BP Docs-Chat Summary September 4, 2024

BP Documentation tracker status:

The stats – 55%, which is an increase of 2 (two) percentage point – 53% => 55%.
@im4th shared some updates and reasons about why he was late on reviewing the PR explaining the template pack hierarchy (PS: it has been SVN committed since).

Keeping a good pace

@im4th suggested each of us should pick one of the remaining issues to work on a PR before the next Docs-Chat (using the 2 weeks interval to have it SVN committed).

About the documentation roadmap

If we shared various parts of this roadmap on this blog or on Slack, team agreed we should put this information into a central place. Updating our Docs Tracker readme with it seems to be the best place to do so. @im4th volunteered to init this work using a PR so that everyone can improve it using the GitHub code review feature.

Open floor

We’ll need to update the documentation page about BuddyPress PHP required version since we’re raising it to 7.0 in next major release (15.0). A new task was added to our Docs Tracker.

@emaralive alerted us about a BP REST API bug. A new ticket was created on our Trac environment.

Next Docs-Chat

It will happen on September 18, 2024 at 19:00 UTC in #BuddyPress.

#docs-chat, #documentation, #summary

BP Dev-Chat Agenda September 11, 2024

Our next development meeting will happen on September 11 at 18:00 UTC (an hour earlier than usual!) in #BuddyPress.

Here’s our agenda:

  • Review the “New BuddyPress network Theme call” meeting;
  • 15.0.0 ticket updates;
  • Open floor.

If you have specific/additional points you need to discuss about, please share them into the comments’ area of this post.

#15-0-0, #agenda, #dev-chat

Raising the minimum version of WordPress and PHP required in BuddyPress 15.0.0

Near the beginning of each development cycle, we reassess BuddyPress’s minimum required WP version. Our rough guidelines are as follows:

  • If a WordPress version’s use slips below 5% of all WP installations, it’s a strong candidate for removal;
  • If a WordPress version became obsolete over a year ago, it’s a candidate for removal.

We reassessed it recently as part of #9051, and we will be raising the minimum version of WordPress and PHP required as follow:

  • WordPress 6.4
  • PHP 7.0

As part of this update, we also streamlined our testing matrix. And we already have been testing using cache services like Redis and Memcache to identify any possible issues for users of those tools.

Recommended Requirements

As part of this update, we also reviewed our recommendations to run BuddyPress, we recommend your host supports:

  • PHP version 7.4 or greater;
  • MySQL version 8.0 or greater OR MariaDB version 10.5 or greater;
  • HTTPS support.

^ this is not the minimum requirements, but solely our recommended ones.

#15-0-0, #9225, #wp-requirements

BP Docs-Chat Agenda September 4, 2024

Hi!

Our next documentation meeting will happen on September 4, 2024, at 19:00 UTC in #BuddyPress. Here’s our agenda:

  • BP Documentation tracker status.
  • Let’s assign ourselves 1 PR objective to achieve before next chat.
  • A roadmap to bring clarity to the documentation effort.
  • Open Floor.

If you have specific/additional points you need to discuss, please share them in the comments area of this post.

#agenda, #docs-chat

BP Docs-Chat Summary August 21st, 2024

BP Documentation tracker status:

The stats – 53%, which is an increase of 5 (five) percentage points – 48%53%

BP REST API documentation:

We engaged in a preliminary discussion regarding V1 and V2 documentation with the highlights being:

  • V1:
    • Archive the documentation, most likely within the BP-REST plugin GitHub repository.
    • Make corrections to references from bp.apiRequest to wp.apiRequest. (BP REST API Handbook)
    • Verify/validate whether there are bugs in the code or are there errors in the documentation, e.g., Replying to an existing Messages Thread – recipients array – a empty array appears to be required but the documentation does not stipulate a requirement, for such.
  • V2:
    • The consensus was to place the V2 documentation where the other handbooks reside, in this case the developer handbook, in which a chapter seems to be appropriate.

In other words, V1 should be cleaned up prior to the creation of the V2 documentation. Additionally, @im4th granted limited administrative access to developer.buddypress.org (this where the V1 documentation currently resides) for @vapvarun and @emaralive.

And, lastly, there was recognition that a tool or tools could help facilitate the creation of documentation from in-line (code) docs and from web based docs/handbooks. The former (in-line) is unclear and the scope needs to be further defined, however, there is a tool that does a portion of this for “actions” and “filters”, as well as WordPress tools, e.g., WP Parser. For the later (web based docs), there is a tool that will convert WordPress (web based) documents into .md (GitHub flavored) markdown files, e.g,, potentially be able to archive the V1 documentation, although those with the requisite permissions could export the V1 documentation, which then becomes a partial process which requires additional processing to convert the export into markdown files.

