Just Joomla

I've released the EZ Autos 6.1.0 package today which addresses some minor bugs with ordering vehicle listings using the vehicle make, problems with resetting the expiry date in the admin vehicle listings manager, a bug with one of the configuration settings which prevented listings from being saved if it was turned off, and to fix a couple of missing language tags as well as the make/model specifications section showing on the frontend when no specifications were defined.

New in the 6.1.0 version are a number of tax fields used by a couple of countries, and a new "additional charges" section in the data. I've added in some new configuration settings to enable switching off additional areas of data that may not be wanted, and this version has the new personal RSS feed for sellers - which was introduced into the last version of EZ Realty.

The PayPal payment plugin has been updated along with the payment processing code, and I've also updated the EZ Autos menu module, random listings module and slideshow module. I've packaged the updated payment plugin in with the EZ Autos component download too - so it now contains both the EZ Autos system plugin and the PayPal plugin in the one zip package.

Companion components to also have upgrades include the EZ Feeds component - which has some new code cleaning functions and other functions to convert dates, and the Auto Adverts component has had a couple of bugs fixed to address display of some template tags rather than blank lines when certain values were not being used.

During the work on this upgrade, I ran a set of tests with the jReviews system and updated the jReviews Everywhere files for EZ Autos, so you'll find they are now available for download from the plugins directory of the EZ Autos downloads area.

As usual - the download package contains a new installation package for use with the Joomla extension installer, and an upgrade package for use via FTP. If you're upgrading from an earlier 6x version of EZ Autos - you'll also need to upgrade your language files too - so don't forget to do this.

Doing an upgrade from an earlier EZ Autos 6.0x version is relatively easy, and the essential steps are as follows:-

Step 1

Backup your site's files and database. This is always the first thing to do, as you will need these in case something goes wrong and you need to restore your site

Step 2

FTP into your site - go to the Joomla root directory.

Step 3

unzip the com_autos_version#_upgrade.zip, and then browse the local file structure using your FTP program until you find the unzipped directory. Move into this and you'll see 2 directories called "administrator" and "components". Just check again in the FTP window for your server - you should also see directories by the same name in that window.

Step 4

upload the 2 directories using the FTP program, and when asked about overwriting existing files/directories - select yes. Make sure all of the files and directories have a successful upload indicator, because some server configurations may prevent the upload via FTP and that will result in a failed upgrade process.

Step 5

once the new files have been uploaded, log into the admin area and follow the "components"->"EZ Autos" menu link and you'll be into the EZ Autos admin cPanel. If everything has gone as it should - everything should continue to work normally, and you should see the new version number in the footer of EZ Autos.

Step 6

inside the com_ezautos_version#_upgrade.zip - you'll see a language directory - and that directory has the various EZ Autos language files. Upload the necessary language files to both the admin and frontend language directories of your Joomla site, remembering to upload the files to the relevant language sub-directory - eg. en-GB if using the english language.

As with any upgrade process - take your time to read the instructions, don't try an upgrade if you're tired or feeling pressured for time - and if you're uncertain about how to do it - drop by the helpdesk for some pre-upgrade assistance :-)