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We can confidently say that “GEO Radius Search is the most comprehensive GEO mapping and navigation solution for Joomla CMS.” Come experience the unmatched power of the ZOO cck framework, linking to the rich features of Google maps and our unique Radius Search and results display engine. You can now deliver flexible and expandable GEO enabled web applications with the Joomla CMS that is only limited by your imagination.
This release has been a major achievement for us with a complete redesign of the code, bug fixes, performance enhancements and more.
GREAT NEWS! GEO Radius Search is featured on the new Joomla Resource Directory found at:http://resources.joomla.org.
The GEO Radius Search Extension was chosen as a key navigation tool for the new Joomla Resource Directory because it offered the ideal navigation process for what was lacking in the former system. Users can now quickly connect to categorized providers both on the map view or in organized search results.
How can we help you achieve greater success?
We are committed to helping you be successful with your Joomla implementation and use of our GEO Radius Search extensions. With most of the compatibility issues behind us we can develop version 3 without distraction and you should also find us more responsive to tickets in our support system.
Remember, extension specific support with your active subscription is free but if you have more complex or incompatibility issues or general problems with your Joomla site, need to upgrade or require custom solutions our team is also available to provide hourly project and technical support.
Thanks to our worldwide user base we have collected diverse use cases to make this release of 2.5.5 the most stable and feature rich release yet. In addition to several new user driven features and a lot of tweaks and bug fixes, we have upgraded our migration script for legacy users to help them upgrade and migrate to the latest versions of Joomla.
Everyone should plan to upgrade to the Joomla CMS v3 series.
GEO Radius Search works best with the latest versions of Joomla, ZOO and the ZL Framework. When you are upgrading to the latest Joomla 3.x it is important that you also upgrade your installation of ZOO and if you are using the ZL Framework and ZOOlanders extensions you also need to make sure all of these are updated to the latest versions. One of our new features is a version verification to help make this process easy for you.
Note for upgrading ZOO: We have found that to avoid problems with repopulating field elements in ZOO do not update sample data. Some folks have lost configuration settings and this adds more work that can be avoided.
New Features in GEO Radius Search 2.5.5:
Core code was optimized significantly for performance, scalability and future enhancements
Installation files reduce in size for faster download and installs
Updated auto fill libraries for improved accuracy
Added measurement type front end selector (Miles or Kilometers) for international applications
Version checker for ZOO to verify and test for version compatibility
Enable disable that front end measurement selector on individual models
New css for results grid and items display
Improved mobile support – better display on more mobile devices
Improved support for ZL Framework (Zoolanders)
Improved migration script for ZooRadius to GEO Radius
Improved Cache management
Added Google Maps api4 support
Increased default number of lines in scrolling lists (will be parameter setting in the future)
New Pop-ups for Print and email options
Updated Cluster Libraries for info box lables
Bug fixes:
Fixed amount of columns and items per page selectors
Fixed bug related to bad formatting inside results popup when using Zoolanders
Fixed an error message that sometimes showed on that results popup
Fixed map display tab options
Fixed issue with duplicate address listings not displaying markers – created marker offset
Fixed map subscribe from filter issue for module linking
Fixed Auto fill feature
Fixed Map Display Image feature for overlays
Resolved drag and drop conflict in results templates (Requires latest version of ZL Framework)
Fixed maker not auto closing in map when repositioning
Design changes:
Removed next / prev buttons from results page when there are no results
Feature Roadmap for future Releases:
Improved user interface options and style manager –
parameters for resizing map
Radius indicators
Distance indicators
Icon Libraries – some internal and links to collections
Improved documentation and help text in the UI.
Admin options for advanced category level management
Parameters for selecting the number of allowed sub categories
Options for how sub categories are handled beyond set max level
Support for JomSocial events and profiles
Compatability:
Version 3.x:
Remember if you have an idea for a new feature we welcome your suggestions and will do our best to accommodate these as supported features in a future release or we can build custom solutions for you.
