This release includes a set of new features, updates, and minor bug fixes. A multi-level menu and newCoffee Shop layout design have become prominent features of this release. Let’s review all of the changes below:

• Multi-level menu. Earlier, all menu items could be grouped by categories only. Now we have added subcategories for clear and concise menu presentation. Each category can be split into subcategories. As a result, you get a menu that is easy to read and navigate.  As you look at it, you can quickly grasp the required menu positions. 

• Coffee Shop layout design. An elegant and clean design with new fonts and colors is a great solution for coffee shops and other restaurant businesses. Now you have more options for styling your menu

• Italian layout design. We have renamed the old default design to Italian. Now it is available as a separate option.

• CSS styles section. Now you can edit CSS styles of the component directly via Joomla admin panel. Earlier, you could do this only from your hosting via FTP.
• Class suffix in Category module settings. By assigning class suffix to the module you can individually style the module. Now you can assign a class suffix to the Meal Category module in order to change module display, for example, font or background color.
• Coffee Shop design for Category module.  Now you can style Category module using our custom module style - fwfm-coffee-shop. Assign this class suffix to the Meal Category module to add a unique style to the module.
• Images format 100X100. Earlier the allowed format for the displaying images was 100X70. Sometimes this format caused images distortion. We have changed the format to 100X100 to improve images display.
• FWFM Navigation. We have changed the name of the FWFM Meal Categories module to  FWFM Navigation to avoid confusion with Meal Category module.
• Promo options icons display. Bug resulted in inability to display icons for promo options.

• Modules assignment to the page. It was impossible to assign more than one module to the content section of the page.

Get familiar with FW FoodMenu documentation to find more information about our product. Please use the comments section at the bottom of each documentation page to comment and suggest improvements that will make the product experience better.

Beauty industry websites are all about visual presentation of products and services to the audience. All websites dealing with presentation can be created based on galleries. FW Gallery is a powerful tool for visual presentation. There are many different types of beauty industry websites in the marketplace - spa salons, nail bars, skin care shops, hair design studios, and many more. In this article, we will review a professional and good-looking hair salon showcase created with FW Gallery.

The showcase is dedicated to a specific kind of salon services - hair design.  However, you can use any other beauty industry direction instead of the hair design. If you are offering different range of salon services at one place, then each direction should be configured separately, similar to the hair salon showcase.

We will describe each page of the hair salon showcase, its elements, and business idea behind each element. Make sure to understand that to proceed with creating the same website you need to prepare media content and install FW Gallery to your Joomla platform. To learn how to get started with FW Gallery, review Getting started documentation page.  If you have media content and FW Gallery in place, it takes around one hour to build the same website. The overall process for creating such a website looks as follows:

1. Prepare media content - photos and videos grouped by services.
2. Install FW Gallery to present your services with a clean design.
3. Create required galleries to show service categories and different types of products inside them.
4. Display all images to show services with their pricing, description and related products.
5. Configure the slideshow module to create the atmosphere for each section and/or promote products/services.
6. Configure the latest module to show related products for sale.

Check out our Hair salon guide for more details on configuring Hair salon showcase. Let’s, review the showcase page by page in the sections below.

Page with Salon Services Directions

If you are offering different kinds of salon services at one place, you need to create a page with multiple galleries. Each gallery will represent a specific service direction, for example, manicure, cosmetology, hair design, etc. However, if you are offering a specific service, you can skip this step.
We have created a Beauty industry page to showcase different beauty industry directions. The hair salon showcase is realized via galleries view. Each gallery on this page represents a particular direction of the beauty industry.

Salon services directions

Here you can see the following elements:  

1. Title of the parent gallery. We have created a Beauty industry parent gallery.  If you are creating a website for a beauty salon offering different services at one place, there should be a title of the beauty salon.
2. Description of the parent gallery. The description conveys general information about gallery content. We have provided general information about the beauty industry directions here. You can insert a mission of your beauty salon here.
3. Subgallery. In our showcase, the subgallery represents a specific beauty industry direction. However, you can use a subgallery for each particular service type offered at your beauty salon.
4. Subgallery video preview. Preview cover is an effective promotion tool. We have placed a video on the preview cover of the hair salon gallery to add more dynamics to the page. But there is a possibility to use the image as gallery preview cover.  You can use both types on preview covers for different galleries on one page to make it look more entertaining.
5. Subgallery title. We have specified the title of the showcase here. You can specify the type of services offered at your salon.  
6. Subgallery description. We have placed general information about services offered at the hair salon. You can also specify some general information about each service type or its price.

