OK, I don't think I've done one of these posts in years, and in many ways they are overdue. I think it's time to let you readers know what's going on with Messenger Stuff and the updates that have been going on around the website.

Messenger Stuff receives a major annual release at the end of August/ start of September. This year the update came in a beta wave, before the full release being uploaded a couple of weeks ago. This time we hit the major milestone of 2.0, which took over four years to arrive. Below is a breakdown of the history of releases:

• 1.0 (1st July 2005): The initial release of Messenger Stuff.


• 1.1, 1.2: Were piecemeal updates leading up to 1.3 as 1.0 contained very little content.


• 1.3 (19th February 2006) - Brought about the basics of this news system and created the very first admin panel along with mod_rewrite links. Basically this was the start of the engine used today.


• 1.5 (23rd April 2006): One of the biggest updates to the website. The downloads database was re-coded, admins had a new dashboard to work from.

The first year was the slowest year by far. A lot was done and achieved, and Messenger Stuff was rather popular even in its early days. Soon we were recording podcasts. adding constant design updates and lots of content. This occurred in the days when I had a significant amount of free time and passion. In many ways the following years have flown on by.

• 1.6 (26th August 2006): An entire re-code of the website resulted in a more polished engine and design for users to enjoy. The update added a complete news system, while molding several new features into place. 1.6.1 - 1.6.5 soon followed over the year.


• 1.7 (10th September 2007): Many of the features you see on the website today have been nearly untouched since this major release. Granted a few tweaks have been added here and there, but the bulk of the MsgStuff engine that runs today was built on 1.7.


• 1.8 (8th September 2008): A major design shift, moving away from the deep blues and larger header we used for years. A comments spam system, among SEO urls and a general sense of organisation throughout the website were probably among the biggest improvements in this milestone.

Changes in Messenger Stuff 2.0

Asides from the new design with a darker blue background and new textures, much of the changes have been "under the hood" so to speak. Most changes are within the admin panel and the news system. I feel I have reached the point where Messenger Stuff doesn't need much more, aside from content being regularly delivered and maybe a face-lift from time to time. This brief history has, in many ways been a post for myself, as I've had the chance to look over all of our old admin posts and change logs to see how Messenger Stuff has developed over the years.

I would like to thank you, the users for your support and feedback, and my admins who have contributed throughout the years. None of this would have been possible without you. Now, let me find some real news to post about ...