Helix Ultimate release candidate (RC) arrives - JoomShaper

Helix Ultimate release candidate (RC) arrives

25 January 2018
Hits 13,373
4 min read
Helix Ultimate release candidate (RC) arrives

Howdy, everyone? I hope everything is great. To make your time more exciting, today we are releasing the RC (release candidate) version of Helix Ultimate. We are approaching towards the stable release at a good pace. Lots of final touches are being made by our development team. To get your valuable feedback and suggestions, today we’re releasing Helix Ultimate RC. Let’s see what’s inside.

Helix Ultimate release candidate brings a bunch of new features and several improvements in the other brand new features that we’ve introduced in its initial alpha release.

The full changelog is given below:

  • Ajax rating (new feature)
  • Header variations (new feature)
  • Offcanvas Menu position left or right (new feature)
  • Badge in menu items (new feature)
  • Maintenance mode (new feature)
  • Bootstrap 4 stable included
  • Override for com content, search, smart search, user, user profile, and contact form
  • SCSS to CSS compilation bug fixed
  • Blog options known issues fixed, features and layouts improved
  • Coming Soon, and Error page bugs fixed

Header variations

Helix Ultimate release candidate (RC) arrives

Figure: Helix Ultimate header variations.

In the initial alpha release, we promised that we will add header variations to Helix Ultimate. Now you can experience this in today’s RC version. We’ve added 2 header variations to enrich the scope and versatility of the sites powered by Helix Ultimate.

Maintenance mode

Helix Ultimate release candidate (RC) arrives

Figure: Helix Ultimate maintenance mode.

This new feature will enable you to display a maintenance mode page (e.g. under maintenance, coming soon, site offline or so on) on the frontend of your site. You can customize this page per your needs. A maintenance mode page is required when you want to keep the site temporarily unavailable from the public (basically while performing a crucial system maintenance). Helix Ultimate RC brings dedicated customizable pages for this. 

Badge in menu items

You thought of highlighting your most important menu item(s) redirecting to a special page, service, product, announcement but never had the opportunity to do so on your site? With Helix Ultimate RC and onwards, we're giving you the system to highlight your menu items with badges.

bagde in menu

Ajax rating

We’ve added Ajax rating feature to the Helix Ultimate RC version (which was not available in its alpha and beta versions). Using this feature, you can enable your visitors to rate website contents in a glimpse of an eye without reloading the page. Helix Ultimate’s Ajax rating feature is bolstered with Joomla CSRF Token for enhanced security. Cross Site Request Forgery (CSRF) is a known type of malicious exploit for websites where attackers can use a third-party site to trick a user and perform different malicious actions without the user’s knowledge. With CSRF attack, a logged-in Joomla superuser could be tricked to visit a link that can remove his/her site’s articles/users, manipulate the database etc. Helix Ultimate has a protection against this.

Rescheduled release timeline

We are receiving lots of feedback and suggestions to make Helix Ultimate much more functional, stable, and accessibility-friendly. All of these would take a bit more time than our previous estimation. We are now considering to take a few more days in testing and furnishing Helix Ultimate. We will release the Helix Ultimate stable version in February 15, 2018. 

So, now we are only a single step away from the stable release of Helix Ultimate. Please test this RC version on your experimental sites (e.g. localhost), and share your feedback with us for making further improvements. Happy developing!

System requirements

  • Joomla 3.8
  • PHP 5.6 or more
  • Fresh Joomla installation

Don't use Helix Ultimate RC version in any of your live sites. Install it only with a fresh Joomla instance.

Release timeline

Take Helix ultimate RC to a test drive now

Arafat Bin Sultan

Arafat Bin Sultan

Arafat is a tech-enthusiast with a keen interest in space, photography, and video making.
H
Hjalte
6 years ago
Great work guys, can't wait for stable release ! :)

- spelling error in Compress Javascript Files combine all : = avascript
- think you should add © {year} in copyright, or atleast tell users in the note below they can add {year}

