sirkitree.net //say it out loud, /ˈsərkitrē/

Yesterday I hosted a BoF session on Activity. We went over what is currently available in the D6.x-1-1 release as well as the different approaches taken between the 6.x-1.x and 6.x-2.x branches. The 2.x branch is a refocus on core integration, extendability through more hooks, and efficiency of recording and displaying messages.

1.x vs 2.x

• Recording

  1.x - uses it's own functions

  2.x - uses an extendable*, configurable action

  * uses hook_activity_info() to enable other modules to extend Activity's hook_action_info()

• Display

  1.x - uses it's own functions and menu callbacks

  2.x - uses extendable permissions** and Views 2 handlers

  ** uses hook_activity_access_grants() to extend what activities can be displayed to any given user

• Extendability

  1.x - relies heavily on sub-modules written in a proprietary way that make it hard for developers who know standard Drupal practices.

  2.x - implements better Drupal practices for allowing other modules to extend how Activity records and displays messages. Core integration for node, comment and user modules (done) and support for other core modules (planned) are/will be included.

Other points brought up in the discussion

• Interoperability with $X module?
• Way to combine multiple similar messages.
• Display of accurate historical data - token replacement before or after insertion and the related performance issues.
• Deleting stuff from your feed.
• Permissions of display and opt-outs.
• Controlling which of your activities you want whom to see.
• Message recording - author vs everyone else.