Interactivity API iteration for WordPress 6.9

[DAreRodz]

• Part of Block API #41236.

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In the previous iteration for WordPress 6.8, the focus was on addressing the limitations in the region-based client-side navigation and improving the full-page client-side navigation experiment, as well as finishing interactive features for the Gallery, Query, and Search blocks. Not all the work could be carried out that time, though.

Now, for WordPress 6.9, we are resuming part of this work, specifically the client-side navigation feature, as it requires some tweaks after being reimplemented in #70353 to support styles and script modules from newly visited pages.

Additionally, other issues have been identified regarding the iAPI runtime initialization that also need to be tackled.

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As always, the task list is live and can be modified or expanded at any time. 🙂

Fixes

• iAPI: Items from data-wp-each doesn't work when exposed from state getters #70866

Async store loading

• iAPI: Review the initialization logic #70870
• iAPI router: Support lazy loaded derived state #70872
• iAPI router: Synchronous getter execution prevents state access when store is initialized after hydration #70874

New client-side navigation algorithm

• Query Loop: Allow Post Content block with the "force page reload" setting disabled #70871
• iAPI Router: Only load modules of interactive blocks on client-side navigation #70873
• iAPI router: Add an isRouterRegion property in block.json for automatic incompatible blocks detection #70875
• iAPI Router: Styles inside noscript tags are wrongly applied on client-side navigation #70876
• iAPI router: Move internal properties to a private store #70879

Docs

• Docs: Interactivity API - Create a Core Concepts section for the iAPI #62921
  •  Namespaces and scopes
  • Client-side navigation

Deprecations/improvements

• iAPI: Add official support for unique IDs #70880
• iAPI: Implement a data-wp-if directive #70878
• iAPI: Deprecate data-wp-ignore #70881

Blocks

• Gallery: Add lightbox support #62906
• Query and Search blocks: support for Instant Search via query_loop_block_query_vars filter #67181

[griffbrad]

Would it make sense to revisit the Gallery block navigation for 6.9 as well? There is an open PR from earlier this year:
#62906

[DAreRodz]

Update

I've been working on the issue related to synchronous getters execution that access state. It's an important issue, as the store() function was designed to support this use case. This open PR, awaiting review, is meant to fix it:

• iAPI: Make state getters to be updated asynchronously with store() #70974

The PR makes any time a property in the state turns into a getter to be updated asynchronously. Only when that property is later read immediately after the store() call, the update is made synchronously, and only at that very moment.

Also, other issues were already addressed and merged, like the deprecation of data-wp-ignore and the wrongly-applied style sheets from <noscript> tags—props to @vipul0425 and @Sahil1617 for working on them.

• iAPI Router: Styles inside noscript tags are wrongly applied on client-side navigation #70876
• iAPI: Deprecate data-wp-ignore #70881

Next week, I'll review the initialization logic currently used by the Interactivity API and take a look at the lazy-loaded state one.

[DAreRodz]

Would it make sense to revisit the Gallery block navigation for 6.9 as well?

Hey @griffbrad, yeah, we can do that. If I'm not mistaken, that block was nearly complete. There is also the instant search feature for the Query and Search blocks. I'd add them to the tasks list.