Hey everyone, it's time for yet another Thunder release. As always, there have been many improvements, additions, changes and fixes in this release which should make for a even better Thunder experience. If you have any suggestions or feedback, feel free to discuss it in the Thunder community or on GitHub.

A quick reminder: if you are using the Google Play version or App Store version, please note that it may take a bit of time before you receive the update. Now onto the update notes. This update brings a few major features:

🎉 New Features

• Initial support for moderator actions. Thunder has added support for some moderator actions such as locking, pinning, and removing posts. To access these actions, simply long-press on a post and select "Moderator Actions" from the menu. Additional moderator actions such as mod logs, and reports will come in a future update.
• Support for high-refresh rate devices. Thunder should now feel smoother on Android devices with high-refresh rate displays, and should no longer be limited to 60 Hz. For iOS, Thunder also supports ProMotion devices.
• Customizable post metadata. You can now customize the post metadata information (vote counts, comment counts, etc) on your feed! This can be done in Settings -> Appearance -> Compact/Card View Settings. Simply drag and drop the metadata information you want to see on your feed. The order of the information will be the order that you drag it into the preview.
• Experimental local push notification support on Android. Thunder has experimental support for handling push notifications locally on Android devices. When enabled, Thunder will attempt to fetch new notifications in the background while the app is not running. Please note that this feature is highly dependent on the Android OS and their battery saving settings

ℹ General

• Additional UI/UX and quality-of-life improvements. This includes but is not limited to:
  • Support for spoiler markdown tags. Spoiler tags will be automatically minimized, and can be expanded when tapping on them
  • Support for creating cross posts for an existing post, and deleting existing posts
  • Addition of more options including hiding top app bar, medium font scale option, and colorized usernames
• Added new condensed post body view to the post page which shows a smaller preview of images and thumbnails
• Added the ability to search posts/comments directly from community feed

And much much more. I can't go through all the changes in the changelog, but for those who are curious, feel free to check out the full changelog below.

We have a Matrix space if you would like to join in on discussions: https://matrix.to/#/#thunderapp:matrix.org

Full Changelog: 0.2.8...0.2.9

Changelog

Additions

• Added new condensed post body view to the post page by @micahmo in #994
• Added compatibility with high-refresh displays to Thunder on Android devices by @mufeedali in #1010
• Added initial support for markdown spoiler tags by @hjiangsu in #867
• Added ability to create cross-posts from the post page by @micahmo in #1034
• Added ability to share user profiles by @micahmo in #1013
• Added ability to subscribe/unsubscribe to community from long-press action by @hjiangsu in #1028
• Added option to hide the top app bar on scroll by @hjiangsu in #1029
• Added user counts to instance page by @micahmo in #1017
• Added additional medium font scale option by @hjiangsu in #1030
• Added moderated communities to drawer by @hjiangsu in #1063
• Added ability to share communities by @micahmo in #1040
• Added ability to clear image cache on startup, and manually by @hjiangsu in #1062
• Added experimental local push notifications on Android by @micahmo in #1000
• Added notification page to display individual messages by @micahmo in #1069 and #1080
• Added ability to delete posts by @micahmo in #1083
• Re-introduced in-app browser as an option by @micahmo in #1046, #1106, and #1116
• Added community icon indicator when posting is restricted to mods by @hjiangsu in #1027
• Added option for colourized usernames by @ggichure in #1092
• Added new unread comment indicator for read posts by @CTalvio in #1094 and #1103
• Added ability to customize post card metadata information by @hjiangsu in #1077
• Added ability to search posts/comments from community feed by @micahmo in #1108
• Added setting to change image cache settings on Android by @micahmo in #1105
• Added initial moderator post actions (lock, pin, remove) by @hjiangsu in #1104

Changes

• Improved post/comment score formatting by @micahmo in #1008
• Adjusted the color of the delete draft icon by @micahmo in #989
• Language selector now prioritizes current language at the top of the list by @micahmo in #986
• Community selector shows suggested communities by default by @micahmo in #993
• Prioritize favorites in empty community prompt by @micahmo in #1032 and #1015
• Improved account log out flow by @micahmo in #980
• Search page suggests alternate filters when there are no search results by @micahmo in #1019
• Account selector improvements and minor fixes by @hjiangsu in #1035
• Image viewer dynamically adjusts image zoom based on resolution @Niranjan-Dorage in #859
• Added indicator for media downloads by @micahmo in #1075
• Indicate deleted posts by @micahmo in #1079
• Added inkwell to spoiler markdown by @micahmo in #1033
• Added option to navigate to new post after creation by @micahmo in #1044
• Improved handling for navigation to non-instances by @micahmo in #1076
• Adjusted search bar to match material design, and misc fixes by @micahmo in #1084
• Removed usesCleartextTraffic attribute on AndroidManifest by @hjiangsu in #1090
• Added locale code to app language selector by @hjiangsu in #1142

