Justin Tadlock

  • Ask the Bartender: Is There a Starter for Building Block Themes?

    Ask the Bartender: Is There a Starter for Building Block Themes?

    I read some posts from “Ask the Bartender,” and I appreciate it a lot! Thanks. I have a question now. :) I want to refine my WordPress theme development process, which is: To make a unique-creative design with Adobe XD or Figma. To convert it to static HTML using VS Code with Bootstrap. In WordPress,…

  • Videomaker Block Theme Targets Film Directors and Video Creators

    Videomaker Block Theme Targets Film Directors and Video Creators

    Automattic’s latest Blockbase child theme landed in the WordPress.org directory today. Videomaker is aimed at film directors and video creators. I have put it through its paces in the last week as it waited for approval in the review system. At first glance, there is not much that separates Videomaker from any other plain ol’…

  • FSE Outreach Round #11: Going on a Site Editing Safari

    FSE Outreach Round #11: Going on a Site Editing Safari

    Anne McCarthy announced Round #11 of the FSE Outreach Program on November 11. The latest test, dubbed Site Editing Safari, calls on volunteers to run through a step-by-step list to find strengths and weaknesses around the upcoming WordPress 5.9 site editor. Volunteers are still welcome to provide feedback until Tuesday, December 7. This is actually…

  • Hello Charts Launches a Native Chart-Building Experience for the Block Editor

    Hello Charts Launches a Native Chart-Building Experience for the Block Editor

    Luke Carbis and Rob Stinson, two of the three-person Block Lab team that WP Engine picked up in 2020, are back together on a new project. This time, they are joined by Byron Keet. The trio is taking on the WordPress charts space via a suite of blocks named Hello Charts. “Some folks launch deals…

  • One Month Left To Take the 2021 WordPress Annual Survey

    One Month Left To Take the 2021 WordPress Annual Survey

    Last month, Josepha Haden Chomphosy announced the annual WordPress survey. If you have not gotten around to participating, it is still open for the rest of 2021, leaving everyone another 30 days to answer. The survey is relatively short. I finished it in 16 minutes, but I also took screenshots in case I needed to…

  • Ask the Bartender: Should I Use a Page Builder or Wait for Block Themes?

    Ask the Bartender: Should I Use a Page Builder or Wait for Block Themes?

    As a non-developer, I honestly don’t know what direction to take my WordPress site anymore. I used to rely on themes and even bought some premium ones, but over time, I’d outgrow them. As an artist myself, I prefer having control over every aspect of my website, from its layout, colors, to its fonts. Thus,…

  • Gutenberg 12.0 Focuses on Cleanup and Minor Enhancements

    Gutenberg 12.0 Focuses on Cleanup and Minor Enhancements

    Last week, contributors to the Gutenberg plugin wrapped up the version 12.0 release just ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. Most work is being pushed toward the upcoming WordPress 5.9 release, which has been postponed to January 25. As a result, Gutenberg 12.0 has fewer bells and whistles and more bug fixes and maintenance. However,…

  • WordPress, Blogging, and the Things We Are Thankful For

    WordPress, Blogging, and the Things We Are Thankful For

    On Saturday, one side of my family held our pre-Thanksgiving reunion. It had been two years since we were able to do it. I offered to host this year when our previous venue’s loss threatened to sideline the event for yet another year. Needless to say, I was exhausted by the time my last cousin…

  • How Do Post Formats Fit Into a Block Theme World?

    How Do Post Formats Fit Into a Block Theme World?

    Over the weekend, Nick Bohle asked Ellen Bauer of Elma Studio how post formats fit into the block-theming world. The question was a proposal for her a WordPress theme and FSE chat she held yesterday via Twitter Spaces. I could not attend and see if Bauer touched on the subject, but the question is something…

  • Automattic Theme Team Releases a Plugin To Build Blockbase Child Themes

    Automattic Theme Team Releases a Plugin To Build Blockbase Child Themes

    On Wednesday, Ben Dwyer announced a new block-based plugin on the Theme Shaper blog. The Automattic Theme Team had built a child theme creator for its Blockbase WordPress parent theme. Blockbase has quickly started filling the role of Underscores, a starter that many developers used to create custom themes in the classic era. For block…

  • Rank Math SEO Launches a Content AI Feature

    Rank Math SEO Launches a Content AI Feature

    Last week, the popular Rank Math SEO plugin received a major update that includes a new artificial intelligence system. The Content AI feature is a SaaS product that behaves like a personal writing assistant to boost search rankings. “We built Rank Math’s Content AI feature to revolutionize the content production and optimization process with proprietary…

  • Wowmall: A Free Experimental WooCommerce Block Theme

    Wowmall: A Free Experimental WooCommerce Block Theme

    The Wowmall theme was released to the public today. It is the second 100% block theme that integrates with WooCommerce to land in the WordPress directory. Responsive FSE was the first. Two weeks ago, a reader sent in a question for the Ask the Bartender column. He wanted to know where the WooCommerce block themes…

  • “Skins” Are Back in Style, Proposal for Themes To Bundle User-Selectable Design Variations

    “Skins” Are Back in Style, Proposal for Themes To Bundle User-Selectable Design Variations

    A current proposal could spell the death of at least one form of child theming. The feature would allow themes to ship multiple theme.json files, housing variations on a site’s default styles. Essentially, it is the old-school concept of “skins.” How the feature would work is not yet defined. However, theme authors would presumably be…

  • Gutenberg 11.9 Focuses on Navigation Menus and Block Theming

    Gutenberg 11.9 Focuses on Navigation Menus and Block Theming

    Gutenberg 11.9 landed on Wednesday, and it is packed with dozens of enhancements. Contributors are speeding forward, getting in some of the final features before the release of WordPress 5.9, expected on December 14. Version 11.9 is the last plugin release to include new features for the upcoming WordPress update. Bug fixes will continue to…