Fipamo Beta 3

It's finally here. The long-awaited next big upgrade for Fipamo, Beta 3.

This one is a major update to the entire codebase, with the biggest change being the transition from Slim PHP to the mighty Laravel to provide a better and more stable foundation for pending features.

Of course, this kind of overhaul touches every part of the project, so it took time to address the breaking issues and iron out all the challenges that were revealed, but the outcome has resulted in a much smoother experience and sets it up for easier development which will speed up feature releases.

Yeah, I know. I'm pretty excited too.

There are a ton of changes, so let's get into it.

Release Notes

• Upgraded framework from Slim PHP to Laravel
• Standalone theme kit has been deprecated. Previewing themes have been integrated with the main codebase.
• Updated PHP requirement to 8.2
• Rebuilt Settings UI
• Removed NPM to handle code merging. Front-end scripting uses native ES6 modules
• Removed all CSS frameworks.
• Improved asset moving when publishing sites 115
• Settings submenu fixed 114
• Mail functionality now uses Laravel methodology 113
• Improved Accessibility
  • Cleaned up titles for option buttons in page editor 110
  • File Removal From Keyboard 108,
  • Titles for Navigation Links 107, 106,
  • Removed Nested Links 105,
  • Alt Tag for Logo 104
  • Input Field Labels 102
  • Replaced font icons with SVG images 100
  • Corrected Role attribute usage 99
• Navigation editing fixed 98
• Page UI Text Formatting Sticky positioning fixed 98

What's Next

The release of Beta 3 means we're ready for the next big (optional) feature, Activity Pub integration so Fipamo can be on the fediverse. Oh yeah, it's time.

There are still some outstanding accessibility issues that are still in process as the page editor is being reworked so it can make both blog posts and social media notes.

Once that has been finished, AP implementation will be the priority, with the ability to import your own blocklists for moderation and safety or tick an option to import one of the lists from The Bad Space. Yup, it will be seamlessly integrated into Fipamo. Usage will be, as always, completely optional.

On a personal note, this release was a tough one to complete because of the challenges of rebuilding a code base and, ha, life. So despite it taking longer than I planned, I'm happy to get this one out and continue building. I have so many ideas that I can't wait for people to see, so I'm eager to keep pushing.

As always, Fipamo and The Bad Space would not be possible without the generous contributions from the community. Fundraising is ongoing as the work continues. Believe me when I say every bit counts. And a big thank you to everyone who has already contributed. It's been a bit of a dream to get this far, so I'm excited for the future.

That covers the last few months and lays out the plan for the next few coming up. Releases will be a bit more frequent, so always check back to here see what's going on or keep an eye on the issues at the repo to see what's being worked on.

r.