[wp-meta] [Making WordPress.org] #7816: Display a special banner for very old, obsolete plugins

[Making WordPress.org]

#7816: Display a special banner for very old, obsolete plugins
------------------------------+---------------------
 Reporter:  tellyworth        |       Owner:  (none)
     Type:  enhancement       |      Status:  new
 Priority:  normal            |   Milestone:
Component:  Plugin Directory  |  Resolution:
 Keywords:                    |
------------------------------+---------------------
Description changed by tellyworth:

Old description:

> The oldest plugin in the WordPress.org plugin directory has not been
> updated in almost **twenty years**. Amazingly, it still works, in a way.
>
> It's great that we have an active archive dating back decades. However,
> plugins that have been untouched for such a long time almost certainly
> shouldn't be installed on a production site today.
>
> We do display a warning message on old plugins; but it's the exact same
> message regardless of whether it has been abandoned for 18 months or 18
> years:
>
>  This plugin **hasn’t been tested with the latest 3 major releases of
> WordPress.** It may no longer be maintained or supported and may have
> compatibility issues when used with more recent versions of WordPress.
>
> I propose that we add a new banner for **very old plugins** -- those that
> haven't been updated in many years, and that have a Tested Up To version
> that is well beyond its end-of-life date. Something like:
>
>  **This plugin is obsolete.** It has not been maintained in many years,
> and should not be used on a new site. It is available here for archival
> and historical reasons.
>

> Additionally, I would suggest that we remove the Download button from
> those plugins; make sure they can't be accidentally installed via wp-
> admin in recent WP versions; and exclude them from most searches (without
> making them completely impossible to find).
>
> I'm open to suggestions as to what the threshold should be for
> considering a plugin as "obsolete". To choose an arbitrary example, `not
> updated since before 2010 AND Tested Up To is less than WP 3.6` gives
> about 1500 plugins, almost all of which have less than 100 active
> installs. A threshold date of 2014 would give closer to 9000 plugins.

New description:

 The oldest plugin in the WordPress.org plugin directory has not been
 updated in almost **twenty years**. Amazingly, it still works, in a way.

 It's great that we have an active archive dating back decades. However,
 plugins that have been untouched for such a long time almost certainly
 shouldn't be installed on a production site today.

 We do display a warning message on old plugins; but it's the exact same
 message regardless of whether it has been abandoned for 18 months or 18
 years:

  This plugin **hasn’t been tested with the latest 3 major releases of
 WordPress.** It may no longer be maintained or supported and may have
 compatibility issues when used with more recent versions of WordPress.

 I propose that we add a new banner for **very old plugins** -- those that
 haven't been updated in many years, and that have a Tested Up To version
 that is well beyond its end-of-life date. Something like:

  **This plugin is obsolete.** It has not been maintained in many years,
 and should not be used on a new site. It is available here for archival
 and historical reasons.


 Additionally, I would suggest that we remove the Download button from
 those plugins; make sure they can't be accidentally installed via wp-admin
 in recent WP versions; and exclude them from most searches (without making
 them completely impossible to find). The code would still be available in
 svn and for browsing in Trac.

 I'm open to suggestions as to what the threshold should be for considering
 a plugin as "obsolete". To choose an arbitrary example, `not updated since
 before 2010 AND Tested Up To is less than WP 3.6` gives about 1500
 plugins, almost all of which have less than 100 active installs. A
 threshold date of 2014 would give closer to 9000 plugins.

--

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/7816#comment:1>
Making WordPress.org <https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/>
Making WordPress.org