Not so much time passed since Joomla 2.5 was announced. Lots of sites have already migrated to this version, and more are going to do that. It's no wonder because Joomla 2.5 looks very promising with many innovations and important features implemented. We do think it has big potential.

Joomla team released a first update v2.5.1, it is a security release. This is a weighty argument even for sceptics to move their sites to the new Joomla.

We are happy to announce RAXO module update that totally supports Joomla 2.5. Starting with this release the module name changes from RAXO All-mode PRO J1.7 to RAXO All-mode PRO J2.5.

We do this according to Joomla CMS development strategy. Joomla 1.7 support is officially over on February 24, 2012, which is quite in the near future.

Welcome to RAXO All-mode PRO J2.5 and its new capabilities.

New features:

• Intro & Full article images supported
  Full support for new Joomla! 2.5 fields "Intro Image" and "Full Article Image";
• Original image ALT & TITLE attributes for thumbnails
  Module grabs original image attributes to create SEO friendly thumbnails;
• Added new parameters for using in templates
  image_src, image_alt, image_title;
• Spanish localization

Improved:

• Completely made over image retrieval algorithm.
  Now it is faster and more consistent;
• Module description appearance right after installation is fixed;
• Some code improvements.

For full information about all changes see in our CHANGELOG.

How to Update?
Information about how to update your RAXO All-mode PRO J1.7 module can be found in this INSTRUCTION on our Support Forum.We strongly recommend everyone to make a full backup of your site files and database before new version installation.

Full support for Joomla! 2.5 article images

Joomla 2.5 presented a new way to add images to your articles through additional fields. This is of interest to content creators for sites that need a simple, consistent content layouts but not a full featured CCK.

RAXO All-mode PRO J2.5 has full support for these new fields:

• Intro Image, Intro Image Alt Text, Intro Image Caption
• Full Article Image, Full Article Image Alt Text, Full Article Image Caption

Thumbnail Source

We added a new parameter to the module administration panel:

• Joomla intro image (J2.5)
  The module uses images only from Joomla 2.5 Intro Image field.
• Joomla full article image (J2.5)
  The module uses images only from Joomla 2.5 Full Article Image field.
• First image from article text
  The module uses the first image found in article body.
• Automatic selection
  This is an awesome option which allows you to display thumbnails no matter where the original image is. Automatic Selection checks all the sources in the order as in the list above, and creates thumbnails from the first find.
• If none images are found, the module shows default image.

As you can see, the new module version RAXO All-mode PRO J2.5 makes thumbnail output very flexible. Let's imaging the following situation: you have several categories on your site, and each of the categories has its own image settings, different from the others. Even in these conditions RAXO news module easily handles the task and displays your news/content with thumbnails from all the categories.

Thumbnails Inherit Original Image ALT and TITLE Attributes

Alt and Title attributes play an important role in site search engine optimisation (SEO). It is common knowledge which is often neglected.

Alt attribute is used to specify alternative information that should be shown if an image is missing, or cannot be downloaded. Also it is very important for SEO because it describes your images to search engine and when a user searches for a certain image this is a key determining factor for a match.

Title attribute plays a less important role in SEO, but it is beneficial for site visitors as this text automatically pops-up when mouse is over the image.

This news module version has full support for ALT and TITLE attributes. The module will always generate SEO friendly thumbnails if you specify ALT and TITLE attributes for your images.

New template parameters

There are three more fields added to the list of fields you can use in module templates: $item->image_src, $item->image_alt, $item->image_title.

These news fields let you work with original image attributes when adjusting or creating your own templates. For instance, you can create image caption or link to original image from thumbnail, etc.

Update is Free for Our Clients
Clients who purchased RAXO All-mode PRO J1.7/J1.6 get this update by email. We start delivering the new version immediately. Please, be patient, everyone will get it within several days. Don't forget to check your email (including spam folder).