WordPress MU

I'd like to create an automatically updated user profile index page with avatars and possibly a short profile paragraph next to each avatar. A searchable index would be excellent.

Is there any kind of page template or plugin that can accomplish this?

I do have the author avatar plugin, but a sidebar widget is impractical if there are a large quantity of blogs. It would be better if the widget layout was a grid, but it is a single column and I don't see any layout options on the widget itself.

Something like this?

http://testbp.org/members/

I think the BuddyPress listing would work well for some kind of members-only section perhaps - but for the sitewide navigation I need something that is more accessible to the general public, something that has more information. This site will likely have a solid community, since many potential members/contributors already have long standing online friendships with each other.

However, generally the writers/artists are professional (or that is their goal) and the site and their blog would ideally serve as a showcase for potential employers and/or publishers.

Something more like this perhaps;

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/theblog/index/

I don't want much, do I? :-)

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Oh, and BTW - thanks again for all your suggestions. The sitewide tags plugin is working out well for all tags and categories.

The one major stumbling block is the failure to import thumbnails correctly from contributor blogs to the main page. However, Magnus Jepson at Woo Themes is willing to try to find an in-theme fix. (I'm using the Woo Headlines theme designed by Magnus)

Working thumbnails are a must, so I have my fingers seriously crossed. I'm quite sure that I"m not the only user of sitewide tags that is missing thumbnails - so I just can't imagine that SOMEBODY hasn't solved this problem, but if there's a solution, I haven't found it.

Yeah, we're looking at pulling in the default thumbnails with SWT as well. I say we but I mean Ron. ;)

He's wpmuguru & works on that plugin with Donncha. he;s also my business parter.

Oh, and we're married too. :D

Nice to meet you Andrea. My real life name is Cherie. :-)

over at Woo Magnus had some code that he wanted to run by Donncha- so I sent it to him in an email. However I haven't heard back and I'm heading out to visit family in Europe tomorrow so I guess I'll pick this up when I get back. I'd be happy to beta the thumbnail fix. I can't even think about going live until the thumbs are a go.

Donncha's been pretty busy of late, too. tell Magnus to run it by Ron too. :)

(man, he hates it when I add to his to-do list...)