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Pods 2.0 Alpha Testing

Current Alpha Version: 35 (08/07/2012)

How to Install

First, Grab the ZIP on our GitHub, extract the contents of the “pods-framework-pods-XXXXX” folder inside and upload it into a new folder located at wp-content/plugins/pods-2.0/ (Use pods-2.0 as the folder name instead of just ‘pods’ in order to allow you to flip between Pods 1.x and 2.0 during testing)

Stay Up-to-date

As future fixes and features are added, we’ll commit them to the Pods GitHub 2.0 branch. As of Alpha 6, you can now upgrade from within WordPress directly to the latest Alpha/Beta release, which pulls from our GitHub account. You’ll see the update usually within a few hours of a commit. You can also keep an eye out for new releases by subscribing via https://github.com/pods-framework/pods/commits/2.0.atom

Bugs / Feature Requests

Testers please report bugs and suggest features in our GitHub Issues area

Alpha Information

It’s the first of many alphas, so there is still much to be done and tweaked. Please remember that Pods 2.0 Alpha is NOT production/live site ready, so do not attempt to upgrade your existing Pods installations.

Here’s a list of what you can start checking out so far in the current Alpha. Everything else is still in the works and should begin appearing in future alphas as they are finished and tweaked, but be aware there’s a LOT on it’s way!

  • New UI!
  • Add New Pod wizard guides you through creating a new content type or extending one
  • Edit Pod screen lets you add / edit fields, and choose from many field options that are built-in (yay for not needing helpers for most common use-cases!)
  • Create Custom Post Types and Custom Taxonomies, plus manage their labels / settings in the Edit Pod area
  • 04/21 – Now update the plugin from within WP directly from GitHub during testing period
  • 04/22 – Meta fields for Pods you create/extend now appear in the Post Type, Taxonomy, Media, User, and Comment editors
  • 06/15 – Fully revamped form / fields classes, admin updates, new Widgets, new Shortcode TinyMCE Media bar button
  • 06/21 – Input fields showing up throughout add/edit forms and they use the options as set in field settings; New Attachments option available for File Uploads, lets you click Add to open WP Media popup, upload/choose file, and it adds to list of files; Also new UI for plupload uploader option
  • 07/09 – New Components panel, admin updates/fixes, performance enhancements using transients and object caching (reducing queries per page load)
  • 07/26 – We now only have one custom table, wp_pods_rel for relationships. Pods, Fields, Pod Templates, Pod Pages, and Helpers are all stored as their own post types now. The API has been adjusted so this is transparent to the developer and you will continue to use the same parameters and API methods. Also, save_pod_item / delete_pod_item have been refactored to support the new Meta/Table storage type architecture, feel free to start testing those.
  • 07/30 – We have built in field groups within our code now, leading the way for a new UI to be put together for 2.1. You can call it through the pods_group_add function, documentation coming in the 2.0 docs round.
  • 08/01 – *_*_meta functions will now be overridden for fields on WP Objects created/extended by Pods. get_*_meta maps directly to the normal field method on the Pods class, which allows for relationship/file lookups and traversing multiple levels deep (related.ID, image.ID, related.another_relation.and_another.id, etc)!
  • 08/07 – We’ve completely reimagined the Add New Pod screens within our new Wizard UI interface designed by RD2

Some more things to note, which mainly covers things that you may expect to work based on the above but actually aren’t in the current alpha release:

  • You can install Pods 2.0 Alpha, but it will not upgrade your existing Pods data (if any)
  • Documentation isn’t in there yet, there’s some scattered across and we’d love to have your help in filling it in if you believe you can contribute there. Expect a ton of inline documentation with links to guide you to get more information in the User Guide once we’re done
  • Yes, we still have those ugly JS alerts, we’re still looking into a replacement that provides a better UX

Developers / Documentation Writers Wanted!

Now that the bulk of the work for organization, structure, and UI has been done for Pods 2.0, we’re in need of developers/writers to contribute to the project. Please contact me at the following e-mail address if you’re interested in contributing, please only e-mail me if you have used WordPress extensively and are very familiar with Pods: scott (@) podsframework dot org

You can also contribute by “forking” our GitHub branch, making your changes / adjustments, and then submitting a “pull request” to have it reviewed for inclusion in a future Alpha release.

Donations Are Always Welcome

Don’t forget that if you’re not blessed with the ability to code, you can always donate to the Pods Framework project and help fund development and future features.

Like it? Hate it? Oh no WTF?

Reply with your comments on the UI so far! Try to keep bugs out of the discussion and on GitHub so they can actually be fixed 🙂

20 thoughts on “Pods 2.0 Alpha Testing”

  1. Nice to see the Alpha available to play around with. Great job. As great as custom post types can be, the ability to customize a site with Pods was almost frictionless. In the kickstarter email you mentioned something about notifications / updates. Are the emails going to stop – meaning subscribe to the blog for updates?

    • It’s always a good idea to subscribe to the Blog posts and comments on this site, or even follow me us on Twitter. However, I’ll continue to be sending e-mail newsletters to everyone (including everyone who has donated in the future/past) as major updates are released so everyone who literally has a vested interest can know as things happen.

  2. The GUI seems to be organized in a much more logical and intuitive fashion … if I weren’t so busy I’d download the Alpha and give it a try. Looking forward to seeing what’s on those other tabs. 🙂

  3. It seems to me that pods 2.0 processes longer than pods 1.12.4. Does pods 2.0 final behave the same?

    • Which part are you referring to processing longer? We haven’t enabled the transient/caching layer in 2.0 yet so there is a lot that will speed up very fast.

      • the Pods Setup page is loaded slower in the 2.0 alpha than 1.12.4. Except that, ajax works as fast as the stable version.
        pods 2.0 is really a revolution. I’m looking forward to it. Keep on your excellent work. Thank you!

  4. Will 2.0 include a matrix-type field, similar to the Matrix add-on for ExpressionEngine?

    This is something I’m becoming more and more dependent on — so much that it’s turning into a deal breaker!

    Here’s the Matrix add-on: http://pixelandtonic.com/matrix

  5. Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_PAAMAYIM_NEKUDOTAYIM in /home/htlcnn/public_html/wp/wp-content/plugins/pods2.0/classes/PodsForm.php on line 428
    how can i fix this? Pods alpha 14 on wordpress 3.4, php 5.2.17. Thank you.

      • I still get that error, but on line 430.
        I installed Pods 1.14.2 and created a pod, then disable 1.14.2 and got the error when activating 2.0 alpha 15.

      • Tested on localhost, php 5.3.8. Alpha 15 activated without any error. But my hosting provider (host gator) only has php 5.2.17. Does Alpha 15 require php 5.3?

        • That wasn’t the plan, there should be a very limited amount of issues with PHP 5.2.x, so I’m very interested in maintaining compatibility. Could you by chance provide access to the site you’re testing Pods 2.0 Alpha 15 on so I can attempt to fix? I don’t have any PHP 5.2.x environments available right now. You can e-mail me at [email protected]

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