a:4:{s:5:"child";a:1:{s:0:"";a:1:{s:3:"rss";a:1:{i:0;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:3:"


";s:7:"attribs";a:1:{s:0:"";a:1:{s:7:"version";s:3:"2.0";}}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:1:{s:0:"";a:1:{s:7:"channel";a:1:{i:0;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:61:"
	
	
	
	




















































";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:1:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:16:"WordPress Planet";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"http://planet.wordpress.org/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:8:"language";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2:"en";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:47:"WordPress Planet - http://planet.wordpress.org/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"item";a:50:{i:0;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:50:"WPTavern: Impact of WPEngine’s Ban on ACF Plugin";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=174249";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:58:"https://wptavern.com/impact-of-wpengines-ban-on-acf-plugin";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:9859:"<p>When WP Engine was blocked from accessing WordPress.org, users were left wondering what the future holds for ACF (Advanced Custom Fields) and how this ban will impact their sites moving forward.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">ACF Blocked from WordPress.org </h3>



<p>On October 03, 2024, ACF (Advanced Custom Fields) <a href="https://x.com/wp_acf/status/1841843084700598355">announced</a> via X that “The ACF team has been blocked from accessing WordPress dot org and are unable to release updates for the free version of ACF.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>WP Engine, the owners of the ACF plugin, were earlier <a href="https://wptavern.com/wp-engine-banned-again-reports-deploying-a-solution">banned from accessing WordPress.org</a> , which prevented the ACF team from deploying updates to the free version hosted on the platform. So the users were unable to automatically update ACF to newer versions. To help users, the ACF team&nbsp; shared a <a href="https://www.advancedcustomfields.com/blog/installing-and-upgrading-to-the-latest-version-of-acf/">guide to manually update</a> to the latest version of the plugin.</p>



<p>Customers of WP Engine or Flywheel, however, could still receive automatic updates for the free version. The ACF team assured users that “Recent events do not impact customers of ACF PRO. All updates of ACF PRO will continue to be served from advancedcustomfields.com and no action is required.”</p>



<p>They also noted, “While there are no pending security updates for ACF, this alternative update mechanism ensures your sites are ready to receive new features, bug fixes, and security updates going forward.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Automattic’s Vulnerability Announcement</h3>



<p>However, Automattic soon tweeted about a vulnerability in the plugin. The tweet was later deleted.&nbsp;</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfyXXq9B4xt-YDlCxDEYq8TZxXGjJdelIGNnH_OdD9I7AunXBGx5V7NOwvm9IlBO_UCh5g1GI5zctcUx52up0HZWU0uQDJg3_ztiSWymuTLzCyonop0NMFwSkezIujqNGhZW25Dzfbu1zFVY-WJyx5GA_m-?key=TInnMVVnqSVBTlHQ6XzXXQ" alt="" />



<p>In response, John Blackbourn, WordPress Core Security Team Lead, <a href="https://x.com/johnbillion/status/1842627564453454049">tweeted</a>, “Automattic has responsibly disclosed a vulnerability in ACF but breached the @Intigriti Code of Conduct by irresponsibly announcing it publicly. I am going to work my damned hardest to ensure that the fix gets shipped to dotorg if it affects the free version of ACF.”&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Automattic has responsibly disclosed a vulnerability in ACF but breached the <a href="https://twitter.com/intigriti?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Intigriti</a> Code of Conduct by irresponsibly announcing it publicly. I am going to work my damned hardest to ensure that the fix gets shipped to dotorg if it affects the free version of ACF. <a href="https://t.co/LpMhvAIQou">https://t.co/LpMhvAIQou</a></p>&mdash; John Blackbourn (@johnbillion) <a href="https://twitter.com/johnbillion/status/1842627564453454049?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Matt Mullenweg’s Comments on ACF</h3>



<p>Previously, Matt Mullenweg had raised the idea of integrating ACF Pro into WordPress core in WordPress <a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/archives/C02RQBWTW/p1727501240087269">Slack</a> channel .&nbsp;</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXecMZAt0EUktcT_ypcJ-2Wz4ynJ6g0_urqDU82u1f5gpgwCMd03cpJAEdsq3r9du1EU4wPImuOwcCcxQctKsFgGqs-ctcSEA61pZI7wq5yD540D-6tZ3Ti7uiY0piKrObnXCYdUoWl-IwRAcXC8BY8GwK7Y?key=TInnMVVnqSVBTlHQ6XzXXQ" alt="" />



