Oxwall Store Update

We have a new batch of fixes and improvements for the Oxwall Store, check them out:

Improvements

  •  You can now view all of your Store Items on a separate ‘My Items’ tab;

  • You can now see who and when bought licenses for each of your items;
  • You can now revoke licenses for any sold item or theme (useful for when a license is abused);

  • You can now reset the License IP for any bought item (necessary when the IP of a site with the installed item has changed);

Fixes

  • The last file on the list under Item’s Downloads can no longer be unchecked as Main;
  • Main Download option completely revamped under Item’s Download;
  • PayPal account details area is clearer defined while selecting payment method;

 

Oxwall 1.3.0 Is On The Way

Recently we’ve been asked in the comments about the launch of the new Oxwall version. Good news – it’s coming up pretty soon. We’ve been extensively testing the new build in-house, and the quality testing will go on for about one more week.

This time over we’ve prepared some exiting new features for you (including the much anticipated Private Groups and Friends Invite), enhanced many of the existing ones, and also fixed most of the reported bugs. The full list of new features and improvements will be released along with the update, but I think you can get a head-start by attending Oxwall Google+ Hangout on Thursday, January 19, and get the word directly from Oxwall co-founder Emil.

Oxwall Store Improved

We’ve got a couple more news we can push out before the holidays.

First of all, don’t forget to check out the updated Development Roadmap to see what to expect from our upcoming release. But while the team is busy with that, we decided to further tweak the Oxwall Store, seeing its growing significance and demand.

The changes are both, cosmetic and functional, streamlining and simplifying the Store’s presentation. We intend to introduce a more significant overhaul to the Oxwall Store in the future, but for now the changes include the following:

  • Store Search added;
  • Themes and Plugins separated into different categories;
  • Items and Listing Items display changed;
  • Item Lists simplified;

Oxwall 1.2.5: Feature and Quality Improvements

As promised last week, we have completed Quality Group testing and are ready to bring you Oxwall 1.2.5. A slew of bug fixes and feature improvements are in store.

Now, remember to follow these simple steps to avoid any potential troubles, if you are really impatient and want to update your software manually:

  1. Back up your site
  2. Install the update

Or you can just wait a couple more hours for the Auto Update button (advisable) to appear in the Admin area (it will show up in the span of 24 hours after the launch of the update).

Here is a list of changes:

Newsfeed and Events Improvements

  • Status Update is now integrated into the Newsfeed;
  • Changing Event icon in Newsfeed is now functioning properly;
  • Birthdays can now be configured to show up as Newsfeed items;
  • Changes to Group descriptions and icons are now reflected in the Newsfeed;
  • Notification system for Event commenting added;

User Features Improvements

  • Users without permission to create Groups will no longer see a link allowing them to do so;
  • A bug appearing when reaching photo upload limit is fixed;
  • Search field in Forum now recognizes “/”;
  • ‘Featured’ tab (with user photos and videos) is no longer visible unless there is actual featured content present;
  • Attachment Button functions properly in Internet Explorer now;
  • Right-to-Left text input is now available for WYSIWYG;
  • Option to open a link in a new window is added for WYSIWYG;
  • Option to disable favicon is added;
  • Userlist recognition of ‘&’ symbol is fixed;
  • Language issues fixed in Mailbox and Events;
  • Guest visitors are now asked to Sign-in before viewing Friends Lists;
  • Blog and Links widgets will not be visible on the frontpage until an appropriate item is added;
  • ‘More’ button is functioning properly now on the Blog and Links pages;

Admin Features Improvements

  • Software installation is now possible with an empty password field, if applicable;
  • ‘Page’ GET parameter is fixed in the Forum;
  • Flagged pictures are now reachable even without included description;
  • Mass Mails can now be sent only to active users with confirmed emails;
  • Maximum photo file size in Mailbox can now include decimals;
Enjoy!

Upcoming Oxwall Release

Dear Oxwall users,

As some of you have noted in the comments section, it is indeed time for another software update. The entire next week is scheduled for the quality testing of feature improvements and bug fixes we have found since the last release.

As usual, have some patience and keep an eye on our blog, for a special notice about the launch of the update. Everything should be ready in about a week and a half.

