[SalesForce] How to get custom tab visibility in controller based on user profile

What you can actually expose is limited by the type of licenses you have. As I understand it, even the new salesforce communities require a license; albeit a less expensive one.

Any app you create has to be accessed through a customer portal. With communities being new, I don't believe all of the documentation has completely caught up with them, but licensing is still an issue that has to be addressed before they can be implemented.

We're in the midst of building a site based on the High Volume Customer Portal license that will transition to Communities licenses once the existing HVCP licenses expire. In any case, it's the profile for the license you'll be using that needs to have the tabs enabled.

Jason - Lightning Components for Community Cloud are coming (they will be GA...SAFE HARBOR APPLIES) in the Winter '16 release. You may have a prerelease org on hand, so the way you will build and surface them is slightly different than you may be used to:

• Create a Lightning component and be sure it implements the forceCommunity:availableForAllPageTypes interface: <aura:component implements="forceCommunity:availableForAllPageTypes"/>
• Get into the Community Builder and upgrade the template to Winter 16 under the settings pane.
• Get into a template-driven community, open the Community Builder, and navigate to the page you want to edit (Winter 16 and above). Find your component in the left side palette and drag it onto the page. Publish.

So when you get your sandbox upgraded, or when you get the release, have at it!