If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Bee Crafty + Genesis Theme package.

We are also very pleased to announce that the Bee Crafty theme is the second design to be released from our recommended designer Chris Ford – who has already designed a number of themes that will be made available in the near future here.

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Bee Crafty Child Theme:

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Expose + Genesis Theme package.

We are very happy to announce that the Expose child theme was developed to support custom header and custom background – two great features that have been added recently to WordPress.

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Expose Child Theme:

Alongside our wide variety of child themes, the primary intent of the Genesis Designer will be to provide users a way to quickly setup a blog or website without having to go into the code. Many bloggers simply want a basic theme which allows them to use organic WordPress functions such as custom header and custom background. This will provide them a simple way to customize the basic elements of their site – fonts, colors, etc.

A Few Things…

The Alpha version of Genesis Designer is in its infancy stage. We do intend on providing more options, but wanted to test the basic elements of the Genesis theme framework first. Once we have spent a period of time testing that, we will take it to the next level.

Also of note, the Alpha version currently outputs the CSS into the head of the source code. We realize that this isn’t the proper way to handle things, and this will certainly change. For testing purposes, it was easier to start this way, but I can assure you that the final product will be optimized and done right.

We’d Love Your Feedback…

If you would like to provide feedback on the Genesis Designer theme or report a bug, feel free to leave a comment here on the post. We’d like to thank you in advance for your time while testing the Alpha version.

Lastly, for those of you curious folks – the Genesis Designer child theme will be freely available to anyone who has purchased Genesis or a combination of Genesis and a child theme.

Below is a screenshot of the Design Settings page:

Genesis v1.3 Security Audit

With all of the security issues that are occurring in the web publishing world these days, we knew it was crucial to ensure that Genesis was as secure as possible. So we contacted Mark Jaquith once again to perform an up-to-date security audit.

From Mark Jaquith, WordPress Lead Developer:

“StudioPress reached out to me to do a security review before Genesis was even released, and I did another review for Genesis 1.3. They were very responsive to my suggestions, and the result is a theme framework that follows all the WordPress security best practices. It’s clear StudioPress made security a priority when developing Genesis and from a security standpoint, Genesis 1.3 is at the top of its class.”

Genesis v1.3 Enhanced SEO Options

Genesis 1.3 is all about the SEO (search engine optimization). In fact, it’s such a giant leap forward in this space that some things had to be entirely rewritten. Special thanks goes out to Greg Boser, one of the most well known and respected SEO experts in the field. When we approached him about doing an independent Genesis SEO audit, he was more than willing to help out. His input and feedback proved to be invaluable in taking Genesis SEO to the next level. We’re confident that his suggestions have made Genesis 1.3 into the best option in search engine optimized WordPress themes.

Below is a list of some of these enhancements: (a more detailed post with explanations will follow)

• More Doctitle Control
• Document Head Control
• Page Speed
• Robots Meta Control
• Canonical Control
• Archives and noindex
• Link nofollow Settings
• 3rd Party Feed Links

How to Update to Genesis v1.3

Assuming you haven’t made any changes to the core Genesis files, updating to the latest version of the Genesis Theme Framework is very easy. If you are running an earlier version of Genesis you will see a notification in your dashboard that there is a new version of Genesis available. Just follow the instructions and you will be able to update in seconds. This is the main reason we’ve encouraged everyone to make changes through the child theme, as updating the Genesis Theme Framework is THAT easy.

What’s New In Genesis v1.3

• Extensive SEO controls/flexibility added
• Complete security audit from Mark Jaquith, lead developer WordPress
• Fixed featured posts bug
• Fixed settings reset bug
• Fixed SEO problem. H1 isn’t used on homepage if AIOSEO is active
• Fixed Genesis menu icon issue
• Fixed a rare upgrade bug
• Allow author box title to be filtered
• Fixed bug in genesis_get_image()
• Abstracted the doctype and opening and <head> elements
• Reduced linebreaks/indentations in various locations to cut load time
• Added .widget-area css class to sidebars
• Removed unnecessary rel code that WordPress adds to the <head>
• Made index/follow logic function output nothing, unless we’re supposed to noindex or nofollow
• Discontinued “post tags” being used for META keywords
• Term SEO options now work automatically with custom taxonomies
• We now allow auto-updates to be disabled programmatically using remove_theme_support().
• Abstracted index.php. Created genesis() function to serve up the HTML framework.
• Added option to display breadcrumbs on the 404 page
• Genesis SEO and Layout can now easily be used with custom post types
• Add Genesis README menu item in dashboard for child themes with the README.txt content on that page
• User Profile widget now allows limited formatting HTML, while still filtering out potentially harmful code
• Localize the “Read More” text in the Featured Post widget

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Delicious + Genesis Theme package.

We are very happy to announce that the Delicious child theme comes in three color styles – gray, blue and brown. We’re also pleased to announce that Delicious is the first theme to be created by Ryan Holder, who has already designed a number of themes that will be made available in the near future here.

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Delicious Child Theme:

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Sleek + Genesis Theme package.

We are very happy to announce that the Sleek child theme comes in two color styles – light and dark.

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the two color styles of the Sleek Child Theme:

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Magazine + Genesis Theme package.

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Magazine Child Theme:

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Education + Genesis Theme package.

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Education Child Theme:

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Church + Genesis Theme package.

New Features

We are also very pleased to announce that the Church theme has been updated with new features:

• 4 Color Styles – Black, Blue, Brown, Gray
• Support for Custom Background
• Support for Custom Header

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Church Child Theme:

If you have already purchased the Genesis Theme Framework and any other child theme previously, you can simply purchase the child package by itself, otherwise you need the Lifestyle + Genesis Theme package.

New Features

We are also very pleased to announce that the Lifestyle theme has been updated with new features:

• 5 Color Styles – Blue, Green, Peach, Pink, Purple
• Support for Custom Background
• Support for Custom Header

Take it for a test drive…

Here’s a screenshot of the Lifestyle Child Theme: