We are pleased to announce major feature release of GPS Tools v4 beta1. Here is the short summary of the release.

This release is a major revamp of the entire code to meet the latest guidelines of Joomla API along with implementing many new features. There are certain features which may break existing functionality of the previous release however such changes are minimal. Here are the important features that are implemented in this release.

New routing system

GPS Tools router is now redesigned to follow SEO guidelines besides making it extremely customizable. Now the urls can be customized by creating for example category menu items. Menu items are now optional but will enable beautiful looking url structures if created. All existing urls will gracefully redirect to the new urls so that there will be no 404 errors. Also a permanently moved header is set for search engines to recognize the new urls.

Tags Migration

Tags are now moved to Joomla built-in tag system. A migration script is provided for smooth movement of tags to Joomla! tagging system.

Track Form Enhancements

Track creation is now made little more easier. location search will provide you the suggestions to find appropriate start, end and waypoint locations using Google Maps API. You can search and select desired locations. The map will automatically adjust to the selected locations. The form is made simple so that even novice users can easily create the tracks.

Back-end Track Creation

The most requested feature is now available, you can create tracks from backend itself with the same level of ease and comfort. Most of the options which are otherwise not accessible on front-end, can be customized from the backend form. 

Track Data Enhancements

Now the tracks will no more cache the JavaScript codes in cache files, instead they will generate on the fly and only required maps/chart data is stored in the cache files. This will enable you to dynamically switch the maps and chart options. For example you can switch from metre system to miles system without refreshing the cache files. Besides this, the less amount of data in cache files makes the track load faster. The track details page is also enhanced with less overhead so that it loads much faster than before.

Backend Enhancements

All pages on the backend are rewritten to provide many new functionalities to manage your tracks. Many new options are added on component/category/menu/track level to allow you to customize each part of the front-end component. We have consider very minor level of customizability to make the options more useful. For example, you can now customize the meter/mile system for speed, elevation and distances separately.

New Permission System

New permissions are added in this release which allow you to get more fine-grained control over how the users on front-end access the component. The permissions are also customizable both at category and track level.

New Layout System

GPS Tools now uses Joomla! JLayouts for all front-end pages which allows you to customize the templates very easily. Also two different layouts are provided with the component one for bootstrap2 based default template and other for bootstrap3 based template. You can also switch different color theme with just a click of a button.

One Click Updates

Last but not the least, the most convenient one-click update feature is now available on GPS Tools. You will no more need to download the component from corejoomla.com instead you will get notified about new releases and update directly on your website control panel. You need to have active membership along with downloadid updated in CjLib component for this to work.

The package is now available for download but we recommend you to use it for only testing purposes. We appreciate any bug reports which will enhance the stability of the product and we can bring the final version sooner. We appreciate your feedback and suggestions.