YJSG Framework

Yjsg version 2.1.0 released

2014-10-02T19:41:48+00:00

Yjsg 2.1.0 for Joomla 2.5.x and 3.x has been released. This version fixes few bugs and introduces new features. See detail changelog here.

To update to latest version you can use Joomla Extensions update manager or download the Yjsg Framework plugin version 2.1.0 and reinstall. To report bugs or submit feature request, please open an issue here or join us in Yjsg discussions forum.

Yjsg version 2.0.1 released

2014-09-19T12:11:50+00:00

Yjsg 2.0.1 for Joomla 2.5.x and 3.x has been released. This version fixes various bugs and improves package stability. See detail changelog here.

To update to latest version you can use Joomla Extensions update manager or download the Yjsg Framework plugin version 2.0.1 and reinstall. To report bugs or submit feature request, please open an issue here or join us in Yjsg discussions forum.

Yjsg compatible extensions demo

2014-08-16T22:10:03+00:00

Yjsg based templates are compatible with wide range of 3rd party Joomla extensions including all extensions from our download area. We have used few leading Joomla extensions

to demonstrate the Yjsg compatibility.

This special demo turned out to be great and was made with little to no effort. Most time consuming was the setting up of the demo articles and gathering sample images.
Other than that the setup was easy and Eximium and Yjsg behaved very nicely.

In this demo we have used, EasySocial, EasyDiscuss, EasyBlog, JomSocial, MijoShop, Kunena and K2. As you can see they all look great when used with Yjsg Joomla Template Framework. If you need any help setting those up or any questions in reference to Yjsg compatibility please post in Yjsg forum.

Yjsg v2 stable released

2014-08-09T00:45:56+00:00

Dear members we are happy and excited to announce the release of Yjsg v2 Joomla Template Framework stable version 2.0.0.
For the past 11 months we have listened to your requests

and suggestions and the results are marvelous. Yjsg v2 is stable and is ready for your Joomla installations.

This version has been successfully tested with all our Joomla templates and extensions.
Our templates demo files for Joomla 3.x and 2.5 have been updated to the latest versions and are ready for download.
This release is a milestone that brings many exciting enhancements that will help you power your Joomla websites.
We used this update to give Yjsimplegrid.com an awesome face-lift and enhanced the documentation with new info and simple to use demos.
Please take few seconds to go over exciting new features that Yjsg v2 has to offer.

Since we cannot possibly list all great features here, we will just highlight few strong ones that now power your Yjsg based templates.

Yjsg v2 highlights:

Extendable template framework
Light weight
Responsive
Optimized for speed
SEO enhancements ( rich snippets )
Out of the box RTL
Joomla! 2.5.x and Joomla! 3.x compatible
Unified Template Admin
Built in shortcodes
6 built in menus including Mega Menu
Over 60 built in module positions
Lightbox with gallery and media player
Video/Audio players
Accordions
Tabs, side tabs, tap pill
Responsive Sliders
Advanced typography
3rd party CSS frameworks independent
Fontawesome 3 and 4
Bootstrap 2, Bootstrap 3 or no Bootstrap
Customizable options
One click shortcodes
Custom article parameters
Custom module parameters
Include multiple Google fonts at once
Restyled Joomla! default rating system
Responsive reusable CSS grid system
Revamped modules positions preview
Custom Joomla pages
Multiple layout options

As you can see this is the most advanced Joomla template framework and it will help you create wonderful templates for yourself or your clients. While we continue to update our live template demos, please take a moment to download and test Yjsg v2. If you encounter any issues, use Yjsg forum and we will help you as soon as possible.

Always here for you, YJ Team.

YJSG v2 RC2 released

2014-06-05T18:20:19+00:00

Dear members we are pleased to announce the release of YJSG v2 RC2. First we would like to thank everyone who took time to test RC1 and report their findings.

