=== Seasonal Effects & Notice Bar (formerly Halloween Animations) ===
Contributors: sanju-shankar
Donate link: https://buymeacoffee.com/sanjayshankar
Tags: seasonal, animations, notice bar, black friday, christmas
Requires at least: 5.5
Tested up to: 7.1
Requires PHP: 7.2
Stable tag: 2.4.0
License: GPLv2 or later
License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html

Boost your Black Friday & Cyber Monday sales with festive animations, countdown timers, and high-converting notice bars!

== Description ==

**Seasonal Effects** is the ultimate toolkit for holiday marketing and seasonal decorations. 

🚀 **Boost Black Friday & Cyber Monday Sales**
Create urgency with countdown timers, flash sale banners, and exclusive "Sale Mode" animations like falling price tags and shopping bags.

🎃 **Spooky Halloween Effects** - Crawling spiders, floating ghosts, flying bats, fog effects  
🎄 **Festive Christmas Vibes** - Winter themes with falling snow, lights, and ornaments  
🎆 **Celebration Ready** - New Year fireworks, confetti, and balloons  
💝 **Valentine's Day** - Floating hearts, heart confetti, and pulsating hearts  
🐣 **Easter** - Easter eggs and hopping bunnies  
🔊 **Sound Effects** - Optional themed sounds (witch laugh, wolf howl, jingle bells, fireworks and more)

### 🛍️ Black Friday & Cyber Monday Features

Maximize your Q4 revenue with dedicated tools:
* **Countdown Timers:** Create FOMO with urgent timers in your notice bar.
* **Sale Animations:** Falling "Sale" tags, shopping bags, and discount icons.
* **Cyber Effects:** Matrix rain and glitch effects perfect for Cyber Monday tech deals.
* **Pre-built Templates:** One-click setup for Black Friday (Dark/Red) and Cyber Monday (Neon/Tech).
* **Scheduled Campaigns:** Set start/end dates for your sales banners automatically.

### ✨ Key Features

**6 Beautiful Animations:**
* 🦇 Flying Bats - Smooth flight patterns
* 👻 Floating Ghosts - Mysterious floating
* 🎃 Running Pumpkin - Rolling across screen
* 🍂 Falling Leaves - Autumn atmosphere
* 🕷️ Crawling Spiders - Realistic crawling motion
* 🌫️ Fog Effect - Multi-layer fog drift

**Smart Controls:**
* Individual on/off toggles
* Count controls for each effect
* Speed variations (slow/medium/fast)
* Mobile device support
* Display location targeting

**Notice Bar System:**
* 🎨 **Advanced Design:** Gradients, background images, and custom colors
* ⏱️ **Countdown Timer:** 5 styles (Simple, Rounded, Square, Filled, Circle)
* 👁️ **Visibility Rules:** Show on specific pages (Home, Blog, Posts, CPTs)
* 🍪 **Smart Closing:** Session-based, time-based (1h/1d/7d), or permanent dismissal
* 📱 **Responsive:** Top/Bottom positioning with mobile support
* 📝 **Rich Content:** Full WYSIWYG editor with color and font size controls

**⏱️ Countdown Timer Block & Shortcode:**
* Add a live countdown anywhere: the **Countdown Timer** block, or the `[seasonal_effects_countdown]` shortcode for classic editor, widgets and page builders
* 5 styles (Simple, Rounded, Square, Filled, Circle), 3 sizes, long or short labels, custom colors
* Uses your site's timezone, so every visitor counts down to the same moment
* Shows the real time immediately (no "00:00" flash) and swaps to your own message when it ends
* Loads its small CSS/JS only on pages that contain a timer

**5 Sales Templates:**
* ⚫ **Black Friday:** High-converting dark theme with red accents
* 💻 **Cyber Monday:** Modern neon/tech aesthetic
* 🎄 **Christmas Sale:** Festive holiday colors
* ⭐ **Special Offer:** High contrast attention grabber
* ⚡ **Flash Sale:** Urgent gradient design

### 🎯 Perfect For

* **Black Friday / Cyber Monday Sales**
* Holiday themed websites
* Seasonal sales and promotions
* Event announcements
* Blog posts and articles
* E-commerce stores
* Portfolio sites

### ⚡ Performance

* CSS-driven animations with a small script
* Assets load only when an effect is enabled
* GPU-accelerated transformations
* Mobile-optimized
* 60fps smooth animations

### 🔒 Privacy & Security

* No external API calls
* No data collection
* No tracking cookies
* All settings stored in your own database
* Notice bar dismissal is remembered in the visitor's browser only

### 👨‍💻 Developer

Created with 🎃 by [Sanjay Shankar](https://sanjayshankar.me)

**Connect:**
* [WordPress Profile](https://profiles.wordpress.org/sanju-shankar/)
* [GitHub](https://github.com/sanjuacodez)
* [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanjayshankar/)
* [Website](https://sanjayshankar.me)

**Support Development:**
* [Buy Me a Coffee](https://buymeacoffee.com/sanjayshankar) ☕


== Installation ==

### Automatic Installation

1. Log in to WordPress admin
2. Go to **Plugins → Add New**
3. Search for "Seasonal Effects"
4. Click **Install Now**
5. Click **Activate**
6. Go to **Seasonal Effects → Site Animations**

### Manual Installation

1. Download the plugin ZIP file
2. Go to **Plugins → Add New → Upload Plugin**
3. Choose the ZIP file
4. Click **Install Now**
5. Click **Activate**

### Quick Start

1. Go to **Seasonal Effects → Site Animations**
2. Click **Templates** tab
3. Choose a seasonal preset
4. Click **Apply Template**
5. Save settings
6. Visit your website!

