Network: retrieve a list of latest posts

Question

I need to list all the latest x posts from the whole Network in my WordPress Network. I am already using the Sitewide Tags plugin to collect all posts in a separate blog, but I also need to list the latest posts elsewhere.

Most scripts and plugins I have been looking at only list one post from each blog, but I need to list the latest X posts, sorted by date, and allow several posts from each blog site.

Answer 1

Have you considered using Sitewide Tags to populate one blog, then using the RSS feed from that blog to display the lastest posts wherever you need them?

Answer 2

I could write a code here but it's already well written elsewhere - there is a bunch of example but ready to use multisite plugins by Brad Williams available to download from: Code Download for Chapter 15 [zip]. It's intended to accompany his Professional Plugin Development Book but it's available for free download and could serve you well even without the book.

Especially these two plugins from the pack will be helpful:

• boj-multisite-latest-network-posts.php
• boj-multisite-widget.php

You could be able to use them straight away or make it suite your liking with just a few simple modifications.

The most important and helpful functions for your use case are:

• switch_to_blog(), get_posts() and restore_current_blog() for collecting the posts across the network.
• PHP's usort() for sorting the collected posts by date.

And don't hesitate to ask if any of these functions or techniques used in the plugins needs more explanation...