Reasons Why Some WordPress Plugins are Removed from the Official Directory
By WordCast Team, posted Feb 12 2010 at 11:54 am | View Comments
In “How to Get Your Plugin Removed from the Directory” by Mark Jaquith, he offers a tongue-in-cheek explanation of what it may take to get your WordPress Plugin removed from the WordPress Plugin Directory.
For the most part, the list makes sense. Don’t do anything illegal, incompatible with the WordPress GPL license, no spam or hidden links, but a few are ones you might not think could put your Plugin at risk.
The comments feature some interesting information and feedback from a lot of Plugin developers, including commentary on adding a link to the Plugin author’s site, which Mark explains as:
5. Insert external links (like a credit link,
<a href="http://example.com/">My Awesome Plugin by Awesome Sauce&l/at;>) into their blog without explicitly asking their permission, or make the default option be to insert the link.
This frustrates a lot of people who rely upon WordPress Plugins and Themes to promote their own business and work. The key point is to not force these links upon the users but allow them to feel proud enough to give you the credit you deserve. In other words, make them opt-in, not opt-out.
There is a lot of conjecture about why a Plugin may or may not be removed from the WordPress Plugin Directory. Without a clear official list of what is and is not permitted in a Plugin as well as WordPress Theme, assumptions will continue.
As Mark ends his post, it’s how the user benefits from the WordPress Plugin that is most important to remember when putting all the parts and pieces together.
Again, this is a list of things not to do. It is not comprehensive. Be cool, think of how your plugin benefits its users, and write awesome plugins.
- Nicolas
