In recent days, a security vulnerability in Bash known as “ShellShock” has put millions of servers at risk. Without going into too much detail, the vulnerability allows an attacker to execute any code on a vulnerable server. The amount of servers at risk is far greater than the Heartbleed bug discovered earlier this year. The…
The creator of Aesop Story Engine, Nick Haskins, wants to know if there is any interest in a WordPress plugin that would provide a project status page. After browsing the WordPress plugin directory and coming up empty, Haskins is developing his own solution in the form of a plugin. He describes the plugin will have…
This weekend, 794 WordPress professionals and enthusiasts from all over the world descended upon Sofia, Bulgaria to participate in Europe’s largest WordCamp to date. WordCampers arrived excited to soak up new information and connect with others in the European community. Sofia’s graffiti-lined streets are peppered with leftovers of communist architecture, contrasting the Neo-Bohemian culture that…
Customers who host sites with GoDaddy or Media Temple will see a new WordPress resource in their control panel. Thanks to a strategic partnership with WP101, GoDaddy and Media Temple customers can watch a 20-part WordPress 101 video tutorial series, directly within the WordPress dashboard. I reached out to WP101 founder, Shawn Hesketh, to learn…
The once popular image resizing script known as TimThumb is no longer supported according to co-creator, Ben Gillbanks. In 2011, TimThumb made headlines when a major security vulnerability was discovered and used to hack into several websites. The exploit that was found was a bug with the external image resize functionality and the fact it…
Nine years ago, John Blackbourn was stocking shelves at a supermarket 40 hours per week and returning home to do another 20 hours of freelance work on the side. His journey with WordPress started much like many others, when his first patch was accepted seven years ago. This past weekend at WordCamp Europe, Blackbourn was…
In this episode, Marcus Couch and I are joined by Andrea Middleton who manages WordCamp Central. She tells us what it means to be a “dot organizer” within Automattic and what her day to day duties are managing WordCamp Central. We discuss whether the WordCamp Guidelines allow for differentiation between WordCamps. Middleton explains the various…
Since the release of WordPress 4.0, users have had nearly a month to get used to its new features. It’s time to find out which ones are your favorite. My favorite features are the sticky toolbar, oEmbed previews in the visual editor, and the overall improvements to the writing experience. I’ve found the sticky toolbar…
WordPress.com released a new video on its YouTube account entitled Welcome Home. In the 15 second video, featuring music from Childish Gambino, photos are taken with a iPhone in various locations. Near the end of the video, the WordPress app is opened displaying a post with one of the images captured by the phone. The…
WordPress developer Ryan Hellyer had always wanted to open source his website. As a strong supporter of open source software and an avid plugin developer, he enjoys sharing his code and learning from others. This desire led him to put his site up on GitHub one evening, not knowing that he would wake to find…
The CEO of iThemes, Cory Miller, published a second update concerning the security breach that occurred on Tuesday. After news of the breach, customers were left wondering whether or not their passwords were stored in clear-text. The latest update confirms that passwords were in fact stored in clear-text and affected approximately 60,000 customers. There is…
WP Photographers, is a new resource created by Aaron Hockley, to help photographers and WordPress users share their photos and build photography businesses. Whether you’re a beginner or a photographer looking for the best webhosting service, WP Photographers has you covered. In addition to guides, Hockley routinely publishes reviews of WordPress themes and plugins related…
A few months ago, the folks at GavickPro abandoned their GavernWP Framework in favor of using the WordPress customizer for theme options. The shop’s customers found the original framework to be too cumbersome and confusing, so the GavickPro team decided to move away from frameworks altogether. With the customizer in place as the baseline for…
Every day, millions of people mindlessly pump content into social networks that are owned by someone else. These massive data silos plaster your feed with advertising and blatantly disregard user privacy. It’s a symbiotic relationship wherein you are the product being sold, but you have no control. Even Twitter, which many saw as the last…
If the WordPress community is your only barometer of knowing how an open source community works together, then you might want to explore outside a bit further to gain a broader outlook on other cultures. Some of the differences are worth examining. A few days ago I noticed an interesting observation regarding the relationship between…