Integration and Localization
We have been working hard this month performing some updates to the ePanel Theme Options page, as well as continuing to integrate the new options into my older themes. As of today ePanel has been added to 6 new themes, including eGallery, GrungeMag, Influx, StudioBlue, WhosWho and InterPhase. These themes have also been fully localized, which means every theme using ePanel can also be easily translated using WordPress' MO and Po files. There are only a few more themes to go, so after the next batch release all themes will be officially up to date! In addition to integrations, we have also udpated ePanel with new functionality and some much improved code structure.
ePanel Updates
1. Better, More Organized Code – While many of you wont notice this change, a lot of work has been done "behind the scenes" to organize the option's code. This should make things much easily for developers to understand. In addition, we have completely separated ePanel into its own subfolder and set of files, and given it its own version number. This means that future updates can be made to ePanel alone, without obstructing any changes/customizations you have made to your theme.
2. Ajax Saver – To make things more convenient, we have updated the options page with an ajax saver. This means that whenever you save your settings, the page will not refresh and you will not loose your current position within ePanel.
3. WordPress 2.9 Thumbnail Integration – All themes have been updated to take advantage of the thumbnail feature added in 2.9. You can now use the "Thumbnail" box on the right of the post editor to upload and choose your thumbnail image. This is a good option for those looking to bypass the timthumb.php script previously used to resize the thumbnail images. You can still choose to use the thumbnail custom field as before, or enable "grab the first post image." It's up to you!
4. Minor Tweaks and Bug Fixes – Many minor tweaks and bug fixes have been made. I wont list them all, but its safe to say we are always scouring the support forum and implementing fixes whenever a bug occurs. With the isolation of ePanel, future bug fixes and tweaks will be all the easier to perform.
While I am a designer at heart, I also recognize the importance of functionality. I will always strive to strike a balance between creating beautifully looking themes and beautifully functional themes! Speaking of beautifuly themes…we already have 3 new themes in the works, so stay tuned on Twitter and Facebook for more info!