Joomla has taken a few lumps over the last couple years and briefly lost a little of it’s dominance in the marketplace of open source CMS systems. However, even though its growth slowed a bit there has been steady growth in market share and many new web sites coming to market using the Joomla CMS. In fact Joomla just reached 50 million downloads with the highest numbers proportionately for the latest release of the J3.x series. Joomla has never lost its position as the second most popular but rivals (I say that lightly) like WordPress, have seen a more significant boost in growth over the past two years. As to why, I think there are a lot of factors contributing but take note that Joomla is gearing up to seriously gain some forward momentum. Like any organization that has gone through growing pains the true survivors actually find a way to come out stronger in the end.
New leaders and getting better organized
The cool thing I am noticing with Joomla right now is that there is a vibrant and energized spirit among the community and new leaders have come in to carry the torch as others shift within the community to support other initiatives. This is opening the door for some new ideas and many opportunities for the community to reorganize. Joomla is well poised right now to attract more participation from a greater number of talented folks. There is a whole business minded side of the community that is emerging and this is inspiring the same level of synergy that has gone into building smart code and features to not only the “Joomla CMS” but the “Joomla framework” as well. The Joomla Framework is a powerful tool suite for rapid application development which has tremendous potential for the future of the Joomla brand. I think new leadership in Joomla is fully aware that they need to do more than build great software. They need to reconnect to the emotion and passion that has always inspired innovation to do great things and they need to do this across a diverse organization, inclusive of smart business savvy and against the backdrop of a strategic marketing plan.
Hanging on against great adversaries with tons of money
It is impressive to me that Joomla has been up against some serious contenders with deep pockets , yet has managed to maintain a strong hold and continued growth in the marketplace. Of the top three, Joomla is the “last one standing” as a community not held up in part by a well-funded commercial organization. Joomla, has recently done a lot to poise itself for meeting the challenges in the marketplace. In addition to building teams around marketing initiatives and defining better overall strategies and organizational structures they are rethinking and redesigning many aspects of their portals and communication processes to streamline efficiency. There is plenty of debate right now about if Joomla should align with either a commercial organization or take on paid staff for key roles. I kind of sit on the fence over these ideas because both sides of the argument seem to make logical sense. In any case Joomla is on the path to find what will work best for them to remain a relevant technology with a rich future.
Building a commercial arm for Joomla
One of the initiatives that I think is going to help boost the Joomla economy and engage a commercial arm of the community is bringing the service providers together. This has huge potential if they can find new ways to collaborate and cooperate on finding and nurturing business opportunities and new partnerships. If businesses are able to have more opportunities to build Joomla sites there will be more users and market share. If end users work with providers they have a greater chance of success. If providers can build partnerships they can do more for their clients and thus be able to help strengthen the capabilities of the Joomla community to “Do More”. Joomla has a thriving ecosystem and an extremely fun and talented bunch of folks to do business with. Joomla will gain serious market momentum if it can build their brand identity globally to mirror their popularity in Europe where folks say “Whom can I get to help me build my Joomla site” vs an Americana type approach were they would say “I need a web site what should I “Whom can I get help me with my web site.”
Introducing the NEW Joomla Resources Directory (JRD) – “Connect and Do More”
I am particularly excited that I have been involved in revamping the Joomla Resources Directory portal for the project http://resources.joomla.org. Along with a team of enthusiastic volunteers we have built an improved web space for end users to connect with “Registered Providers” whom are committed to the Joomla community. This means better service and support and better results overall for everyone.
The previous system while a good effort was lacking. So the new system has taken these lessons learned and added features to make it a better user experience for those searching for Registered Providers and the process for signing up to be a provider is significantly easier. The key element that will stand out other than an interesting GEO map navigation from our own GEO Radius Search extension is the whole “Connect and Do More…” badge concept introduced by our creative Director Fred Sarhadi. This badge concept models that of the Better Business Bureau where every provider is held to a strict standard of conducting business with ethical integrity and a strong commitment to the values of the Joomla Community. This whole repository has potential to grow into or at least encourage a consortium of like-minded businesses to partner on a variety of initiatives. There is room for taking on campaigns that could only be carried out by commercial minded group. If Joomla choses to remain without an official commercial entity or paid staff to back it this grouping of committed providers could be the next best thing. In the mean-time end users have a great resource to “Connect and Do More” with a Registered Joomla Provider. Let’s see what happens.
