This document discusses BuddyPress, a WordPress plugin for building social networking sites. It can be used to add features like profiles, messaging, friends, and activity streams. BuddyPress is installed through the WordPress plugin installer and themes are set up. Additional menus and components can be added through BuddyPress functions. The document also mentions that BuddyPress and WordPress will merge in 2010 and the future of plugins.

1. and the Future of WordPress Plugins
by Mark Jaquith
markjaquith.com
coveredwebservices.com
@markjaquith
Saturday, September 26, 2009

2. BP 1.1 FTW
Saturday, September 26, 2009

3. What is BuddyPress?
• a WordPress MU plugin
• a “social layer”
• extensible
• fond of eating its own dog
food
• under your control
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4. What it can do
• Extended • Groups
Profiles
• Wire
• Private
Messaging • Activity Streams
• Friends • Forums
• Blogs • Status updates
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5. Cafeteria Style
• Use only what you want
• Could just use it for extended profiles
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6. Saturday, September 26, 2009

7. Saturday, September 26, 2009

8. Installation
• Install WPMU (2.8.4a currently)
• Use plugin installer to install
BuddyPress
• Set up themes
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9. Theme Setup
For WPMU 2.8.x:
Add the themes to your themes dir:
$ cd wp-content/themes/
$ ln -s ../plugins/buddypress/bp-themes/bp-sn-parent bp-sn-parent
$ ln -s ../plugins/buddypress/bp-themes/bp-default bp-default
Future versions of WPMU (2.9+) will skip this step by allowing BP to
tell WPMU about its default themes.
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10. Theme Setup
Enable your BP theme in WPMU Site
Admin, for the main blog
Activate the BP Members theme for the
site's main blog
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11. Core Files Theme Files
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12. Pretty URLs
http://bp.site/members/mark/skills/edit/buddypress/seattle
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13. Pretty URLs
http://bp.site/members/mark/skills/edit/buddypress/seattle
$bp['current_component']
$bp['current_action']
$bp['action_variables'][0]
$bp['action_variables'][1]
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14. Adding Menus
bp_core_new_nav_item(
array(
'name' => __('Item Name', 'i18n-domain'),
'slug' => 'item-slug',
'position' => 50,
'show_for_displayed_user' => true,
'screen_function' => 'item_handler',
'default_subnav_slug' => 'index',
'item_css_id' => 'your-css-id'
));
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15. Adding Submenus
bp_core_new_subnav_item( array(
'name' => __( 'Child', 'i18n-domain' ),
'slug' => 'child-slug',
'parent_url' => $bp->loggedin_user->domain . '/item-slug',
'parent_slug' => 'item-slug',
'screen_function' => 'child_handler_function'
));
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16. Handlers
function handler_function() {
// Logic here
bp_core_load_template( 'item-name/index' );
// Loads item-name/index.php
}
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17. Custom components
• Download the BP Skeleton Component
• Learn by doing
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18. BuddyPress 1.1
• Consolidated WP/BP themes
• Crazy-simple bbPress install
• Groups API
• more...
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19. bbPress
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20. Theme Architecture
• No more dual themes
• BP themes are WP child
themes
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21. WP/WPMU Merge
• 2010
• Will make BuddyPress available
on any WordPress install
• Consolidation of developer
resources
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22. BP Consulting
•Nascent market
•Rapidly expanding demand
•Premium prices
•???
•Profit
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23. Plugins Today
• Often single author
• High rate of abandonment
• Highly variable quality
• Unendorsed
• Multiple competing solutions
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24. Canonical Plugins
• Multi-author
• High quality
• Supported
• Implicit endorsement
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