Fixes

• Fixed issues with images being too wide in community/user sidebars by @micahmo in #990
• Fixed issues where post actions were not being updated properly in the search page by @micahmo in #998
• Fixed issue where local featured posts were not being highlighted properly by @micahmo in #991
• Fixed issue where subscriptions in drawer were not in alphabetical order by @hjiangsu in #1025
• Fixed an issue where you could favorite a non-subscribed community by @micahmo in #1016
• Fixed some issues with user navigation and error handling by @micahmo in #1014
• Fix some issues with the search page resetting by @micahmo in #1018
• Fixed some community/user name detection by @micahmo in #1042
• Fixed issue with advanced image preview not showing by @micahmo in #1074
• Fixed exit confirmation snackbar by @micahmo in #1064
• Fixed issue with creating cross-posts by @micahmo in #1068
• Fixed an issue with loading favorites on startup by @micahmo in #1078
• Fixed issue where feed FAB can be triggered on other pages by @hjiangsu in #1085
• Fixed issue where app language bottom sheet would fill full height by @hjiangsu in #1089
• Fixed issue with deferred comments by @micahmo in #1107
• Fixed search page keyboard on iOS by @hjiangsu in #1130
• Fixed post page failure when image fails to load by @hjiangsu in #1132
• Fixed inbox counter not reflecting true number of unread notifications by @hjiangsu in https://githu...

This is the first release candidate version for Thunder v0.2.9! This version mainly focuses on minor bug fixes introduced previously and updating translation strings. If no major issues are found, this will be the version released as 0.2.9.

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

There are no notable changes in this version!

Changes

• Added locale code to app language selector by @hjiangsu in #1142

Fixes

• Fixed issue with post metadata colours not being applied properly* by @hjiangsu in #1128
• Fixed url post card metadata tooltip visibility* by @hjiangsu in #1131
• Fixed search page keyboard on iOS by @hjiangsu in #1130
• Fixed post page failure when image fails to load by @hjiangsu in #1132
• Fixed inbox counter not reflecting true number of unread notifications by @hjiangsu in #1134

Misc

• Updated localization strings by @hjiangsu in #1141

Full Changelog: 0.2.9-5...0.2.9-6

This is the fifth pre-release for Thunder v0.2.9! This is a hotfix for an issue where Thunder was stuck on the splash screen after updating to 0.2.9-4.

As mentioned previously, the next pre-releases will be mainly focused on fixing existing bugs that come up, and preparing for a general release. Please report any issues that you find!

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Changes

• Only do startup check if not group notification by @micahmo in #1121

Fixes

• Fixed settings padding by @micahmo in #1122
• Fixed issue with Thunder stalling on splash screen by @hjiangsu in #1125

Full Changelog: 0.2.9-4...0.2.9-5

This is the fourth pre-release for Thunder v0.2.9! This pre-release version introduces a few new features and improvements, as well as usual bug fixes. The next pre-releases will be mainly focused on fixing existing bugs that come up, and preparing for a general release. Please report any issues that you find!

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Some notable changes to test out:

• You can now customize the post metadata information (vote counts, comment counts, etc) on your feed! This can be done in Settings -> Appearance -> Compact/Card View Settings. Simply drag and drop the metadata information you want to see on your feed. The order of the information will be the order that you drag it into the preview.
• Some moderator actions are now implemented including locking, featuring, and removing posts! To do this, you must be a moderator of a community. To access these actions, simply long-press on a post and select "Moderator Actions" from the menu.
• Search has been expanded to communities. You can search for posts/comments from the community feed by tapping the Search option in the overflow menu!

Additions

• Added ability to delete posts by @micahmo in #1083
• Re-introduced in-app browser as an option by @micahmo in #1046, #1106, and #1116
• Added community icon indicator when posting is restricted to mods by @hjiangsu in #1027
• Added option for colourized usernames by @ggichure in #1092
• Added new unread comment indicator for read posts by @CTalvio in #1094 and #1103
• Added ability to customize post card metadata information by @hjiangsu in #1077
• Added ability to search posts/comments from community feed by @micahmo in #1108
• Added setting to change image cache settings on Android by @micahmo in #1105
• Added initial moderator post actions (lock, pin, remove) by @hjiangsu in #1104

Changes

• Added notification check on startup* by @micahmo in #1098
• Autoscroll and highlight searched setting result* by @micahmo in #1086

Fixes

• Fixed issue with deferred comments by @micahmo in #1107
• Fixed spoiler titles in instance view* by @micahmo in #1115

Misc

• Created new feature request, and bug report templates. by @K4LCIFER in #1100
• Refactored snackbars to use overlays and remove dependency on context by @hjiangsu in #1111

New Contributors

• @K4LCIFER made their first contribution in #1100

Full Changelog: 0.2.9-3...0.2.9-4

This is the third pre-release for Thunder v0.2.9! This pre-release version fixes a couple of minor issues present from the last pre-release version.