This version is maintenance and code improvement release. We will also take this chance to advise that YJSG v2 is in feature freeze. RC2 comes with some minor js and CSS improvements and one major shortcode add-on.

Yjsgparse is very powerful shortcode that will let you import off-site content into your Joomla installation. More information about yjsgparse can be found here.

Eximium demo is also enhanced and features cleaner docs and additional add-ons section. Off-canvas has been updated to extendable framework feature instead of hard coded off-canvas panel.

Beside these changes additional features that might be of interest to you are, labels, CSS tooltips, sticky, grid system and helper classes.

While we continue to work on new home for YJSG v2 and extended documenatioin, take few moments to test YJSG v2 RC2. If you encounter any issues or have some great ideas, tell us about it in YJSG v2 forum.

Happy testing!
Always there for you and your Joomla websites your YouJoomla Team.

YJSG v2 RC1 is out

2014-05-20T20:57:31+00:00

As we promised few months back Yjsg v2 is ready for its big debut. RC1 version is out and now we would like to hear from you. Tell us what you like or dont like and help us make

this Joomla Template Framework a unified project that can make your future Joomla Templates development easier.

What to expect from Yjsg v2 RC1?

Our developers did a great job on providing a solid base Joomla template framework that is independent and feature rich. Yjsg v2 is very robust and has been tested with many 3rd party scripts successfully.
RC is released so that you can test drive it and advise of possible issues that may arise. In Yjsg v2 you will see many new features never seen before in Joomla.

Up until now all Joomla template frameworks including ours, have concentrated on one thing only and that is Joomla templates. We simply refused to follow this pattern and came up with a Joomla template framework that not only extends your Joomla templates but also your Joomla modules, Joomla Menus, Joomla articles and even Yjsg v2 built in shortcodes.
Now you can take control of each of these Joomla extensions and make them they way you like. Extending part is very easy and you can find examples in Eximium template custom folder.

Beside great flexibility, our developers spent most of the time asking them self, what does a novice Joomla user need?. This is how they have come up with amazing new Joomla template administration, one click shortcodes for; video/audio, notifications, tabs, accordions, icons, image effects, custom module settings, custom menu settings, custom rich snippets parameters and many more options that you can see on Eximium template demo.

So rest assured that this time we spent all our time devoted to you and we made sure that you dont have to "re-code" your template. Now you can sit back, relax and spend less time adjusting your Joomla installation.

When can we expect Yjsg v2 stable version?

To be honest we would place it in a stable v2.0.0 right now, but we need time to cook up some amazing docs and examples for you. While we do that, we would love for you to test it with your 3rd party extensions and report any issues that you might have. This way we can all go in to stable mode happier and ready for some real Yjsg v2 action.

So head over to Yjsg framework download area , get the files and tell us what you think.

Happy testing!
Always there for you and your Joomla websites your YouJoomla Team.

YJSG v2.0.0 White Paper

2014-03-11T20:10:40+00:00

Dear members, it is time to let you know what we were doing for the past 8 months besides releasing new templates and extensions.

This was a secret project which is about to come to life and will change the way you use YJSG template framework. Before you continue reading this lengthy article please note that YJSG v2.0.0 will be RC ready within few weeks.
Until than we would love to hear your feedback and any suggestion for new features before the RC1 is released.
Please post all your ideas in YJSG Template Framework Plugin forum.
Now to the details.

Our current template framework YJ Simple Grid, is due a huge makeover and our team has been working very hard to connect all the missing pieces. While you were asking for things that make your life easier, we have been noting them down and adding them in YJSG v2.0.0 one by one.

First major change is that YJSG v2.0.0 is Joomla system plugin which will make future updates that much easier for you and for us.

Why did we do this?

If you have noticed over 90% of files that you currently have within your templates folder are not used by you or we even tell you not to mess with them.

