Time for an update folks! Version 2.9 of our WordPress plugin includes some great performance optimizations and other fixes:

• Better local sync queue management for faster, more reliable syncing
• Better option management to reduce the number of queries generated by the plugin
• Improved mobile device support (the iPad now always loads IntenseDebate and ID works with the WPTouch theme)
• Better compatibility with WordPress 3.0 (and previous versions) running in WP_DEBUG mode (avoid deprecated functions etc)
• Some syncing fixes that make sure your WordPress comments database matches the comments in IntenseDebate

Please note that this version REQUIRES WordPress 2.8 or higher (and has been tested all the way up to the latest 3.0.1). If you are running a version of WordPress below 2.8, we have NOT tested this version, and it’s likely not to work. Hey, it’s time to upgrade that thing!

We strongly recommend that you update to this version of the plugin as soon as it appears in your WordPress admin panel as it provides some great performance improvements. If you don’t have IntenseDebate installed yet, or would rather update manually, jump on over to our WordPress.org plugins directory page and grab a copy now.

Posted by Beau Lebens in WordPress Plugin

It’s that time again folks: time for another release of our WordPress plugin!

Version 2.7 is available right now in the WordPress Plugin Directory, and you’ll be prompted to upgrade within your WordPress admin panel in the next few hours if you’re already running it. This version brings the following changes:

• Better loading of JSON libraries: We’ve revised the way that we load JSON (some of the core backend code used in syncing your comments!) so data sync should be much more reliable across more server configurations. Everyone should definitely upgrade for this one!
• Basic diagnostics to help people when they’re getting started: Running IntenseDebate on your own WordPress server requires a connection between our servers and your own. This handy little feature will help you detect if there are problems with that connection.
• Ability to configure the plugin using a WordPress.com account: We had some clashes between usernames of IntenseDebate users and WordPress.com users, so now you can specify which type of account you’re using to log in.

If you’ve had any trouble with a previous version, or were thinking about giving IntenseDebate a try, now’s a perfect time! Install directly through your WordPress admin panel: select Plugins > Add New menu option, or sign up now and follow the prompts.

Posted by Beau Lebens in WordPress Plugin

Howdy folks!

Today we released version 2.6 of our WordPress plugin, which is available in the WordPress Plugin Directory, or via your WordPress dashboard.  It’s been a while since we released a new version of our WordPress plugin (over 2 months actually).  That’s because we’ve been pushing-out all the new features and code on our end, rather than making you update all the time – no one likes upgrade fatigue.

Version 2.6 has a few minor changes that are needed to make the IntenseDebate plugin fully compatible with certain combinations of WordPress 2.9 and PHP.

If you’re already using the plugin without any problems then it’s not critical that you update, but it’s always a good idea to stay up-to-date with the latest versions. If you had any problems getting the plugin working previously, now is a great time to give IntenseDebate another try.  Version 2.6 should be the perfect cure for your plugin fever.

Download the latest version now and give it a shot!

Posted by Beau Lebens in WordPress Plugin

It’s been a while now (almost 3 months!) since the last update to our WordPress plugin, and a lot has been going on here at IntenseDebate HQ since then. We’ve been working on our end to improve how the plugin interacts with our servers, and now we’re ready to release a new version which updates how it operates as well. Here are some of the new and improved bits in this version:

• Added a bunch of new API functions to enable better remote queue management (for syncing): get comment counts, get approved comment counts, get a copy of your sync queue, manage individual operations, lock queue temporarily
• Improved handling of duplicate comments
• Improved syncing on comment statuses
• Fixed a bug with closing comments on a Post/Page
• Added partial support for the Trash feature coming in WordPress 2.9*
• Added functionality to allow us to re-import a single Post to help fix up any sync problems (more efficient than re-importing your entire site)
• Lots of small improvements and fixes to the way the sync queue operates to avoid overloading your site (and ours) and to increase the success of requests.

* We’re going to be releasing an update in the near future, once we sort out a few remaining issues with the Trash functionality. When you upgrade to WordPress 2.9 (once it’s released!) you’ll also want to upgrade to that new version.

This version of the plugin has gone through a load of testing on WordPress versions 2.5, right up to the current “trunk” and WordPressMU version 2.6 to the current release (2.8.5.2). We’d like to note that in the next versions, we’re going to drop support for versions of WordPress below 2.7, so if for some reason you’re running an old version of WordPress, we’d strongly recommend that you upgrade!

If you are already using IntenseDebate on your WordPress blog then you should see a plugin update notification in your admin dashboard soon. If you haven’t tried us out yet, then now is the perfect time, with our best plugin release to date! You can search for the plugin (“IntenseDebate Comments”) under Plugins > Add New, or download it directly from the WordPress Plugin Directory.

Posted by Beau Lebens in WordPress Plugin

By now you’re all aware that we’ve been working on allowing you to display your comment section in different languages, and today we’d like to make that available to everyone! Thanks to a fantastic effort from 24 volunteers collaborating across 5 continents, we’re able to offer 12 new languages to you right off the bat, with more languages hopefully coming soon. Here are the new languages that we’re releasing, along with the awesome folks who contributed to each translation:

• Arabic (Egypt)
  • Hisham Sadek – blog
• Croatian
  • “Andrija Papec – blog
• Filipino
  • Kevin Paquet – blog
• French
  • Alexandre Vallières-Lagacé – blog
  • Brice Gouban – blog
  • Jeremy Selier – blog
• German
  • Thomas Kalka – blog
  • Thomas Knapp – blog
• Malay
  • JL – blog
• Portuguese (Brazil)
  • Rafael Fischmann from MacMagazine
  • Vinicius – blog
  • Bernardo Pina – blog
  • David Soares – blog
  • Bruno Alves – blog
  • Beto Cadilhe – blog
  • João Pedro Cunha – blog
• Russian
  • Sergey Soloviov – blog
  • Maxim Yanovsky (Максим Яновский) – blog
  • hell0men – blog
• Spanish (Mexico)
  • Jorge Martinez – blog
  • Oscar Cubillos Herrera – blog
• Spanish (Spain)
  • Peter Olle – blog
• Ukranian
  • Vladimir Medushivsky (ДЭВИД®) – twitter

To change the language used in the comments area on your site, just go into the fancy new Settings & Layout section of intensedebate.com and the pick the Layout option on the left. At the bottom of that page you can pick from the list of supported languages.

These are first runs of the translations, so please take a look and see what you think. If there are any words you think might make more sense as something different, then please drop us a line at labs@intensedebate.com, letting us know what language you’re looking at and where the text you’re talking about appears. It might be easiest if you send us a screenshot showing exactly which bit of text you’re talking about.

Thanks for all of your patience, and another huge thank you to the wonderful volunteers who have made this possible.

If you don’t see your language and you’re interested in translating, please email us at the address above. We would love your help!

Posted by Beau Lebens in features