Introduction for Developers

3 min read

Table of Contents

What You Can Build
Safe by Design
How Developers Extend the Terminal
Why Use the Terminal for Development?
Real Development Workflow Example
Add-On Ready Architecture
Summary

The Cointacted Social Terminal is more than a UI component — it is a developer-ready command framework that allows you to build custom tools, command packs, Social Mining logic, Web3 integrations, gamification modules, or full add-ons.

This guide explains how the terminal works internally and how developers can extend it safely and cleanly.

What You Can Build #

Developers can use the terminal to create:

✔ Custom commands #

✔ API integrations #

✔ Web2 or Web3 utilities #

✔ Personalization commands #

✔ Gamification tools #

✔ AI-powered command packs #

✔ Community platform extensions (BuddyBoss, FluentCommunity, PeepSo) #

✔ Full add-ons with their own commands, settings, and behavior #

Every command runs in the browser, and the system is designed for maximum safety.

Safe by Design #

The Social Terminal is built using:

✔ JavaScript-based command engine #

✔ No eval #

✔ No PHP execution #

✔ No server-level commands #

✔ Built-in permissions checking #

✔ Strict separation between: #

core
add-ons
developer extensions

This means it is safe for:

membership sites
communities
WooCommerce stores
Web3 projects
WordPress.org distribution

No developer can accidentally break server security by adding commands.

How Developers Extend the Terminal #

There are three main extension mechanisms:

1. The Command Registry #

Your plugin includes a global JS registry where commands are defined:

CointactedSocialTerminalTerminal.registry.mycommand = function(input) {
    // custom logic
};

When you add commands this way:

the terminal instantly recognizes them
they appear in help
they support command history
they support arguments
they integrate into search (help search keyword)
they follow terminal styling automatically

No configuration required.

2. Output Functions #

Developers can output lines to the terminal programmatically:

cointacted_social_terminal_append_line("Message", "system");

You can choose output types:

"system"
"success"
"error"
"fun"
"wallet"
custom types if you add CSS

The output engine handles:

line formatting
auto-scroll
styling
safe HTML escaping
session history

3. Terminal Events #

The terminal emits browser events developers can listen for:

document.addEventListener('cointacted_social_terminal_output', (event) => {
    console.log(event.detail.text, event.detail.type);
});

This allows:

logging
analytics
syncing to backend
triggering animations
triggering sound effects
integrating third-party systems

This event fires every time the terminal prints a line.

Why Use the Terminal for Development? #

It provides:

✔ natural keyboard-first UX #

✔ command-driven flow #

✔ instant output #

✔ no UI building needed #

✔ automatic command discovery via `help` #

✔ full isolation #

✔ compatibility with any theme #

You write zero HTML, zero CSS, and no WordPress templates — only JavaScript logic.

Real Development Workflow Example #

To add a new command in your theme or custom plugin:

Enqueue a JS file:

wp_enqueue_script(
    'my-terminal-commands',
    get_stylesheet_directory_uri() . '/terminal-ext.js',
    ['cointacted-social-terminal-js'],
    '1.0',
    true
);

Add a command inside terminal-ext.js:

CointactedSocialTerminalTerminal.registry.greet = function(input) {
    cointacted_social_terminal_append_line("Hello from custom command!", "success");
};

Reload the page
Type:

greet

Done — the command behaves like a native part of the terminal.

Add-On Ready Architecture #

Your plugin also includes an architecture designed for:

✔ external command packs #

✔ layered Web3 logic #

✔ Social Mining extensions #

✔ future premium modules #

Add-ons can register their own:

command groups
commands
settings tabs
help categories
event listeners
terminal behaviors