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Free and Pro

BuddyPress Member Blog overviewFree + ProGet BuddyPress Member Blog →

WB Member Blog comes in two editions. The free plugin is a complete member blog on its own. WB Member Blog Pro is an add-on that installs beside it and adds modules. Pro never replaces the free plugin: both stay installed and active, and Pro’s settings appear as extra tabs in the same WB Plugins > Member Blog screen.

What each edition includes

Section titled “What each edition includes”
Area Free Pro adds
Writing Front-end composer, three editors, autosave and draft recovery, categories, tags, featured image Custom fields on the form, co-authors, scheduling, series
Member home Published, Drafts, Pending, Saved and Following tabs Calendar, Analytics and Settings tabs
Review Publish immediately or hold for review; Approve and Reject in Posts > Member submissions Reviewer roles and front-end review buttons (Editorial Workflow), approval emails
Limits Allowed roles and member types, blocked categories Posting limits per period, word limits, per-user overrides and exemptions, post credits
Readers Writer profiles, topic hubs, follow, claps, reading list, related posts, featured posts, digest email Series navigation and progress
Notifications Follower, clap and digest emails; on-site notifications on BuddyPress Approval, publishing, comment, co-author and scheduling emails with editable text
Communities Profile Blog tab on BuddyPress, BuddyBoss and PeepSo; activity entries Group blogs for BuddyPress and BuddyBoss groups
Updates Automatic updates Licence key for Pro updates and support

Install and activate Pro

Section titled “Install and activate Pro”
  1. Install and activate WB Member Blog first, at the same version as Pro. Pro will not load without it.
  2. Go to Plugins > Add New Plugin > Upload Plugin, choose the buddypress-member-blog-pro zip file, then click Install Now and Activate Plugin.
  3. Go to WB Plugins > Member Blog > License.
  4. Paste your key into License key and click Activate License. The key is in your purchase receipt email and in your Wbcom Designs account.
  5. Status reads Active: receiving updates when it worked.

If the free plugin is missing, Pro deactivates itself and shows a notice. If the free plugin is older than Pro needs, Pro pauses itself with a notice and starts again once the free plugin is updated.

Turn Pro modules on and off

Section titled “Turn Pro modules on and off”

Everything in Pro is a module.

  1. Go to WB Plugins > Member Blog > Manage Modules.
  2. Flip the switch on each module you want. Each switch saves as you flip it; there is no save button.
  3. Click Configure on a module to open its settings tab. A module’s tab appears only while the module is on.
Module Settings tab Default
Post Restrictions Restrictions On
Custom Fields Custom Fields On
Notifications Notifications, Notification Emails On
Author Dashboard Author Dashboard On
Post Analytics Analytics On
Co-Authors Co-Authors Off
Group Blogs Group Blogs Off
Post Credits Post Credits Off
Post Scheduling Scheduling Off
Post Series Series Off

Modules that start off either depend on another plugin or change how members work, so they are left for you to decide. Group Blogs also needs BuddyPress or BuddyBoss with the Groups component; without it the module stays inactive even when switched on.

Pro’s Manage Modules screen is separate from the free Features screen. Features switches the free plugin’s reader features (writer profiles, claps and so on); Manage Modules switches Pro’s modules.

Without Pro

Section titled “Without Pro”

When Pro is not installed, the free plugin shows an Upgrade tab with a link to get Pro. The free plugin has no time limit and no reduced mode.

Section titled “Related”