Paul Frankowski
Paul Frankowski
6 years ago
ad 1) Opsss. We were all blind.
ad 2) It will be there in stable, also as short note in documentation.
Big thanks.
G
gmgroup
6 years ago
It's already included in the template/features/footer.php
Just put {year} in copyright field
pepperstreet
pepperstreet
6 years ago
Thank you – I'm really glad you have a delayed the release! Honestly, I could not find or test any "ultimate" feature in Helix4 alpha/beta yet. Actually, everything felt like Helix3... except for the AJAX frontend display. Which is not to my liking at all: The limited space in the the sidebar is not user-friendly. I don't see any benefit for a frontend feature. I guess the framework is for template styles and module positions only, so it won't get any further functionality that is used or changed on a frequent basis... In most cases template params and positions are planned in an early state of the site creation, it's not something you have to have access in the frontend.
Enough moaning for now ;) ... I will have another look and try.
A
abdul_12345
6 years ago
This is a fantastic development. Cant wait for the stable release.

However, it will be great to consider adding the possibility to add a badge to "feature" in your SP Page Builder :)

Well done Guys...
Paul Frankowski
Paul Frankowski
6 years ago
Thanks. I remember your forum post, hahah. :D;)
G
gmgroup
6 years ago
Please replace 31 string in contact.php
$output .= '
  • ' . $this->params->get('contact_phone') . '
  • ';
    with the
    $output .= '
  • ' . $this->params->get('contact_phone') . '
  • ';
    to remove ")", "(" and "-" symbols from the phonenumber
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    thanks, I will send this suggestion to our team.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    How do I make the "Main Body" section appear on the screen's width (Desktop)? When I enable the "Fluid Width" option in the parameters of this section, nothing happens. Please check and respond.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    What is the purpose of the small dark gray button in the "Coming Soon Mode" section just under the date? When I press this button, it is highlighted and nothing else happens.
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    small issue. we noticed as well.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    Will this be fixed?
    G
    Giannis
    6 years ago
    Hi!
    Did you manage to include the fixed sidebar menu?
    Thanks for your great work!
    S
    StartMeUP
    6 years ago
    Yes please, a fixed sidebar vertical menu
    Shayan Davoodi
    Shayan Davoodi
    6 years ago
    Ammmmmmazing :D Please implement rich snippets markup for the new rating system ( [url="https://developers.google.com/search/docs/data-types/review"]Rating and review structured data markup[/url]).
    JR
    John Ridgway
    5 years ago
    I agree, the lack of Rich Snippets with votes is really unfortunate.

    I've had to remove code because I don't want ot turn off voting (another plugin) and the HUltimate vote/social links on/off button does not work
    Shayan Davoodi
    Shayan Davoodi
    6 years ago
    Also please make Helix ultimate framework more search engine friendly by an even better usage of HTML5 semantic eg.
    ,
    W
    wccweb
    6 years ago
    Hi,
    Section Background image in Layout Builder is still (for me anyway) not working - the issue is the same as that raised for the beta release. Am I missing something or is it actually still broken?

    Thanks
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    2nd, it will be fixed in stable
    W
    wccweb
    6 years ago
    Thanks.

    FYI - I have also noticed other instabilities in the Layout Builder i.e. using Custom Classes (I tried to force the background this way). they do not attach at section level and if applied to an element with a section trigger a raft of errors, mostly pointing to class not found or similar.

    Hope this helps with your efforts
    Cheers
    LT
    Lorin Tui
    6 years ago
    I guess it does not stay like this on the left side with the preview. I guess this is only an option if you want to preview or not. It is very cramped, hard to follow and set. Custom code is too small to track code lines. Some screens switch to responsive mode due to left widths. I would like to keep the old layout, improved design, and include the new options. You can choose with preview or no preview. I would also like to have the option to add position modules above and below the component, would be of great help. I hope you keep in mind these suggestions. Good luck.
    D
    dan
    6 years ago
    hi
    i cant find position for above and below component area!
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    I cannot too :( Let's have hope.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    Can you make it so that you can add modular positions inside the componen (right and left inside the component)t?
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    Not planned, I don't think it's even possible.
    But you can use SP Page Builder component with customized layout.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    It seems to me that before releasing a stable version of Helix Ultimate (at least one week before release) you need to release RC version 2 to make sure that there are no unnoticed problems.
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    We will see, beside we have trusted users for tests.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    Will shortcodes be added?
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    What kind of?
    If those known from Helix II , I don't think so.
    L
    lukmankc
    6 years ago
    what about the vertical menu?
    what is available in this release
    P
    posmtime
    6 years ago
    Downloaded to run tests, very happy with this release. Thank you! :)
    A
    Arkadiy
    6 years ago
    Thanks, good work!
    Tell me how to remove Gravatar in the blog?
    Igors
    Igors
    6 years ago
    Hi do you plan to add google structured data (microformat) votes to ajax rating? It would be nice to have that option? Thanks
    R
    Rickard19
    6 years ago
    Hello,

