170 Plugin Release and Promotion

Body Sections

After the plugin header section, the body sections start. These section titles are used for the plugin menu of the repository, these are: Description, Installation, FAQ, Screenshots, Other Notes, Changelog, Stats, Support, Review, Developers.

• Sections such as “Stats” and “Admin” are fully controlled by WordPress.org.

== Description ==

== Description ==

This is the long description.

This is the long description. No limit, and you can use Markdown (as well as in the following sections). For backwards compatibility, if this section is missing, the full length of the short description will be used, and Markdown parsed.

The long description should be clear and straight forward. Think of this as your landing page. You’re trying to entice users to use your plugin because it’s the best they have every seen. Include a very good description of what your plugin does with examples. Don’t extol the virtues of the plugin, just show what your plugin can do for them.

Don’t forget to include links to your home page, contact form, social profiles and of course your other WordPress plugins.

== Installation ==

== Installation ==

This section describes how to install the plugin and get it working.

This section describes how to install the plugin and get it working. This section is really important for users, especially beginners. The best method to implement here is an ordered list of instructions.

• Keep the instructions short and to the point.
• Keep novice user in mind.
• Users are not developers, don’t expect them to have programming skills.
• Keep it simple.

== Frequently Asked Questions ==

== Frequently Asked Questions ==

= A question that someone might have =

An answer to that question.

Again think novice users. Most will have questions, some simple some not so simple. All will be questions you haven’t thought of.

You can leave this section blank and await the question (answering them promptly) or try and pre-empt the user and include some questions and answers you think will be asked. I prefer the latter approach as it pays off with less work for the author in the long run.

• When writing support documentation such as an FAQs, aim at the lowest common denominator.
• Check the support forums, see what questions are being asked and address them in your FAQ.
• Include any code snippets or shortcodes that the user might need.

== Screenshots ==

== Screenshots ==

1. Screen shot description corresponds to screenshot-1.png
2. Screen shot description corresponds to screenshot-2.png

Nice and easy this one, just include an ordered list of screenshot images (png, jpg, jpeg, gif formats) from your plugin with a short description for each (HTML format).

• File names should follow this format: screenshot?1.png, sreenshot?2.png etc.

Note: The screenshot is taken from the /assets directory or the directory that contains the stable readme.txt (tags or trunk). Screenshots in the /assets directory take precedence.

• Here’s an example of good screenshots: Next Gen Gallery
• Keep the size of the screenshot file small.

== Changelog ==

== Changelog ==

= 1.0 =
* A change since the previous version.
* Another change.

= 0.9 =
* A change since the previous version.
* Another change.

A version change list for the development history of your plugin. List versions from most recent at top to oldest at bottom.

== Upgrade Notice ==

== Upgrade Notice ==

= 1.0 =
Upgrade notice. Max 300 characters.

= 0.9 =
Fixes a security bug. Upgrade immediately.

The upgrade notices are for admin users who will receive an update notice on their WordPress dashboard and the plugin listing page. Once again be short, descriptive and simple.

== Arbitrary Section (Optional) ==

You may provide arbitrary sections, in the same format as the other body sections. Use this only for extremely complicated plugins where more information needs to be conveyed. Arbitrary sections will be shown below the built-in sections outlined above.

Readme.txt Examples

Need a good readme.txt example? Just look at any of the good plugins available in the WordPress.org/plugins/ section.