WordPress 5.0.2, the of first of two rapid releases following 5.0, is now available. Sites with automatic background updates enabled should already be on the latest version. This release addresses performance issues, one of the chief complaints for users who have adopted the block editor. It brings 45 improvements to the editor, with 14 of…
XWP’s Gutenberg-inspired Jenga sets were arguably the most innovative swag at WordCamp US this year, but there weren’t enough to go around. Gutenblox, fondly dubbed “the Other Block Building Interface,” is now available on its own website where anyone can buy a set. The Gutenblox.fun store is running on BigCommerce with the new Twenty Nineteen…
At WordCamp US 2018 I had the chance to sit down with Jason Bahl and Ryan Kanner, both engineers at Digital First Media in Denver, Colorado, and contributors to the WPGraphQL project. WPGraphQL is an open source plugin that provides an extendable GraphQL schema and API for any WordPress site. Bahl, who created and maintains…
The following is a guest post by Chris Van Patten, founder of Tomodomo, a digital agency for magazine publishers. For years, WordPress has been ever-so-slightly behind the times on PHP version support…to put it kindly. However, WordPress’ legendary support for PHP versions back to 5.2 — versions long unsupported by the PHP project itself —…
For a long time I could not compose posts with the Gutenberg editor. I tested each release of the plugin throughout its journey into WordPress 5.0, but found it too distracting for my basic needs. It seemed better suited for building a brochure website, not for someone who uses WordPress primarily for writing. This is…
WordPress 5.0.1 was released yesterday as a security release with fixes for seven vulnerabilities that were privately disclosed. It includes a few breaks in backwards compatibility that plugin developers will want to review. WordPress 5.0.2 will be the first planned followup release to 5.0 and is now scheduled to be released December 19, 2018. Gary…
In this episode, John James Jacoby and I recap WordCamp US 2018. We discuss what’s new in WordPress 5.0.1 and when users can expect to see 5.0.2. We also chat about the new path that WordPress is on and where it may lead. John shares his perspective on what the atmosphere was like at the…
Dates for WordCamp US 2019 were announced today, less than a week after wrapping up a successful camp in Nashville. Unlike all previous years held in December, next year’s event will take place November 1-3 in St. Louis, Missouri. For the most part, community reactions to the new dates were positive. Early November dates place…
If you visit the plugin directory, you will notice a new section at the top featuring block-enabled plugins. WordPress 5.0 has been downloaded more than 8 million times, just one week after its release, and users are looking for blocks to extend the new editing experience. WordPress.org is highlighting plugins to push the block ecosystem…
While at WordCamp US, I had the opportunity to catch up with WPCampus director Rachel Cherry, who is coordinating an audit on Gutenberg for the organization she leads. WPCampus launched its crowdfunding campaign at the end of November and more than $10K has come in towards the $30K goal. The day before WordPress 5.0 was…
WordCamp US kicked off in Nashville over the weekend, following the release of WordPress 5.0. In the first 48 hours, 5.0 had been downloaded more than 2.8 million times. It passed 3 million Saturday night. “There’s been a lot that’s been going on, so I’d like to allow WordPress the chance to re-introduce itself,” Matt…
Version 1.0 of the official AMP plugin for WordPress was released on the eve of WordCamp US, after two years in development by contributors from Automattic, XWP, and Google. This first stable version has a massive changelog with 30 people credited for their contributions. The plugin is now considered ready for production and is active…
In 2016 at WordCamp US in Philadelphia, PA, Matt Mullenweg announced to the world that a new post and page editor would be coming to WordPress. “The editor does not represent the core of WordPress publishing,” Mullenweg said. His vision of the editor was geared towards a more block-based approach that unifies widgets, shortcodes, and…
In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Matt Mullenweg, co-creator of the WordPress project. We discussed a number of topics that have been making the rounds across the community such as: The WordPress 5.0 release strategy and how it will evolve once it’s released. Whether or not Gutenberg is ready and…
During last week’s core dev chat, Matt Mullenweg urged developers to consider WordPress 5.0 as “coming as soon as possible.” Nevertheless, his decision to set Thursday, December 6, for the new release date has taken many by surprise. Official feedback channels and social media erupted with largely negative feedback on the decision, as the new…