[wp-hackers] Re: Improving Plugin (and Theme) metadata

[Lionel Elie Mamane]

Nikolay Bachiyski wrote:

> Although westi's method of explicitly defining the metadata in php
> code is cleanest and is easier to deal with on our side, it will
> have two side effects, which are not desirable:

> 1. Breaks current scheme.

> It won't be easy to trick theme authors into adding a special php
> file and calling functions and escaping strings just for writing
> their plugin description. Users will want to use their old themes,
> so we won't be allowed to deprecate comment headers. Ever. Of
> course, since old headers are allowed, theme authors will continue
> using them. We can push for the new ones of course -- but I don't
> think the gain is worth it.

Well, if the theme is not internationalised, is it really a huge
problem that the metadata is not? If it *is* internationalised, I'd
expect the authors (and the users) will see "metadata not
internationalised" as a real bug and will tend to adopt the new way.

> 2.  Harder to parse, without including the php file.

> Again, we can't make all plugin developers to start offering their
> plugin in a directory with a special, metadata php file.

Hmm... I don't know PHP intimately, but if we can put PHP code in
specially-tagged comments, easily parse it and run it, we avoid the
"directory and extra metadata php file" problem.

-- 
Lionel