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Advanced Preloader

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Advanced Preloader

by Sanjay Shankar

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Description

The Advanced Preloader plugin adds customizable loading animations to your WordPress site, offering flexibility to match your design and branding needs.

Key Features

  • Built-in CSS Loaders (new):

    • 6 animated loaders: Spinner, Dual Ring, Bouncing Dots, Bars, Pulse and Progress Bar
    • Pick one visually, set its color and size, and optionally add text
    • Pure CSS, no image upload needed, and gentler for visitors who prefer reduced motion

  • Display Rules (new):

    • Show on every page, the homepage only, only on selected pages, or everywhere except selected pages
    • Show on every page load, once per visit, or on the first visit only
    • Optionally hide it for logged-in users
    • Works with page caching plugins

  • Multiple Display Options:

    • Choose between Image, Text, Image + Text, Loader, or Loader + Text
    • Four layout options: Image Over Text, Image Left to Text, Image Right to Text, Image Below Text

  • Customizable Design:

    • Background and text color customization
    • Upload your own preloader image
    • Add custom HTML text with multiple lines
    • Random text line display option

  • Performance Optimization:

    • Lightweight and fast loading
    • CSS animations for smooth performance
    • Customizable animation speed
    • Delay time configuration

  • Responsive Preview:

    • Live preview in admin panel
    • Laptop-style responsive preview window
    • Real-time updates as you customize

  • Advanced Controls:

    • Enable/disable preloader with one click
    • Media uploader integration
    • Color picker for easy color selection

External services

Advanced Preloader contacts two outside services, and only when an administrator chooses to. Your visitors’ browsers never contact them.

Brevo (newsletter sign-up). Administrators see a “Plugins by Sanjay Shankar” card at the top of the Preloader settings screen, inviting them to join the author’s newsletter about new plugins, betas and offers. The same sign-up form is always available on the same screen once the card is closed. The administrator’s first name and email are filled in from their profile, but nothing is sent unless they click Subscribe. Then the email address, the first name and the name of the plugin the sign-up came from (“Advanced Preloader”) are sent from your server to Brevo, the newsletter service. The address is used only to send news about the author’s plugins and sanjayshankar.me, is never sold or shared, and every email has an unsubscribe link. Closing the card hides it for 30 days, it stops once the site has subscribed, and it never appears to visitors.

Google Apps Script and Google Sheets (deactivation feedback). When an administrator clicks Deactivate for Advanced Preloader, a short optional survey asks why. Nothing is sent if they choose Skip & deactivate or Cancel. If they choose Send & deactivate, the selected reason, any comment, the plugin version, the WordPress, WooCommerce and PHP versions and the admin language are sent from your server to a Google Apps Script web app that stores them in the author’s private Google Sheet. The administrator’s name and email, shown in the survey, are included while “You can contact me about this” is ticked; unticking it sends the answer anonymously. The site address is never sent.

Contributing

We welcome contributions from the WordPress community! If you’d like to contribute to this plugin, please visit our GitHub repository:

Advanced Preloader on GitHub

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Create a feature branch
  3. Make your improvements
  4. Submit a pull request

Please follow WordPress coding standards and include documentation for any new features.

Support

For support, feature requests, or bug reports, please:
* Visit our GitHub repository
* Open an issue on GitHub
* Contact us through our website

Let’s make WordPress better together!

License

This plugin is licensed under the GPLv2 or later. This means you’re free to use, modify, and distribute this software as long as you preserve the GPL license terms.

Source code available on GitHub: https://github.com/sanjuacodez/advanced-preloader

  1. Upload the plugin files to the /wp-content/plugins/advanced-preloader directory, or install the plugin through the WordPress plugins screen directly.
  2. Activate the plugin through the ‘Plugins’ screen in WordPress
  3. Go to Preloader in the admin menu to configure the plugin
  4. Customize your preloader settings and enjoy!
  1. General Settings Screen

    General Settings Screen

  2. Design Customization Options

    Design Customization Options

  3. Animation Settings

    Animation Settings

  4. Live Preview in Admin Panel

    Live Preview in Admin Panel

Can I use a loader animation instead of an image?

Yes. Set Preloader Type to “Loader Animation” (or “Loader Animation + Text”) and pick one of the six built-in loaders. Its color and size are in the Design tab.

Can I show the preloader only on some pages?

Yes. In the Display Rules tab, choose Homepage only, Only on selected pages, or Every page except selected pages, and tick the pages.

Can visitors see it only once?

Yes. In Display Rules How Often, choose “Once per visit” or “First visit only”. This is remembered in the visitor’s browser, so it keeps working with page caching.

Can I use my own image for the preloader?

Yes! The plugin includes a media uploader where you can upload and use your custom preloader image.

Is this plugin mobile-friendly?

Absolutely! The preloader is fully responsive and works perfectly on all devices.

Can I add HTML content in the text area?

Yes, the text field supports basic HTML tags for formatting your preloader text.

How do I change the animation speed?

In the Animation tab, set Animation Speed (how long the fade-out takes) and Delay Time (how long to wait after the page loads). Both accept values like 1s, 0.5s or 500ms.

Can I use different text each time the preloader appears?

Yes! Enable the “Random Line” display mode to show a different line from your text content each time.

1.4.1

  • New: optional newsletter sign-up from the plugin author on the Preloader settings screen. Nothing is sent unless you click Subscribe, and closing the card hides it for 30 days.
  • New: optional one-question survey when you deactivate the plugin, to help improve it. Skip & deactivate sends nothing.
  • Docs: new External services section in the readme describing both.

1.4.0

  • New: Six built-in CSS loaders (Spinner, Dual Ring, Bouncing Dots, Bars, Pulse, Progress Bar) with a visual picker, color and size
  • New: Display Rules tab: homepage only, selected pages, excluded pages, once per visit, first visit only, hide for logged-in users
  • Improved: The preloader now appears right after the page starts loading (wp_body_open) and sits above other overlays
  • Improved: Live preview shows loaders and no longer covers the settings form
  • Improved: Screen readers announce the loading state
  • Tested with WordPress 7.1
  • Fixed PHP warnings when the preloader is enabled before the type and layout settings are saved
  • Fixed the Animation Speed setting, which was saved but never applied to the fade-out
  • Delay Time and Animation Speed now accept values like 1s, 0.5s or 500ms

1.3.2

  • Added WordPress 6.8.1 support

1.3.1

  • Fixed Security bugs

1.3

  • Improved UX

1.2

  • Added random text line display mode
  • Improved responsive preview system
  • Enhanced admin interface
  • Fixed tab navigation issues
  • Added more layout options

1.1

  • Improved media uploader integration
  • Fixed color picker implementation
  • Enhanced mobile responsiveness

1.0

  • Initial release of Advanced Preloader
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