suppress_filters' => true,
		);

	$category_posts = get_posts($args);
	return $category_posts;
}

//Create a function to grab the category headline

function ae_get_category_headline($parent) {
	global $post;

$args = array (
	'numberposts' => 1,
	'orderby' => 'post_date',
	'meta_query' => array(
						array(
							'key' => 'categoryheadline',
							'value' => 'yes',
						)
					),
	'category' => $parent,
	'post_status' => 'publish',
	'suppress_filters' => true,
	);

$category_headline = get_posts($args);

return $category_headline;
}

function ae_category_headline() {
	global $post;
	$categoryheadline = get_post_meta( $post->ID, 'categoryheadline', true ); 
	?>

<p>
	Tick this box is this article is going to show as the main headline of its category.
</p>
<p>
	<label for="categoryheadline">Category headline?: </label>
	<input type="radio" name="categoryheadline" value="yes" <?php if($categoryheadline == 'yes') { ?>checked<?php }?>>Yes
	<input type="radio" name="categoryheadline" value="no" <?php if(!$categoryheadline || $categoryheadline == 'no') { ?>checked<?php }?>>No
</p>
<?php
}

Thanks

[Bonesnap]

I haven't had any experience with WP-Paginate, but one plugin we have had success with is WP-Page Navi. I'm not sure if this will fix your issue but it might be worth a try.

Also are there are errors in your PHP error log?

[sneakyimp]

These urls:

/category/sport/page/2/

probably need to have mod_rewrite enabled to work. Could you be more specific about what is actually loading? Is it a 'not found' page? Do you have any indication that the URL is actually loading the right PHP script?

[Sergei-78]

Bonesnap;11045421 wrote:

I haven't had any experience with WP-Paginate, but one plugin we have had success with is WP-Page Navi. I'm not sure if this will fix your issue but it might be worth a try.

Also are there are errors in your PHP error log?

Thanks, I have already tried WP-Page Navi plugin, but this did not fix the issue.

There are no errors in PHP error log.

[Sergei-78]

sneakyimp;11045425 wrote:

These urls:

/category/sport/page/2/

probably need to have mod_rewrite enabled to work. Could you be more specific about what is actually loading? Is it a 'not found' page? Do you have any indication that the URL is actually loading the right PHP script?

I think that mod_rewrite is enabled, in .htaccess file there is following code:

[INDENT]<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
[/INDENT]

It's loading website page, but without any posts in the content area. From page 2 in the content area only displayed Category title and pagination buttons.

It is definately not 'NOT FOUND' page.
I am not sure how to check that URL is loading the right PHP script. How can I test it?

[sneakyimp]

Sergei-78;11045445 wrote:

I think that mod_rewrite is enabled, in .htaccess file there is following code:

[INDENT]<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine On
RewriteBase /
RewriteRule ^index.php$ - [L]
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
RewriteRule . /index.php [L]
</IfModule>
[/INDENT]

That looks reasonable to me, although I'm not sure if these rules are the correct ones or if this particular plugin might need different rules. I think these are probably fine.

Sergei-78;11045445 wrote:

It's loading website page, but without any posts in the content area. From page 2 in the content area only displayed Category title and pagination buttons.

Am I correct in understanding that the page has the right headers and other information, but it's just the posts that are missing?

Sergei-78;11045445 wrote:

I am not sure how to check that URL is loading the right PHP script. How can I test it?

You can edit the file and add a line like this:

die("HELLO IS THIS CODE EXECUTING");

This would tell your script to halt code execution and output that phrase. You should be able to see this in your browser. If you don't see it, then you know that the wrong page is executing. You would of course need to remove that code to let your code resume normal functioning. I recommend making a backup of any files before you change them.

It's probably going to be difficult to get right down to the problem without you being willing to alter and explore your code to get to the bottom of things. This forum is a general-purpose forum and we can certainly help you get to the bottom of things, but it probably wouldn't hurt to post a wordpress forum or contact the people who wrote Starkers Wordpress theme adn ask them about it.

In the meantime, although I know little about Wordpress, this statement in your first bit of code looks suspicious:

    global $post;

$args = array(
    'posts_per_page' => 50,
    'post_type' => 'post',
    'cat' => $cat,
            'offset' => 1,
    'orderby' => 'post_date',
    'order' => 'desc',
    'post_status' => 'publish',
    'suppress_filters' => true,
    'paged' => $paged,
);


$allposts = get_posts($args); 

I have no idea why you would declare a global in this script. This type of declaration usually happens within a particular function, not in a script's global scope. Perhaps this script is included/required within some particular function? Also, the var $post is kind of an unusually simple var name for global scope. Are you sure you don't mean $_POST ?

