This weekend I took the opportunity to implement a bunch of changes, and fixes, into the wp-lifestream plugin which I created. It got a quick overhaul on the extensibility end, allowing you to do much more with complex feeds. To demonstrate the power, I went ahead and built the much-requested Pandora feed plugin.

The plugin itself, pulls from three different feeds, and displays different labels based on which feed the data comes from. The new feed format allows you to store a key, which specifies the a sort-of sub-feed within the feed. The changes also allow you to make the labels on all feeds dynamic, by overriding two new functions: get_label_single() and get_label_plural().

I also went ahead and moved the LifeStream administration into its own tab, instead of trying to integrate my CSS into WordPress. This allows it much better integration with custom administration themes.

You will find that the links to feed sites are now replaced with links to your profiles on those sites (on most feeds). This will make it easier for your visitors to interact with you on the many social networks out there which exist.

And finally among the changes, are more internal changes geared towards hackers who want to customize the output of their feed. The function lifestream_get_events() was added, which accepts the same parameters as the default lifestream() function, but instead returns an array of Event instances. This allows you to do anything from putting your lifestream in a custom sidebar template, to sticking your recent tweets on the homepage.

Among the TODO, when I get more time, is support for WPMU, and as always, more feeds.

If you think there’s something that would make a good addition, feel free to let me know. Either drop me an email or post a comment on the project page.