All these files have been moved outside the template and in to the plugin. Here is the difference between template CSS folders from old framework and new one;

Old template CSS folder

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/old_css_folder_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Old template CSS folder" link="images/yjsg20pr/old_css_folder.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

New template CSS folder

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/new_css_folder_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
New template CSS folder" link="images/yjsg20pr/new_css_folder.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Besides cleaning up the css folder we went even further and emptied,layouts, html and elements folder and the yjsgcore is moved where it belongs. Inside the framework plugin.
Don't freak out , you are about to get blown away with the system that will power your websites.
YJSG v2.0.0 is unique in every way. Since Joomla itself gives you the chance to use template overrides, our template framework does the same but in a very special way.

Joomla MVC by default checks if extension override is available in the template and if yes than these are the files that will be used for presentation. This feature is great, but we template developers override these files first, before you do, so any effort from you to make the template very unique, goes away once you need to update. From YJSG v2.0.0 this is changed.

First extension override that you see is the one that is inside the framework plugin itself.
If you don't like that one you can copy your own from the extension folder and place it inside template html folder. You can also override all files that are located in plugin layout folder with your template layout folder. Not only that but you can copy the yjsgcore/yjsg_head.php to template layouts folder and take full control of all scripts and files that the template is loading inside the page head.

Now you are in total control! You can use our template framework and override it without even thinking if the update will brake your website. YJSG plugin update will always update the plugin files only. It will never touch your template files or overrides.

How will we go from 1.0.16 to 2.0.0?

While working on this marvelous template framework, we looked around and just cant agree with thought that template that worked on framework version 1.0.0 , cannot be updated to 2.x. or any further version without major hacks or complete reconstruction.

We also cannot let you use the old framework and continue our development on new one. That would not be fair to you and we would certainly loose the trust that we have gained in the past 8 years.

What we also noticed is that even if we give you a patch that you just need to upload or we tell you to reinstall the template, some of you are not as technical as others and just thought of updating files kills your desire to use the framework itself.

This is why YJSG v2.0.0 has its own template updater that patches your old files automatically if there is a patch available. There is built in rollback feature that you can use if anything goes wrong. YJSG will never update template files unless you specifically tell it to. And it will never touch the overrides that you have placed in html or layouts folder.

The first and major patch that will be available is 1.0.16 to 2.0.0 which is essential so that your template gets the new structure. To make transition from v1.0.16 to 2.0.0 your template must run on 1.0.16. Update is not possible nor visible for any template that is running under v1.0.16.
Sure you can still use old templates but if you do not update you will be missing out on many new features. This patch does not touch any CSS files and moves only the default files that you don't need. First patch just affects specific lines inside;

index.php
component.php
error.php
offline.php
yjsg_template_custom.php
en-GB.tpl_TEMPLATE_NAME.ini
templateDetails.xml

To show you this in action here are few screenshots. For example we will use our latest template Smartline on a default Joomla 3.2.3 without special content which looks something like this;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_default_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline on a default Joomla 3.2.3" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_default.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Once the plugin is installed , it will tell you that there is new framework version available as soon as you assign old template as default. Here is a visual reference;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_need_update_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
YJSG has an update" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_need_update.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

If you than follow the link to YJSG plugin and go in YJSG plugin manager, the system will show you following screen;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_update_available_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
YJSG Update Available" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_update_available.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Once you click on update button wait few seconds;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/updating_smartline_wait_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Updating Smartline" link="images/yjsg20pr/updating_smartline_wait.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

And you will see;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_updated_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline updated and backed up" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_updated.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Not only that your template is updated but you also have a backup in case anything goes wrong.

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_and_smartline_backup_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline backed up" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_and_smartline_backup.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

New Smartline;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_new_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
New Smartline" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_new.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

The news item tools gives it away and it also shows that all small Bootstrap css bugs ( from Joomla 2.5 to Joomla 3.x ) have been fixed plus your template has a new engine that you can rely on.