Blue skys ahead for Joomla 3.x
Joomla 3.3 is just around the corner (April 22nd planned release date) and this all leads up to a Joomla 3.5 long term release. Joomla is just getting better on so many levels. The J3.3 Do More release is perhaps the most stable and secure of all releases in the history of Joomla. It dramatically improves security, offers metadata for dominating SEO potential and has great new tools to further empower developers. Each of the 3.x releases so far has introduced extremely valuable and useful features for every user type. In fact did you know that Joomla was the first major open source CMS to introduce 2 Factor Authentication and Bootstrap libraries into their core. Take a look at some of the highlights: http://www.joomla.org/3. If you combined this great new software with an ever evolving enthusiastic and better organized global community, ”KODOS!” Joomla! you really have something to be proud of!
Rally the troops, get on the bandwagon, line up your ducks, fasten your seat belts and get ready to Rock-n-Roll folks there is a great ride ahead!
Joomla 1.0 was good, Joomla 1.5 was better, Joomla 2.5 was great but Joomla 3.x is FANTASTIC!
Febraury 11th is “Safer Internet Day” as declared by the UK based organization www.saferinternet.org.uk. We need to change our mindset about security and cival librties. In this fast paced high tech world we live in today everyone seems to want everything faster and cheaper and security seems to be one of the biggest areas neglected in the value chain. That is until you get violated.
Here are some real world threats and 10 things you can do to make a difference:
Examples like the recent Target Stores estimating nearly 70+ million credit cards were compromised, numerous identity theft cases in the news and the information that folks like Edward Snowden have exposed. Did you know the NSA and just about any crafty hacker with a purpose can completely access any of your electronic devices including turning on your cell phone/laptop mikes or cameras without you even knowing it? This in my mind can make interacting with cyber space much scarier than the “Wild Wild West” ever was.
I recently found a collection of interesting videos recorded at the Chaos Communication Congress held this past December over in Germany. While many of these were extremely geek oriented and some so intense they left my head spinning, I did learn more about some mind blowing challenges in the security and civil liberties space we all should be aware of.
Most folks seem to have followed the newsbytes about the “Edward Snowden Case” but few realize the real information he shared, what it exposed and what this really means.
If you take a few minutes poking through this stuff you will most likely see a picture you may not have considered in the past.
Be aware, take steps to yourself and never assume
Back in 2000, while working on a military base for the Naval Underwarter Warefare Center (NUWC), I was one of the first to play with tunneling through port 80 using Flash Communication Server. Imagine a spy being able to broadcast secrets anywhere over the internet directly from within a military base or any highly secure facility. I exposed a major whole in their firewall security that their IT experts had no clue about. Why? Because at the time it was new emerging technology and they were looking at security from the perspective of what they learned in school not what was emerging on the street. We are in a similar boat today where even though we may have some of the smartest folks and high-tech tools helping us to protect our cyber assets there are no guarantees. There are plenty of folks with techniques, motive and knowhow out there waiting to blindside us and steal our money or most valuable secrets. Remember for all of the groovy new tools that we now have for doing good and making things convenient online there are equally as many advancements in tools that could be used against us. Being aware of the potential vulnerability you have by interacting with these new technologies is the first step and it may require a little more effort than in the past given the proliferation of technology all around us.
The end of “Social Security” has a double meaning on the web
Having worked on military bases and secure facilities for 5 years, where security is ingrained in our heads to be a disciplined process we all had to follow, I was eager to jump back into the private sector where I thought things could be a little more lax. I could not have been further from the truth. It is just as important for us in our personal lives and business practices to keep a strong focus on security. We lock the doors to our cars and houses but often we do not consider potential access to much more valuable stuff kept on our electronic devices.