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Changes

• Removed usesCleartextTraffic attribute on AndroidManifest by @hjiangsu in #1090

Fixes

• Fixed issue where app language bottom sheet would fill full height by @hjiangsu in #1089
• Fixed issue with Settings search not triggering* by @hjiangsu in #1088

Full Changelog: 0.2.9-2...0.2.9-3

This is the second pre-release for Thunder v0.2.9! This pre-release version introduces a few new features and improvements, as well as usual bug fixes.

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Some notable changes to test out:

• Thunder will now attempt to clear image cache for images older than 7 days to reduce the amount of cached data stored on your device. You can also manually clear the image cache by going to Debug -> Clear Cache
• You can now search for settings/preferences from the Settings page. Tapping on a search result will bring you to the proper Settings page. Big thanks to @ggichure for implementing this feature!
• [Android] Thunder has experimental support for handling push notifications locally on Android devices. When enabled, Thunder will attempt to fetch new notifications in the background while the app is not running. Please note that this feature is highly dependent on the Android OS and their battery saving settings (e.g., stopping apps in the background). Big thanks to @micahmo for implementing this feature!

Additions

• Added additional medium font scale option by @hjiangsu in #1030
• Added moderated communities to drawer by @hjiangsu in #1063
• Added ability to share communities by @micahmo in #1040
• Added ability to clear image cache on startup, and manually by @hjiangsu in #1062
• Added experimental local push notifications on Android by @micahmo in #1000
• Added notification page to display individual messages by @micahmo in #1069 and #1080
• Added ability to search user preferences and settings by @ggichure in #1036

Changes

• Added indicator for media downloads by @micahmo in #1075
• Indicate deleted posts by @micahmo in #1079
• Added inkwell to spoiler markdown by @micahmo in #1033
• Added option to navigate to new post after creation by @micahmo in #1044
• Improved handling for navigation to non-instances by @micahmo in #1076
• Adjusted search bar to match material design, and misc fixes by @micahmo in #1084

Fixes

• Fixed issue with advanced image preview not showing by @micahmo in #1074 and #1082
• Fixed exit confirmation snackbar by @micahmo in #1064
• Fixed issue with creating cross-posts by @micahmo in #1068
• Fixed an issue with loading favorites on startup by @micahmo in #1078
• Fixed issue where feed FAB can be triggered on other pages by @hjiangsu in #1085

Misc

• Updated instances by @github-actions in #1057
• Updated translations by @hjiangsu in #1058
• Added CI workflow to check for sorted translations by @hjiangsu in #1059
• Sorted translations in alphabetical order by @hjiangsu in #1061
• Refactored community and user avatars by @hjiangsu in #1070
• Reorganized files to their domain by @hjiangsu in #1071
• Refactored local settings to use localization strings by @hjiangsu in #1045
• Refactored thumbnail badges and compact post cards by @hjiangsu in #1066
• Fixed a few things changed by type badge refactor* by @micahmo in #1067
• Migrated from gallery_saver package to gal for media downloads by @hjiangsu in #1043

Full Changelog: 0.2.9-1...0.2.9-2

This is the first pre-release for Thunder v0.2.9! This pre-release version introduces quite a few new features and improvements, as well as usual bug fixes.

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Please see below for the full changelog since the last general release. For those on TestFlight, you will receive the pre-release update once it has been approved by Apple.

Some notable changes to test out:

• Thunder now has support for high-refresh displays on Android. This should improve the user experience for those with high refresh displays. However, do keep in mind that this may potentially increase battery usage for those devices. If you encounter any issues, please create a new issue on GitHub.
• Initial support for spoiler tags have been added. Whenever there is a spoiler tag, Thunder will display it as expandable content within the post body or comment. This initial support should catch most cases, but there may be some edge cases where spoilers still show up.
• A whole bunch of small UI/UX improvements across the board. Ability to create cross-posts, share user profiles, changes to account selector, and more!

