Lead Developer Andy Peatling has announced that BuddyPress 1.2, the latest version of the WordPress social networking add-on, is now available.

The release is notable because it works with standard WordPress installs. Previously, it would only work with WordPress MU.

This means that bloggers and podcasters using WordPress can now have a self-hosted solution for creating social neworks, instead of relying on third-party sites like Ning.

New in BuddyPress 1.2:

• Standard WordPress Support
• Simplified installation
• Improved activity streams.

Features of BuddyPress include:

• Global, personal and group activity streams
• Fully editable profile fields allow you to define the fields users can fill in to describe themselves
• Powerful public, private or hidden groups
• “Friending”
• Private messaging will allow your users to talk to each other directly, and in private.
• Full powered discussion forums
• Each of your users can start their own full powered WordPress blog.
• Easily extendable with plugins

BuddyPress promises to let you get up and running with your own social network in 6 minutes.

That’s a stretch – but, even if it takes you several days to configure it to meet your needs, BuddyPress an unprecedented level of power to WordPress bloggers and podcasters.