Recent changes
Wednesday November 04 2026
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Demo mode Updated Markdown page
What changes on an installation that runs as a public demo (the environment variable EXP_DEMO_MODE=1) - administrator passwords cannot be changed or reset, the installers accept the published demo password, a banner…
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Designer help, every page Updated Markdown page
The index of every page for designers in this help, by section: theme design, templates, theme extensions, distribution, sales and the maintenance life cycle.
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Designers: start here Updated Markdown page
The landing page for designers: what Exponential's design system is, a first-week plan, the six sections of the designer help (theme design, templates, theme extensions, distribution, sales, maintenance), the tutorials…
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A pushed tag is permanent Updated Markdown page
Why a tag and the release built from it can never be deleted, moved or re-cut once pushed - Packagist caches what it read, users keep what they installed - and the rules that follow for every theme author.
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Annotated tags Updated Markdown page
Tag releases with annotated tags (git tag -a) that carry a message, an author and a date; how to write the message, check the tag before pushing, and push only that tag.
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Announcing a theme on share.exponential.earth Updated Markdown page
Use share.exponential.earth, the Exponential community portal, to announce a theme and support its users - the forums (Extensions, Setup & design), blogs and tutorials it offers, how to write an announcement, and the…
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Bumping the version before the tag Updated Markdown page
The release commit - write the new number into ezinfo.php, extension.xml and the other version fields, check them, commit, and only then tag that commit - so the tag carries the right number forever.
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Changelog entries: Added, Updated, Removed, Renamed, Fixed Updated Markdown page
Write changelog entries and commit messages with one of five prefixes so a changelog can be assembled from history - what each prefix means, good and bad examples, and one change per entry.
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Checking what is already published Updated Markdown page
Before choosing a version number, list the tags on the remote, the GitHub releases and the versions Packagist knows, because each can know something the others do not.
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Choosing a version number Updated Markdown page
How to pick the next version number of a theme - from what is already published, raising only the last position for normal releases, and moving a higher position only as a deliberate decision about what the release…
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Choosing where to publish Updated Markdown page
The places a theme for Exponential can be published - a Git host (GitHub), Packagist for Composer, projects.exponential.earth, announcements on share.exponential.earth, and your own website - what each gives you and in…
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Commercial terms next to the GPL Updated Markdown page
What a theme author can charge for under the GPL and what cannot be restricted - selling copies, support, services and hosting; separate terms for non-code assets; why a "proprietary" license for theme code is risky…
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Copyright notices in files Updated Markdown page
Where a theme states its copyright and license - LICENSE, README, metadata files and optional file headers - the notice the Free Software Foundation recommends for GPL code, and how to treat notices of others.
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Creating the GitHub repository Updated Markdown page
Create a public GitHub repository for a theme with the gh command line or in the browser, connect your local repository, and set the description, website, issues and license so GitHub shows them.
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Creative Commons for images and graphics Updated Markdown page
License the images, illustrations and demo photos of a theme - Creative Commons licenses compared, which ones fit a GPL theme, NonCommercial and NoDerivatives pitfalls, and how to record where each image came from. Not…
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Demo content for a theme Updated Markdown page
Demo content that shows a theme at its best and at its limits - which pages to create, realistic but invented text, licensed images, long titles and empty fields - and how to ship it as a package or seed data.
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Running a demo site Updated Markdown page
Give people a live preview of a theme - options for hosting a demo, keeping it current with each release, resetting it automatically, and keeping it safe when the public can look at (or log in to) it.
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Checklist: before you publish Updated Markdown page
The final checklist before a theme release goes public - repository, licenses, version and tag, release notes, Packagist, screenshots, listings, support and security - each item linked to the page that explains it.
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Distributing a theme: start here Updated Markdown page
The map for publishing a theme - GitHub repository, version numbers and permanent tags, releases and changelogs, Packagist, licensing choices, screenshots and demo sites, and the community sites share.exponential.earth…
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Documenting a theme on eZpedia Updated Markdown page
eZpedia, the community wiki of the Exponential family under the GNU Free Documentation License - what it holds for designers (design extension tutorials, design structure), how to contribute a page about your theme, and…