I went on Youtube yesterday and found 15 videos on how to hack any facebook account and login as any user. By now most people know that when you put information up on Facebook “they” then own it and “they” have very loose “Non” privacy rules. However, these networks while fun and exciting as they may be, open us to leaving our guards down. It is way too easy for folks with motives to put together complete pictures of your life from small pieces of information and use it in ways that they could take advantage of.
Having many friends in the security community, over the years, I have been exposed to some intense tools hackers use to get “their way” online. Though, I was curious to see what would be out there for the average person other than typical antivirus software. I started searching for tools to protect all of my personal devices and networks etc.
This search ended up scaring me even more since, I found very few tools that an average user can use to fight off the bad guys. Remember, (thanks to Edward Snoden) we know now that there have been backdoors built into the actual chips on most hardware built in the past 5+ years. It was pointed out to me that aniti-virus and anti-spyware software cannot protect you from access of the craftiest hackers and they can operate in stealth. I found more, easy to follow tutorials on things like “man in the middle” attacks where someone hacks your wireless router and can spy on everything you do on your desk top. I also found services that allow you to spy on anyone with a cell phone.http://www.flexispy.com/ andhttp://www.mobile-spy.com/. If you really start thinking about it and look deeper there is a lot to be concerned with for your business, your family and personal privacy.
Keep your CMS Up to date!
Businesses are rushing to the internet since it has the potential to make them more competitive in a global marketplace and they can now reach broader audiences. There are three dominate open source Content Management systems in the market place, Joomla, Drupal and Wordpress. Each of these CMS’s has best use cases and strengths for a variety of online solutions. Our experience has taught us that the number one way folks leave themselves vulnerable online is by not keeping their web applications up to date. Remember, technologies are advancing at a rapid pace. How many of you keep the same cell phone or laptop for more than 2 years? Software development is moving at an even faster pace than hardware and this means not only are there more great features that you can take advantage of by upgrading your CMS but the longer you wait to do so the more time hackers have to try to break the older technologies.
One thing that is very fascinating to me is that in the “hacker community” or on the “dark web”, once one person figures out some type of vulnerability; they spread it across a vast network of web hackers that have the potential to do a lot of damage long before there is even a fix available.
One of the reasons we chose to focus our support for Joomla is because there is such a vast development community they can respond to security patches quickly and Joomla puts security as their top priority. In fact, the latest version of Joomla even offers double authentication just like many back sites will send you a security code that is only good for a short period so it is nearly impossible to hack your login. Equally important as keeping your CMS up to date is to understand the infrastructure and security policies of your hosting company. If you are the owner of any site and you get hacked and this leads to any one’s personal information to be compromised, not only can they shut you down immediately but they will hold you liable for all damages. This about that for a moment and if 70 million folks can get hacked on Targets network what would happen if they got into the cloud where your site was hosted and that was the origin of a massif hack? Not a pretty picture.
Oh My G… What can I do?
Ok enough with the scary stuff and on to some practical options for protecting yourself. As you begin thinking more security conscious you need to identify what information, communications and technical assets you want to protect and to keep private. Once you have a clear picture of your security landscape, you may find these tips and tools helpful.
1. Be AWARE and stay in the loop. Subscribe to RSS feeds, newsletters or information channels that can keep you informed on what threats are out there.
2. Seek advice from experts. If you run a business online or off audit your systems on a regular basis. Build a support team that can be proactive and responsive when it comes to security. Network security is often different than online web security and make sure you have all of the right expertise on your team.
3. Develop a security emergency protocol for how to respond to various situations both personal and for your business networks or web sites. Keep call lists and information available that can help you respond quickly. If a pipe breaks in your house the longer it goes with the water running the more damage that can be done.
4. Surf on a TOR browser to protect your privacy. There is an interesting open source project called the TOR networkhttps://www.torproject.org/. This web site has a collection of privacy tools and suggestions for setting up things like encrypted emails.
8. Use strong passwords and keep your private passwords protected in a tool like Keepasshttp://keepass.info/ There are also several other online services to research.
10. Get involved with organizations, events and resources groups that foster safety and security online such as http://www.saferinternet.org.uk/ Notice: Feb, 11th 2014 is Safer Internet Day. There are plenty more… go find them and speak up!