<p>On October 05, Matt Mullenweg <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1842500184825090060">tweeted</a>: “What are the best alternatives to Advanced Custom Fields @wp_acf for people who want to switch away? Is there an easy way to migrate? I suspect there are going to be millions of sites moving away from it in the coming weeks.”</p>



<p>However, most of the replies he received were favouring the plugin. </p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">ACF is literally the reason why so many people choose to build with WordPress.<br /><br />Does he really think people will want to switch away and spend tons of hours rebuilding everything?<br /><br />Doesn’t make sense, and that’s likely never going to happen.<br /><br />We use ACF on almost every website we… <a href="https://t.co/KNUlbUHAse">https://t.co/KNUlbUHAse</a></p>&mdash; Corentin (@corxntyn) <a href="https://twitter.com/corxntyn/status/1842596017725673677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">ACF is what made WordPress actually useful as a CMS well over a decade ago, and it's block features are what continue to make it useful in a Block Editor world that is impractical to approach natively. There is nothing comparable. <a href="https://t.co/1rEHtEEOcn">https://t.co/1rEHtEEOcn</a></p>&mdash; Galen Gidman (@galengidman) <a href="https://twitter.com/galengidman/status/1842580286200283418?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Dear Matt,<br />I tell you in roman slang:<br />"Non famo cazzate, su!"<br /><br />There's NO ALTERNATIVE!<br /><br />Keep on fighting against WPEngine. Destroy it if you want/can.<br />Many don't give a fuck about it.<br /><br />But ACF is something any WP dev out there has been using for years. We love it. Wee need it. <a href="https://t.co/GlU5gcWUIV">https://t.co/GlU5gcWUIV</a></p>&mdash; Mauro Bono (@UpTheIrons1978) <a href="https://twitter.com/UpTheIrons1978/status/1842907760431669666?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Core ignores agency features for the last 5 years of block development. Asks for alternatives to ACF. Delusional.</p>&mdash; philhoyt (@philhoyt) <a href="https://twitter.com/philhoyt/status/1842729361079722076?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>Meanwhile, Ghost, another open-source CMS jumped into the fray <a href="https://x.com/Ghost/status/1843065099969536409">asking</a> “so should we add custom fields?”&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">ACF 6.3.8 released</h3>



<p>The ACF team <a href="https://x.com/wp_acf/status/1843329216009400818">shared</a> that they have released <a href="https://www.advancedcustomfields.com/blog/acf-6-3-8-security-release/">ACF 6.3.8</a>, a routine security release. &#8220;WP Engine remains blocked from accessing our plugins on the .org plugin repository and therefore this update has been shipped to WP Engine’s repository and to the ACF website.&#8221;, they said.</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>This latest release contains a security fix for Post Type and Taxonomy metabox callbacks. The vulnerability addresses the unlikely scenario where one user with ACF admin permissions attacks a different admin user with permissions to create or modify posts, or in a Multisite configuration where a single site admin attempts to exploit a super admin to modify or add a new post.</p>



<p>Iain Poulson, the Product Manager for Advanced Custom Fields</p>
</blockquote>



<p>They also shared that: &#8220;Once manually updated to 6.3.8, updates will appear in the admin dashboard as normal going forward. No more manual zip updates will be required.&#8221;</p>



<img width="500" height="356" tabindex="0" src="https://wptavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/image-1-500x356.png" alt="" class="wp-image-174280" />



<p>The team also shared that &#8220;We made a copy of the update available to the WordPress.org Security team, who have posted it to the plugin repository.&#8221;</p>



<img width="500" height="280" tabindex="0" src="https://wptavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/image-2-500x280.png" alt="" class="wp-image-174295" />



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Other Updates</h3>



<p>In related news, WP Tavern’s ex-author Sarah Gooding published <a href="https://sarahgooding.dev/2024/10/06/21-years-of-wordpress/">21 Years of WordPress</a>. “I don’t fully agree with how Matt has handled this matter, but I will not support any governance model that doesn’t have his leadership at the forefront. WordPress is his life’s work and his legacy. No design-by-committee model is going to give you the same consistent, decisive, nonstop forward momentum that we have experienced with WordPress thus far. After 21 years of delivering on this, I believe Matt is uniquely qualified to steer the project forward. His leadership has built something truly extraordinary.”</p>



