What's New in 1.2.4

This release widens the app API, makes pages faster, clears up notifications and fixes a long list of smaller problems. BuddyNext Pro 1.2.4 rebuilds paid membership around one plan card and one checkout.

Note: BuddyNext free and BuddyNext Pro are released together. Update both at the same time and test them together.

New for members

• Photos on a published post. Members can add and remove photos on a post they already published.
• Notification preview. On desktop and tablet, the header bell opens a preview of recent notifications.
• Sharing. Public posts on a public site can be shared to social networks by members and guests.
• Leaderboard. The leaderboard can be browsed in full, page by page, and each space has its own Leaderboard tab.
• Restore files. Removed files can be restored from the Trash, not only folders.

Better for members

• Uploads. Uploads show how much of each file has been sent, several videos can be uploaded together, and Post waits until media is ready.
• Logging in. Logging in returns visitors to the page they came from, from every Log in link and from wp-login.php. Finishing onboarding lands a new member on the activity feed.
• Paging. Lists use WordPress’s /page/N/ addresses, a page past the end answers Page not found with a way back, and profile tabs are paged.
• Long posts. See more expands a long post in place on the feed.
• Notifications. A member is notified once per person per post for reactions, and reactions are bell-only. The bell number counts what is new since the bell was last opened and still unread.
• New posts pill. Clicking the New posts pill puts the posts it counted at the top of the feed instead of reloading the page.
• Phones. Toasts show one at a time, never repeat a counter, and sit above the Save bar.
• Sub-spaces. A sub-space names its parent on its page and in the Spaces sidebar.

New for site owners

• Page width. Appearance > Layout sets community pages to full width, the theme’s width or a custom width.
• Tools. Tools can check and repair the database tables and restore the default email wording.
• Email Log. The Email Log can be searched by recipient.
• Webhooks. A new webhook endpoint shows its signing secret once, with a Copy button.
• Roles. The Roles screen lists every ability an owner can grant, including reacting, sharing, bookmarking and voting.
• Suspensions. New sites suspend a member at 5 strikes and never ban automatically; saved values on existing sites are kept. Every suspension carries a reason the member is told.
• Free licence. The free licence is activated in the background, stops when the store refuses, and tells the owner why with a Retry button.
• Permalinks. On Plain permalinks the owner is told BuddyNext needs pretty links, with a one-click fix.
• Site search. Site search stays with WordPress; ?s= is no longer redirected to community search.
• Speed. Feed pages, the Members directory and every request run fewer database queries.
• Admin wording. Admin screens use one save wording, sentence case and “members” throughout.

Fixes

• Nobody could register on a new site because consent was required with no checkbox shown. This is fixed.
• Signup refusals that are not about a single field are shown to the visitor, and registration redirects saved in settings are followed, including an off-site address.
• Choosing Admin approval in the setup wizard holds new members for approval, and Go to dashboard no longer adds sample content.
• Every declared transactional email is delivered, not only verification and welcome.
• Deleting posts lowers their hashtags’ counts, and old counts are repaired once.
• Guests see a member’s public albums instead of No albums yet.
• Invite-only spaces no longer offer a join request, My Spaces filters by category, and approving a join request runs the same checks as joining.
• A missing post answers 404 on edit, delete, pin and unpin.
• Photo alt text comes from WPMediaVerse, not the upload title, and deleting a comment in the media lightbox removes its copy on the post.
• A reaction clicked in the photo lightbox right after it opens is saved on the post and stays highlighted.
• The app’s own files are cached correctly when their paths contain spaces, and a version update is never answered with the old copy.
• Hiding Jetonomy from navigation also hides the Discussions link in the rail.
• The cookie notice button uses the site’s accent colour on theme pages.
• Deleting a post from its own page returns to the activity feed instead of leaving an empty page.
• Opening the bell also clears the notification number on the side rail and the phone navigation.
• Phone layouts of the directories line up, and the Members toolbar no longer leaves a lone view switch at tablet width.

Security

• Members-only posts no longer appear on Explore, in link previews or with their link preview over the API.
• Posts in private and secret spaces stay out of Explore and profiles, and every route of a secret space answers a stranger like a missing space.
• Profiles no longer reveal the secret spaces a member belongs to.
• Albums list only the photos the viewer may see and never show a hidden cover.
• React, share, bookmark and poll vote follow the member’s ability on the server, not only in the page.
• Unlisted membership plans stay out of the public API.

For developers

• App API. The app API covers the Explore deck, featured spaces, space header, tabs, team and roster, profile tabs, onboarding steps, notification badges, privacy settings, standing and sign-in accounts.
• Filters. New filters buddynext_rest_space_item, buddynext_member_hold and buddynext_reaction_choices. Partner notifications can opt into BuddyNext email.
• Integration cards. Integration cards can be rewritten in place with IntegrationActivity::rewrite, and bridges name the features that need a newer partner version.
• REST reference. The REST API reference is regenerated for 1.2.4.

BuddyNext Pro 1.2.4

Paid membership is rebuilt around one plan card, one order summary and a pricing page made of blocks.

• Pricing page. The membership pricing page is built from blocks: header, plan cards, community proof, comparison and FAQ, with one pattern that restores the whole layout. Blocks can be selected and configured in the editor.
• One checkout. One plan card and one order summary everywhere, showing coupon, tax, points and what renews. The owner’s default gateway is listed first at checkout.
• Who can join. Choose Anyone, or Paying members only.
• Renewals. An optional monthly renewal day, and admins can change a member’s renewal date; the charge moves with it.
• Finding a member. Admins can find a member from an email, invoice number or payment reference.
• Billing history. Members read their billing history in the app, and the app gets plan cards and the order summary.
• Plan changes. Moving to a higher plan starts now, moving down starts when the current plan ends, and monthly to yearly keeps the unused time. Settings > Membership shows a queued plan change with Cancel. A member whose plan is renewed by Stripe or PayPal changes plan on the pricing page.
• Cancelling. A member who cancels keeps the time they paid for, and a cancel is confirmed with the provider. A cancelled plan cannot be bought again before it ends, so nobody is charged twice.
• Refunds and deletion. Refunds stop the provider billing, refund the order’s own payment and send one receipt. A refunded or ended paid plan leaves the member on the Free plan. Deleting a paying member cancels their billing and keeps the records.
• Payments. Stripe renewals and failed payments work on current Stripe API versions, and the first payment of a subscription is recorded once, as one order, with its tax. Update payment method opens Stripe’s billing portal for members who paid with a different email. The Payment Gateways screen names every Stripe and PayPal webhook event and flags the ones a site’s webhook is missing.
• Exports. The Orders export includes subtotal, discount, tax, refunded amount, payment reference and points.
• Engagement. Custom reactions follow the one on/off switch on Engagement > Social. Disabling a drip sequence pauses enrolled members, and enabling it resumes with the next step only. With Hide my profile views on, the visit is not recorded at all.
• Security. Unlisted plans are hidden from the public API and from Settings > Membership.