I also see that you try to fetch all posts by calling the get_posts function and supplying $args. I'm guessing $paged contains your page number?? Or is it a TRUE/FALSE value? What about offset being set to 1. This looks like your typical var that would specify which records you want. Basically, are you sure you are using this correctly? Perhaps you should go and check the them author's instructions? Or alternatively, you can go explore the get_posts function to see if it's getting the info it needs.

[Bonesnap]

That .htaccess file is standard for WordPress after the permalinks are set to anything other than the default, so it's not the culprit.

The global $post threw me off too, mainly because $post is always global on template pages (yes, WordPress uses globals...) so you shouldn't have to declare it. Typically in my template files right under the get_header() function I'll call the_post(), which sets up the $post global for the current page. I have never had to call it in the middle before.

Also try removing the offset in your get posts query. If you're adding 'paged' to your get_posts() call, it should take care of which posts to show for you. Besides, offset just tells WordPress how many posts to skip over after retrieving them, so if you had 10, it would only display 2 through 10.

Lastly, have you checked out the WordPress Codex on pagination? It has a lot of information and some troubleshooting tips.

[Sergei-78]

Bonesnap / sneakyimp

Thanks for so quick and so detailed reply!
Yes, the page has the right headers and other info, but posts are missing.

Today all day I have been trying to sort this issue by changing and trying all things that you mentioned to me in your posts, but could not fix it. Also I checked out the WordPress Codex on pagination. Thanks Bonesnap, and I think now I know what causing this problem.

When multiple loops (posts lists) are used in a theme template file only one loop, the main loop, can be paginated.

I have two instances of the Loop: The first is limited to one post.

<?php if(1 == $paged) { //check if is page one and display main headlines and subcategories?>

<?php //get category headline
$cat = get_query_var('cat');
$category_headline = ae_get_category_headline($cat);


if ($category_headline) { ?>
<div class="category-headline">

<?php foreach($category_headline as $post) : setup_postdata($post); ?>
	<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" title="<?php the_title(); ?>">
	<h3><?php the_title(); ?></h3></a>
	<?php the_content('Read more...'); ?>		
	<ul class="inline-list main-headline-social">
		<li><?php comments_popup_link('Leave a Comment', 'View Comments (1)', 'View Comments (%)'); ?></li>
		<li class="addthis_toolbox addthis_pill_combo_style"><a addthis:url="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" class="addthis_button_facebook_like"></a><a addthis:url="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" class="addthis_button_tweet"></a><a addthis:url="<?php the_permalink(); ?>" class="addthis_button_compact"></a></li>
	</ul>
<?php endforeach; ?>
<?php wp_reset_postdata(); ?>
</div>

<?php } ?>

The second has 50 post limit but has an offset of 1 (since the first post was displayed in the first loop).

<div class="all-category-posts">
	<h4 class="title">All news in <?php echo single_cat_title( '', false );?></h4>
	<?php

   $args = array(
	'posts_per_page' => 50,
	'post_type' => 'post',
	'cat' => $cat,
            'offset' => 1,
	'orderby' => 'post_date',
	'order' => 'desc',
	'post_status' => 'publish',
	'suppress_filters' => true,
	'paged' => $paged,
);


$allposts = get_posts($args);  


    foreach ($allposts as $post) : setup_postdata($post); ?>

<article>
	<header>
		<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>">
		<?php the_post_thumbnail(array(80,80), array('class' => 'alignleft')); ?></a>
		<p class="date"><?php the_time(get_option('date_format')); ?></p>
		<hr class="rule" />
		<a href="<?php the_permalink(); ?>"><h2><?php the_title(); ?></h2></a>	
	</header>
	<?php the_excerpt(); ?>
</article>

<?php endforeach; ?>
</div>

I display the first post, so it stands out and has focus, then insert a featured content, and finally display the other posts. The number of posts it displays in the second loop doesn't matter, just as long as it is offset by 1.

Just for test I have swapped this two loops around and posts start paginating, but pagination showing the same results (from page 1) for each page.

Now I need to find solution how to paginate secondary loop or create one loop where I can keep everything in one loop.

Also I am not sure why it keep showing the same result for each page?