TYPO3 Insider Scoop - 2023 December Edition

2023, a standout year for TYPO3, witnessed milestones like the 25th anniversary celebration, TYPO3 LTS v12release, and the inaugural TYPO3 Conference in Düsseldorf. With seven TYPO3 Camps, Community Sprints, a new podcast 'Inside TYPO3,' and the record-breaking TYPO3 Developer Days in Karlsruhe, the community showcased unity and growth. Cheers to a year of collaboration, celebration, and progress, shaping the future of web development frameworks. Here's to continued success in the TYPO3 community!

TYPO3 v13 Roadmap Announcement

The article has the overall goals and release dates for the upcoming TYPO3 v13 release series. The focus is on minimizing repetitive tasks and simplifying the daily work of administrators and editors. The main goals include improving the user experience in the TYPO3 backend and streamlining recurring actions. Specific plans involve introducing frontend rendering presets, enhancing backend usability/accessibility, external system integration, simplifying workspaces, updating image rendering, and implementing better support for custom, semantically structured content elements. The system requirements include PHP v8.2 and Symfony v7, while the release dates for the five releases span from January 30, 2024, to October 15, 2024, with the final release being TYPO3 v13 LTS. 

The article also outlines the support timeline, with bug fixes until April 30, 2026, and security patches until October 31, 2027, for TYPO3 v13 LTS. The first release, TYPO3 v13.0, is scheduled for January 30, 2024, with subsequent releases introducing new features and improvements.

TYPO3 v13 Roadmap

Shutdown of the Pootle Translation Server: Impact on TYPO3 Users and Extension Developers

TYPO3 announces the shutdown of the Pootle Translation Server for TYPO3, which has been replaced by Crowdin. The transition from Pootle to Crowdin started in 2019, and as of TYPO3 version 10, Crowdin became the default translation server. The Pootle server was officially shut down on May 2, 2023. The impact on users varies based on TYPO3 versions, with guidance provided for each. Extension developers are encouraged to migrate to Crowdin, and documentation and tools are available for the transition. The blog expresses gratitude to those involved in maintaining Pootle and implementing Crowdin in TYPO3. The Localization Team's goal is highlighted, and users are directed to the team's resources for any translation-related inquiries.

Recap of the First Remote Code Sprint: Best Practices Team Focuses on Tea Extension Issues

Recounting the experience of the author, Karsten Nowak, during the Best Practices Team's first remote code sprint, with a focus on addressing open issues for the Tea extension. The sprint took place on November 27, 2023, with six participants working collaboratively and efficiently. The author highlights the casual atmosphere, effective communication through Slack, and the support provided by the team leaders. The goal of enjoying the time together was emphasized, resulting in the resolution of 12 issues by the end of the day.

T3CON23 Recap: Navigating Change - Survival Strategies for Digital Agencies

In this T3CON23 recap, authors Steffen Rainer Wienberg and Kathrin Keßler discuss survival strategies for digital agencies in the face of ongoing market disruptions. The article explores the changing landscape of digital agencies, highlighting the need for adaptation in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world.

Budget 2024: TYPO3 Community Votes on Q1 Ideas

They  announced the publication of ideas for the first quarter of 2024 in the TYPO3 community budget. Out of 16 submitted ideas, 11 have made it to the poll, and TYPO3 Association members can now discuss and vote for their preferences. The four ideas with the most votes will receive funding from the quarter's budget. The member poll was open until December 17, 2023, and the final results will be published by the end of December. The selected projects are diverse, ranging from bug reporting tools to ACL improvements, image rendering, and more. Winners are expected to commence their work on January 1, 2024, with a completion deadline of March 31, 2024.

Motivation and Commitment: Insights from TYPO3

Community Survey
The article discusses the motivation and commitment within the TYPO3 community, driven by the dedication of its members. Conducted by the Motivation Research Team, a comprehensive survey in September and October 2023 involved 43 participants to identify motivating factors and barriers to collaboration. Key motivators include a sense of community, appreciation, personal growth, and feeling part of something bigger. Demotivators encompass factors like lack of time, personal priorities, and inadequate leadership.

The team plans to use the EMPAMOS® Toolbox to develop practical tools and gamification concepts based on the identified motivators and demotivators, aiming to create an engaging and inspiring community environment. The article encourages community involvement and provides information on team meetings for those interested.

TYPO3 12.4.9 LTS: Bug Fixes in Latest Maintenance Release

The release of TYPO3 12.4.9 LTS, a maintenance version of the TYPO3 Enterprise Content Management System. This release focuses solely on bug fixes, with no required database upgrades. Users are provided with different installation options, including the traditional method using the source package from get.typo3.org and the modern approach using composer. Additional details and release notes are available for those seeking further information.

Arabic CMS: Navigating Right-to-Left Content Challenges with TYPO3

The article by Abdulhamid Kwieder (TYPO3 personality of the Year 2023) delves into the intricacies of managing Arabic content in digital environments, specifically focusing on right-to-left (RTL) writing systems.

