6 ms·

OK. So basically this is an Adobe Air-esque app that is a user interface to WordPress which at the moment only works on Mac. I'm sorry but I don't really under

by pan69 11y ago

OK. So basically this is an Adobe Air-esque app that is a user interface to WordPress which at the moment only works on Mac. I'm sorry but I don't really understand what the value proposition here is, maybe I missed it in the article? WordPress already has a pretty good user interface, which was build in HTML/CSS/Javascript. When people complain about WordPress being an outdated architecture it's not the UI they're referring to..

jeffgolenski 11y ago
The desktop app is currently only for Mac, but we're working on other platforms. WordPress.com, which is a very similar experience, is obviously web based and can be used in any browser on any platform. This entire upgrade utilizes the new WordPress rest API and the new WordPress.com is open source.
- pan69 11y ago
  Sorry, maybe my previous comment wasn't very clear, let me try again; I don't understand what problem this project solves and whom it solves it for. We can already manage multi-site WordPress installations and usually that's done by site admins, not the average content Joe, so does it really need a super fancy new UI? And what exactly does it mean when you say "WordPress.com is open source"? Maybe I'm out of the loop but the way I understand it is that wordpress.com is a hosted (commercial) service of wordpress.org. My experience with WordPress is not that the UI is a problem at all, neither multi site management, which I think is in the scheme of things quite niche. The problem with WordPress I hear other developers complain about is the out dated PHP system architecture.
  - umurkontaci 11y ago
    It exactly means as you hear actually, WordPress.com, as we all know, was written in React, is now open-source. In WordPress.com, "average content Joe", can manage multiple sites, including self-hosted WordPress.org sites (through JetPack plugin). Disclosure: I'm one of the authors.
    - oldmanjay 11y ago
      That's a disclosure, not a disclaimer. Unless you intend to disavow the work. Sorry, it's my pet peeve. Downvote away!
    - vineet 11y ago
      Don't you mean Wordpress.com was rewritten in React (and Node)?
  - coldtea 11y ago
    >I don't understand what problem this project solves and whom it solves it for. Faster (through SPA techniques) admin UI. >We can already manage multi-site WordPress installations and usually that's done by site admins, not the average content Joe, so does it really need a super fancy new UI? Yes, since the current UI leaves a lot to be desired. And why keep it to "site admins" and not make it approachable by the "average content Joe"? Besides "sites admin" in this context is just a fancy name for a person that needs to manage more than one Wordpress sites from the same UI -- it doesn't mean he's super-technical or that the UI shouldn't be made more approachable, faster and better.
- nanoojaboo 11y ago
  what is the purpose of the desktop app?
- rmccue 11y ago
  > This entire upgrade utilizes the new WordPress rest API and the new WordPress.com is open source. To clarify: this uses the WordPress.com REST API, which has been around for a number of years, not the core REST API being integrated into WordPress (the software). Also, not all of WordPress.com is open source (i.e. you can't just clone down WP.com and run it), just the new interface. :)
rralian 11y ago
There are two things here. WordPress.com has been rewritten as a SPA written in React, communicating with the back-end via REST-API. That codebase is now open source for anyone to review and hopefully learn some neat things about scaling a really big React application (or even better, teach us a few things). That codebase is here: https://github.com/Automattic/wp-calypso https://github.com/Automattic/wp-calypso Secondly, Automattic has also launched a desktop app (osx for now, but linux and windows forthcoming) that makes use of this new codebase... which is possible now because everything is now going through our REST API.
- pan69 11y ago
  I understand the technical mumbo jumbo, my question is; what problem does this solve?
  - tjsix 11y ago
    "Our existing codebase and workflows had served us well, but ten years of legacy was beginning to seriously hinder us from building the modern, fast, and mobile-friendly experiences that our users expect." - Taken from the second paragraph of the article. The reasons behind the project are explained in more detail here: http://ma.tt/2015/11/dance-to-calypso/ http://ma.tt/2015/11/dance-to-calypso/
- marcuskaz 11y ago
  The desktop app is using Electron, the same framework used by Atom, Slack and Visual Studio Code and others to bundle up a JavsScript app + Chromium to be a stand-alone desktop application. The main benefit of this is speed having the entire app local it makes it really fast. As we continue to develop the app, we'll build in more desktop options and features. Plus its easier to launch and switch to when its an app in your dock instead of just a tab in your browser.
  - criley2 11y ago
    "Plus its easier to launch and switch to when its an app in your dock instead of just a tab in your browser." If every website I visited refused to be in a tab and instead required its own place on my launcher... well, my desktop would be about as useless as my smartphone launcher. 100 applications spread across 8 separate pages, who knows what's open, annoying and time consuming to organize... I really love tabs. Are we really killing them now? Sucks to be anyone who isn't Facebook, because 98% of websites aren't going to make the "put it on the dock" cut, and will just be ignored.
coldtea 11y ago
>So basically this is an Adobe Air-esque app that is a user interface to WordPress which at the moment only works on Mac. Nope, it's a full web app -- if you mean the desktop client, that too. Adobe Air was Flash/AS based. And that's not a just a po-tay-to/po-tah-to distinction. >I'm sorry but I don't really understand what the value proposition here is, maybe I missed it in the article? Yeah, especially since it includes a full comparison matrix type chart with the benefits and changes from the new stack.
- username223 11y ago
  > Nope, it's a full web app -- if you mean the desktop client, that too. Adobe Air was Flash/AS based. And that's not a just a po-tay-to/po-tah-to distinction. Either is a bag of shit sitting on my desk, whatever the consistency of the contents. > Yeah, especially since it includes a full comparison matrix type chart with the benefits and changes from the new stack. The "handy chart"? Or do you have something better in mind than that piece of typical meaningless marketing lip-flapping reformatted as a chart?
  - coldtea 11y ago
    Maybe take it to Reddit?

