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The latest version of BuddyPress includes a number of important bug fixes and is a highly recommended upgrade. To view a list of all the fixes included since the initial release of BuddyPress 1.2, please head on over to the BuddyPress release history page.

Plugin News

We’re starting to see the number of BuddyPress plugins growing rapidly, there are now more than 125 available for you to try out. Some of most popular BuddyPress plugins currently available are:

BuddyPress Tweetstream – allow your users to sync and post to their twitter stream.

BuddyPress Like – add a “like” button to site activity.

BuddyPress Links – rich media embedding for your BuddyPress powered site.

BuddyPress Album+ – allow your users to upload photos and create albums.

BuddyPress Group Documents – add file upload and document repositories to your groups.

BuddyPress Profile Privacy – allow your users to set privacy options on their profile data.

BuddyPress Welcome Pack – set defaults for new users, auto join them to groups or send welcome messages.

BuddyPress Group Blog (WordPress MU only) – allow your groups to include a fully functional WordPress blog.

BuddyPress Group Wiki – add wiki functionality to your groups so all members can contribute to pages.

Be sure to check all of the plugins out on the BuddyPress plugins page. If you’d like to develop a BuddyPress plugin then a great place to start is with the BuddyPress Skeleton Component. This plugin will provide you with all the basic starting points you need to build brand new BuddyPress features.

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BuddyPress 1.2 is here, and it’s now ready for anyone with a WordPress installation! There are so many new and improved features in this release it’s hard to keep this post short, but let me highlight just a few major ones for you.

Standard WordPress Support

BuddyPress is no longer limited to WordPress MU installations. It will now work with both WordPress and WordPress MU 2.9.1 and higher. You’ll get all the features of BuddyPress regardless of which WordPress version you use, the only difference being the tracking of blogs with WordPress MU.

Simplified Installation

We’ve worked hard to make BuddyPress 1.2 as simple to install as possible. Previous versions required manual installation steps, and a sometimes tough WordPress MU installation. With this version of BuddyPress you can be up and running in three simple steps that even my Mom would have no trouble with!

A Shiny New Default Theme

This version ships with a new default theme, offering out of the box support for all the new features in version 1.2. We’ve worked really hard to provide you with a theme that has great looks, great usability, and is really easy to extend. The feedback has been fantastic during the development stages, and we think you’re going to love what it has to offer.

Awesome Activity Streams

Activity streams in BuddyPress 1.2 have been completely transformed into something considerably more powerful. Activity streams form the focus of the new default theme and provide a really easy and intuitive way for users to interact. Each activity item now has a permalink so it’s easy to bookmark or send direct links to any type of activity. Any user can also comment on activity across a site, with support for threading so your users can ignite their own individual discussions around a single activity. There’s also direct update posting to the activity stream, so it’s easy to share your thoughts globally, or even within a particular group. Not only that, you can also mark activity items as a favorite, and send other users @username mentions.

Give 1.2 a Go

The best way to really experience what BuddyPress 1.2 has to offer is to try it for yourself. If you’d like to give it a go without downloading and installing then take a look at the BuddyPress Test Drive. This site is always running the latest version of BuddyPress and boasts a more than 15,000 strong user base, all interested in testing and discussing the newest features of BuddyPress. Of course, downloading and installing BuddyPress yourself is going to give you the best taste of what BuddyPress can do. You’ll be able to experience just how extensible it really is with the ever growing list of great plugins. You’ll even be able to start creating your very first child theme. Those who are upgrading from a previous version of BuddyPress should follow the official upgrade instructions.

Special Thanks

There are a large number of people who have helped BuddyPress reach this important milestone. Participation has really been fantastic, with more than double the number of tickets for 1.2 than we had for 1.1. These tickets help so much in ensuring that BuddyPress is a stable, well tested product with each milestone reached. Special thanks goes to: 21cdb, andrea_r, DJPaul, Ezd, _DorsVenabili, arturo84, chouf1, cnorris23, developdaly, erich73, floris, grosbouff, intimez, jivany, johnjamesjacoby, madloki, miguael, mikepratt, MrMaz, nuprn1, ousep, r-a-y, rvenable, snark, teebes, windhamdavid, wpmuguru.

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We’ve got one more 1.2 release candidate ready for testing (zip | svn). This should be the last pre-release version of 1.2, we hope to have the final version released very early next week. Don’t forget that you can also play your part in testing by signing up at our BuddyPress Test Drive community. This is currently running 1.2-rc3. If you are upgrading from an earlier pre-release version then you can just overwrite must delete it and then re-upload the BuddyPress plugin directory. Instructions for upgrading test installations from previous versions of BuddyPress are also available. As before you can find a list of known issues and a place to post bugs via the BuddyPress Trac installation. Please do not post bugs in the comments as they may be missed. Update: Please make sure you delete any old pre-release versions of BuddyPress before uploading this version. You also DO NOT need to move any themes to wp-content/themes. WordPress knows that the BuddyPress default is in the plugin folder.

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A second release candidate is now available for testing on WordPress 2.9.1 and WordPress MU 2.9.1 and above (zip / svn). If you are upgrading from an earlier pre-release version then you can just overwrite the BuddyPress plugin directory. Instructions for upgrading test installations from previous versions of BuddyPress are also available. As before you can find a list of known issues and a place to post bugs via the BuddyPress Trac installation. Please do not post bugs in the comments as they may be missed.

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