Page with Service Types

This page is a show window of the hair salon. It should be eye-catching and clearly laid out with an informative text message, logo, images, etc. It represents different types of services offered at the hair salon. To show all service types on one page, we use galleries view - one gallery for a specific type of services.

Page with service types

Here you can see the following elements:  

1. Subgallery title. We have entered the title of the showcase here. You can specify the title of service direction.
2. Subgallery description.  Our subgallery description includes:

• Text description. Mission of the hair salon.
• Image. Logo of the hair salon.
• Slideshow module. The slideshow of services to ensure effective promotion.

Specify a general description of the services here. You can also place different elements into the description area of the gallery, just as we did.

3. Subgalleries of the Hair salon subgallery. Each subgallery represents the type of service offered at the hair salon.  Use subgalleries for all types of services you offer for a specific direction.
4. Subgallery image preview cover. We have used images as preview covers for the types of hair salon services. However, you can set either video or image preview covers for the subgalleries on this page. It depends on your media content and vision.
5. Subgallery title. We have specified the title of the haircut here. You can specify the type of services offered at your salon.  
6. Subgalley description.  We have specified an approximate price for a service type here. You can specify what’s included in the services and/or its price.

Page with Hairstyles

This page displays a lookbook of hairstyles done at the hair salon. It is realized via gallery view. The gallery view allows to show beautiful images of the hairstyles. It also provides a reference to the hair care products sold at the hair salon.

Hairstyles lookbook

Here you can see the following elements:

1. Subgallery title. We have specified the title of the service here.
2. Suggallery description. We have used this area for service description and its price.
3. Images included to the gallery. These are the images of hairstyles. You can display the images of looks you have created for your customers.
4. Images titles. We have specified the titles of the hairstyles and their prices here. You can specify the title of the look achieved using your services.

Page with a Single Hairstyle

On this page, we can see a strong association between a single hairstyle and hair care products sold at the hair salon. The page is implemented via a single image view. Single image view provides a detailed view of the product/service you are offering. It also allows to provide more details about the service/product through the elements outlined below.

1. Image title. We have specified the title of the hairstyle here. You can specify the title of the look here.
2. Ratings. Ratings encourage the activity of registered users. We use star ratings, but you can choose between stars, hearts or thumbs.
3. Image section. This section displays the image of the hairstyle. You can display a look achieved using your services.
4. Image description. Except for the hairstyle text description, we have added the latest module with hair care products to create a dependable line between the product and service. You can use the description the same way to provide additional information for a single image view.
5. Slider. The slider allows to access the gallery with other hairstyles right by clicking the image within the slider, without going to the upper level. Use the slider to showcase other looks included to the gallery and simplify navigation.

Creating such a great website with FW Gallery is not difficult at all. If you like the concept of the website, you can create a similar one with your own hands. We have clearly outlined all steps required for creating such a website in our Hair salon guide. Should you have any problems while configuring the website, feel free to ask questions in the comments section at the bottom of the documentation page.

Based on our customers’ requests and trends research in the Joomla sites development, we have improved the product for both site administrators and visitors. Version 4.8.0 contains numerous design and and functionality updates making our product more flexible and configurable to any taste.

So, first things first.

New design for galleries and files by default. This allows you to make your work with an admin panel of the site even more convenient and productive. Previous default design is still available as Classic option. In total FW Gallery has 5 design options and customer can switch designs in gloabal settings or individually on a menu item via Options tab.

Detailed layout for for every design. Each design has its own display style for galleries and files, which can be selected in accordance with a gallery purpose. Depending on a design selected and fields display chosen selected design will remain consistent.

Combined Galleries and Single Gallery menu layouts to avoid further confusion. Now there is only one Gallery Layout which can show top level galleries in no galleries is selected.

Information display customization option for galleries and files. This allows to optimize your work with albums of a specific gallery and single files. The following options are available:

• display gallery information under thumbnail or over it on hover;
• display file information under thumbnail or over it on hover;

Individual layout selection for a menu item on the site:

• grid selection - the number of objects in the bar and on the page can be set for the site menu item;
• global settings of galleries and images can be redefined for the site menu item;
• gallery can be set by selecting multiple galleries per one menu item.

An option to create a gallery by selecting tags assigned to single files. This approach saves a lot of time by the fact that the pictures do not need to be added again or moved between folders manually.

