Life, The Universe, and WordPress
HeadSpace 3.6.21 has just been released and is in preparation for the upcoming WordPress 2.8, fixing several issues with tagging. In addition to this it also restores compatibility with WordPress 2.3 and 2.5. I’d be interested to know how many people are using older versions of WordPress (more than one major version) and whether this feature is of any use.
Also included in this version is a raw footer module that allows you to add anything to the wp_footer area of your theme.
I’ve just released an update to HTML Purified, a plugin that replaces the standard WordPress KSES filters with the much more powerful HTML Purifier library. This release tidies up a few rough edges and is jointly compatible with both WordPress and bbPress.
That’s right, the same plugin will work with both systems and allows you to fully protect yourself from any malignant comments that may be directed at your site. It should also ensure that your comments are valid XHTML.
Note that bbPress functionality is experimental. It works on the support forum here, running bbPress 1.0 alpha 6. Your mileage may of course vary.
HeadSpace version 3.6.18 has been released bringing with it the following new features:
I try and make a point of localizing all software I produce so that it can be used by as many different people as possible. Last year I wrote some articles (Translating WordPress Plugins and Localizing WordPress Plugins) detailing how to localize a plugin and theme from both a developers and translators point of view. Since then my plugins have been receiving a steady stream of translations and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who’s not only helped produce translation but also pointed out areas of my code that were not yet localized.
If you make use of any of my plugins then it’s likely you’ve noticed several fundamental changes, along with some tougher system requirements. I think now is a good time to actually write about these changes and discuss the reasons behind them.
I’ll start by making an admission: the release of WordPress 2.7 was a big headache for me. There, I’ve said it. I’ll continue on by stating that I love all the new features, and appreciate the updated interface and the amount of work that has gone into it (and continues to go into it). However, as a developer with around 20 plugins for WordPress, the changes in 2.7 were substantial enough that that it took considerable effort to get all my plugins working ‘properly’ again.
After a prolonged lapse I will soon be restarting my attempts to learn Chinese by signing up for proper classroom-based lessons. My hope is that I’ll be able to learn better than previous DIY attempts. I’ve even been provided with a student ID card, effectively turning me into a bona-fide student once more.
On the development side of things I’ve finally updated all of my WordPress plugins to support the latest version of WordPress, as well as fixing most outstanding problems. I’m also planning to distribute the plugin library that I’ve developed over the course of the past few years. This will likely take place as a series of articles documentating how to use it. Hopefully this will prove useful either as the basis for other plugins, or simply as a learning resource.
I’ve got a substantial update to Redirection just about finished off and ready for release. Rather than dropping this out and running the risk of upsetting a lot of websites, I’ve decided to try a private beta-test to iron out any final problems.
The new version gives much better management of redirections and error logging, and adds very powerful support for native Apache .htaccess files (i.e. you can use Redirection to edit .htaccess). If this sounds like something you want to help out with then drop me a line. The only requirement for this is that you are familiar with backing up and restoring your site database, or that you have a test WordPress site. The biggest help will be from people who are already using Redirection and have data to import into the new version.
Thanks in advance for any help!
I upgraded to WordPress 2.3 over the weekend and other than a few bumps it seemed to go relatively smoothly. The bumps were very curious and coupled with a melt-down of the server resulted in the site being out of action for a few hours. Eventually everything magically resolved itself, so I’m going to chalk it down to just ‘one of those things’.
One of the new features in WordPress 2.3 is tags, and I’m very happy with the way that they’ve been integrated. The developers have chosen a softly-softly approach, leaving the door open for others to take it further (as detailed by boren.nu). Being one of these others I’ve updated my HeadSpace plugin to make full use of the new 2.3 tagging facilities. HeadSpace takes the default tags further, adding many extra features, which I’ve decided to demonstrate in a short video.
This is a biggie so I’ll try and not write too much. HeadSpace is now running at version 3.2 and has had a thorough overhaul and feature boost that is designed to push it past other meta-data plugins. This includes:
Phew!
I’ve started a series of WordPress guides which I’ve titled ‘Inside WordPress‘. My aim with these is to explain different aspects of WordPress from a practical point of view. That is, they will be focused on showing you how to do things rather than telling you what to do. I’ve already made a start with several guides explaining some of the more simpler aspects of WordPress, as well as some going a little further. The guides will not always be aimed at beginners and, if there is enough interest, I already have plans to dig deep inside the belly of the beast.
The series contains the following new guides:
And I’ve added existing guides into the mix as well:
As with everything else readers are invited to give feedback and ask questions. If there are any areas of WordPress that you are unsure about or would like an in-depth explanation of then please do suggest – it may just be used as the basis for a guide!