This time the new release will not bring any major changes, but rather will feature a load of requested and necessary fixes for Newsfeed, Events, Groups, Forums, Mailing Lists, etc. We want to polish up the software in its current form before taking another major step by introducing new features and functions. The full list of Oxwall 1.2.5 improvements will be released along with the update.

The New Release Schedule System

As promised in the comments section, I bring you some wonderful news. To benefit both end-users and our development team, we are switching to a new Release Scheduling System. Allow me to demonstrate it with a few helpful pictures first.

Up until recently our releases were a combination of scheduled fresh features with all the bug fixes picked up along the way. This system looks nice on paper, but in reality it often led to unexpected delays.

Imagine that we have set out to introduce a New Cool Tool for network Admins. In the past our development team would start working on it, all the while fixing up all the reported issues. But then, instead of releasing quick patches in demand, we had to wait until said New Cool Tool is absolutely ready and can be bundled together with the fixes. Sometimes it would take weeks or even months to be sure the New Cool Tool is actually cool enough for prime-time. Needless to say, the extended waiting period can be grueling, thus we decided to change the situation dramatically.

As mentioned in one of the prior posts, the switch to Mercurial DVCS gives us more flexibility. Namely we now have two development branches in place – Dev and Stable. Dev is reserved for big features, like the aforementioned New Cool Tool, while Stable will cover all the bug fixes and minor improvements.

Let me explain how the new system will work. The end-users will no longer have to wait for the new release in the dark. They will know for sure that the new release will be here every month, bringing along all the Stable fixes that are ready by the deadline. In the meantime the Oxwall team will be busy with two weeks of active development work, and a week of testing and compiling documentation. If, during this time, the New Cool Tool will appear to be ready in Dev, it will also end up in the release, along with the fixes.

Here at Oxwall we believe the new system will further improve the software development dynamics, and reinforce our commitment to producing the best professional user-oriented social network builder out there.

SVN to Mercurial Transition

Time for some quick development news, guys!

While the release of the 1.2 version of our software (featuring useful stuff like user privacy and the retooled user input panel) nears ever closer, Oxwall team is happy to inform you that we are switching from SVN to Mercurial DVCS (Distributed Version Control System). We see this as a natural evolution step in maturing our software, so there is really no downside to this information.

The new system will give everyone more flexibility. For starters, we’ll be able to keep up two development branches (dev and stable) more effectively. On the other hand, the change will allow developers to merge their plug-ins with our updates more effortlessly, due to the simpler process of getting snapshots of nightly builds. Basically, you will not have to wait for the old version of the software to break down on all upgraded websites. Instead, you’ll be able to update your plug-ins almost simultaneously with each new release.

We are bringing you this news early to let plug-in developers know that with the new system their lives are about to become much more easier. Also, if you are still using some other instrumentation, may we suggest switching to a distributed revision control like Mercurial or Git. We chose the former for its simplicity and we hope you do the same.

What we are working on

As you might notice we are heading toward stable release, particularly we plan to release 1.0 RC shortly which might also become the “stable” release. Minor shortcomings are being figured out, thanks to your help. Since we support all updates you can safely use 1.0 beta 5 for a live website. Updating to stable will be a button click deal.

All of this is a headache of the platform lead, meanwhile other developers are busy developing new features and making Oxwall even better choice for your projects.

We thought it would be cool to give you an idea of what our dev plan looks like and what you might expect in the nearest future. Here’s the development roadmap page: oxwall.org/roadmap. We revived the good idea implemented on the old website and will maintain it carefully from now on.

Some of you will recognize their own old-time suggestions. We do not ignore them. We consider all feedback but we have to choose carefully because of limited resources and because the last thing we want to sacrifice for features is product integrity.

Watch our roadmap: oxwall.org/roadmap – we promise to keep it up-to-date.

Docs: plugin development crash course

And one more piece of good news today: we have compiled comprehensive plugin development crash course for those impatient to start creating their own Oxwall plugins.

This article is sufficient for creating simple plugins and gives an impression of how more complex plugins can be developed. Over the course of time we will develop more documentation covering every aspect of Oxwall codebase and development approaches – for now this tutorial is a quick and (semi)dirty way to start writing code immediately.

Let us know how it goes for you and how that article can be improved.