On a recent discussion thread within the WordPress Hackers Mailing list, Aaron Brazell of Technosailor.com suggested that the Media RSS or (mrss) plugin be integrated into the core of WordPress. Media RSS is built on top of the Media RSS Module framework developed by Yahoo!. Essentially the module supplements the < enclosure > element inside of RSS 2.0 feeds to allow for more robust media.

Aaron makes the case that it is one of the plugins he recommends most to his clients and others. With this plugin installed, if you published an image in your blog post, the Media RSS plugin would apply the proper enclosures/formatting so that the image would show up on the social networks you’re apart where you are utilizing your blogs RSS feed. Joost De Valk follows up the initial proposal by acknowledging that it’s also a standard install for 95% of his clients blogs.

I’m not sure about Media RSS. I mean, I sort of understand the basis behind it but I need a clearer explanation as to what it does. Doing a couple of Google searches looking for reviews on the plugin didn’t turn up much and as I tried to review the plugin myself, I didn’t know what to look for.

With that said, Andy Skelton chimed into the conversation and mentioned that Matt Mullenweg was interested in having this feature part of WordPress 2.8. Andy suggested that Aaron write a patch and that is what he is doing. Aaron doesn’t have core or commit access so if Matt doesn’t like the patch or the way it’s written it won’t make it in but based on all indications, the features provided by Media RSS seem poised to make it into the core of WordPress 2.8. If not this time, then next.

What are your thoughts on having the features provided by this plugin integrated into the core?