August 2014 Summaries

A new emoji theme for Slack notifications has been introduced, allowing users to customize their message theme in the notification settings by selecting "Message theme" under "Account Settings → Notifications → Slack." This update adds a playful touch, using specific emojis to indicate the status of builds: a thumbs-up emoji for successful builds, an okay sign for fixed builds, a thumbs-down for failed builds, double thumbs-down for continuously failing builds, and a raised hand for canceled builds, providing a more visually engaging way to monitor build statuses.

The announcement introduces two new features for project management: project environment variables and build status badges. Project environment variables allow users to define and manage environment variables across an entire project's build pipeline, facilitating the breakdown of large monolithic build steps into smaller, more manageable ones. This refactoring can enhance distribution, debugging, and optimization of build steps. Meanwhile, build status badges provide a visual representation of a project's latest build status, which can be scoped to specific branches. These badges can be customized with various themes and are intended to boost team motivation by displaying the project's build status prominently. A guide is also available to assist users in utilizing and customizing these badges.

Tim Lucas has joined Buildbox as a co-founder, focusing on product, design, and marketing, and has already developed a new identity for the company. He brings a wealth of experience from his background as chief designer and co-organizer of Australia's first CSSConf, as well as from running a Sydney-based agency specializing in prototype mobile and web application design. Tim has a keen interest in both design and software development and is well-known in the Ruby community, evidenced by his early GitHub user number. In addition to his professional skills, Tim enjoys rock climbing, brewing coffee, and exploring Melbourne's food truck scene. His diverse expertise and interests make him a valuable addition to the Buildbox team.