<p>Kaelon <a href="https://x.com/Kaelon/status/1843013559980003682">tweeted</a> about how “WordPress is entering its &#8220;end-stage founder&#8221; period.” His advice for WP and Matt includes, &#8220;Do not turn on your people.&#8221;, &#8220;Step the Founder back.&#8221; and &#8220;Reinvent.&#8221;</p>



<p>The WP Minute&#8217;s Eric Karkovack published <a href="https://thewpminute.com/private-equity-and-the-soul-of-wordpress/">Private Equity and the Soul of WordPress</a>. He says &#8220;Perhaps having a few private equity-owned WordPress products isn’t a big deal&#8230;The real threat is an ecosystem controlled by a few big firms&#8230;That’s only half the potential catastrophe, though. Companies that are in it for the short-term may not be compelled to give back to WordPress core.&#8221;</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 08 Oct 2024 02:33:56 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:1;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:40:"WordPress.org blog: WordPress 6.7 Beta 2";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17887";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:56:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/10/wordpress-6-7-beta-2/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7971:"<p id="block-3cf2f536-f167-464f-a4ba-07f45105e476">WordPress 6.7 Beta 2 is now ready for testing!</p>



<p id="block-b65e3bf0-0494-4039-a701-f21e505600ad"><strong>This beta version of the WordPress software is under development</strong>. Please do not install, run, or test this version of WordPress on production or mission-critical websites. Instead, it is recommended you evaluate Beta 2 on a test server and site.</p>



<p id="block-e904322b-c488-4166-8312-0b769067b943">You can test WordPress 6.7 Beta 2 in four ways:</p>



<table class="has-fixed-layout"><tbody><tr><th>Plugin</th><td>Install and activate the <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-beta-tester/">WordPress Beta Tester</a> plugin on a WordPress install. (Select the “Bleeding edge” channel and “Beta/RC Only” stream).</td></tr><tr><th>Direct Download</th><td>Download the <a href="https://wordpress.org/wordpress-6.7-beta2.zip">Beta 2 version (zip)</a> and install it on a WordPress website.</td></tr><tr><th>Command Line</th><td>Use the following <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/cli/">WP-CLI</a> command:<br /><code>wp core update --version=6.7-beta</code>2</td></tr><tr><th>WordPress Playground</th><td>Use the <a href="https://playground.wordpress.net/#{%20%22preferredVersions%22:%20{%20%22php%22:%20%228.0%22,%20%22wp%22:%20%22beta%22%20},%20%22features%22:%20{%20%22networking%22:%20true%20},%20%22steps%22:%20[%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22login%22,%20%22username%22:%20%22admin%22,%20%22password%22:%20%22password%22%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22importFile%22,%20%22file%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22url%22,%20%22url%22:%20%22https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wpaccessibility/a11y-theme-unit-test/master/a11y-theme-unit-test-data.xml%22%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22importFile%22,%20%22file%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22url%22,%20%22url%22:%20%22https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/theme-test-data/master/themeunittestdata.wordpress.xml%22%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22query-monitor%22%20},%20%22options%22:%20{%20%22activate%22:%20false%20},%20%22progress%22:%20{%20%22weight%22:%202%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22create-block-theme%22%20},%20%22progress%22:%20{%20%22weight%22:%202%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22debug-bar%22%20},%20%22progress%22:%20{%20%22weight%22:%202%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22health-check%22%20},%20%22progress%22:%20{%20%22weight%22:%202%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22test-reports%22%20},%20%22progress%22:%20{%20%22weight%22:%202%20}%20},%20{%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20{%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22user-switching%22%20},%20%22progress%22:%20{%20%22weight%22:%202%20}%20}%20]%20}">6.7 Beta 2 WordPress Playground instance</a> to test the software directly in your browser without the need for a separate site or setup.&nbsp;</td></tr></tbody></table>



<p id="block-93b754f0-e211-47b7-ac89-349d85c2f02f">The current target date for the final release of WordPress 6.7 is <strong>November 12, 2024</strong>. Get an overview of the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/6-7/">6.7 release cycle</a>, and check the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/">Make WordPress Core blog</a> for <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/tag/6-7/">6.7-related posts</a> in the coming weeks for more information.</p>



<p id="block-7b5d791d-225a-4623-83ee-19a586c7094b"><strong>Catch up on what&#8217;s new in WordPress 6.7</strong>: <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/10/wordpress-6-7-beta-1/">Read the Beta 1 announcement</a> for details and highlights.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="block-f1abd396-a019-4c9a-bcb8-9ac381a61ca1">How to test this release</h2>