== Frequently Asked Questions ==

= How do I set up a Black Friday sale banner? =

Go to **Seasonal Effects → Notice Bar**, click the **Templates** tab, and select the **Black Friday** template. You can then customize the text and countdown timer in the Settings tab.

= How do I add a countdown timer to a page or post? =

In the block editor, add the **Countdown Timer** block and pick the end date. Everywhere else (classic editor, widgets, Elementor and other page builders), use the shortcode:

`[seasonal_effects_countdown end="2026-11-27 23:59" style="rounded" title="Sale ends in"]`

Options: `end` (in your site timezone), `style` (simple, rounded, square, filled, circle), `size` (small, medium, large), `labels` (long, short), `align` (left, center, right), `bg_color`, `text_color`, `show_seconds` (yes, no), `title`, `expired_text` (leave empty to hide the timer when it ends). The Seasonal Effects dashboard has a copy-ready example.

= Can I schedule my Cyber Monday sale in advance? =

Yes! In the Notice Bar settings under the **Schedule** tab, you can set a Start Date and End Date. The banner will automatically appear and disappear at your specified times.

= Will this slow down my website? =

No. The animations are CSS-driven and GPU-accelerated, and the plugin's files only load when at least one effect is enabled.

= Can I use this with any theme? =

Yes! Seasonal Effects works with any WordPress theme.

= Can I customize the animations? =

Absolutely! Control count, speed, and display locations for each effect.

= Is this compatible with WooCommerce? =

Yes! Works perfectly with WooCommerce and other popular plugins.

= Can I disable effects on mobile? =

Yes! There's a mobile device toggle in the General tab.

= Will my existing settings be preserved when updating? =

Yes! The plugin is 100% backward compatible. All settings are automatically migrated.

= How do I get support? =

* [Support Forum](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/halloween-animations)
* [GitHub Issues](https://github.com/sanjuacodez/halloween-animations/issues)
* Email: me@sanjayshankar.me

= How can I contribute? =

* [GitHub Repository](https://github.com/sanjuacodez/halloween-animations)
* Submit pull requests
* Report bugs
* Suggest features

= Can I support this plugin? =

Yes! If you find this plugin helpful:
* ⭐ [Rate it on WordPress.org](https://wordpress.org/support/plugin/halloween-animations/reviews/)
* ☕ [Buy me a coffee](https://buymeacoffee.com/sanjayshankar)
* 🐛 [Report bugs on GitHub](https://github.com/sanjuacodez/halloween-animations/issues)
* 💡 Share feature ideas

== Screenshots ==

1. Templates tab with 5+ seasonal presets
2. Animations tab with individual controls
3. Sound settings with 4 playback modes
4. Display controls for targeting
5. Simple and cute animations.
6. Notice bar with countdown timer
7. Style countdown timer by yourself

== Changelog ==

= 2.4.0 - 2026-09-29 =
* **New Feature:** Countdown Timer block and `[seasonal_effects_countdown]` shortcode, with 5 styles, 3 sizes and custom colors
* **New:** Countdown Timer card with a copy-ready shortcode on the Seasonal Effects dashboard
* **Tested:** WordPress 7.1
* **Fixed:** PHP warning ("Undefined array key default") when saving Notice Bar settings
* **Fixed:** Animations now correctly move clear of a fixed Notice Bar
* **Improved:** Removed a redundant translation loader; WordPress.org loads translations automatically

= 2.3.0 - 2025-11-23 =
* **New Feature:** Advanced Notice Bar Templates (Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas, etc.)
* **New Feature:** Visibility & Targeting Rules (Show on Home, Blog, Specific Post Types)
* **New Feature:** Smart Closing Behavior (Session, 1 Hour, 1 Day, Forever)
* **New Feature:** Countdown Timer Styles (Simple, Rounded, Square, Filled, Circle)
* **New Feature:** Background Image support for Notice Bar
* **Improved:** Rich Text Editor for Notice Content with color/size controls
* **Improved:** Admin UI with Visual Selectors and Template Grid
* **Improved:** "Reset Visibility" tool for admins

= 2.2.0 - 2025-11-20 =
* **Major Update** - Rebranded to Seasonal Effects
* Added Templates tab with 8 quick presets
* Improved spider crawling animation (removed web threads)
* Fixed fog effect visibility and drift
* Enhanced mobile performance
* Better admin UI with clearer organization
* One-time welcome notice for existing users
* 100% backward compatible
* Full details in CHANGELOG.md

= 2.0.0 - 2024-10-01 =
* Initial public release
* 6 Halloween animations
* Sound effect system
* Notice bar functionality
* Mobile device support

= 1.0.0 - 2024-09-01 =
* Beta release

== Upgrade Notice ==

= 2.4.0 =
New Countdown Timer block and shortcode. Tested with WordPress 7.1, plus Notice Bar fixes.

= 2.3.0 =
Major Notice Bar update! Added Sales Templates, Advanced Visibility Rules, Timer Styles, and Smart Closing behaviors.

= 2.2.0 =
Major upgrade! Now supports all seasonal occasions with templates. 100% backward compatible - your Halloween settings are safe!

= 2.0.0 =
Initial public release. Welcome to Seasonal Effects!
