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Free Plugin by Matt Martz v3.0.3.10.2

Shadowbox JS

Shadowbox is an online media vieiwing application similar to Lightbox and Thickbox but with more functionality. Supports all types of media.

Shadowbox JS

The facts

Rating
4.6★ from 9
Active installs
1k+
Price
Free
Last updated
28 Nov 2017
Added
Feb 2008
Requires WP
3.3
Tested up to
WP 3.4.2
Downloads
534,422

Our analysis

AI-assisted

Shadowbox JS is a WordPress plugin that allows you to display various media types in a lightbox format without redirecting users from the current page. It supports popular media formats like images, videos, and audio, and is designed to work with major browsers. The plugin is highly customizable and can serve as a drop-in replacement for existing lightbox solutions.

The plugin requires users to download additional files after installation and is not compatible with the Thesis theme. It is suitable for website authors looking to enhance media presentation on their sites using a straightforward setup.

Best for: Website authors looking to improve media display on their WordPress sites.

What it does well

  • Supports multiple media formats including images and videos
  • Highly customizable using JavaScript and CSS
  • Can replace existing lightbox solutions without editing posts

Where it falls short

  • Requires additional file downloads after installation
  • Not supported with the Thesis theme
  • Limited support options

Verdict

Shadowbox JS offers a simple solution for displaying media in a lightbox format, but users should be aware of its limitations regarding support and compatibility.

From the developer

Matt Martz's own description of Shadowbox JS, lightly tidied.

Shadowbox is an online media viewing application that supports all of the web’s most popular media publishing formats. Shadowbox is written entirely in JavaScript and CSS and is highly customizable. Using Shadowbox, website authors can display a wide assortment of media in all major browsers without navigating users away from the linking page.

This plugin uses Shadowbox written by Michael J. I. Jackson.

Javascript libraries supported are: None, YUI, Prototype, jQuery and MooTools. Prototype and jQuery are used from the Javascript libraries included with WordPress, YUI is loaded from Yahoo APIs and Mootools is loaded from Google APIs.

This plugin can also be used as a drop in lightbox replacement, without requiring you to edit posts already using lightbox.

By default this plugin will use Shadowbox for all image links, movie links, audio links and YouTube/Google Video links including those generated by the [gallery] shortcode.

Shadowbox is licensed under the terms of the Shadowbox.js License. This license grants personal, non-commercial users the right to use Shadowbox without paying a fee. It also provides an option for users who wish to use Shadowbox for commercial purposes. You are encouraged to review the terms of the license before using Shadowbox. If you would like to use Shadowbox for commercial purposes, you can purchase a license from http://www.shadowbox-js.com/.

This plugin also makes use of the JW FLV Player. JW FLV Player is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. If you would like to use JW FLV Player for commercial purposes, you can purchase a license from https://www.longtailvideo.com/players/order2.

Neither Shadowbox nor the JW FLV Player are actually included in this plugin. The plugin will ask you to download these files after installation and activation.

Please use the Shadowbox JS support forum for problems or questions with this plugin. Support questions will be ignored if left as comments on my site, through my contact form or by email. The only supported location for support questions is https://wordpress.org/tags/shadowbox-js.

This plugin is absolutely not supported when used in combination with the Thesis theme. Please do not ask for support if you are using such a configuration.

Upgrade

  1. Use the plugin updater in WordPress or…
  2. Deactivate the Shadowbox JS plugin
  3. Delete the previous shadowbox-js folder from the /wp-content/plugins/ directory
  4. Upload the new shadowbox-js folder to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory
  5. Activate the Shadowbox JS plugin
  6. Visit the settings page in the WordPress admin at Settings -> Shadowbox JS and install the required dependencies if needed

Usage

  1. By default this plugin will add the activator attribute to all image links, movie links, audio links and YouTube/Google Video links that do not already have the activator attribute. Meaning basically, by default all images in the posts on your site will automatically be displayed using Shadowbox.

If you want more fine grain control over the links continue with the next steps. If not then stop here.

1. Create a link in your post in the following format (This link can be to pretty much anything including websites, video files, YouTube, Google Video and inline content):

Read the full description on the official page →

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