[wp-meta] [Making WordPress.org] #3010: Plugin Directory: Replace "This plugin hasn’t been updated in over 2 years" banner

[Making WordPress.org]

#3010: Plugin Directory: Replace "This plugin hasn’t been updated in over 2 years"
banner
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 Reporter:  SergeyBiryukov             |       Owner:
     Type:  defect                     |      Status:  new
 Priority:  normal                     |   Milestone:  Plugin Directory
Component:  Plugin Directory           |  v3.0
 Keywords:  has-patch has-screenshots  |  Resolution:
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Comment (by Ipstenu):

 > Those plugin can't really break the site

 Sure they can, and you know it. If WordPress has to apply some weird
 security patch to oEmbed you could wreck display. Experienced devs knows
 that ''anything'' can break, and there's a whole study done on the 'rarely
 used' aspect of software (the tl;dr is that the stuff you don't use as
 much tends to break in more obscure ways that are harder to fix,
 specifically because we're not regularly using and testing it).

 > Releasing an update for dozens of plugins every 3-4 months is not
 realistic. At least not from a developer point of view.

 I fully agree. Which is why I'm attacking this on multiple fronts. One of
 which is to figure out a better way to allow developers to flag their
 plugin as compatible.

 That said, a major release happens at most 4 times a year, which means you
 would then have to update your plugin at most twice a year (more likely
 you could get away with once - every summer, say). Also you can update
 your readme, and not release a new version, and that would be sufficient
 in most cases.

 I recommend you update your plugin for every other MAJOR release. 4.8,
 5.0, 5.2, and so on. That will keep you always in the green. You could
 even script this if you wanted. But asking a developer to spot-check their
 plugins every 10-18 months shouldn't be an onerous task.

 Is this ''the'' right way? No. But the old way hasn't helped as much as we
 wanted and 2 years was arbitrary to begin with. Release and iterate, y'see
 :) We want developers to review and update their plugins regularly - and
 if you're not, then you ''are'' susceptible to rare breakage due to
 changes in core. Sucks, but that's part of your responsibility. It's the
 other side of the FUD coin - make users feel good by demonstrating you
 care and are working on the plugin.

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Ticket URL: <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/3010#comment:13>
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