Gentelella v2.1.0 - jQuery-Free Core

[puikinsh]

Gentelella Admin Template v2.1.0

Enhancement Release - jQuery-Free Core System & Brand Refresh

This release brings significant modernization to Gentelella's core system, introducing a completely jQuery-free implementation for essential functionality while maintaining full backward compatibility. The focus is on performance, modern JavaScript practices, and improved developer experience.

🎯 Key Highlights

jQuery-Free Core System

• Complete modernization of main-core.js with vanilla JavaScript
• New DOM utilities library providing jQuery-like API without dependencies
• Dynamic module loading with intelligent caching and performance monitoring
• Loading states and visual indicators for enhanced user experience

Modern Favicon Implementation

• SVG-first approach ensuring crisp display on all devices
• Complete favicon suite: SVG, ICO, Apple Touch Icon, Android Chrome icons
• PWA-ready with web app manifest
• Brand-consistent design using the template's signature colors

Production-Ready Improvements

• Clean console output with development-only debugging
• Perfect vertical alignment of navigation elements
• Enhanced error handling and recovery
• Streamlined codebase with reduced development artifacts

📦 What's New

Core System Enhancements

• Modern DOM Utilities (src/utils/dom-modern.js)

  • Complete jQuery replacement for DOM manipulation
  • Slide animations, fade effects, event handling
  • Consistent API across the entire codebase

• Enhanced Module Loading

  • Performance monitoring and statistics
  • Intelligent caching system
  • Visual loading indicators
  • Robust error boundaries

UI/UX Improvements

• Navigation Perfection

  • Pixel-perfect vertical centering of user profile and notifications
  • Improved responsive behavior on mobile devices
  • Enhanced touch interaction support

• Visual Consistency

  • Brand-aligned favicon across all platforms
  • Improved spacing and alignment throughout interface
  • Modern loading states for better user feedback

Developer Experience

• Clean Production Code

  • Removed verbose console logs
  • Development-only debugging wrapped in environment checks
  • Professional error handling

• Modern JavaScript

  • ES6+ features throughout
  • Async/await for asynchronous operations
  • Modern event handling patterns

🔧 Technical Details

File Changes

• src/main-core.js - Completely modernized with jQuery-free implementation
• src/utils/dom-modern.js - New comprehensive DOM utilities library
• src/js/init-modern.js - Updated initialization with modern patterns
• src/js/sidebar-modern.js - Enhanced sidebar functionality
• production/images/favicon.* - Complete favicon suite
• production/site.webmanifest - PWA manifest configuration

Performance Metrics

• Core bundle remains at 79KB (unchanged)
• Zero jQuery dependencies in core system
• Faster initialization with modern JavaScript
• Improved animation performance with CSS transitions

🚀 Migration Guide

For Existing Users

No breaking changes! Your existing code will continue to work. The jQuery-free system runs alongside existing jQuery code, allowing gradual migration.

Using Modern DOM Utilities

// Old jQuery way
$('.element').slideUp();

// New modern way
DOM.slideUp(DOM.select('.element'));

Dynamic Module Loading

// Load modules with visual feedback
if (document.querySelector('.chart-container')) {
  const charts = await loadModule('charts');
}

📝 Bug Fixes

• Fixed loadModule reference errors when using main-minimal.js
• Resolved favicon display issues in legacy browsers
• Corrected navigation element positioning and alignment
• Eliminated development console noise in production builds

🔄 Dependencies

No new dependencies added. All improvements use native browser APIs and existing libraries.

📊 Browser Support

• Modern browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)
• Progressive enhancement for older browsers
• Full mobile browser support (iOS Safari, Chrome Mobile)

🙏 Acknowledgments

Thanks to all contributors and users who provided feedback for this release. Special thanks to the community for patience during the modernization process.

📥 Installation

New Installation

git clone https://github.com/puikinsh/gentelella.git
cd gentelella
npm install
npm run dev

Upgrading from 2.0.0

git pull origin master
npm install
npm run build

🐛 Known Issues

None at this time. Please report any issues on our GitHub repository.

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This discussion was created from the release Gentelella v2.1.0 - jQuery-Free Core.