[wp-hackers] WordPress plugin list

Jason goldsmith unteins at gmail.com
Fri Jun 25 03:47:48 UTC 2004


Ok, to clarify two points about the XMLRPC idea

1) It is implemented AS A PLUGIN therefore it isn't spyware since it
tells you up front exactly what it is doing, which is reporting to a
central server what plugins you have installed (without any
identifying information about you) and active. The plugin would send
the plugin info to the central DB so that others could find it,
solving the problem of developers not taking the time to broadly
advertise their plugins. It wouldn't be difficult to allow developers
to add an additional piece in the comments to disallow this as well
like AutoDiscover: False

2) Since the XMLRPC idea doesn't upload the plugins themselves, it
uses the Plugin URI data in the plugin header to point back to
whatever URL the plugin author has decided to provide, the plugin
author can still drive the users to their own site. In fact, the
XMLRPC setup could be designed in such a way as to require an
additional parameter like Install URI which is optional and would be
needed to allow automatic installations. If a plugin author chose not
to include it, then the users would have to go to the author's website
in order to get the plugin.

>From past experience I know that it is nearly impossible to have a
central repository of plugins that is maintained purely by the
voluntary effort of plugin developers. Plugin developers like to write
code, they don't want to go update 17 different websites to keep them
all up to date....



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