<p id="block-92dfcab6-d2a8-4753-84ce-8ef7b6dd1e90">Your help testing the WordPress 6.7 Beta 2 version is key to ensuring everything in the release is the best it can be. While testing the upgrade process is essential, trying out new features is equally important. <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/test/2024/10/01/help-test-wordpress-6-7/">This detailed guide</a> will walk you through testing features in WordPress 6.7.</p>



<p id="block-6519fad7-59ea-45f1-9b8f-ca14c09c865d">If you encounter an issue, please report it to the <a href="https://wordpress.org/support/forum/alphabeta/">Alpha/Beta area</a> of the support forums or directly to <a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/newticket">WordPress Trac</a> if you are comfortable writing a reproducible bug report. You can also check your issue against a list of <a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/tickets/major">known bugs</a>.</p>



<p id="block-4bd66b13-6784-4a4f-bb7a-b4dab8e5fc12">Curious about testing releases in general? Follow along with the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/test/">testing initiatives in Make Core</a> and join the <a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/messages/core-test/">#core-test channel</a> on <a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/">Making WordPress Slack</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="block-67b6a6c7-a95e-4b27-8946-a66d15105cb7">Vulnerability bounty doubles during Beta/RC</h2>



<p id="block-16175da3-84c9-45d0-b735-08a9d4453a14">Between Beta 1, released on October 1, 2024, and the final Release Candidate (RC) scheduled for November 5, 2024, the <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/security/2024/02/12/welcoming-2024-with-wordpress-6-5-beta-1/">monetary reward for reporting new, unreleased security vulnerabilities</a> is doubled. Please follow responsible disclosure practices as detailed in the project’s security practices and policies outlined on the <a href="https://hackerone.com/wordpress">HackerOne page</a> and in the <a href="https://wordpress.org/about/security/">security white paper</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="block-14306771-b240-4e15-948f-7504757bbb61">Beta 2 updates and highlights</h2>



<p id="block-93917d31-4478-45b5-b71c-1c8a1f49cc65">WordPress 6.7 Beta 2 contains more than 18 Editor updates and fixes since the Beta 1 release, including <a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&changetime=02%2F14%2F2024..02%2F19%2F2024&milestone=6.5&col=id&col=milestone&col=owner&col=type&col=priority&order=id">28 tickets for WordPress core</a>.</p>



<p id="block-ffdc1220-c2f5-4c23-982b-60c366c629d1">Each beta cycle focuses on bug fixes; more are on the way with your help through testing. You can browse the technical details for all issues addressed since Beta 1 using these links:</p>



<ul id="block-3fcf78c7-bebc-42e1-96f6-8b605ea23aae" class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/commits/wp/6.7?since=2024-10-02&until=2024-10-07">GitHub commits for 6.7</a> since October 2, 2024</li>



<li><a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&changetime=10%2F02%2F2024..10%2F07%2F2024&milestone=6.7&col=id&col=milestone&col=owner&col=type&col=priority&order=id">Closed Trac tickets</a> since October 2, 2024</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="block-c414b25e-802f-4f29-a31c-9e13394a4947">A Beta 2 haiku</h2>



<p id="block-a0f155a2-19b3-4645-a516-c7ae56541e5f">Beta 2 arrives,<br />October’s code settles in,<br />Change rustles like leaves.</p>



<p id="block-014ab749-322b-44bd-bf4f-bf5817d90bfd"><em>Props to <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/jeffpaul/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>jeffpaul</a></em> for proofreading and review.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:44:58 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"David Baumwald";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:2;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:21:"Matt: Rhino Dehorning";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=127802";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:38:"https://ma.tt/2024/10/rhino-dehorning/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:3834:"<p>Yesterday in the African bush <a href="https://www.threads.net/@photomatt/post/DA0WWnTsESD">was great</a>, I saw giraffes, zebras, warthogs, leopard turtles, elephants. Today wasn&#8217;t great: I witnessed a rhino shot with a tranquilizer from a helicopter, then it was held down, had its horns cut off, and then shaved down. I have some photos and videos from the event but I&#8217;m not going to share them, because I think it&#8217;s really tragic. While this was happening I put my hand on the rhino&#8217;s belly to try to send it love, because I can&#8217;t imagine how confusing and terrifying the experience was.</p>



