[wp-testers] User Level revisited (after a year)

[Owen Winkler]

Moshu wrote:
>>From:  Owen Winkler
> 
> 
>>It is currently not possible to create a user that can edit
>>only certain
>>other users' posts.
>>
>>In the new capabilities system, there is no heirarchy.
> 
> 
> That sucks :)
> About one year ago I proposed a user level system:
> http://wordpress.org/support/topic/10090#post-81586
> based on "real life" requests.
> I was assured by one developer that it is a "fairly typical workflow"
> http://wordpress.org/support/topic/13995
> 
> But now seeing this discussion it seems there is still a lack of
> understanding on the decision making level as to what a _real_ User
> Level system would be.
> 
> As it stands now:
> Contributor - can write a draft (not publish)
> Author - can write and publish his own posts, but CANNOT edit them
> Editor - can write, publish (even Contributor's draft) and edit
> everything, including the admin's post! <== this one is crazy ;)

It's not so crazy when you change your mindset to start thinking of 
roles instead of levels.  The "Administrator" role simply has the 
additional capabilities required to administer the system - there is no 
implication of superior/protected writing power.

The primary difference between the system in WP2.0 and the one you're 
suggeting is that using the current role system, it's possible to 
implement your suggested system using a plugin.  While the reverse may 
be true, it adds a lot of potentially unneccesary and certainly tricky 
level-handling issues to the core.

If you don't like the system as-implemented, it should be very easy to 
write a plugin that overrides the built-in behavior.

Owen