Hey everyone! We’ve been studiously working on a new version of our WordPress plugin, v2.4. This latest version contains a lot of changes, and a few new features that will be extra-handy if you’re just getting started. Given all of the changes, we’d love your help beta testing to make sure it’s all smooth sailing.

So, what’s new?

• Lots of optimizations on when/where to load ID resources (CSS/JS) to improve page load times
• Switched to inline JS/CSS in the admin to prevent loading the WP engine again
• Now loading ID comment UI via the script object method, rather than direct <script> inclusion
• Removed some unnecessary options and just used smart defaults
• Changed so that there is no backup comments template — your theme MUST have something available, even if it’s very simple
• Made the option to reset the plugin available before import was completed
• Added the ability to reset your import any time during the installation process if you’re having problems
• Standardized on no-www for URLs
• Reversed the order of comment imports (starts oldest first now)
• Added Ping/Pong function for network diagnostics
• Cleaned up translatable strings and now shipping with a POT file for translations (translations will be ONLY for the plugin admin interface, not for anything on intensedebate.com or on the comments themselves, yet)
• Improved comment count links within wp-admin
• Updated some screenshots
• Now using a stable tag, rather than trunk, in the wp.org plugins directory

Feel free to check the Changelog for past versions of the plugin.

You may notice that a few changes have come directly from community requests/suggestions, and we love that so keep the feedback coming. We’re really excited about this release – there are some solid improvements to the whole experience, and it allows us to continue focusing on the IntenseDebate service from our end, including new features and functionality.

If you’re interested in getting in on the beta (that means actually telling us if there are any problems!), then please email us at labs@intensedebate.com, and make sure you include the URL to the website where you’re planning on installing this beta version. We’ll email you back with the plugin and some extra information to get you started. Thanks in advance!

Posted by Beau Lebens in WordPress Plugin

You can’t rush perfection. Like wine, code needs to mature to ensure excellence. This has been on the down-low for months. We’ve been taking our time to massage out all of the knots, dot all i’s and cross all the t’s. If you’ve listened closely you might have heard quiet whispers about our new IntenseDebate WordPress plugin. Over the past couple of months I have been recruiting testers for our private alpha testing. When I first told our good buddy, Chris Farley about our new plugin for his blog ViewfromaFarley, his response was:

I started reading this e-mail and by the time I was finished I was ecstatic. This is everything I’ve been looking for in Intense Debate and more. These features are great for bloggers!

I would be more than happy to be a tester. Strange as it may sound, I’m getting as excited about the new plugin as I am about the new iPhone.

And with good reason… The new IntenseDebate WordPress plugin is one of a kind, featuring advanced integrations that you won’t find and can’t get anywhere else. I can’t spill the beans on our full feature list yet, but one of the key ingredients is complete data sync like nothing you’ve seen before. That’s all I can say right now, but let your imagination run wild with this – if you can dream it, well, we’ve most likely done it.

Private beta starts Sunday, August 24th with the public release following shortly thereafter. If you would like to get in on the beta, drop me line at support@intensedebate.com. If we’ve already chatted about it there’s no need to email, I’ve got you covered. For all of my alpha testers out there who have yet to receive the plugin, there’s no need to email – I know who you are and you’ll be hearing from me soon.

Peace, I’m outta here!

Posted by Michael Koenig in WordPress Plugin

All right, here’s the skinny. We’re getting ready to release our new Google Reader and Bloglines plugins for Firefox 2 & 3 and we’re looking for beta testers.

This isn’t your normal run of the mill RSS reader integration. Our Google Reader and Bloglines plugins allow you to not only access IntenseDebate comments, but also respond to them directly from your reader! Amazing right?!?! I’ve got to tell you, I’ve been playing around with our Google Reader plugin on Firefox 3 for the past week and it is so choice.

If you’re interested in testing out our betas please drop me a line at support@intensedebate.com and we’ll get you all set up.

Start getting excited!
Michael & the fellas at IntenseDebate

Posted by Michael Koenig in features

We’re really excited about our latest beta release that we rolled out last night. The main attraction is Reply By Email – blog owners can now reply to comments made on their blogs, approve or deny friendship requests, and moderate comments all via email. If you’re interested in getting in on this beta, please drop me a line at support@intensedebate.com.

In addition, email and IP addresses will now be included in your new comment posting email notifications for our beta testers. We’ve had numerous requests from our users to be able to privately chat with each other. This is the first step! This new functionality is just a stepping stone of some awesome features to come, so stay tuned and get in on this beta!

Kudos to Jon and Isaac on a job well done!

Posted by Michael Koenig in features

There’s been a lot of stuff going on around here recently. We wanted to make a couple quick announcements to keep you informed.

The most noticeable is the new front page. We continue to strive to make it simpler and easier for our new users to give Intense Debate a try. We now offer a single line of javascript, available right from the front page, that allows anyone to drop Intense Debate Comments into any blog or website. This gives a quick, easy way to test drive Intense Debate for yourself.

Another thing to note is the announcement of our new product team. We’ve been hearing your feedback and we really took it to heart. We compiled a list of bloggers to give us direct feedback on new designs, features, and ideas. Please check out the product team page to see the full list. A big thanks goes to all of our product team for their help and commitment to making Intense Debate better. We’ll take all the help we can get in making Intense Debate the best commenting solution available!

And lastly, something you might or might not have directly noticed is that we’re in midst of many changes to help improve the performance of our product. We’ve already made several updates, and there are several more on the way, all geared toward making a faster, more efficient product for our users.

As always, feel free to give us feedback and help shape the product. You can contact us by posting in our forums or emailing us directly at contactus@intensedebate.com. We’ve got several exciting things in the queue, so be sure to check back frequently.

Posted by Jon Fox in News