Magento Call custom block inside another custom block - magento

Question

I am new to magento, so please forgive me if I have asked anything wrong. I have created a custom module for instagram Login, I just want to call a particular block from that instagram module to another layout file. I have called that block printed in my view page using
<?php echo $this->getChildHtml('media_new'); ?>
My block got called but functionalities are working and form is not submitting.
My custom module layout file. Instagram.xml
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<layout version="0.1.0">
<default>
<reference name="content">
</reference>
</default>
<instagram_index_instagram_signup>
<reference name="head">
<action method="addJs"><script>magenthemes/jquery/plugins/jquery.cookie.js</script></action>
</reference>
<reference name="content">
<block type="core/template" name="instagram.signup" template="instagramlogin/Instagram_signup.phtml"></block>
</reference>
</instagram_index_instagram_signup>
</layout>
I want to call the above block to another module layout file:
My another module layout page:
<marketplace_vendor_login>
<reference name="head">
<action method="addJs"><script>magenthemes/jquery/plugins/jquery.cookie.js</script></action>
</reference>
<remove name="right"/>
<remove name="left"/>
<reference name="before_body_end">
<block type="facebookfree/init" name="belvg_facebookfree_block">
<action method="setTemplate" ifconfig="facebookfree/settings/enabled" ifvalue="1">
<template>belvg/facebookfree/block.phtml</template>
</action>
</block>
</reference>
<reference name="root">
<action method="setTemplate"><template>page/1column.phtml</template></action>
</reference>
<reference name="content">
<block type="marketplace/vendor_login" name="customer_form_login" template="nbmpmarketplace/login.phtml" >
<block type="facebookfree/links_button" name="belvg_facebookfree_button" template="belvg/facebookfree/form/button.phtml" />
<block type="core/template" name="instagram.signup" as="media_new" template="instagramlogin/Instagram_signup.phtml"></block>
</block>
</reference>
</marketplace_vendor_login>
Here I have called my custom block, then printed in my view page as:
<?php echo $this->getChildHtml('media_new'); ?>
My controller code for instagram:
class Blazedream_Instagram_IndexController extends Mage_Core_Controller_Front_Action
{
public function instagram_signupAction()
{
if ($this->getRequest()->isPost()){
if($this->getRequest()->getPost('instagram-email')){
$instagram_email = $this->getRequest()->getPost('instagram-email');
$customer_model = Mage::getModel('instagram/instagram');
$site_customer = $customer_model->checkCustomer($instagram_email);
if($site_customer){
$instagram_customer = Mage::getModel('instagram/instagram')->getCollection()
->addFieldToFilter('customer_id', array('eq' => $site_customer));
if(count($instagram_customer)==1){
Mage::getSingleton('core/session')->setInstagramEmail($instagram_email);
$this->_redirect('instagram/index');
}else{
Mage::getSingleton('customer/session')->addError('Email Id Already Registered.');
$this->_redirect('sellerlogin');
}
}else{
Mage::getSingleton('core/session')->setInstagramEmail($instagram_email);
$this->_redirect('instagram/index');
}
}
}
$this->loadLayout();
$this->getLayout()->getBlock('instagram.signup');
$this->renderLayout();
}
}
It is not coming into this controller function, That i have used for instagram module.
My view page: instagramlogin.phtml
<div style="display: none">
<style type="text/css">
#cboxContent.newsletterbox {
<?php if($backgroundImage){?> background-image: url(<?php echo Mage::getBaseUrl('media').'/wysiwyg/magenthemes/newsletter/'.$backgroundImage;?>);
<?php }?> background-position: left top;
background-repeat: no-repeat;
background-color: <?php echo $backgroundColor;?>;
}
</style>
<div id="mt_instagram" class="block block-subscribe">
<div class="row">
<div class="left-newletters col-lg-8 col-md-8 col-sm-8 col-xs-8">
<div class="block-title">
<strong><span><?php echo $this->__('Join our Mail List Through Instagram!') ?></span></strong>
</div>
<div class="row-none">
<div class="popup_message">
<div class="intro">
<?php echo $desc; ?>
</div>
<form action="<?php echo Mage::getBaseUrl().'instagram/index/instagram_signup'; ?>" method="post" id="instagram-validate-detail">
<div class="block-content">
<div class="input-box">
<input name="instagram-email" type="text" id="mt-newsletter" placeholder="Enter your email id"
value="" class="input-text required-entry validate-email"/>
<div class="actions">
<button type="submit" title="<?php echo $this->__('Subscribe') ?>"
class="button">
<span><span><?php echo $this->__('Subscribe') ?></span></span></button>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</form>
</div>
</div>
I am getting my custom form also..But the controller is not getting called and functionalists are not working, only I am getting the form.
Can anyone help Me?

Answer 1

This is my first ever answer on stackoverflow, I will try my best to explain.
To start with, let me brief you about the block calls in Magento; any particular type of Block(.php files in Block folder) has a corresponding content/template (.phtml in template folder) file to render the data fetched from Model (.php in Model folder).
In your layout (.xml for your module in layout folder), you have added a block that is of type (core/template) so it will call the file Mage_Core_Block_Template.php and can access all its methods. However, if you want to create a custom block you can update layout (instagram module) file like this.
<layout version="0.1.0">
<default>
<reference name="content">
</reference>
</default>
<instagram_index_instagram_signup>
<reference name="head">
<action method="addJs"><script>magenthemes/jquery/plugins/jquery.cookie.js</script></action>
</reference>
<reference name="content">
<block type="instagram/instagram" name="instagram.signup" template="instagramlogin/Instagram_signup.phtml"></block>
</reference>
</instagram_index_instagram_signup>
</layout>
And create a file in Block folder with name Blazedream_Instagram_Block_Instagram.php and then you will be able to call custom methods to the block template.
Ex.-
class Blazedream_Instagram_Block_Instagram extends Mage_Core_Block_Template
{
public function customMethod()
{
$response = array('a', 'b', 'c');
$this->getResponse()->setHeader('Content-type','application/json', true);
$this->getResponse()->setBody(Mage::helper('core')->jsonEncode($response));
return;
}
}
Update you controller action call to
$this->loadLayout();
$this->renderLayout();
Now, to add this block inside another custom module, update its layout like
<fname_controller_action>
//path controller path on which you want to add/update the block
<update handle="my_custom_handle" />
</fname_controller_action>
<my_custom_handle>
<reference name="content">
<reference name="where_you_want_to_add">
<block type="instagram/instagram" name="my.custom.block" as="instagram.signup" template="template_path/instagram.phtml"/>
</reference>
</reference>
</my_custom_handle>
or add a constructor inside the block file Blazedream_Instagram_Block_Instagram.php like -
public function __construct()
{
parent::__construct();
$this->setTemplate('template/instagram.phtml');
}
and call the block in any template file with the below code
echo $this->getLayout()->createBlock('instagram/instagram')->toHtml();
You might need to update your layout file in this case.
If you do everything correctly, you should be able to call $this->customMethod() in the template file instagram.phtml
Thanks! Pardon me if I could not explained it properly.