Thanks again for sticking around, and please mention any bugs and issues that you encounter when using this version!

Additions

• Added new condensed post body view to the post page by @micahmo in #994
• Added compatibility with high-refresh displays to Thunder on Android devices by @mufeedali in #1010
• Added initial support for markdown spoiler tags by @hjiangsu in #867
• Added ability to create cross-posts from the post page by @micahmo in #1034
• Added ability to share user profiles by @micahmo in #1013
• Added ability to subscribe/unsubscribe to community from long-press action by @hjiangsu in #1028
• Added option to hide the top app bar on scroll by @hjiangsu in #1029
• Added user counts to instance page by @micahmo in #1017

Changes

• Improved post/comment score formatting by @micahmo in #1008
• Adjusted the color of the delete draft icon by @micahmo in #989
• Language selector now prioritizes current language at the top of the list by @micahmo in #986
• Community selector shows suggested communities by default by @micahmo in #993
• Prioritize favorites in empty community prompt by @micahmo in #1032 and #1015
• Improved account log out flow by @micahmo in #980
• Search page suggests alternate filters when there are no search results by @micahmo in #1019
• Account selector improvements and minor fixes by @hjiangsu in #1035
• Image viewer dynamically adjusts image zoom based on resolution @Niranjan-Dorage in #859

Fixes

• Fixed issues with images being too wide in community/user sidebars by @micahmo in #990
• Fixed issues where post actions were not being updated properly in the search page by @micahmo in #998
• Fixed issue where local featured posts were not being highlighted properly by @micahmo in #991
• Fixed issue where subscriptions in drawer were not in alphabetical order by @hjiangsu in #1025
• Fixed an issue where you could favorite a non-subscribed community by @micahmo in #1016
• Fixed some issues with user navigation and error handling by @micahmo in #1014
• Fix some issues with the search page resetting by @micahmo in #1018
• Fixed some community/user name detection by @micahmo in #1042

Misc

• Clean up linter warnings by @hjiangsu in #1020

New Contributors

• @mufeedali made their first contribution in #1010

Full Changelog: 0.2.7...0.2.9-1

Hi everyone! This is just a quick hotfix release to address an issue where Thunder opens up in RTL (right-to-left) layout on some devices after the previous v0.2.7 update. If you are still encountering an issue with this after this release, feel free to open up a new GitHub issue with some more details.

A quick reminder: if you are using the Google Play version or App Store version, please note that it may take a bit of time before you receive the update.

Changelog

• Fix issue with wrong default locale causing Thunder to display in RTL by @hjiangsu in #1039

Full Changelog: 0.2.7...0.2.8

Hi everyone and happy new year! It's finally time for another Thunder release. As always, there have been many improvements, additions, changes and fixes in this release which should make for a even better Thunder experience. If you have any suggestions or feedback, feel free to discuss it in the Thunder community or on GitHub.

A quick reminder: if you are using the Google Play version or App Store version, please note that it may take a bit of time before you receive the update. Now onto the update notes. This update brings a few major features:

🎉 Features

• You can now edit your own posts, and set the appropriate language for your post. When you open your own post, you will see a pencil icon which will allow you to edit your post along with the language.
• The Settings page has been overhauled and re-organized, with post and comment previews for certain visual settings. This should hopefully provide a better overall experience for adjusting and customizing your settings.
• You can now set Thunder's app language to any of currently available translations. Please note that the translations are not fully complete, and you may encounter untranslated content.
• Additional settings have been added in which sync up with your Lemmy account. This includes showing/hiding read posts, showing/hiding scores, and showing/hiding bot accounts.
• There is now a Safari extension which allows you to open Lemmy links within Thunder for iOS users. This extension is disabled by default, but can be enabled in the system settings under Safari -> Extensions.
• Favoriting communities is now available. When you favorite a community, it will be prioritized throughout the app (in the drawer, search results, etc.)
• Keyword filters are now available in the Settings page. Adding keywords will filter any posts whose title or body containing one or more keywords.
• Many quality-of-life improvements including collapsible post bodies, more community translations, addition of more sort types, improved search filters.

⚙️ Performance

• Improved general loading times when starting up Thunder. This should result in some drastic improvements for certain instances.
• Updated many under-the-hood dependencies.

And much much more. I can't go through all the changes in the changelog, but for those who are curious, feel free to check out the full changelog below.

