In my previous post, I described how Twitter and Facebook can be integrated into Sitefinity CMS with their own plugins. Today I will tell you which third-party modules, such as the Sitefinity Connector, can be used for the same task.
Third-party solutions
There are several ready-to-use modules and widgets that help to integrate Sitefinity with Twitter and Facebook.
Sitefinity Connector for Facebook
Features:
- Post news, events, and blogs from Sitefinity to Facebook simply by checking off a box!
- Uses the latest, next generation Facebook Graph API
- Uses the highly secured OAuth 2.0 for authentication (recommended by Facebook)
- Post to multiple Facebook accounts simultaneously
- Works with all types of Facebook account types: user, group, and page
- Adds picture, summary, link, and publication/event start date
- Uses the FacebookSharp library
License cost: $29 (as of February 2011). Source code is not available.
Sitefinity Connector for Twitter
Features:
- Post news, events, and blogs from Sitefinity to Twitter simply by checking off a box!
- Uses the latest, next generation Twitter API
- Uses the highly secured OAuth for authentication
- Post to multiple Twitter accounts simultaneously
- Add prefix or hash tags to your posts
- URLs are automatically shortened via Bit.ly service
- Uses the Twitterizer library
License cost: $29 (as of February 2011). Source code is not available.
Twitter Profile Widget
This control encapsulates the Twitter Profile Widget. It is free, and the source code is available.
Twitter Status Timelines Widget
This is a basic user control that uses the TweetSharp library to get different status timelines from Twitter. It is free, and the source code is available.
Conclusion: Sitefinity Connector or free widgets?
Sitefinity Connector for Facebook and Twitter. Both connectors are pretty good, but they do not offer a trial mode, and we could not confirm that they work with Sitefinity 4.0, because they were developed for Sitefinity 3.7. I have sent a corresponding request to the vendor.
Freeware widgets. These are simple widgets that can be used as they are or as samples for your own custom widgets.
Note: this article was written in February 2011. Both Twitter and Facebook APIs have changed a lot since then, so check current compatibility before using any of these modules.
Continue reading: using the Twitter and Facebook API in Sitefinity and RadWindow with Sitefinity 4.
