... not as in free beer
Current State of Gridelements 11
Since there seems to be some misunderstanding, here is some additional information about Gridelements and crowdfunding:
Estimated time to read: 5 minutes
Funding our extensions
Many a little makes a mickle
Since 2012, we regularly offer all users of Gridelements the opportunity to participate financially in the further development. This is mainly through our crowdfunding campaigns, but also by buying SLA or simply donating via Patreon or PayPal.
However, with some regularity this leads to the fact that most users only remember that they actually need an executable version of Gridelements for the next upgrade to a TYPO3 LTS release when that TYPO3 release already happened.
The Crowd
Better late than never, but sooner would be even better
We ourselves only very rarely have to perform immediate upgrades to new TYPO3 versions in our own projects. The immediate need for a new Gridelements version therefore does not usually exist for us.
However, we are willing and able to implement Gridelements upgrades if the necessary amounts are raised by the users via the mentioned crowdfunding.
This usually results in a time lag of a few months - on the one hand for reaching the campaign goals - on the other hand for carrying out the development work, because this also takes place alongside other day-to-day business.
So if you need a new version early, you should invest in the further development in time to be able to provide a release promptly with the release of a new TYPO3 LTS version.
The Missing Feature
Planned for CMS 10 already, now made available for CMS 10 and 11
The current upgrade from version 10 to 11 was complicated by the fact that Gridelements was supposed to get a "Fluid based page module" already for version 10.
However, no one thought it necessary to invest in this feature, so it is still missing in the upgrade to CMS 11, which has made this module mandatory. Nevertheless, the funding for it is now in place and we are currently in the process of completing it.
By the way, the extension container provides exactly this feature - and basically only this feature but nothing else.
However, one can certainly be divided about whether it was sensible, purposeful and necessary to split up the already not very strong developer environment in the TYPO3 universe once again, in addition to Gridelements and Flux.
But there were also some misunderstandings among the crowdfunders, which is why we want to explain the usual process and the rough development status, but also why there will be no statement for a concrete release date.
The current state
Sharing is caring - and sharing is sparing
Usually, crowdfunding is based on a certain goal, which is connected with corresponding benefits for sponsors. In our case the benefit is relatively simple:
You get a new Gridelements version, which will later be made available to other users. Sponsors have the advantage that they are part of the development process ahead of time and can still influence the development of certain features. They can also already use the corresponding alpha or beta versions for their own projects.
However, this does not mean that an executable version can already be found in the private repository immediately after sponsorship, because this must first be completed within the timeframe of the respective roadmap. The starting signal is given after the campaign goals have been reached.
The roadmap for Gridelements 11 includes several milestones, whereby Gridelements 11 will be the first Gridelements version to support two TYPO3 versions. The first two milestones will also be made available to users of Gridelements 10:
1. General Bugfixing
Here first existing errors are corrected as far as possible and reasonable, in order not to get stuck on old problems during the further development. This step is finished.
2. Fluid Based Page Module
As already described, Gridelements will be based on similar concepts as Container already does and will work with extensions of the core grids from the Fluid based page module.
However, all other Gridelements features like the drag-in wizard or the permission of elements via allowed/disallowed will remain. You don't need to install two or three extensions from different developers, but only Gridelements.
In contrast to container, the configuration will not be outsourced to the TCA, because Gridelements is not only aimed at developers, but also at integrators in particular. This milestone is currently in progress and largely completed.
3. Compatibility with CMS 11
In particular, adjustments will be made to methods or parameters that have been removed from the core as "deprecated". In addition, the still required XCLASS for the list module will be revised in this step.
As soon as this milestone is finished, our sponsors can already test and use a version running with CMS 11 within the Early-Access.
Only when this milestone is finished, it makes sense to test Gridelements with CMS 11, because it obviously can't run with the new TYPO3 version before.
4. Compatibility with PHP 8
In this last step, after achieving compatibility with CMS 11, the necessary changes will be incorporated to make Gridelements work with all PHP versions supported by the TYPO3 core - including PHP 8.
Official Release
As soon as these steps are completed, there will be an official release, which will later also be made available in the public repository, on Packagist and in TER. We are not announcing an official release date for this, however, and there is a very simple reason for that:
As soon as we mention concrete dates in connection with our crowd-funding campaign, exactly two things happen: We put development under unnecessary time pressure, and we give everyone who hasn't wanted to participate in the crowdfunding campaign so far an additional reason to continue not doing so.
TL;DR - Conclusion
Free as in free speech, not as in free beer!
Our recommendation is to everyone who really cares about our extensions - and there are a few more than just Gridelements: If you are just waiting for others to do the work and/or funding for you, you may have to live with new versions not being released until there is a concrete need for them from our own customers. Therefore, please support the development in our campaigns! - Do it in time and not at the last minute and do it regularly. If we can manage to put the development on a stable financial foundation together, we can ensure that there will be compatible extensions for each new core release.
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