Ghost Release: 5.61.0

TL;DR

Ghost v5.61.0 introduces a significant enhancement to the beta editor, enabling automatic conversion of old content when opened, making new features like signup and advanced header cards available for existing content. This release also adds a comprehensive Recommendations feature allowing site owners to suggest other websites to their audience. Additionally, it fixes a critical bug with member newsletter filters and includes various performance optimizations, translations, and UI improvements across the platform.

Highlight of the Release

• Automatic conversion of old content when opening in beta editor
• New Recommendations feature for suggesting other websites to your audience
• Fixed member newsletter filter when multiple filters are applied
• Improved AdminX settings for Labs, Tips & Donations
• Added and updated translations for multiple languages

Migration Guide

Beta Editor Content Conversion

The beta editor now automatically converts old content when opened. No manual migration is needed, but be aware that:

1. The convertToLexical feature flag has been removed
2. Where necessary, code now uses just the lexicalEditor feature flag
3. The "L"/"M" indicators on the posts list have been moved to a new lexicalIndicators feature flag

Collections Background Syncing

Collections background syncing has been enabled by default. If you experience any issues:

1. A killswitch has been added that can be controlled via host settings
2. Monitor your logs for any collection-related issues (some logs have been moved to debug level to reduce noise)

Recommendations Feature

The new Recommendations feature is disabled by default and will be automatically enabled when the first recommendation is added. No migration is needed to start using this feature.

Upgrade Recommendations

This release contains significant enhancements to the beta editor and introduces the new Recommendations feature, with no breaking changes reported. We recommend all users upgrade to v5.61.0.

Priority: Medium

Timing: Regular upgrade during your next maintenance window

Pre-upgrade checks:

• If you're using the beta editor, ensure you have recent backups of your content
• If you're using custom themes, test the new Recommendations feature in a staging environment first

Post-upgrade actions:

• Check that existing content opens correctly in the beta editor
• Monitor logs for any collection-related issues if you notice performance problems

Bug Fixes

Newsletter Filtering Fix

Fixed an issue where member newsletter filters were not working correctly when multiple filters were applied. The problem was caused by a regex incorrectly extracting the contents of a grouped filter, which has now been split into two separate regex patterns for better clarity and reliability.

Beta Editor Fixes

• Fixed "new post" button showing 500 error when editor beta is enabled
• Fixed console error when leaving new post screen with beta editor
• Improved save-waiting when leaving beta editor to prevent data loss
• Fixed issues with posts showing as edited after automatic mobiledoc->lexical conversion

Layout and Design Fixes

• Fixed signup and header card split layout bug on frontend
• Added CSS variable to adjust card width when sidebar is open
• Added max padding limit to Signup and Header cards to prevent issues with Google Search Console snapshots
• Updated old Spirit class to stop overriding of Tailwind in editor

New Features

Automatic Content Conversion for Beta Editor

The beta editor now automatically converts old content when opened, allowing you to use new features like signup and advanced header cards on existing content. This removes the need for manual conversion and provides a more consistent editing experience across all content.

Recommendations System

A complete recommendations system has been added, allowing site owners to suggest other websites to their audience:

• New Recommendations settings under the Membership section
• CRUD API for managing recommendations
• UI for adding, editing, and deleting recommendations
• Public endpoint for recommendations in the Content API
• Integration with Portal for displaying recommendations to visitors

AdminX Improvements

Several AdminX interface improvements have been added:

• Wired up Labs settings for managing features
• Added Tips & Donations settings with improved currency handling
• Added webmention notifications toggle when labs flag is enabled
• Improved code injection settings with better CodeMirror integration

Collections Background Syncing

Collections background syncing has been enabled, allowing for smoother implementation of the collections card feature. A killswitch has been added to control this feature in hosted environments.

Security Updates

No specific security fixes were mentioned in this release.

Performance Improvements

Collections Module Optimization

Optimized the amount of logs produced by the collections module to reduce noise. Some logs have been moved to use "debug" level and others have been summarized to provide only the essential information needed while monitoring the collections feature rollout.

Post Save Optimization

Added drop of intermediate post saves between current running and latest triggered save. This prevents unnecessary sequential processing of save requests when multiple saves are triggered in quick succession, improving editor performance and reducing server load.

Dependency Improvements

• Removed Bluebird dependency, eliminating the last usage within Ghost codebase
• Updated various dependencies to their latest versions for better performance and security
• Configured New Relic to load earlier in the process for better instrumentation of code

Impact Summary

Ghost v5.61.0 delivers significant improvements to the content editing experience by enabling automatic conversion of existing content to work with the beta editor. This means content creators can now use new features like signup and advanced header cards on all their content without manual conversion.

The release also introduces a comprehensive Recommendations feature that allows publishers to suggest other websites to their audience, enhancing community building and cross-promotion opportunities. This feature is fully integrated with the Portal interface for seamless presentation to visitors.

For administrators, the release fixes an important bug with newsletter filtering when multiple filters are applied, and adds various AdminX improvements including better Labs settings management and Tips & Donations configuration.

Performance optimizations include smarter handling of post saves to reduce unnecessary processing, optimized logging for the collections module, and removal of the Bluebird dependency. The release also adds support for several new languages and updates existing translations.

Overall, this is a feature-rich update that improves both the creator and visitor experience while maintaining good performance and stability.

Full Release Notes