I’m looking to find a developer to develop a plugin that enhances the experience for users who want to share their ideas about cryptocurrencies on our community. Here’s what I have in mind:
Key Features:
Custom Topic Template:
When creating a new topic, users will have a specific template to follow for submitting their cryptocurrency-related ideas.
Cryptocurrency Selection:
Users will be able to select which cryptocurrency their idea relates to from a list, using data from an external API that provides comprehensive cryptocurrency information.
Real-Time API Data:
The plugin will integrate with an external API service that provides real-time data about various cryptocurrencies (such as names, IDs, slugs, and more). This data will be displayed to users during topic creation, helping them make accurate selections.
User-Entered Data Accessibility:
Once a user submits their idea, the selected cryptocurrency (using its asset ID) will be stored, allowing us to later access that information and use it in the API for various purposes.
I would love feedback from the community, especially from anyone with experience developing similar plugins or integrating external APIs with Discourse.
Thanks in advance for any insights or suggestions!
There are currently more than 10,000 cryptocurrencies, and using tags for this would limit us from using them for other purposes. We also want to maintain flexibility for future developments and additional use cases, so a more dynamic approach (like integrating the API) seems necessary.
Yes, the names and slugs of cryptocurrencies can change, and this is where the external API comes in handy. The API will always provide up-to-date information. Here’s how it works in practice:
Let’s say a user wants to share an idea about Bitcoin. The user will search for Bitcoin from the list provided by the API, which gives real-time information such as the current price in USD, 24-hour changes, etc. After selecting Bitcoin, the user can then write an idea related to price movements, technical or fundamental analysis, or any other insights they have. They can also attach images, set price targets, and define the idea type (e.g., tutorial, technical analysis, etc.).
Later, I’ll use this type to organize ideas into different categories or views. Additionally, I’ll use the cryptocurrency asset ID (e.g., Bitcoin’s ID is 1) to filter and display Bitcoin-specific ideas on another website via the Discourse API.
1. Tag Performance in Discourse: Do we know how many tags Discourse can handle without performance issues? For example, would it start slowing down below 1,000, 10,000, or 100,000 tags? Understanding the limits would help determine if this approach is viable at scale, especially with the large number of cryptocurrencies that exist.
2. Expanding the Tag System: If it’s technically feasible to handle a large number of tags, I think expanding the tag system could be a great approach. Here’s what I’m thinking:
We can create a tag group specifically for cryptocurrencies and sync the data from the external API to that group.
Each cryptocurrency tag could have additional metadata (like names, logos, prices, symbols, second language names, etc.). This could be similar to what we might call “advanced tags.”
3. Enhanced UI and Tag Pages:
The tag selection interface could be improved to display more information when users are choosing a cryptocurrency, beyond just the text and color.
Tag pages could also be more informative by showing detailed data from the external API (such as real-time prices, descriptions, or other crypto-specific information).
4. Category-Specific Settings:
It would be helpful to allow this feature to be toggled on or off for specific categories, so that some categories can still follow the basic tag settings.
Since each cryptocurrency would be represented as a tag in this system, users would also have all the usual options and flexibility that Discourse offers with tags.
Let me know if this approach sounds feasible from a technical standpoint or if you foresee any challenges.
I think that’s feasible. Searching among tens of thousands of tags is still likely to be an unpleasant problem, but there could be some ways to solve that.
I can’t remember if tags have custom fields, or if you’ll need to add a custom table.
You’re right, tags don’t have custom fields by default, but adding a custom table alongside the tags, as you mentioned, would solve that.
We do have a budget for this project, though it’s somewhat limited. It would be really helpful if you could break down the cost per feature request so I can get a better sense of which features are essential and which could be considered optional based on the budget.
I cannot speak for all developers, but unless you want to pay for the time it takes to prepare a budget, I’m not going to spend time planning a $2000 budget for something that you have a $200 budget for. The numbers I gave above are still what I think right now.
I understand, and I appreciate your honesty. We are comfortable with a $2000 starting budget for this project. Let’s move forward with that, and we can discuss the specific features and prioritize them as we go.
Also, is it okay to continue discussing the details in chat, or would you prefer another method of communication?