    I love what you guys are going/doing with the development of Helix Ultimate. I was wondering if you're going to be adding any more options such as:

    Menu Animation - In some of your demo's, when you mouse over a menu link. There is an animation that shows an underline underneath. Then when you click on the link and the page is active the underline stays. Could an option be added to choose an animation effect on the main menu?

    Preview with different devices - I've noticed with your demo's that you can choose to see how your demo's will look on different devices from desktops to mobile. Could this be incorporated into Helix Ultimate? I think it would be a useful tool. I mean you're already giving us the ability to see how the site will look while making changes, why not :).

    Presets - I noticed that there is one preset color with all the releases. Will there be an option to possibly add additional presets? Like in some demo's you have different colors for presets. Can something like this be added in Helix Ultimate?

    Layout Builder - Could an option be added to either disable/hide a section? I see the option is there on Page Builder 3.0 to disable a section. I think it would be helpful to have to see how live site would look with/without a section before deciding on to delete.

    Thank you for your time and consideration.
    M
    Mackie
    6 years ago
    I support the previous post. Good ideas!
    B
    Bubamara
    6 years ago
    It would be nice to be able to hide the Header, i.e. have the function of disabling its display, and not just the choice of displaying Header with the Top Block or without it.
    Bob Bishop
    Bob Bishop
    6 years ago
    are you going to above and below component module areas?
    A
    Anil
    6 years ago
    Dear friends,

    I am testing Helix4 RC on wampserver 3.1, PHP 7.1.9, Joomla 3.8.3. My observations are as under,
    1. Megamenu is shown as dropdown menu. I have congugered my main menu properly, In "Helix Megamenu Option", megamenu is shown properly. But in front end megamenu is shown dropdown menu.

    2. In Template layout, header layout is predefined. I cant't customise as per my requirement.

    Kindly do the needful.

    With best regards,
    Anil V. Chaudhary
    stq74
    stq74
    6 years ago
    Hello,

    nice job, but still this problem of size of title and subtitle that we can not choose in title. By default, this is a h2 and h3, you could not insert a choice that would go from

    to

    and you can choose the size.

    [img]https://globuleweb.com/docs/Capture.png[/img]

    Because starting a page by h2 ... it's not the top ...

    Thank you
    B
    Bubamara
    6 years ago
    Sorry, did not see right away. There is a button opposite the "Predfined Headers", which disables the Headers. I would of course add another picture with an empty block, for clarity, but also so well, and you are great fellows.
    J
    joomleb
    6 years ago
    Hi guys,
    feature suggestments, Basic > [b]Social Icons[/b]:

    As far as I understand, this Social Icons solution have a lot of preinstalled fields, a lot of preinstalled code (not Raw) and with just the possibility to add an extra Icon, just one (too Limited).
    In my opinion you have yet a powerful very Raw solution, would be like for Wrapper / Blocks solution:
    [b]A[/b] - one "Custom Field" and, with the possibility to add as many as "Custom Fields" (Icons) we need
    [b]B[/b] - Drag and Drop the "Custom Fields" to ordening the Icons positions.

    You can leave also all the preinstalled, but have a way to establish the position and a way to add more than one Custom field is really "a need" !
    I'm sure also advanced users will like too much those features that "simplied the life".
    Paul Frankowski
    Paul Frankowski
    6 years ago
    Thanks, as we talked, I added your request into intranet dashboard.
    J
    joomleb
    6 years ago
    Red it, many thanks for attention!
    J
    joomleb
    6 years ago
    Hi guys,
    feature adjustment "request" on stable release:

    Paul explained me that the Navigation > Animation > [b]Off canvas Animation selector[/b] has been removed to keep Helix Ultimate as Raw as possible.

