I guess it is no big secret that I like to work with CMS systems? Originating out of the world of databases, it is my world and I more than once ended up in tweaking data directly within the database,

Working since years with Mambo and Joomla now, I was more or less happy with it all the time. The core system and updates always worked painless and the only hassle you had were coming along with third party software you had decided to add in yourself.

Now this has changed! Since the new version 1.5 for my feeling the overall quality has gone worse. I had a short glance looking into the Release Candidates and felt from the beginning just less impressed about them not offering much new.

The first Final Release 1.5 I also did put away very soon, to later on coming back to it with version 1.5.3 again.

At that time world seemed to be fine agan and I created an own site using it without having big trouble. I felt more and more happy about it again, as for I was able to fix all issues, you for sure have with any new version ending up with a result I was happy about.

Now recently the Joomla team proudly announce a new update version 1.5.4, which I directly installed on a test site a few days ago (happily just there!).

And I directly found issues by only opening the frontpage directly after the upgrade was finished.

Ok I thought! You better go and check that first … But I ended up in recognising that some global setting which had already worked fine in 1.5.3 now just plainly get ignored in 1.5.4! Boys (and girls for sure) that sucks…..

Guess it’s finally time to look for something new now!!

We all know that captcha solutions are useful stuff at all. Lately I already wrote about that for my feelings I made too late effort to integrate them into my webpages reducing spam to a new and very appreciated minimum.

But now actually sitting about the relaunch of some of my own pages working with some newer version of the underlaying CMS, I was really shocked about seeing there is still no integral captcha solution within the core module. But the more I was impressed about it needed me hours to find out about how to integrate available 3rd  party solutions instead (Mainly because of their poor documentation).

Sure! Now I can say I did it myself and feel happy about I run something others can’t. But considering about my first rough start with this new CMS version and me now right coming out of my corner again feeling more happy about working with it and the results I made recently with it, this seems to be a real weakness of it again.

Things which are usefully and more or less state of the art today …. should be just there!! Shouldn’t they?! :-| 

I’ve finally survived my dentist session yesterday . Yeah!!

Even the preparation for the new dental crown, I will get soon as a replacement for an older filling, did take a bit over an hour, it wasn’t too bad at the end. Knowing us now for years we even ended up joking with each other and I guess we made the young dentist helper lady blushing a few time.

NO! Not what you are thinking about now … Nope!!
Just unfortunately I’m not really sure about as for it was me being treated and not able to look after.

But perhaps more important, I gave this resting Joomla template work I mentioned earlier here a new try and I have the feeling that within the last 2 days I was able to fix most things about it now though.

I might go and tell an older friend I have about. Discussing such things with him, he always comes up with the ultimate wisdom … “There is nothing getting better about resting software projects or delayed jobs” … Sure he is right with that!

But sometimes it is you needing the rest and some distraction in between.

Having now passed half of this friday today and nearly at the end of an overall stressful week, it is nice to recognise that the little things made the difference keeping my mood up this week.

Again dealing with a customer from hell, there was something new to deal with every 5 minutes all week long, trying to make no mistake and planning and acting carefully not offering any possible weakness for sure.

But as mentioned, the small things like getting a brand new car to drive with from dealer when I brought in my own car for service without any charge for it made the difference for me. And there is also the fact that I survived this dentist visit yesterday without problems or me being stubborn in some situation turned out into some success for me … or that I was able to help someone friendly when being asked for advise and finally that I made some progress with this nasty and buggy new Joomla 1.5 (it is not that you couldn’t work with, it just needs lots of little workarounds to fix things again!).

So yeah! At the end a normal week … Nothing to complain about!

Recently I got in contact with a friendly Canadian talking and sitting about the also recently published new Joomla Version 1.5. Even I’m in general a big fan of this free CMS system, I have to say that I’m more or less disappointed about that new “as stable” offered Version 1.5 available for general download.

The Installation completed like a charm. Easily installed and started the new Admin Interface offers a very nice, clean, well arranged and likely look … but thats it at the end. The Migration Assistant did nearly immediately show me the white flag, telling me about some serious trouble occured. And even after porting the content my own, the new version surprised with several severe issues.

The new legacy mode is far away from doing it’s job and the frontend login problems finally made me stopping all experiments to port an old Version 1.1 site into this new version. As it looks for me, those guys have to do an extra loop for quality insurance issues, even the new published interims Version 1.5.1 wasn’t able to fix.

Hi Guys! I’m still with you and appreciate and like your work …. It is just that I will now wait a bit before I start again with Joomla Version 1.5.