Either somebody didn't pay the bill, or something funky is going on over at extensions.joomla.org We visit this page nearly daily and it's odd to see what's shown in the picture below.

Hopefully nothing bad is going on.

This is what ends up loading when we try reaching the URL http://extensions.joomla.org. 

In our ongoing journey of testing and deploying Joomla components of various types, we found the need to install a private message center on of our sites. If you're a web developer, then you know that certain extensions can turn into a real pain in the butt n terms of making everything work.

The other day I started to install a new Joomla Extension called "Phoca Gallery" as I'm faced with the problem of having a large library of photos which is residing in "Gallery 2". Where Gallery 2 on its own is a great piece of software, the integration with any Joomla site isn't completely seemless. Depending on the template you're using, bridges that are used to connect Joomla with Gallery 2 face the problems of conflicting scripts from templates, css integration etc.

I'm not shy to say that I'm an extension junkie. I realize that every extra functionality always comes with the risk of vulnerabilities, however I'm constantly trying to best fill the needs of my web visitors, so it make sense to keep looking for the extension I believe will best serve everyone.

Everyone has a different opinion on things, and I'm basing my judgment mainly on how well the extensions integrate into the site I'm building, and how well these extensions are managed from the front and back end.

I usually don't get too excited when software or web applications get updated but that's different in this case. Azrul Studios who are the makers of "MyBlog" and JomComment have just released the latest updates to these two great extensions.