New Release: PeepSo & Gecko 4.1.0.0

Compatibility with WordPress 5.9, PHP 8.1, WooCommerce 6.1 and Divi Builder. Admin only profile fields, sort posts by recently commented and much more.

New PHP and WordPress versions

PHP 8.1

The latest major PHP release happened late last year, but WordPress 5.8 is so incompatible with it we were not able to properly test it. We got back to the topic once WordPress 5.9 reached RC status. This is why it took us a while longer than usual. PeepSo 4.1.0.0 is the first version compatible with PHP 8.1, but it requires WordPress 5.9 to run it anyway.

WordPress 5.9

PeepSo 4.1.0.0 is compatible with WordPress 5.9 – we had to fix some issues with the block based widgets and link embeds.

Can I upgrade PHP or WordPress and use older PeepSo?

It is highly discouraged to upgrade either PHP or WordPress to the latest versions if you don’t plan to upgrade to PeepSo 4.1. Any older of PeepSo version (4.0.x, 3.x, etc.) will most likely break under WordPress later than 5.8 and PHP later than 8.0. The only way to move forward is to get latest PeepSo along with the latest PHP and WordPress.

Should I upgrade PHP and/or WordPress now?

There are no known PeepSo issues with PHP 8.1 or WP 5.9, but we would still recommend waiting for other developers to catch up. At the very least, you should test the new PHP and WordPress versions on a staging copy of your site.

PeepSo 4.1 will work just fine on older WordPress and PHP versions, so it’s safe to upgrade PeepSo alone.

Sorting posts by “most recently commented”

This feature is currently in Early Access, meaning you need the Ultimate Bundle and Early Access plugin to access it. When enabled, it allows users to sort posts by “most recently commented” so the feed is more dynamic than the usual “sorted by time added”.

The feature is considered “stable but experimental”. There is a known “lack of functionality” where posts created/commented on before upgrading to 4.1 will still sort by time (because the logic to “bump them” was not present). We plan to add some sort of cron job to update the older posts in future releases.

Emails can no longer be used as usernames

Our validation logic was refactored to allow multiple custom validation rules in PeepSo forms, so we could add a new rule to the usernames. Starting with PeepSo 4.1.0.0 users can no longer type their email as username in PeepSo registration and account forms.

“Admin only” profile fields

You can now have fields that are only editable by admin (but visible to everyone else based on privacy) and even fields only visible by admin (for internal notes etc). These fields are excluded from profile completeness. The new options apply only to custom fields (ones you add yourself, not ones shipped with our product).

Third party compatibility

Divi

Recent versions of Divi Builder and Theme seem to have backed out from overly aggressive CSS rules which broke a lot of PeepSo layout. We are still apprehensive about calling it “compatible” again, but for now it seems to be working rather fine. We adjusted some CSS on our end to make it look good, and will monitor the situation closely.

PeepSo with third party themes, Gecko with third party plugins

We are constantly working on making PeepSo look good in third party non-Gecko themes and making sure other plugins look good when using Gecko. This process is ongoing, and we expect to see gradual improvements in future releases as well.

WooCommerce

PeepSo 4.1 is fully compatible with WooCommerce 6.1.

Changelog

Be sure to see our changelog for all the details.

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Brought to you by Matt Jaworski

I am a professional nerd with **over fifteen years of experience** in the field of Open Source web development. Before [PeepSo](https://PeepSo.com) I was a contractor and have helped build successful businesses around the world, including USA, UK, Germany, Indonesia, and Malaysia. A couple of years leading up to founding PeepSo, I was involved with JomSocial – a social networking extension for Joomla. Stepping up from the role of a contractor to a business owner, I became [PeepSo](https://PeepSo.com) founder and Chief Technology Officer. I strive to build beautiful, fast, and functional software that **empowers users to build their own digital tribes with full autonomy and freedom** often not available on mainstream social networking media. In 2023 we spun off a new company to launch [Awedesk](https://awedesk.com) – a complete ticket-based client support solution for WordPress. I also created [ListoWP](https://LIstoWP.com), a modern to-do plugin for WordPress which is now evolving into a project management tool.