There are a ton of other steps you can and should take as well as many more tools or books and blogs to investigate. The most important thing you can do though is to always think consciously about security. Start developing new habits and discipline yourself to be more aware of how you can protective of your privacy and technology assets.
Leadership in an open source community; what does it mean and how can you check and balance within a fluid ever changing passionate volunteer environment?
Recently at the Joomla World Conference I had the privilege to listen to a presentation from Matt Mullenweg, a co-founder and leader in the WordPress movement, on their journey in building their open source community. Their success and story is quite similar and inspiring. Interacting with so many folks over the three days of the conference (http://conference.joomla.org) and seeing the similarities within these two diverse communities made me ask many questions around what is and should encompass leadership within volunteer driven communities.
The Four Freedoms
Several of the points made in Matt's presentation were around "The Four Freedoms" and it is important for new comers and veterans to remind ourselves that we need to keep them as the backdrop and guidance on our journey interacting within the communities that we chose to associate ourselves with or become involved in.
A program is free software if the program's users have the four essential freedoms:
· The freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0).
· The freedom to study how the program works, and change it so it does your computing as you wish (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
· The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor (freedom 2).
· The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others (freedom 3). By doing this you can give the whole community a chance to benefit from your changes. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
For guidance I am enjoying a great book right now called "The Art of community". There is even a conference held every year for leaders in like-minded communities to share ideas and gather insights.
So far I have noticed one of the things that comes to the forefront in every community as it evolves, especially volunteer driven communities, is the power struggles and personality conflicts. This can have a profound impact on moral and pace or process in which things can get accomplished. It can also divide your community into rival factions as was in part the case when Joomla broke off of the Mambo project. I think there are three key factors that need to be in place to maneuver around this gracefully.
1. Be able to stay focused on the mission and when things get out of hand bring everyone back on target and with enthusiasm (sometimes easier said than done). This means everyone at every level needs to dedicate themselves to bringing the focus back to a clear mission and purpose.
2. Leadership has to be aggressive in a way parallel to a pastor with a parish. Where they continue to nurture the spiritual health of the congregation. Whether it is an individual or teams or teams of teams every level of the leadership has to always be thinking of mending the conflicts and encouraging more participation around the central principles and mission. They need to go out of their way to be selfless and to thank the contributors regardless of how small the contribution.
3. I think a key element for maintaining "spark" in any community is to first attract the right talent in the right areas and then inspire them to participate. From there if the community is to grow you need to keep them inspired and challenged with the potential of even greater possibilities. Directing talent and enthusiasm into the areas of the project where individuals can get the greatest satisfaction and experience can bolster participation and a stronger healthier organization over a longer period of time.
Be Your Best and Always Try to do Better
At the end of the day when you take part in a community there is give and take and you have to be willing to always "be" or do your best, strive to get better, learn from your mistakes and to show the greatest level of respect and compassion for others.
It is ok to disagree because there is often sometimes an over democratic process. One has to try to not let the inner struggles of problem solving in this type of environment overwhelm you with frustration or even at times anger. This can often be the case when you have passionate opinionated people with different skills and approaches or backgrounds collaborating.
In an ever personal and high passion volunteer environment we are all bound to step on someone's toes or bum someone out at some point. There is an old saying. "The only way to have a friend is to be one." Sometimes we need to be uplifted by others and sometimes we need to give pep talks to encourage those around us when they become discouraged. That is how we can achieve great things as a community, by being there for each other. In a community we are all fiends trying to achieve common goals, be it for personal or business reasons. Let us never lose our excitement for these goals. I think this care and compassion for each other and passion for a common purpose is at the core of how any community thrives. On top of that we should have a good time doing so. We should never take the fun out of sharing in these experiences while making the world a better place.
I am passionate about Joomla and the open source movement in general. So to my original question, it would be my hope that leadership responsibility comes from all of us and from this place it should trickle from the "core across" as well as the bottom up or top down. "Know your place, know your stuff and be a mentor to those around you."
Leadership in an open source community; what does it mean and how can you check and balance within a fluid ever changing passionate volunteer environment?
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