This is a software proposal for a Wordpress plugin to merge with the Steem blockchain. Developers can earn rewards by posting their contributions via the Utopian system.
Overview
Today over 60 million websites are running WordPress as their foundation. SteemPress integrates the Steem blockchain functions into the most popular website management system. Content producers get an easy access to connect their own businesses, communities and ecosystems with the near endless possibilities of WordPress and the cryptocurrency reward system of Steem. And with the upcoming Smart Media Tokens based on Steem the users can create their own tokens and use of them instead of the Steem mother coin.
Features
This list is merely a collection of ideas from the perspective of a 9-year long experience with WordPress. I am not a developer myself and just learned how to handle WordPress with plugins, html and CSS. Understanding Javascript, SteemJ, PhP and other relevant languages for this task is not among my skillsets (yet). Please forgive my ignorance in these matters in case some of my feature requests might be impossible or too complex.
Login with SteemConnect
To get access to the Steem blockchain the users need to be able to login with their posting keys. The safest way to do that is using SteemConnect from the busy.org developers. I am uncertain what the best method here would be. The Steem account could be merged with a WordPress user account to allow for seamless integration with non-Steem functions like webshops for example.
Posting to the Steem blockchain
Instead of going to Steemit or any other Steem-based website you can create and post directly from your own WordPress page. For that the WordPress editor can be used or any other plugin editor like the super popular Visual Editor “Divi” from Elegant Themes. That might result in a dysfunctional look for the Steem post when read outside of the user’s website, which is acceptable in my opinion.
An auto-generated link on top of the post could send readers from Steemit & Co. to the authors website where the content is intended to be consumed.
The posting options should include the common payout methods (100%, 50/50 and No Payout).
One or more Beneficiaries can be set to receive a percentage of the payout without any service fees.
5 Tags can be set for the post (Default main tag can be set in plugin settings).
Upvote own post option (Default can be set in settings).
The Post could be stored in the WordPress database as a portfolio project which allows for separate posting outside of the Steem blockchain via the regular posts.
Scheduling of posts
WordPress offers a schedule function for posts which is very helpful for website owners. Streemian.com offers such a service for the Steem blockchain, so it should be possible.
Editing of posts
As long as the post is still active WordPress should offer the possibility to edit the post.
Displaying of the Post
On the frontend the post will be rendered according to the WordPress theme and plugins running on the website. The Meta Data of the post could contain the upvote function, the amount of upvotes and the amount of blockchain views. Some users might prefer the actual views on their own website instead. Maybe this could be set in the settings as either/or with blockchain views as default.
In the backend all Steem posts should have additional info showing the metadata for payout, votes and views, next to the amount of comments.
Replacing WordPress comments with Steem comments
For each Steem post the according blockchain comments replace the default comment function in the style of the WordPress theme.
The upvote function for comments should work similar to Steemit. Downvoting should be a setting option which is deactivated by default, since many website owners probably don’t want to have such a function active.
The amount of comment upvotes should be displayed as well.
The comments should be ordered by default like on Steemit with the highest upvote first. For this a live switch would be great, where the order changes visually and not just after a page refresh. Further sorting options should be displayed above the comments, like oldest or newest or most replies.
Multiple Authors
Using SteemConnect it should be easy to allow multiple authors for different posts (not the same, that is regulated with beneficiaries). I assume this should be connected with the Wordpress user database without ever compromising the user keys but to allow for a proper logging of who posted what.
Thumbnails
WordPress already handles thumbnails very well. If there is no extra thumbnail defined the first image will be pulled. Otherwise a special thumbnail can be set using the thumbnail function from Wordpress. This thumbnail must probably be posted outside of the Steem blockchain and is used only on the websites database. But this is just an assumption and might be better stored on the blockchain as well for continuity.
This is just the beginning
All of the above features are just the first fundamental functions that came to my mind. I already have further ideas which could work great on WordPress but one step after another. Since this is an Open Project everyone is welcome to add new features and improvements and we can discuss things together to see what makes the best sense.
Financing
Creating Open Source software like this requires a time investment of all participating parties. Luckily, the website Utopian.io is rewarding all kind of contributions to Open Source GitHub projects by using the Steem blockchain itself. Currently Utopian has over 3250$ upvote power every single day for the entire community. Contributions in form of code, designs, translations, bug hunting, tutorials and more receive a fair amount of that money distributed among all users contributing to various projects. If you contribute a little bit every day you can make a considerable amount each month and probably even pay your bills with it. If we all work together we can make this plugin a reality in no time.
There are great posts on the @Utopian-io Steem account explaining all the mechanics and recent news. Utopian has become one of the hottest projects on Steemit and grows very quickly.
If you are interested in the project please join the Discord chat.
Please let me know what you think about this project.
Posted on Utopian.io - Rewarding Open Source Contributors