We have a Matrix space if you would like to join in on discussions: https://matrix.to/#/#thunderapp:matrix.org

Changelog

Additions

• Added ability to collapse post body contents by @hjiangsu in #888
• Added ability to open external community links in Thunder on Android by @micahmo in #908
• Added ability to show link options when long-pressing on link previews by @micahmo in #909
• Added ability to select app language in Settings by @hjiangsu in #901
• Added ability to perform comment search when viewing a post by @micahmo in #887
• Added ability to edit existing posts by @hjiangsu in #893
• Added ability to set post language when creating or editing a post by @hjiangsu in #893
• Added setting to show or hide read posts per account by @hjiangsu in #921
• Added post/comment previews to Settings and reorganized setting pages by @hjiangsu in #890
• Added missing feed sort types for old and top 3, 6, 9 months by @micahmo in #924
• Added support for community/creator search filters in Search page by @micahmo in #925
• Added setting to show comment score rather than upvote/downvote counts by @hjiangsu in #935
• Added additional actions to comment/post long press menu by @micahmo in #958
• Added ability to open links in Thunder from Safari extension by @hjiangsu in #905
• Added initial steps to build Thunder for web using dockerfile by @gwbischof in #943
• Added ability to show/hide post and comment scores by @hjiangsu in #936
• Added ability to show/hide bot content by @hjiangsu in #936
• Added support for SVG previews in markdown by @micahmo in #938
• Added instance version on account selector and instance page by @micahmo in #964
• Added support for displaying comment origin instance by @ggichure in #944
• Added option to change formatting of full community/user instances by @micahmo in #973
• Added confirmation when marking all as messages as read by @micahmo in #979
• Added ability to favorite communities in drawer by @hjiangsu in #971
• Added ability to filter posts containing keyword in title/body by @hjiangsu in #974
• Integrate community favourites into search, community auto-completes by @micahmo in #984
• Added more community translations. Thanks to everyone here for contributing towards translations! If you have contributed towards translation and would like to be explicitly mentioned, please let me know your GitHub handle through Matrix or on here.

Changes

• Migrated textScaleFactor to textScaler by @hjiangsu in #830
• Updated extended image package by @gwbischof in #904
• Fixed search filter labels by @micahmo in #914
• Added subscribed status and community subscriber count in community picker by @micahmo in #917
• Improved image link handling to open images in-app by @micahmo in #919
• Improved URL detection when searching by @micahmo in #959
• Removed artificial stretching for images by @micahmo in #939
• Refactored FAB settings page by @hjiangsu in #949
• Changed default FAB action to create new post by @hjiangsu in #970
• Added visual feedback to some sidebar components by @micahmo in #981
• Account page now remembers tab/section across refreshes by @micahmo in #965
• Moved account settings to Settings page by @micahmo in #966

Fixes

• Fixed status bar visual glitch on app startup by @micahmo in #910
• Fixed issue where Android back button did not close community sidebar by @micahmo in #907
• Fixed user avatar showing blank when display name is empty by @micahmo in #916
• Fixed issue with app bar accessibility by @micahmo in #918
• Fixed custom tabs not using default browser when opening links by @hjiangsu in #928
• Fixed issues with feed loading on initial app start by @hjiangsu in #940
• Disabled image dimension fetch when compact mode is enabled by @hjiangsu in #950
• Fixed issue with long initial app start when logged in by @hjiangsu in #947
• Fixed overflow issue on post view metadata by @hjiangsu in #968
• Fixed some physical back button inconsistencies on Android by @micahmo in #977
• Fixed spinner showing on user page when no posts are available by @micahmo in #978
• Fixed issue tapping on some usernames by @micahmo in #997
• Empty queries now reset search by @micahmo in #999

Misc

• Updated LPG dependency by @micahmo in #952
• Updated Lemmy API dependency by @hjiangsu in #954
• Removed dotenv dependency by @gwbischof in #946
• Set new LPG property by @micahmo in #972 and #985
• Refactored dialogs by @micahmo in #969

Full Changelog: 0.2.6...0.2.7

This is the first release candidate for Thunder v0.2.7! This release candidate version fixes a few minor issues with accessibility labels, search, and tapping on some usernames. If no issues are noted, this will most likely be the final version 0.2.7.

Be fully prepared to know that these pre-release versions may contain major bugs which could cause Thunder to crash or behave unexpectedly.

Changes since last pre-release version

Additions

• Added icons to community popup menu* by @micahmo in #996

Fixes

• Fixed semantic label for favorites action* by @hjiangsu in #995
• Fixed issue tapping on some usernames by @micahmo in #997
• Empty queries now reset search by @micahmo in #999

*_{Changes marked with an asterisk denote additions/modifications/fixes to changes introduced in previous pre-releases.}

Full Changelog: 0.2.6...0.2.7-6