Roadmap Version 1.6

That's quite the list, and very exciting you would consider that path. However, if that's the path, and I cringe at this thought, it might make sense to then reconsider the entire code base and either start from scratch or use some existing PHP frameworks. The potential benefit I can envision from using some of the more current frameworks is that you may more easily market to a larger audience (i.e., users of the particular framework you choose). You'd also potentially get the benefits of a larger group of people who work on that framework. I don't have any suggestions as to which framework might be "best," but you probably know better anyway considering the level of your PHP skills.

All of the test data I've used way back when is really no longer of any use as I had continually updated it as I made changes to core. It won't work on base (or even in my current /dev and /alpha environments). However, when you get to that stage, I probably would be interested in helping put it through the paces so I'm rather certain I'll participate in testing.

[pontification]

This is such a difficult question to answer and, to me, is really one more around philosophy. Although I don't discount the importance of making money providing value to a large group of people, I'm of the opinion that you do what you think is right to you. For me, and even though I'm a lousy coder, coding is always the easy part. Marketing is the hard part. Getting people to allocate time to anything new is always a challenge, so there has to be some really unique value to get them even a bit interested. To do all of the things you propose would probably get Hotaru to a "me too" status, as strong competition already exists. But that's the "cost of entry." What will make Hotaru unique and give it a "first mover" advantage? I'm not sure. If Hotaru had a budget for marketing, you could at least use that as a push for people who haven't yet entered the market and are looking for a solution. If they're already using an existing solution, I doubt it would get them to change platforms though (unless they are really unhappy). To get them to change without a lot of marketing would likely require something very unique.

What's the next "big" thing for social networking? I don't know. History proves innovation can always move a market. That makes it incredibly challenging: how to get to a base code set as "cost of entry" and also add innovation. So, if it's new coders you're looking for, you likely either need to provide a unique code base that's "sexy" in some way or you need to integrate with existing, more establish frameworks and extend. If it's new users, you likely have to offer something that no one is currently offering and find an effective way to market it.

[/pontification]

 

Of the above, I have completed the 4 parts in "Update" section, added FontAwesome4 reference and using this in admin pages

I will release a beta version tomorrow of this as ver 1.6 and then look at a few minor fixes for plugins, in addition to a plan for including some plugins as part of the core

 

Thanks for the updates. I looked through the code changes using WinMerge (which, for those who aren't familiar, is a great tool for quickly identifying differences between versions). You've done quite a bit of work. Exciting to see and I'd encourage everyone who hasn't made too many customizations to core to install and test this release. Unfortunately, I'm not planning on doing any testing for this version because my code is far too hacked up relative to base, which will make upgrades very difficult. I look forward to the next major release to evaluate how much time/effort it will require to upgrade relative to enhanced capabilities.

 

Good suggestions here which should be able to be accomodated

 

That is also an area which i think holds interest for a few people and then leads to ecommerce perhaps on those links that are restricted. I have a couple of hotaru sites running just for restricted members at the moment, but it would be good to have a general outer site for all and then let the restricted (premium) members see more links or restricted categories

 

Interesting new spec - Do not let your CDN betray you: Use Subresource Integrity.

 

very cool feature for browsers to adopt