K2 Blog First beta of K2 version 3 is here

Wow! What a ride!The first public beta release of K2 version 3 is finally here!It's been more than a year's work so far designing the application and actually building it, and now we're just a few months away from the final stable 3.0.0 release!This beta release is now available for testers and early adopters but it is NOT recommended for production websites. There are quite a few things to iron out (from parameter inheritance to frontend templates to the actual UI) and we'll use all the help we can get from your feedback in order to complete version 3.0.0.So where do I get this beta release of K2 v3? Head over to the temporary GitHub repo we created at https://github.com/joomlaworks/k2-v3-dev-build and simply download the "Master" branch - it's the icon on the right sidebar (slight bottom) - or simply click here: https://github.com/joomlaworks/k2-v3-dev-build/archive/master.zipSince this is is gonna be work in progress, the above link will always get you the latest updates we push to this GitHub repo.To report issues or recommend minor feature additions, we will consider those published here (and here only): https://github.com/joomlaworks/k2-v3-dev-build/issuesYour feedback on this beta release is very important to us!And remember: do not use on production websites! This release is work in progress and things may change before the final (stable) release is out in a couple of months.So what's in K2 v3 beta?First off, read what's coming in K2 version 3 here: https://getk2.org/blog/1792-k2-v268-released-whats-coming-in-v270-a-v3-updateThis beta includes:the re-written backend UI (which feels like a desktop app). This is the no.1 feature that sets apart version 3 from the current version 2 branch. It makes editing your content much faster, more flexible and overall more enjoyable. All lists can display in pagination or infinite scrolling mode.the item form now allows for multiple image galleries and media (embeds, video & audio files) to be insertedthe "Revisions" system is K2's take on content versioning - you can toggle it on and off in the K2 Settingsthe old K2 ACL used for frontend editing and comments is now fully integrated into Joomla's ACL - so you won't see the old "User Groups" menu entrythe new extra fields system is in place - we very little code you'll be able to craft your own extra fields and upload/share them in the future. The concept is to allow even non programmers to be able to create extra fields and programmatically extend K2's forms.the new extra fields system can now extend any content entity in K2 (items, categories, tags, users etc.). This pushes further the development of K2 extra fields by developers for simple tasks, while maintaining the K2 plugin API for more advanced control and integration with other components or web servicescloud storage options are in place (Amazon S3 and Microsoft Azure for now)uploading via dropbox is now possible for your content managersthe new re-ordering filter is our take on how content re-ordering should be done in the backendmore batch process actions added in both items and categoriesunlimited image creation options (we maintain a default of five dimensions so a migration is simpler for K2 v2.x) - create as many image copies of your uploaded K2 images for use in your sitefor items specifically (in the backend), you can view them in standard lists or a grid of imagesbetter and more consistent frontend views (templates) - more control overriding them tooquick inline editing in the frontend or full form editing for your content - a permanent but discrete "K2 content editing bar" is being worked on for the frontendunder the hood, K2 can now pick the best image processor on your server for your uploaded images and is not limited to PHP's GD library anymore. That means images will be produced in better clarity and smaller filesize if your server has Image Magick or Imagick installed (most servers do).the comments section in the frontend has been re-written to allow for pagination and comment additions without reloading the pagenew menu item option to search results (and a new "General" menu item type to use in conjunction with K2's Advanced SEF options)improved overall performance (frontend and backend)The quirks - or what's still worked on and may be missing or seem entirely broken:parts of the backend UI (new icons are coming too!)we're working on a "smart" activity indicator here so if something goes wrong (e.g. the server gets overloaded or stops responding) you'll know what happened. This will also work on item editing level so you don't miss your content if either the server or your connection suddenly goes down.finalize the responsive UI for the backend and frontend - you'll be able to use your desktop/laptop, tablet or smartphone to manage your content in K2the content parameters have not yet been finalized - a few things will be removed, some will be addedwe're considering a smart merging of all itemlist views (category, tag, user) with advanced grid layout options to provide even more content flexibilityimprovements in the JSON APIbetter backend dashboard modulesK2 content editing bar (see the previous section)finalize the migrator for K2 v2.x based sites to the new releaseA K2 Pro version is also on the way with additional features like:Import content from Tumblr, WordPress and Google's BloggerMore cloud storage optionsPremium image editing features within the K2 item form (crop, rotate, filter and more)Search engine service integrations - such 3rd party services can index your site's content much more efficiently compared to Joomla's search options. This translates to better (=more relevant) search results for your visitorsAdvanced content modulesA better notification system for the content editing process or for commentsMany more content editing related features to be announced in the futureWe'll also be introducing a K2 support package over at joomlaworks.net after September to help advanced or business users of K2 based Joomla websites get direct support from the K2 team.As already stated in previous blog posts, we plan to release the stable release of K2 version 3 around late September/early October 2014. Our aim is to offer a completely transparent upgrade process for existing K2 users, with full backwards compatibility for both your data and your template overrides. It's a tricky process but it's not rocket science. The K2 Pro release will come out by the end of 2014.All in all, your experience using K2 will greatly improve and your content managers will love the way content can now be managed within Joomla.P.S.a) Please note that K2 v3 has been written for Joomla 3.x only - if for some reason you cannot migrate to Joomla 3.x, then you can stick with K2 v2.x for now, which will be supported for quite some time even after Joomla 2.5 has reached its end of lifeb) K2 v2.7.0 is postponed for a couple of weeksc) Did we mention K2 is around 50k downloads from crossing the 2 million download milestone? Good times ahead!