by pan69 11y ago

jeffgolenski 11y ago

The desktop app is currently only for Mac, but we're working on other platforms. WordPress.com, which is a very similar experience, is obviously web based and can be used in any browser on any platform. This entire upgrade utilizes the new WordPress rest API and the new WordPress.com is open source.

pan69 11y ago
Sorry, maybe my previous comment wasn't very clear, let me try again; I don't understand what problem this project solves and whom it solves it for. We can already manage multi-site WordPress installations and usually that's done by site admins, not the average content Joe, so does it really need a super fancy new UI? And what exactly does it mean when you say "WordPress.com is open source"? Maybe I'm out of the loop but the way I understand it is that wordpress.com is a hosted (commercial) service of wordpress.org. My experience with WordPress is not that the UI is a problem at all, neither multi site management, which I think is in the scheme of things quite niche. The problem with WordPress I hear other developers complain about is the out dated PHP system architecture.
- umurkontaci 11y ago
  It exactly means as you hear actually, WordPress.com, as we all know, was written in React, is now open-source. In WordPress.com, "average content Joe", can manage multiple sites, including self-hosted WordPress.org sites (through JetPack plugin). Disclosure: I'm one of the authors.
  - oldmanjay 11y ago
    That's a disclosure, not a disclaimer. Unless you intend to disavow the work. Sorry, it's my pet peeve. Downvote away!
  - vineet 11y ago
    Don't you mean Wordpress.com was rewritten in React (and Node)?
- coldtea 11y ago
  >I don't understand what problem this project solves and whom it solves it for. Faster (through SPA techniques) admin UI. >We can already manage multi-site WordPress installations and usually that's done by site admins, not the average content Joe, so does it really need a super fancy new UI? Yes, since the current UI leaves a lot to be desired. And why keep it to "site admins" and not make it approachable by the "average content Joe"? Besides "sites admin" in this context is just a fancy name for a person that needs to manage more than one Wordpress sites from the same UI -- it doesn't mean he's super-technical or that the UI shouldn't be made more approachable, faster and better.
nanoojaboo 11y ago
what is the purpose of the desktop app?
rmccue 11y ago
> This entire upgrade utilizes the new WordPress rest API and the new WordPress.com is open source. To clarify: this uses the WordPress.com REST API, which has been around for a number of years, not the core REST API being integrated into WordPress (the software). Also, not all of WordPress.com is open source (i.e. you can't just clone down WP.com and run it), just the new interface. :)

rralian 11y ago

There are two things here. WordPress.com has been rewritten as a SPA written in React, communicating with the back-end via REST-API. That codebase is now open source for anyone to review and hopefully learn some neat things about scaling a really big React application (or even better, teach us a few things). That codebase is here: https://github.com/Automattic/wp-calypso https://github.com/Automattic/wp-calypso Secondly, Automattic has also launched a desktop app (osx for now, but linux and windows forthcoming) that makes use of this new codebase... which is possible now because everything is now going through our REST API.

pan69 11y ago
I understand the technical mumbo jumbo, my question is; what problem does this solve?
- tjsix 11y ago
  "Our existing codebase and workflows had served us well, but ten years of legacy was beginning to seriously hinder us from building the modern, fast, and mobile-friendly experiences that our users expect." - Taken from the second paragraph of the article. The reasons behind the project are explained in more detail here: http://ma.tt/2015/11/dance-to-calypso/ http://ma.tt/2015/11/dance-to-calypso/
marcuskaz 11y ago
The desktop app is using Electron, the same framework used by Atom, Slack and Visual Studio Code and others to bundle up a JavsScript app + Chromium to be a stand-alone desktop application. The main benefit of this is speed having the entire app local it makes it really fast. As we continue to develop the app, we'll build in more desktop options and features. Plus its easier to launch and switch to when its an app in your dock instead of just a tab in your browser.
- criley2 11y ago
  "Plus its easier to launch and switch to when its an app in your dock instead of just a tab in your browser." If every website I visited refused to be in a tab and instead required its own place on my launcher... well, my desktop would be about as useless as my smartphone launcher. 100 applications spread across 8 separate pages, who knows what's open, annoying and time consuming to organize... I really love tabs. Are we really killing them now? Sucks to be anyone who isn't Facebook, because 98% of websites aren't going to make the "put it on the dock" cut, and will just be ignored.

coldtea 11y ago

>So basically this is an Adobe Air-esque app that is a user interface to WordPress which at the moment only works on Mac. Nope, it's a full web app -- if you mean the desktop client, that too. Adobe Air was Flash/AS based. And that's not a just a po-tay-to/po-tah-to distinction. >I'm sorry but I don't really understand what the value proposition here is, maybe I missed it in the article? Yeah, especially since it includes a full comparison matrix type chart with the benefits and changes from the new stack.

username223 11y ago
> Nope, it's a full web app -- if you mean the desktop client, that too. Adobe Air was Flash/AS based. And that's not a just a po-tay-to/po-tah-to distinction. Either is a bag of shit sitting on my desk, whatever the consistency of the contents. > Yeah, especially since it includes a full comparison matrix type chart with the benefits and changes from the new stack. The "handy chart"? Or do you have something better in mind than that piece of typical meaningless marketing lip-flapping reformatted as a chart?
- coldtea 11y ago
  Maybe take it to Reddit?