A new layout for one file with a other gallery files slider. Files slider also is available on Lightbox and  can be turned off if it is not useful for the purposes of a site.

The ability to view files in a Lightbox rather than on an individual page. This allows the user to take fewer actions and receive information faster without waiting for the new page loading and without creating new tabs.

Improved design and display settings for the Slideshow module. The admin panel design has become visually more pleasant, and the module design itself has been updated (thus, the slideshow option has changed, the opportunity to add the image name, the date has appeared).

Optimized the design and display settings for the Content Plugin, which allows you to work more efficiently with images in articles (adjust the image position to the text, customize the galleries inside the article).

Updated Google Images (old Picasa) Import plugin. We renamed it into the Google Images Import Plugin and added the possibility to download images from both the Gmail account and the Picasa account.

... and many manu more. Please read the Changelog on top of  FW Gallery Grand products page for the full updates list and read FW Gallery Documentation to see how new features work.

It's time to try the updated gallery!

In this release, we have focused on the Booking form design. We have also implemented a set of updates and bugfixes. Let’s review all the changes below:

1. New Booking form design. We have improved the design of the Booking form to make it more understandable and user-friendly. The form has been divided into several separate sections and highlighted with blue color for better visual presentation and positive user experience.
2. New plugin parameter Deposit HTML Description. We have added  Deposit HTML Description parameter to the Booking form. Now if you have specific deposit terms you can specify them via this parameter.
3. New plugin parameter Insurance HTML Description. We have added Insurance HTML Description parameter to the Booking form. Now if you have specific insurance terms you can specify them via this parameter.
4. Optional Font Awesome load parameter. This parameter allows/blocks font Awesome uploading. Set this parameter depending on whether font Awesome is included in the template or not.
5. Language constants review and translation fix. We have updatedlanguage files to fix some missing translations.
6. All calculated parameters are visible on the Booking form. We have made all calculations transparent for you.
7. Rental values get recalculated. Now as the user changes the dates the values get recalculated.
8. Active pricing layer is highlighted. We have highlighted the active layer in the pricing section with blue color to bring more clarity to the price calculation.

Get familiar with FW VirtueMart Rental documentation to find more information about FW VirtueMart Rental. Please use the comments section at the bottom of each documentation page to comment and suggest improvements that will make the product experience better.

Fastw3b team is happy to present our new corporate website with a new design and numerous features for better user experience and comfort work with Joomla! extensions and services. Among the others we want to highlight documentation, product page, client section, overall design and mobile version.

Documentation

There were requests for a more comprehensive documentation and we can now respond to them. Check out totally new solution with detailed description for every product we offer on our website. Most of the products contain more that one extension. Every item is documented as a configuration process, starting from basic aspects up to advanced features. We added a tree-like contents menu and a search bar for easier navigation. Ask a question form and review buttons were added to make documentation update and development an interactive process with a feedback loop.

Product Page

As our products evolve we needed a cleaner presentation for packages we provide with their main features, translations available and items included. We regrouped some information in the header to provide product key information in one place, and added atmospheric background to emphasize screenshots slideshow. To show our appreciation for JED reviews, some of you published, we decided to add review section and extend it with new posts along the way.

Client Section

Customer care has always been our priority. Client Section is the main tool for our customers to keep a track of extensions and services progress as well as to get support in case of need. All communication goes through this section and we did our best to make every page of this area clean and intuitive. We completely reworked brief profile information and combined it with a side menu. We bet you will like it.

Design

New concept was supposed to be a slight redesign of a previous version. But what started as a small change turned into much bigger update with every new page design. After new concept was born a fresh look at existing pages gave us even more ideas and eventually we needed to stop adding new changes and implement what we had already. Take your time to browse through pages and explore all new things we added to our corporate website.

Mobile Version

Smartphone screens are getting bigger and share of mobile browsing goes up. Even using responsive Bootstrap 4 framework we did extensive testing on mobile screens to make sure new design looks as good as on desktops.

With new version launched we still find little things find here and there and continue improvements of our new website. If you find something that doesn't look nice or you have an idea how it can be implemented better, please, don't hesitate to share it with us via client section support or simply by clicking Customer Care button at the bottom. At the same time if you just want to share your feedback feel free to write via Support section in your account or social networks.

FW Gallery 5.0.0 is a major release focused on the new component architecture. It serves as a basic model for all subsequent FW Gallery releases and works as a single platform with a set of add-ons that are allocated into two packages corresponding to the former Light and Grand versions. Add-ons are FW Gallery specific Joomla extensions (modules, plugins, data type, and design).

