[wp-meta] [Making WordPress.org] #7307: Opt-in Live Preview and External Demo Links for WordPress.org Plugin Repository

[Making WordPress.org]

#7307: Opt-in Live Preview and External Demo Links for WordPress.org Plugin
Repository
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 Reporter:  mdburnette        |      Owner:  (none)
     Type:  feature request   |     Status:  new
 Priority:  normal            |  Milestone:
Component:  Plugin Directory  |   Keywords:
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 **Summary:**
 This proposal aims to enhance the WordPress.org Plugin Repository by
 introducing an opt-in live preview functionality using WordPress
 Playground and an option for developers to provide an external demo link.
 The live preview options would allow users to test plugins before deciding
 to use them.

 **History:**
 A version of this "live preview" was recently (Oct 2023) attempted, but
 quickly retracted after opposing community feedback because of the
 unilateral decision to add to all plugins and the large number of plugins
 that require dependencies to work. Because of this, many developers feared
 that their plugin would not be chosen due to a broken preview experience.

 **Proposed solution:**
 The live preview options are an enhancement to allow site builders to test
 plugins before deciding to use them, whether using the built-in
 capabilities of WordPress Playground or setting up an external demo with
 dependencies. Both options would be added in the plugin headers and parsed
 alongside the plugin details as usual for the plugin repository.

 For inclusion of a "Live Preview" button utilizing the WordPress
 Playground, a header field of "Playground" that could be set to "true"
 would opt the plugin into having the button visible. (False would be the
 default and the Playground field should be omitted if not applicable.)

 ''Example:''
 {{{
 /*
 Plugin Name: WordPress Plugin
 Plugin URI: https://example.com/plugin
 Description: An example plugin.
 Version: 1.0
 Author: Author Name
 Author URI: https://example.com
 License: GPL2
 Playground: true
 */
 }}}

 For a pre-set external demo, a "Demo URI" field would be added with the
 value of the demo link. This would add a button labeled "Launch Demo" - as
 opposed to "Live Preview" - to provide context for where the user is
 directed.

 ''Example:''
 {{{
 /*
 Plugin Name: WordPress Plugin
 Plugin URI: https://example.com/plugin
 Description: An example plugin.
 Version: 1.0
 Author: Author Name
 Author URI: https://example.com
 License: GPL2
 Demo URI: https://example.com/demo-site
 */
 }}}

 Should both fields be present, the "Demo URI" field would take precedence
 over the "Playground" field.

 Original concept written here:
 https://mburnette.com/blog/plugin-repo-live-preview-button/

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/7307>
Making WordPress.org <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/>
Making WordPress.org