Currently, it’s easy to upgrade WordPress plugins from the dashboard for WordPress 2.5+ version. Compared to the old method, it’s much easier because we can upgrade the plugin using a single-click. Well, not a single-click, but at least you do not need to run any FTP software.

In the coming WordPress 2.7, it’s not getting easier for users, but also for developers. There will be a page called “Install Plugins” (the name might change). Here, we have a page displaying many related sub-menus about plugins like: Search Plugins, Upload a Plugin, Featured Plugins, Popular Plugins, Newest Plugins, Recently Updated Plugins. You can figure out what they mean, right?
For example, on the “Search Plugins” page, we can search plugins available from official WordPress Plugin Directory. We can narrow our search by “terms” (or keywords), tags, and also plugin author. We can also narrow our search using tag clouds provided. The search feature will give us list of plugins with the following details: plugin name, version, rating, and description. We can directly choose to install from this page. Very easy!
What makes it even better is that we can find out more details just like when we read plugin details from WordPress Plugins Directory. If we click on the plugin table row, there will be an inline popup providing information about the mode detailed description, installation guide, FAQ and also screenshot. The bottom line is that we can have plugin information without leaving the dashboard.