The WordPress Community Team has issued a new call for developers to assist with enhancements to its event management tools, including improvements to CampTix and the ongoing development of GatherPress.
Focus Areas for Development
Introducing the initiative, Harmony Romo highlighted the growing enthusiasm and urged the community to help turn ideas into real progress, “ Incredible ideas and passion have already sparked real momentum across this community. Now it’s time to turn that energy into results: step forward, review proposals, lend your expertise, and help bring these ideas to life!”.
The areas that are in need of attention are:
- Upgrading the CampTix ticketing system
- Improving GatherPress, an open-source platform to replace Meetup.com dependency.
- Expanding the WordPress events platform.
Future Roadmap Of CampTix
CampTix is the official ticketing plugin for WordCamps, used to manage event registrations throughout the WordPress community. A proposal to improve the plugin was put forth earlier this year by Uros Tasic, in which he highlighted the limitations and how to improve it.
Harmony Romo once again highlighted a few issues of CampTix, such as the need for improved visa-letter creation, expanded reporting features for organizers, and a smoother process for multiple ticket purchases linked to .org profiles.
To address these issues, the post proposes setting up dedicated maintainers, encouraging open contributor access through GitHub mirrors, and developing a community roadmap to prioritize updates.
Uros Tasic expressed support for the initiative, stating he is ready to contribute his updates, proposed holding regular meetings, and offered to assist new contributors with setup, “ I appreciate the initiative thank you for moving this forward….I’m now ready to push some of the changes I’ve been working on. I’d also like to suggest having monthly async chats or meetings to align on our work, discuss progress, and set priorities. I can also help new contributors set up their environments it can be a bit intimidating at first glance.”
Progress on GatherPress
GatherPress, which aims to provide an open-source alternative to Meetup.com for WordPress groups, is also seeking testers and developer support. While initial progress has been made, including use by WPCC Student Clubs, broader real-world testing is needed as highlighted, “ While WPCC Student Clubs have been set up on GatherPress, we need more real life testing from the community to move this project closer to integration.”
The last update regarding the GatherPress Project was provided by Patricia BT earlier this year. The update highlighted that full WordPress.org integration is on hold until real-world testing is completed.
Enhancing the WordPress Events Platform
Further improvements are also being planned for the official events website, such as enhancing budgeting tools, improving planning workflows, and streamlining user interfaces.
Additionally, discussions have resurfaced around the potential for a WordPress events mobile app. Harmony Romo highlighted that the WC & WP Events beta used by WordCamps in Spain could serve as a foundation for future development, “ In relation to an events app, there’s one already in use by WordCamps within Spain that could potentially serve as a starting point..”.
Those interested in joining the initiative to improve the WordPress event tools can participate in the discussion through the comments or by contacting [email protected]