    At least, I'd like it to be the [b]"Slide Rigth"[/b][b][/b] as [b]default[/b][b][/b] pre-installed Animation. Why? Because is the most [i]Material Design[/i] like effect.
    The "Slide Right" slides the offcanvas menu above the content, and not moves the content on the left (or on the right)... take a look to any applications by google...
    J
    joomleb
    6 years ago
    Hi guys,
    I think the template future (present) is represented by templates adopting "[b]Material Design[/b]".
    This is why I post here as Feature Request to adopt, to integrate, in Helix Ultimate all the Material Design [url="https://material.io/guidelines/"]guidelines[/url] and [url="https://material.io/components/"]components[/url] as possible

    Many Thanks for the attention
    porscha
    porscha
    6 years ago
    Hello,

    I'm testing with PHP 7.2 and this warning showed up:

    Warning: count(): Parameter must be an array or an object that implements Countable in /home/public_html/site/plugins/system/helixultimate/core/helixultimate.php on line 655
    Nayem Majhar
    Nayem Majhar
    6 years ago
    Thanks for report. Helix Ultimate Stable will run with PHP 7.2 smoothly.
    D
    darius
    6 years ago
    I'm starting a really important project, and i can't wait till Feb 15
    Will i be able to upgrade from RC to stable version when it comes out? Should i start my project development now? Thank you for your answer.
    Nayem Majhar
    Nayem Majhar
    6 years ago
    Yes. You will be able.
    Malaquias
    Malaquias
    6 years ago
    I'm starting a really important project, and i can't wait till Feb 15
    Will i be able to upgrade from RC to stable version when it comes out? Should i start my project development now? Thank you for your answer.
    Need Know about....
    Paco Guio
    Paco Guio
    6 years ago
    One thing that falyta in joomla in general is a comment component, this is something that for you would be very easy to implement in helix by default and would differentiate a lot from the competition at the same time that it would help us a lot not to have the comments externally. Thank you
    pepperstreet
    pepperstreet
    6 years ago
    Hello, some things I have noticed:
    [b]AJAX Rating[/b] – Can't find it in RC1 ?
    [b]Blog Options[/b] – Frontend edit has many visual issues; Gallery upload does not work at all, the upload button kicks me out of edit mode. Versioning button, too.
    SN
    Siam Naulak
    6 years ago
    Can't wait for stable version...

    Is "Fluid Width" option removed in Header?

    https://imgur.com/a/gmBoe
    porscha
    porscha
    6 years ago
    Hello guys! :)
    I have a question: in Helix Ultimate 1.0 Beta there was an option to build the Header from the Layout Builder with was perfect. But now in Helix Ultimate RC you have removed this option and now you have only Predefined Headers which is not flexible at all. Can you revert to the previous option when one can build the header from the layout builder. Thank you and I will wait for your response.
    LB
    Leo Baker
    6 years ago
    When using this template Helix r1.0 Ultimate with ACYMAILING component/plugin, if you go to components>Acymailing> then go to users or newsletters, list. If you try and edit, copy delte from the toolbar you get an error to "Please make a selection".
    C
    Cornelius
    6 years ago
    A small feature I would also love to see is the option to add more than just one custom social icon.
    For instance on most gaming sites I am creating, I would need Twitch and Discord. So I am forced to overwrite atleast one icon myself in the code.
    Maybe an add button (+) for mutliple social icons and either a dropdown menu with the presets or text field for custom icons.
    Nayem Majhar
    Nayem Majhar
    6 years ago
    Sorry. It will not added. You can add your own item. Thanks
    Y
    yaser
    6 years ago
    Why does not the helix ultimate support RTL ?
    Nayem Majhar
    Nayem Majhar
    6 years ago
    Sure. Helix Ultimate will add RTL support.
    porscha
    porscha
    6 years ago
    One more thing we need - the Layout builder should have the option for custom columns, not only the preset 14 column layouts (12, 6+6, 4+4+4, etc). It should have the option to create limitless column layouts, per example if one wants to have 12 columns in a row, one should have the option to add the custom layout. Same as on Helix 3.
    Nayem Majhar
    Nayem Majhar
    6 years ago
    You can use custom layout options. thanks
    SC
    Shari Chambers
    6 years ago
    Hello! Im using RC Helix and latest Page Builder - Front end editing does not work. I get a 404 error.

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