The first package (former Light version) includes the component with a  limited number of add-ons and second package (former Grand) includes the component with all available add-ons. Earlier there were separate structures and databases for Light and Grand versions, now FW Gallery has the same structure and database and comes in two packages.

FW Gallery v5.0.0 represents a transition point to the main platform (main component) with independent add-ons. Soon, all add-ons will be independent of the platform. Consequently, you will be able to choose as many add-ons as you like to create a gallery with a desired set of functionalities.

Critical Steps to upgrade

As a result of the structural change, make sure to follow the recommendations below:

• Upgrade to the latest major v4.x.x version before upgrading to v5.0.0.

Feel free to ask for installation file using General question form of your Client section on fastw3b.com.

• Note that when a basic package (former Light) is updated, it is NOT installed over the previous Light version. For that reason, along with FW Gallery Light, you will see FW Gallery component next to it in the Components dropdown. When an extended package (former Grand) is updated, it is installed over the previous Grand version. For that reason, you will see a familiar FW Gallery menu item within Components dropdown. This comes as a result of the structural change outlined above.
• Make sure to import your gallery data to the new FW Gallery.

Go to your Dashboard in Admin panel and find green Import data on top. Import functionality allows importing all galleries and files to a new FW Gallery.

• Revise your layouts on front-end for both Grand and Light versions.

Make sure you select correct layouts for all FW Gallery menu items after the extension is installed.

• Revise gallery settings on the front-end for both Grand and Light versions.

As now gallery settings moved from Menu item parameters to gallery settings (Admin Panel -> Galleries -> Edit), you will need to set all settings again to have it all working if you had any specific settings on particular menu items. Global settings will get imported though.

• Please note that downgrade from version 5.x.x to 4.x.x is NOT possible.

Please use our Documentation section and Ticket Support on fastw3b.com if you need more information on upgrade and a new release.

Changes in FW Gallery that may affect current layouts and settings

Along with the component structure, we have implemented a lot of valuable and helpful changes. Let’s take a look at them below:

• Add-ons section.


All add-ons are displayed and managed via this section. Make sure they are activated to ensure that all needed functionalities are up and running. 

Reference materials: New FW Gallery concept: platform with add-ons article.

• Gallery display settings moved to gallery level.


Now gallery settings are available at the gallery level, not menu item level. Just locate your gallery settings and switch to the Design tab to configure multiple display settings for galleries, gallery listing, and files/file listing. 

• Gallery settings priority.


Gallery settings priority has been changed. Now local gallery settings have priority over parent settings while parent settings have priority over global configuration.

• Configuration section. 


We have redesigned Configuration section. There are 4 tabs available:

• General. You can set image sizes, watermark, gallery designs, date format, and comments via this section.

• Galleries. All settings associated with galleries are set via this section.

• Files. All settings associated with files are set via this section.

• Add-ons. All settings of the activated add-ons hit this section.


• FW Gallery plugin instead of FW Gallery Content Plugin.

FW Gallery Content Plugin was limited to articles only. A new FW Gallery module allows inserting galleries and files anywhere on your website via different module positions or within the articles as well. The gallery within the module can be customized just like any other gallery. Thus, you can set design, grids, files rows, etc.  

Reference materials: How do you put a module inside an article 

• Data Management section.

Use this section for backing up and restoring your gallery data before every update or as a tool to prevent data loss. This section is also used for all import procedures. Thus, Facebook, Instagram, and Google import settings are located in this section.

Need more information on the topic?

Get familiar with How to migrate to FW Gallery 5.0.0 tutorial to find more information about upgrading procedure.

Please use the comments section at the bottom of each documentation page to comment and suggest improvements that will make the product experience better.

If you need more information on the topic, use Support page in Client section on fastw3b.com. Feel free to submit your feedback on our new concept and architecture using Suggest an Idea form. Use General Question or other forms to get more information on the topic.

The new FW Gallery is a feature-rich component with many new powerful solutions. Now it is an entirely new component with grids, designs, file info display effects, and on hover effects independent from each other. The additional features such as video display, import/export functionality, tags functionality, etc. are implemented via Add-ons (FW Gallery specific functional extensions, data types and designs) allocated in its own section in Admin Panel. 

The new FW Gallery has become more flexible, attractive, and easy to use. Let’s take a look at top 10 innovations.