Open Floor:

Next Docs-Chat

Our next documentation meeting will happen on September 4, 2024, at 19:00 UTC in #BuddyPress.

#docs-chat, #documentation, #summary

BP Dev-Chat Summary August 28, 2024

BuddyPress 14.1.0: Release Schedule

We set a date to release BuddyPress 14.1.0. September 4th, 2024. This is a minor release with two bug fixes and one enhancement.

New BuddyPress Standalone Theme – Upcoming Call

We have a day and time scheduled for a group call about the new BuddyPress standalone theme for buddypress.org. The last piece missing before the call was an agenda. @vapvarun suggested a pretty detailed one, of what we need to get out of the call with:

  1. Theme Selection
    • Use an existing theme for quick implementation.
    • Consider creating a custom theme for a unique design.
  2. Timeframe
    • Existing Theme: 2-3 weeks.
    • Custom Theme: 8-10 weeks.
  3. Team Involvement: 1-2 people will work on design, development, and content.
  4. Dependencies
    • Ensure compatibility with BuddyPress plugins and custom functionalities.
    • Check for shared resources that might impact bbPress.org.
  5. Impact on bbPress.org

15.0.0 Milestone Updates

  1. V2 – REST API: ticket identified as a priority since it is blocking other REST API related tickets for this milestone.
  2. Import/Export of all BuddyPress user data: @vapvarun has made good progress. There was some discussion about what sort of export/import tool is being built.
  3. Revamped Site (Wide) Notices
  4. Update WordPress and PHP Version Requirements: We are raising the minimum requirements to WordPress 6.4 and PHP 7.0.
  5. WPCS Improvements: @espellcaste is going to try to fix WPCS styling issues in bulk. But asked for at least one code review for the pull request.
  6. Notification Cleanup: @espellcaste asked for a second opinion on a proposed approach for cleaning read notifications.

Other Developments

📆 Next Dev-Chat Agenda

It will happen on Wednesday September 11, 2024 at 18:00 UTC in #BuddyPress.

#15-0-0, #dev-chat, #summary

BP Dev-Chat Agenda August 28, 2024

Our next development meeting will happen on August 28 at 18:00 UTC (an hour earlier than usual!) in #BuddyPress.

Here’s our agenda:

  • 14.1.0 – Decide final schedule for release;
  • Agenda for the “New BuddyPress network Theme call”;
  • 15.0.0 ticket updates;
  • Open floor.

If you have specific/additional points you need to discuss about, please share them into the comments’ area of this post.

#15-0-0, #agenda, #dev-chat

BP Dev-Chat Summary August 14, 2024

BuddyPress 14.1: Coming Soon!

Mark your calendars! We’re aiming to release BuddyPress 14.1.0 in early September. While there aren’t any urgent issues at the moment, we’ll be doing a final review in our next dev-chat to ensure everything is shipshape.

Looking Ahead: BuddyPress 15.0.0

Our team is already hard at work for BuddyPress 15.0.0, and we’ve got some exciting features and improvements in the pipeline:

  1. Revamped Site (Wide) Notices: We’re rethinking how site-wide notices work to make them more effective and user-friendly.
  2. V2 – REST API: We’re moving towards a more robust REST API implementation with V2. We are deprecating V1 and also, saying goodbye to Ajax wherever possible!
  3. Data Liberation: In line with WordPress’s data liberation initiative, we’re working on improved data import/export functionality.
  4. Refined Notifications: We’re exploring ways to separate email and screen notification settings for a more tailored user experience.
  5. Under the Hood Improvements: Our developers are focusing on code quality (PHPCS/WPCS), and performance enhancements.
  6. Flexible Signups: We’re making the BP Signups feature deactivatable, giving site admins more control.

We’re also considering ways to improve the backend configuration process, making it easier for end-users to set up and manage their BuddyPress sites.

Development Progress

Our team has already closed 14 tickets for the 15.0.0 milestone, with 42 more currently open. We’re in the process of reviewing these tickets and prioritizing them for the upcoming release.

What’s Next?

We’re tentatively planning to release the first beta for BuddyPress 15.0.0 in mid to late October, with the final release coming 1-2 weeks after WordPress 6.7 (expected around November 12, 2024).

Additionally, we’re exploring the possibility of a new standalone theme for buddypress.org. Stay tuned for updates on this exciting project!

📆 Next Dev-Chat Agenda

It will happen on Wednesday August 28, 2024 at 18:00 UTC in #BuddyPress.

#15-0-0, #dev-chat, #summary