By a simple click on restore button you can bring back the pre YJSG plugin template version;

Restoring Smartline

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_restoring_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Restoring Smartline" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_restoring.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Smartline restored

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_restored_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline restored" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_restored.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Here is comparison between old Smartline template CSS folder and backed up one;

Old Smartline CSS folder

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_old_css_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline old CSS folder structure" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_old_css.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

New Smartline CSS folder

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_new_css_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline new CSS folder structure" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_new_css.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

As you can see the upgrade process is painless and it does not require any technical skills.

Now we are coming to some of the best options and features YJSG v2.0.0 has to offer. Since we are still in pre release stage , we will not talk about all options but will mention some major ones that you will love.

The new interactive YJSG template administration.

Up until version 1.0.16 YJSG template administration did have its own kick but 2.0.0 is something else.
This is old YJSG template manager;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_old_admin_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Old Smartline template manager" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_old_admin.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

and this is the new one;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_new_admin_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
New Smartline template manager" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_new_admin.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

As you can see not only that you get a brand new stylish template manager, but it also tells you if there is update available and it is completely interactive ( we will get to that ) plus it is cross Joomla compatible.

What does cross Joomla compatible mean?

Up until YJSG v2.0.0 we basically had to support 2 different template administration areas and apply fixes and patches for each which were effected by almost every Joomla 3.x update. They were both visually different and some of you got confused going from 2.5.x to 3.x.

YJSG v2.0.0 template admin does not rely on Joomla admin template or it's files. It runs on its own and it looks the same in all previous and current Joomla versions which we will try to keep up with in all future Joomla releases.

Interactive template administration.

Since the beginning of YJSG project we always wanted to visually show you how your frontend might look like before you hit save in template admin.
The new layout tab contains the complete frontend layout preview and if you move or remove the grid/topmenu calls from template index.php file the administration will visually show you the new layout. All grid boxes change their width once you are finished typing the sizes so you get exact replica of each module width.

Enough talk, here is the new Layout tab;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_admin_layout_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline admin layout tab" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_admin_layout.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Now compare that to actual Smartline grids preview

Smartline Grids Preview
Looks the same doesn't it?

This feature will help you rearrange your template layout and always know how it will look like before you hit that save button.
As you can see from the image above, every part of the layout has its own settings panel. These are sliding panels that contain specific parameter settings for each.
For example, here is preview of your logo settings;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_logo_settings_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline logo settings" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_logo_settings.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Every settings icon, opens sliding panel with either logo , grid or mainody grid settings.

Here comes the juice!

Up until now, all demos development and content presentations depended in some way or the other up on the modules you have. Sliders, accordions and tabs are the essence of every great looking website. Even though we are in business of making Joomla extensions, we could not stay away from this one.

How about 53 built in Module Slides, Module Accordions and Module Tabs?

Yes, we did just that! We built in all of these inside your new template framework.
By simple hover over a module position you can see an icon for custom module chrome.

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_module_chromes_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Custom module chromes" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_module_chromes.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Once you click on it, you can choose what that module position should be. Slides, Tab Nav, Tab Pills, or an Accordion.

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/module_chrome_clicked_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Module chromes" link="images/yjsg20pr/module_chrome_clicked.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

For example, if we publish 3 any type of modules in position top1 and in template manager we choose Top1 module position to be Slides;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_module_slides_clicked_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Module chromes" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_module_slides_clicked.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Than we click on the top right settings icon of Top1 module position to adjust our slider;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_module_slides_settings_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Top1 module position Slides settings" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_module_slides_settings.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

and after clicking on the save button this would be the output;

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_slide_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline Top1 Slides" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_slide.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Quick switch to Tab nav, Tab pills or Accordion chrome gives you this;

Tab Nav

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_tabnav_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline Top1 Tab nav" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_tabnav.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Tab Pills

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_tabpills_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline Top1 Tab pills" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_tabpills.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

Tab Accordion

[yjsgimgs image="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_accordion_t.jpg" class="yjsg-lightbox-items" title="YJSG Template Framework v2.0.0
Smartline Top1 Accordion" link="images/yjsg20pr/smartline_top1_accordion.jpg" target="" effect="none"]

As you can see just having our template and our framework you don't need anything else. We did this to make it easier for you and to show you the power of real template framework.

