We have been “quiet” for a few months, piecing together the new NEO universal app, core UNA CMS update and a handful of new modules. All these updates are a bit different from the regular new modules and bug fixes. So different, in fact that we had to re-think how to package, ship, and support UNA.
I’ll share the observations first, then takeaways, then the news...
Observations
- Native Apps give a huge advantage. While UNA is responsive and can be shipped as a PWA, native apps from App Stores with interactive, platform-specific UI consistently attract more engagement. For social platforms, 8 out of 10 returning users typically prefer native apps.
- React Web App has greater potential. While the UNA classic UI holds its ground, the Next.js web app exported from the NEO universal app repo represents a significant upgrade. Features like data-prefetching, WebSocket updates, aggressive caching, and virtualized lists enable high-performance modern web apps. UNA CMS is a fantastic API server and admin interface, but for user-facing applications, server-rendered SPAs are the superior choice.
- AI is powerful, promising, yet temperamental. The AI Agents module is theoretically capable of creating automations and tools to compensate for missing modules or integrated services. Its potential is immense, but it requires further research and tooling to unlock fully. However, AI often behaves unpredictably, being overly confident when it shouldn’t be, and needs careful supervision.
- Docs are hard, for two reasons. First, while writing docs isn’t such a big deal, keeping them up to date is hard. We make hundreds of commits for each update and many affect logic to the point that docs require updates. the second reason is justtaposed to the first one - people just don’t read docs. The amount of times we have to explain the same things that are already covered in docs over and over and staggering.
- 99% of the issues are “Day 1 stumbles”. Nearly every problem UNA operators report stems from initial setup, hosting environment, or basic configuration challenges.
Takeaways
We need to make it easier to deploy react apps.
At the moment we only build apps under custom professional support agreements. It’s a very nuanced and tailored approach, taking us a number of weeks to prepare backend and the apps for production deployment. We need to make it more accessible for UNA CMS users to launch the apps.
Pre-configured opinionated kits work best.
The way to make deployment easier is to provide an initial configuration that serves an actual use-case. UNA CMS is powerful, but the “anything is possible” can also mean that its not suitable for anyuthing in particular out of the box. So, we need to focus more on the starter kits, tied with matching pre-preconfigured API and React apps.
AI should interpret docs and knowledge.
If we maintain and update knowdlege base continuously, we can train AI to interpret it and help UNA users understand the system.
Steps
UNA 14 Release
The upcoming release of UNA 14 is heavily focused on API, compatibility with NEO apps and the Agents module for AI-automations. We’re likely to have one more RC shortly followed by final release.
Spacenook + NEO Bundle Starter Kit
Spacenook starter kit is getting an update to UNA 14, some configuration changes and most importantly settings pre-set to work with NEO. It will also include a pre-configured NEO apps package.
AI assistant in UNA Studio and UNA CMS
Still quite experimental at this stage, but we should soon be able to provide a built-in AI-powered assistant chat within Studio helping with configuration, as well as a documentation assistant here at UNA CMS.
Share more about ongoing dev
We’ve been to quiet recently, even though in recent months we made more really exciting changes than ever. We should tell more now and show what’s happening. I’ll keep you posted!
The 100 D-Days Challenge continues, and today we're adding the most comprehensive single article ever added to UNA Docs - the Launch Checklist.
The purpose of the launch checklist is to provide a step-by-step general guide to launching a community powered by UNA CMS. There are currently 43 steps, and more will be added and cross-linked in the future. Each step offers a brief overview of what needs to be done, with more detailed articles on each step to follow in further Docs updates.
UNA is by far one of the most capable and sophisticated purpose-built platforms. It is certainly the most comprehensive community software system, but with power comes complexity. While we strive to make configuration as simple as possible, there are still many steps to consider. Often, we hear our clients ask - "So, what do I do next?" or "Hm, why is this not working?" - only to realize that an important configuration step was missed. So, this checklist is where you find out exactly what needs to be done before launch!
Read through it, even if you've already launched - chances are that it will help you review and reevaluate your setup. The first few steps cover general planning and ideation, then it moves on to installation and main config options.
If you notice any critical steps missing, or would like a detailed article on any of the steps in particular as soon as possible, please comment here. If you'd like to contribute to this or any other article - also add your content in the comments and we'll incorporate it.
The Accounts app one of the Core Apps that is fundamental for accounts management in a community. It's an unusual app, in that it exposes a grid with data both in Studio and in frontend. Accounts app is for Operators and Admins/Moderators, too.
The Accounts App documentation is updated with detailed descriptions of all actions and info items. Let us know if there is anything else you'd like to know about Accounts app.
Day 9, 10 and 11 of the 100 D-Days Challenge
- Detailed instruction for Downloading, Installing and Activating Apps published.
- Overview of Core Apps - intro to Core Apps. Individual pages for each app are coming.
- Overview of Starter Kits - Only Spacenook is currently available and 3 more will be released in coming weeks.
- Spacenook Starter Kit page and the Accounts App updates are WIP.
- All documents a getting interlinked as new updated are coming.
With that we're 10% into the challenge, just ramping up!
Day 6, 7 and 8 of the 100 D-Days Challenge
- Principles document outlining our development priorities and commitments.
- Requirements document rearranged and updated with new hardware and software specifications for hosting server.
- Installation Guide and Installation to Ubuntu Debian docs reformatted and updated.
It was a busy weekend and Monday. More updates and new docs on the way!
Day 5 of the 100 D-Days Challenge
- Detailed instruction for Deactivating, Uninstalling and Deleting UNA Apps is published
It is important to understand the difference between the three steps of removing UNA apps from your UNA site. In short - you deactivate when you want to hide or stop the app, uninstall when you want to erase the data and delete when you want to remove the app completely.
