BuddyPress — Social Networking Software for WordPress

BuddyPress groups its functionality into a set of core components that together form a social network layer. Profiles support custom profile fields, visibility levels and common field types, while settings cover account management, email notifications, and email and password changes. Groups are extensible and allow users to create micro-communities, and activity streams operate for both members and groups with a sitewide directory and single threads. Notifications, friendship connections and private messaging between several members at once complete the core set.

• Profiles with custom fields and visibility levels
• Account and email notification settings
• Extensible user groups for micro-communities
• Activity streams with sitewide directory
• Notifications with read/unread state
• Friendship connections
• Private messaging with multiple members

BuddyPress runs as a plugin on WordPress. From version 1.2 it was no longer limited to WordPress MU installations, working with both WordPress and WordPress MU 2.9.1 and higher, with the only difference being the tracking of blogs under WordPress MU. Version 1.2 also simplified installation to three steps and shipped a new default theme with out-of-the-box support for the release's features. Later releases in the 1.2 branch addressed WordPress 3.0 compatibility.

• Works with WordPress and WordPress MU 2.9.1 and higher
• Three-step installation from version 1.2
• Default theme supplied with the 1.2 release
• WordPress 3.0 compatibility work in 1.2.5 and 1.2.6

BuddyPress can be extended with third party components, and the project maintains a plugins page listing them. At the time of the 1.2.2.1 release more than 125 plugins were available, covering areas such as rich media embedding, photo albums, group documents, profile privacy, group wikis and group blogs. Developers building their own features are pointed to the BuddyPress Skeleton Component as a starting point. Version 1.1 introduced a group extension API, and 1.2.5 added new actions for plugin authors to load their code in the correct place.

• BuddyPress Links for rich media embedding
• BuddyPress Album+ for photos and albums
• BuddyPress Group Documents for file uploads
• BuddyPress Profile Privacy for profile data options
• BuddyPress Group Wiki for group wiki pages
• BuddyPress Skeleton Component for plugin development

BuddyPress.org publishes a release history page listing the fixes in each version. Version 1.0.2 was a non-critical bug-fix release distributed through the WordPress plugin browser, with upgrade guidance for language files and manual installs. Version 1.1 added one-click internal bbPress forum integration, a global forum directory, rewritten theme handling, site admin content controls, filterable activity streams, status updates and a group extension API. Within the 1.2 branch, 1.2.5 fixed 49 reported issues and 1.2.6 fixed 91.

• 1.0.2 — bug fixes, upgrade via plugin browser
• 1.1 — bbPress forum integration, new theme handling, group extension API
• 1.2 — standard WordPress support, new default theme, reworked activity streams
• 1.2.2.1 — bug fixes to the 1.2 branch
• 1.2.5 — 49 issues fixed
• 1.2.6 — 91 issues fixed

bbPress has been bundled with BuddyPress since version 1.1, integrated into a dedicated forum component for group discussion alongside a central discussion directory. As part of the wider WordPress "3.org" initiative, bbPress was converted from a standalone platform into a WordPress plugin. The stated plan was for bbPress to stop shipping inside the BuddyPress download, with both plugins aware of each other when activated and able to work independently. The intended result is that bbPress forums can be created for other objects, components or plugins, and that BuddyPress developers can extend bbPress for their own components.

BuddyPress.org hosts support forums staffed by community members, and a Codex covering everything from installation steps to extending BuddyPress and building custom feature sets. A development blog was started ahead of BuddyPress 1.2 to discuss roadmaps, features, APIs and technical detail, and to set the agenda for weekly developer discussions in the #buddypress-dev IRC channel on Freenode, held on Wednesdays at 19:00 UTC. Development tickets and patches are tracked in the project's Trac. Resources have also been published for users migrating from other platforms, including a Ning to BuddyPress blog and a Ning to WordPress/BuddyPress user importer.

• BuddyPress Codex for installation and development guides
• Support forums on BuddyPress.org
• Development blog for roadmaps and APIs
• Weekly IRC meetings in #buddypress-dev, Wednesdays 19:00 UTC
• Development Trac for tickets and patches

BuddyPress credits community contributors in its release announcements, naming those who submit bug reports and patches and answer support queries. Marshall (MrMaz), developer of the BuddyPress Links plugin, joined as a core developer to focus on the BuddyPress API and on making plugin integration easier. Core developers also met at WordCamp New York to discuss project direction. A book, "BuddyPress For Dummies", was written by community contributor Lisa Sabin-Wilson as an introduction to the software and how to customise it.

• Marshall (MrMaz) added as a core developer for API work
• BuddyPress For Dummies by Lisa Sabin-Wilson
• Core developer discussions held at WordCamp New York