The piece emphasizes the challenges faced by content management systems (CMS) in handling Arabic typography, such as RTL layouts, ligatures, diacritics, and unique letter variations. Abdulhamid discusses the historical and cultural significance of the Arabic language and script, highlighting the importance of effectively managing Arabic digital content for engaging with a global audience. The article explores the typographic features of Arabic, including ligatures, letter variations, and diacritics, and emphasizes the need for specialized CMS features to address these challenges.

Furthermore, it details the challenges in meaningful translation, cultural authenticity, technical aspects like encoding and database management, and the importance of an inclusive digital scape. The article concludes by celebrating TYPO3's milestone in Arabic content management, providing complete Arabic support and contributing to linguistic diversity and cultural inclusivity in web publishing.

Dates for TYPO3 DevDays and Conference 2024

Luana Valentini announces the dates for the TYPO3 Developer Days (T3DD24) and TYPO3 Conference 2024 (T3CON24). The Developer Days will be held from August 1st to 3rd, 2024, in Karlsruhe, Germany. The TYPO3 Conference is scheduled for November 27th to 29th, 2024, at Areal Böhler in Düsseldorf, Germany. The Developer Days promise coding, networking, and fun, while the TYPO3 Conference will feature valuable insights and community spirit with a focus on TYPO3 technology and digital innovation.

T3CON24 introduces a Special Focus Day for the Public Sector and Higher Education on November 27th, showcasing TYPO3's impact in government projects and education. The highlight of T3CON24 will be the TYPO3 Awards ceremony on November 29th, celebrating excellence in TYPO3 projects and community contributions. The article also highlights sponsorship opportunities, engaging exhibitions, and the commitment to making these events accessible and enriching for all participants.

T3CON23 Recap — Keynote: Leader as Healer

The keynote at T3CON23, titled "Leader as Healer," by Nicholas Janni, a renowned leadership consultant, emphasized the importance of leaders developing their inner lives and leveraging whole-self intelligence. The talk aimed to create more humane, connected, and purpose-driven organizations. Janni's approach blends music, theater, and spirituality.

Key Points:

• Leaders lacking awareness, emotional literacy, and a meaningful purpose may hinder a healthy workplace culture.
• The keynote focused on unlocking whole-self intelligence, challenging the dominance of narrow thinking in leadership.
• Attendees described the talk as a privilege and a great keynote, setting a positive tone for the conference.
• Janni discussed the concept of using only 30% of our intelligence and advocated for bringing back neglected aspects of ourselves.
• A meditation exercise was introduced to illustrate the power of paying attention, emphasizing its difference from conventional thinking.
• Janni highlighted four pillars of whole-self intelligence: attention, embodiment, emotion, and purpose.
• Practices for leaders included adopting consistent inner practices like meditation and creating psychologically safe cultures.
• Creating psychologically safe cultures involves allowing and accepting negative emotions, contributing to better team dynamics.
• The keynote concluded with a meditation exercise, reinforcing the significance of embodied practices, emotional literacy, and purpose in leadership.

Attendees were encouraged to sign up for T3CON24 to experience more insightful talks. The keynote successfully blended technical and business insights, emphasizing the role of spirituality and well-being in the tech world. Nicholas Janni's unique approach and emphasis on whole-self intelligence resonated positively with the audience.

Update on the EU’s Cyber Resilience Act

The European Union (EU) is progressing with the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), and stakeholders, including TYPO3 and other free and open-source software (FOSS) projects, are actively involved in shaping the legislation. Here are the key points:

Legislative Progress:

• EU legislators are reconciling different draft versions of the CRA, with stakeholder recommendations being incorporated into a final draft.
• The final draft will be voted on by the European Parliament.

Community Involvement:

• In July 2023, TYPO3 and other FOSS CMS projects expressed concerns about adverse effects of the CRA, leading to regular meetings and discussions among stakeholders.
• Representatives engaged in weekly calls with other open-source projects through Open Forum Europe (OFE) to address the proposed legislation.

OFE Summit and Sponsorship:
The TYPO3 Association is sponsoring and attending OFE’s EU Open Source Policy Summit in Brussels on February 2, 2024.

Protection of FOSS:
Stakeholders assert that FOSS is inherently more secure and are working to ensure the legislation supports rather than stifles FOSS growth.

Draft Review and Recommendations:

• Multiple groups within the EU shared draft versions of the CRA text.
• Stakeholders, including those from the OFE group, provided detailed input and recommendations to the EU.

Upcoming Updates:

The community commits to updating stakeholders once the draft version of the CRA becomes publicly available. The legislative process will then focus on establishing standards and implementation details.