Gallery display settings moved to gallery level

Earlier galleries display settings could be configured at menu item level or in global settings. It caused inability to differently configure multiple galleries assigned to one and the same menu item. Now all gallery display settings are configured at gallery level or in global settings. In other words, each gallery can be configured individually even though being assigned to one and the same menu item. There is a certain secession in settings priority. Local settings have priority over parent settings while parent settings have priority over global configuration.

Documentation reference: Gallery settings.

Add-ons enhancing FW Gallery capabilities

All advanced functionality is re-designed via a straightforward and user-friendly add-ons concept. FW Gallery capabilities can be enhanced via multiple add-ons installed on top of the main component. All add-ons are managed from one place, the Add-ons section. If the add-on is enabled, its configuration section appears in the Add-ons tab of the global configuration section. Each add-on has its banner, icon, and configuration.

Reference materials: New FW Gallery concept: platform with add-ons article.

6 designs

Galleries can be styled with 6 responsive and elegant designs. Starting from a standard built-in Bootstrap design that is available for free you can get 5 more coming as separate add-ons - Fancy, Palaloid, Beauty, Classic, and Pinterest.

Each design has been revised and enhanced. Design settings apply to grids and gallery/file info display settings. All extra designs can be configured either at gallery level or in global gallery settings.

4 grids

FW Gallery grids offer many ways for showcasing your galleries. Now grids are independent from designs. Galleries (categories) view can be assigned a Standard grid only while files listing view may be assigned either of 4 grids:

• Standard. Classic gallery grid placing images in a conventional way.

• Justified grid. Automatically balances images of different sizes horizontally to form a seamless and attractive gallery grid.

• Waterfall. A fluid and dynamic grid arranging images of different height vertically. Couples perfectly with infinite scroll via Ajax pagination.

• Custom grid. Allows displaying multiple images of different sizes around enlarged image.


7 gallery/file info display options

There is a choice of 7 gallery/file info display positions coming as a built-in feature within a free package. It is a simple way to add an interesting appeal to your gallery based website. Gallery info and files info options work independently from each other. For example, the top-level gallery may have Top gallery info display position while its images listing may have Over slide up file info display position.

2 on hover effects and video autoplay

Reveal a thumbnail image in creative ways when being hovered. Now Ken Burns and Enlarge image on hover effects are available as separate settings independent from designs settings. This is a built-in feature coming within a free package. The effects can be set at both gallery and global settings levels as well as applied to the gallery and file listing thumbnails. For video files, video autoplay is applied. Thus, a video is automatically played on hover animating your galleries and attracting visitors’ attention.

Each gallery can be styled individually

Since gallery settings moved to the gallery level, you can set a specific configuration for each gallery displayed on the same page. For example, a top-level gallery may have Fancy design, Justified grid, and gallery description placed at the top while its child gallery may be styled with Classic design, Standard grid, and bottom gallery description. At the same time, the other gallery on the same page may have Pinterest design, Custom grid, and left gallery description at the top level and Polaroids design, Waterfall grid, and hidden gallery description at the child level.

Carousel module is back

Carousel module adds an advanced carousel slider on your gallery pages. The module settings let you choose a gallery and number of images to be displayed,  hide scroll buttons, place it horizontally or vertically on your gallery pages, and many more.

FW Gallery module is a new enhanced FW Gallery Content Plugin

Now you can insert galleries and files anywhere on your website via different module positions or within the articles as well as customize them to your taste just as any other gallery. For example, configure the design, grid, file info, on hover effects, and many more. FW Gallery module is an advanced prototype of the former Content plugin.

Instagram photos and videos import

Now your website gallery can be synchronized with your Instagram gallery using Instagram Import. The add-on allows to easily display your Instagram videos, photos, and posts on your gallery website.

Reference materials: 

• Importing Instagram content to Joomla website with FW Gallery article 
• Instagram Import documentation page.

The new FW Gallery is a powerful solution for gallery websites. The previous structure remained unchanged for years, so we made this revolutionary move that had been nursed during all these years. Now it is implemented. If our customers encounter some issues while working with the product, we hope they will raise them in their bug reports via the Client section. Help us to improve by sharing your experience with our new product. Feel free to submit your feedback on our new concept and architecture using Suggest an Idea form in your client section.

Get familiar with FW Gallery documentation to find more information about our product. Please use the comments section at the bottom of each documentation page to comment and suggest improvements that will make the product experience better.