Removing comments from core

hcgtv · 2015-07-09 01:09:55

Removing comments from the core has been discussed in other threads.

I’m just wondering what is the reasoning for keeping comments in core since not too many of us use blog comments anymore. It’s become a spammers paradise, the only way to control them is to moderate them, then you’re checking your email all the time to let a comment go through, kinda sucks.

Comments could easily be moved to a plugin if somebody still wants them. Honestly, for comments, there’s so many services nowadays, Disqus being one of the first.

When creating a Theme, styling comments adds creation time, for no apparent benefit since I feel commenting is not really a feature that’s being used.

Can we take a poll or something, query the users, ask the general populace?

wet · 2015-07-09 02:34:32

I for instance do use comments. You can turn comments off in Preferences. Issue resolved.

towndock · 2015-07-09 02:57:04

I rarely use comments in sites we create – but sometimes I do. I’m glad of the feature on the sites where it is used. On most sites comments are turned off while initially setting up Textpattern.

I’d vote to keep comments, but perhaps make the default OFF rather than ON.

ax · 2015-07-09 03:38:29

wet wrote #292916:

I for instance do use comments. … Issue resolved.

Convincing argument indeed.

hcgtv · 2015-07-09 03:44:44

wet wrote #292916:

I for instance do use comments. You can turn comments off in Preferences. Issue resolved.

Does it hide the 4 comment forms in the Forms tab, of which 3 are protected?

A default install has only 11 forms, 4 are comment forms, we could ship with 7, easier on the first time user.

There’s 151 Textpattern Template Tags, 23 are just for comments, wow we’re down to 128.

There’s no reason that comments can’t be a plugin which installs the needed forms and style sheet upon install. Maybe streamline it a bit, less forms, less tags, something easier to style and deal with.

Textpattern CMS – A Flexible, Elegant and Easy-To-Use Content Management System.

Blogs have comments, a CMS provides a module if you’re so inclined.

wet · 2015-07-09 04:31:59

ax wrote #292918:

Convincing argument indeed.

Per your request I’ll try to expand on that:

Current comment code is working and, judging from history, does not require much maintenance. Removing the current comment code would require additional work from developers or a third-party pull request. Until this pull request arrives, I consider Bert’s “Comments could easily be moved to a plugin…” an unproved assumption (Emphasis mine).
We used to aim for backwards compatibility since version 1.x. This is a breaking change which would hurt a fraction of our existing users.
Bert presents benefits like third-party services or reduced moderation load, which are already covered with the existing Preferences setting I mentioned.
I don’t think that a theme vendor has to author styles for the built-in comment system if she assumes that comments are turned off via Preferences.

Bert further on suggests to hide comment-related parts from the admin interface when comments are disabled. I think this is a sensible suggestion, and would like to encourage any contributions helping us going in that direction.

bici · 2015-07-09 04:57:07

My preference is NOT to remove comments but have the ability to toggle them on or off. i prefer the default to be Off.

phiw13 · 2015-07-09 05:15:59

wet wrote #292916:

I for instance do use comments. You can turn comments off in Preferences. Issue resolved.

So do I on a couple of sites. Without any problem at all. And I hope this will be kept in core. No I don’t want to depend on third-party services-of-not-always-stellar-reputation.

Set the relevant preference to off by default if it is such an eyesore or trouble to do so for some.

Pat64 · 2015-07-09 05:41:52

Please, read attentively Robert: he is right.

wet · 2015-07-09 06:42:05

Pat64 wrote #292925:

Please, read attentively Robert

Done.

he is right.

Care to explain your reasoning?

candyman · 2015-07-09 06:54:46

I think Patrick means that you are right.

Last edited by candyman (2015-07-09 06:55:08)

ax · 2015-07-09 07:08:02

wet wrote #292927:

Care to explain your reasoning?

Sure. Textpattern is a CMS, and being a CMS it is also a blogging system. However, the charme of Textpattern is not having a very elaborate default theme that makes it look like just another blogging system, with comments, archive, and so on. To me articles are just a resource of text snippets that can be used as freely as images, links, files, categories, sections. Several websites that I have created do not rely on articles, but on an image/category structure, with texts (articles) in certain places where they are needed. This is easy with Textpattern, but probably not with other CMS’s. Therefore I believe that a hard-coded commenting system is against Textpattern’s philosophy and also counter-intuitive to the user.

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#1 2015-07-09 01:09:55