Do you notice anything different about the Tavern’s URL? We recently enabled SSL on the site. Although the transition from HTTP to HTTPS was relatively smooth, we encountered a few issues. Postmatic Thought The Tavern Disappeared Soon after making the switch, we received error notices from Postmatic when trying to moderate comments via email. Because…
In this episode of WordPress Weekly, Marcus Couch and I discuss the news that’s made headlines in recent weeks, including WordPress’ birthday as the project turns 13 years old. We discuss the gesture of good will from Syed Balkhi donating the WP.org domain to the WordPress Foundation. Last but not least, I share some of…
If you’ve ever clicked on a URL to WP.org and ended up on WPBeginner.com within the past two years, you’re not alone. It routinely happens on discussion forums like the Advanced WordPress Facebook group and Twitter where referencing WP.org turns into a link to WPBeginner.com. A great example occurred in 2015 when Antti Kuosmanen tweeted…
There’s a lot of great WordPress content published in the community but not all of it is featured on the Tavern. This post is an assortment of items related to WordPress that caught my eye but didn’t make it into a full post. Chris Lema Launches Beyond Good Chris Lema has launched a new site…
In early 2015, the WordPress.org Meta team redesigned the WordPress plugin directory and added a number of new features. In an effort to iterate on the page’s layout, the Meta Team has published prototypes of a new design for the plugin directory’s home and search results pages. The prototypes are inspired by Get WordPress, a…
In this episode, Marcus Couch and I are joined by James Giroux, Envato’s WordPress evangelist. We discuss a number of topics including what he’s accomplished since taking over the position in January, the item support policy change, and author driven pricing. We also find out what his favorite part of the job is and what…
Gene Robinson, lead developer of the Thematic WordPress theme, has announced that the project will no longer be developed. Thematic was last updated in 2013 and is actively installed on more than 4K sites. Users are advised to migrate to a different theme as updates will no longer be released. As WordPress core evolves, sites…
When WordPress 3.7 “Basie” was released in 2013, it brought automatic updates to the masses. By default, WordPress automatically updates to point releases. Using additional constants within wp-config.php, you can configure WordPress to automatically update themes, plugins, and major releases. If you want granular control over the WordPress update system without touching code, check out…
Among the improvements coming in WordPress 4.6 are accessibility enhancements to the Category and Tag management pages. The flow of each page has been changed so that the visual order of elements match the tab order. This allows those who navigate with keyboards to access the Add New Tag or Add New Category area first.…
DreamHost, Flywheel, and SiteGround have joined Bluehost on WordPress.org’s new recommended hosting page. In mid 2015, Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of the open source WordPress project, announced the page would be revamped. To have a chance at being listed webhosting companies needed to fill out a 40-question survey. This is Flywheel’s first time on the page.…
It’s almost inevitable that as a WordPress plugin gains popularity, it will receive a bad review. How plugin authors handle and respond to bad reviews is crucial, especially in a public forum. Mika Epstein, who helps review plugins before they’re added to the directory and is a dedicated support forum volunteer, gives advice on how…
In this episode of WordPress Weekly, Marcus Couch and I are joined by Andrea Middleton, who works at Automattic as a Community Organizer for the WordPress open source project. We discuss a number of topics including, updates to the WordCamp Central website, the for-profit subsidiary, and the experimental WordCamp incubator program. At the conclusion of…
The organizers of WPCampus are seeking feedback via a survey on how schools and campuses utilize WordPress in their environments. The survey consists of five sections: How Do You Use WordPress on Campus Site Demographics, Traffic, and Data Plugins, Themes, and Features Security, Performance, and Hosting Your Team Structure & Workflows There are a couple…
In late 2014, WordPress 4.1 added a Recommended Plugins tab that takes into account the plugins you have installed and suggests plugins based on which ones are commonly used together. After nearly a year and a half since it was added, I asked the Tavern’s Twitter followers if they have ever installed plugins recommended by…
When Automattic acquired WooThemes in 2015, it gained employees, plugins, themes, and the company’s trademarks. These trademarks include, standard character marks, logos, and specific graphics such as the Verified WooExpert badges. One of the responsibilities of a trademark owner is to protect it from infringement. WooGPL is a service that provides customers with commercial themes,…