Recommendations to the EU:

• Major goals include preventing undue burdens on individuals, non-profits, and non-commercial entities and avoiding unintended consequences for corporate participation in open-source projects.
• Recommendations cover various areas, including criteria for obligations, release cycle considerations, clarifications for individual contributors, international alignment, defining commerciality, risk assessment, open-source stewardship, and collaborative/decentralized projects.

Primary Recommendations Goal:
The primary objective of the recommendations is to avoid imposing obligations or the risk of fines on entities without formal legal relationships or formal ownership within collaborative and decentralized open-source projects. This summary outlines the collaborative efforts of stakeholders to shape the Cyber Resilience Act in a way that supports the growth and security of free and open-source software.

Report on TYPO3 Community Sprint:

An apprentice recounts their experience at the TYPO3 Community Sprint in Düsseldorf (20–22 November 2023). The apprentice engaged with the Documentation Team, including notable figures like Lina Wolf, Chris Müller, and Garvin Hicking.

The focus was on enhancing PHP-based rendering for documentation, fixing elements via integration tests. Issues like missing pictures and headings were addressed, with the goal of surpassing the quality of Sphinx-based docs.

The apprentice actively contributed, created test cases, and received valuable guidance on unit testing from Chris Müller. The three-day sprint provided a rich learning experience, fostering a collaborative and supportive atmosphere, with the apprentice expressing gratitude for the opportunity to meet TYPO3 developers in person.

TYPO3 Extension Visibility with Packagist Integration:

Challenges in Extension Discovery:
The absence of a centralized view for TYPO3 extensions has hindered user accessibility. Extensions were traditionally manually uploaded to the TYPO3 Extension Repository (TER) or via SOAP/REST API, leading to a fragmented landscape.

Dual-Publishing Dilemma:
The shift to Composer for TYPO3 installations prompted authors to dual-publish on both TER and Packagist. However, this dual-distribution created challenges, making it hard for users to discover extensions efficiently.

TER's Solution:
To address the dispersion, TER now regularly imports package metadata from Packagist. This includes TYPO3 extensions exclusively on Packagist, categorized as "typo3-cms-extension." This integration enhances visibility, providing users with a unified and comprehensive overview of TYPO3 extensions.

Inclusive Approach:
TER's import process targets extensions not recognized by TER but available on Packagist, ensuring inclusivity. Packagist-only extensions in TER are identifiable by a common icon (a package), creating a more user-friendly experience.

Future Enhancements:
While download stats are currently not available, efforts are underway to implement this feature in the future. Users are encouraged to contribute ideas and feedback on TER's GitLab issue tracker for continuous improvement. The aim is to collaboratively enhance the TYPO3 Extension Repository for a more user-friendly experience.

Proudly Not Invented Here at DrupalCon Lille:

Keynote Insights:
TYPO3 attended DrupalCon Lille in October 2023, emphasizing collaboration and mutual learning between open-source CMS communities. The Driesnote keynote, delivered by Drupal-founder Dries Buytaert, resonated with TYPO3 challenges, focusing on common goals in the FOSS domain.

Learning from Different Technologies:
The keynote used four technology examples to highlight strengths and flaws, emphasizing the importance of learning from other technologies. The message underlined the need for a more open approach to challenges and solutions, breaking the "Proudly Not Invented Here" mindset.

Challenges and Similar Goals:
Both Drupal and TYPO3 acknowledged areas where each excels. Drupal's new Marketing Team aligns with TYPO3's existing team, fostering potential collaboration. The "Proudly Not Invented Here" mindset was challenged, urging a more open approach to learning and exchange between the two communities.

White-Label Branding of Open Source:
Following the joint letter on the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), Drupal and TYPO3 are deepening collaboration. They advocate for open source as a superior choice over proprietary software, emphasizing the importance of collective efforts.

Public Board Meetings and Collaboration:
The public board meeting of the Drupal Association mirrored TYPO3's Q&A sessions, demonstrating transparency and community engagement. During discussions on CRA collaboration, TYPO3 received applause, signifying unity in defending FOSS principles.

Defend FOSS Talk Debut:
A new talk, "Defend FOSS," by Jeffrey A. "jam" McGuire and an anonymous attendee highlighted the intrinsic benefits of free and open-source software. The presentation, well-received by the audience, showcased the strength of unified messages in support of FOSS.

Exploring Collaboration Opportunities:
Interactions with representatives from CKEditor, used by both Drupal and TYPO3 Core, hinted at potential collaborations. Conversations with hosting companies and solution providers also indicated interest and compatibility with both Drupal and TYPO3.

Conferences like DrupalCon Lille serve as platforms for cross-community interactions, fostering shared learning and collaboration among open-source projects.

Upcoming TYPO3 Events in 2024

As we conclude this insightful journey through the latest happenings in the TYPO3 universe, it's evident that the past month has been marked by evolution, collaboration, and a steadfast commitment to excellence. The diverse range of topics covered in our TYPO3 Insider Scoop for December 2023 highlights the multifaceted nature of our community and the progressive strides we continue to make.