Before I finish let me mention few more perks that YJSG v2.0.0 brings and to assure you that in no way we are leaving you or your website behind;

Use the framework on Joomla 2.5.x or Joomla 3.x
Bootstrap2
Bootstrap3
Option not to use bootstrap ( dont forget our templates dont need it to look beautiful :) )
FontAwesome 3
FontAwesome 4
YJ MegaMenu and JBootsrtap plugins are depreciated, YJSG v2.0.0 has everything built in.
Off canvas module panel.
Template admin runs solo on jQuery
Frontend scripts moved to jQuery to make sure that when Joomla removes Mootools your website will still work.
Did I mention that the YjsgSlider is responsive and loves your Vimeo or Youtube videos :)
And many many more which will be inside the YJSG v2.0.0 docs

If you are still reading than all power to you!
Please take some time to think this over and we would be grateful if you can give us your feedback or suggestions.

Always there for you and your Joomla websites your YouJoomla Team.

YJSG 1.0.16 released

2013-11-01T19:52:32+00:00

YJSG v1.0.16 for Joomla 2.5.x and Joomla 3.x has been released. This update contains few bug fixes.

Release notes YJSG v1.0.16:

Fixed mobile menu 3.x bug
Adapt YJSG admin to tabs view in 3.2
Fixed pagination bug 3.x
Improved custom elements
Small CSS admin fixes for 3.x

To update your template to latest YJSG version, backup your current installation, download the new template file and reinstall.

If you wish to update your template manualy, please download YJSG_1.0.15_to_1.0.16-UpdatePack, unzip the file and follow instructions in readme.txt file.

If you encounter any issues , please post in template assigned forums.

Joomla 3.2 coming what do you need to know

2013-10-14T10:23:59+00:00

Dear members as you might already know Joomla! Project has recently released Joomla! 3.2 beta. If you read their blog post you will notice that this release should be used for testing only

and beta releases cannot be upgraded. So far we have logged 2 minor YJSG bugs that are already fixed but we will delay the upgrade until Joomla 3.2 RC is out ( due October 30th 2013 ) to make sure that we catch all possible issues. If you are using Joomla 3.2 beta to test your website and see that your YJSG based template has issue , please do not be alarmed. We are tracking all current Joomla changes and will release an update when we are absolutely sure that you will not have any further issues when Joomla 3.2 comes out.

YJSG 1.0.15 released

2013-07-10T18:49:16+00:00

YJSG v1.0.15 for Joomla 2.5.x and Joomla 3.x has been released. This update contains few bug fixes, features improvements and class versions updates.

Release notes YJSG v1.0.15:

Added more FontAwesome icons . 377 total.
Added tag views for Joomla 3.x.
Improved administrator System Check tab.
Added check for JBootstrap plugin for J2.5.x.
Added apple-touch icons ( thank you itips9273 ).
Updated compiler class to latest version.
Updated Mobile detect class to latest version.
Added ajax compiler error message for frontend.
Improved font size/line height, cookie name handling.
Fixed missing admin edit icon in Joomla article view.
Fixed compiler refresh bug
Fixed J3.x newsfeeds view
Fixed language bugs
Added mega menu group holder identifiers
Improved component off switch
Improved top menu off switch
Fixed tooltips CSS bug
Improved LESS compiler. You can now override Bootstrap LESS inside custom.css or template_color.css files.

To update your template to latest YJSG version, backup your current installation, download the new template file and reinstall.

If you wish to update your template manualy, please download YJSG_1.0.14_to_1.0.15-UpdatePack, unzip the file and follow instructions in readme.txt file.

If you encounter any issues , please post in template assigned forums.