In our last post on improvements in Joomla 3.2 we covered how, when you’ve linked an article to a menu item, you can start editing it from within the menu item with the click of a button.
Today we’re going to look at another time-saver: the “Install From Web” option.
The (Good?) Old Days
Back in the days, when Joomla 1.5 and Joomla 3.1 ruled the Joomla World, there were only three ways to install a Joomla Extension:
- Install it by uploading the zip
- Upload it by using FTP and install from the folder
- Install the extension from an URL
While all these options have their uses, they still required a lot of work on your part.
- Find the installation in the JED or on Google
- Download the Installation
- Upload the installation (if that’s how you roll)
- Install the extension.
People were envious of WordPress’ fancy installer. And if they weren’t, they should have been. But with Joomla 3.2 we don’t have to be jealous any longer. We’ve got the new “Install From Web” option, and it’s awesome!
Where The Wild Apps Are
When you update to Joomla 3.2 and open your Extension Manager, you are offered to install the “Install From Add” plug-in. Upon doing so, a fourth tab will appear: “Install From Web.” When you open this tab, you will see the screen below.
The plug-in allows you to quickly search for extensions in the JED. You can search by categories like in the JED but you can also use the search option. For example, in the image above we searched for K2. You can see that the popular component K2 is displayed, along with related extensions.
But “Install From Web” isn’t just a fancy search tool. The name pretty much gives away the main attraction. Using the plug-in you can not only find extensions, but you can also install them on your website. This is an awesome feature that’ll make the life of many people easier. Need Kunena? *click*. Want K2 for CCK goodness? *click*. Of course you want your site to be back-upped on regular times. You search for Akeeba Backup Core. *click*
Not all extensions currently support the option to use “Install From Web”, in which case you are taken to the download page for the extension. While not “perfect” it still saves you some time as you don’t have to open another tab and head to the JED.
We are pretty excited about this new feature for Joomla 3.2. What #j32improvement are you excited about? Let us know in the comments.