<p>Let&#8217;s back up: Why does anyone care about rhino horns? First, you have to start with how dangerous false ideas and memes can be. Rhino horns are 92-95% keratin, just like your fingernails, the rest is basic stuff like melanin, calcium salts, magnesium, sulfur, nitrogen, amino acids, and phosphorus. There is nothing special or magic about a rhino horn that you couldn&#8217;t easily obtain many other ways.</p>



<p>However there is a dangerous infovirus going back thousands of years that rhino horns can cure various ailments, from cancer to fevers, and have aphrodisiac properties. To quote <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-hard-truth-about-the-rhino-horn-aphrodisiac-market/">Scientific American</a>:</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>Some purchase horn chunks or powder for traditional medicinal purposes, to ingest or to give others as an impressive gift. Wealthy buyers bid for antique rhino horn carvings  such as cups or figurines to display or as investments. A modern market for rhino horn necklaces, bracelets and beads has also sprung up. [&#8230;]</p>



<p>On the bright side, traditional Chinese medicine experts have increasingly joined the fight to reduce the demand for rhino horn. When China officially banned the international trade in 1993, it followed up by removing rhino horn as a medical ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine&#8217;s pharmacopeia  and curriculum. [&#8230;]</p>



<p>“Traditional Chinese medicine has a history of 3,000 years and we have been educating the public for less than 30 years,” Huang notes. “Therefore this is an ongoing education.”</p>
</blockquote>



<p>Regardless of the reasons, there is a price for rhino horns. I was told the larger front horn would get about $300,000 on the black market, and rhinos have been poached to near-extinction. Combine that with <a href="https://tradingeconomics.com/south-africa/unemployment-rate">South Africa&#8217;s 33% unemployment rate</a>, some people turn to crime or poaching to make money. It&#8217;s cheaper and faster to kill the rhino and take its horn than tranquilize it as the game reserve did.</p>



<p>I don&#8217;t want to criticize the people at the game reserve. They clearly cared for the animal quite deeply, and while it was tranquilized, they provided other veterinary help for it, like removing ticks. They also put a tracker on its foot. They say they lock the horns in a vault&#8230; why? Burn it, toss it. <a href="https://www.savetherhino.org/thorny-issues/de-horning/">The thinking is that reserves that are known for de-horning will attract fewer poachers</a>.</p>



<p>This is obviously a middle solution, and I hope ten years from now we&#8217;ll look back at this as a point in time we learned from. On the demand side, it seems like aggressive education campaigns could help decrease demand for keratin from rhinos. On the anti-poacher side, I think drones will be able to secure perimeters far more securely than fences currently do. It would be fascinating for an economist like <a href="https://marginalrevolution.com/">Tyler Cowen</a> to dive into these issues.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 07 Oct 2024 20:36:36 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:3;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:42:"WordPress.org blog: WPGraphQL is Canonical";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17891";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:45:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/10/wpgraphql/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:249:"<p>Happy to announce that WP GraphQL is becoming canonical on WordPress.org. I could say more, <a href="https://www.wpgraphql.com/2024/10/07/wpgraphql-becomes-a-canonical-plugin-my-move-to-automattic">but I&#8217;ll let Jason tell his story</a>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 07 Oct 2024 18:44:09 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Matt Mullenweg";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:4;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:51:"Do The Woo Community: Do the Woo at WordCampUS 2024";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:43:"https://dothewoo.io/?post_type=blog&p=85923";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:55:"https://dothewoo.io/blog/do-the-woo-at-wordcampus-2024/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5586:"<p>Getting around to doing a recap of WordCampUS. Over on my personal site <a href="https://bobwp.com">bobwp.com</a> I shared more about my own day to day stuff.</p>



<p>And here on Do the Woo, I gave you a look at our <a href="https://dothewoo.io/blog/the-do-the-woo-lunch/">official Do the Woo Lunch</a> during Showcase Day.</p>



<p>But I thought I would do a recap from the perspective of Do the Woo and some of the things we did, or didn&#8217;t do. The fact is I always have written a recap of WordCamps I attend, and I just wanted to pull out so much of the positive I experienced on behalf of Do the Woo.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conversations</h2>



<p>In line with Do Woo, I had several conversations. In fact, a lot of short ones and long ones. But I did specifically schedule a couple of slots with an old and new friend via their calendars. My first one was with <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesserfriedman/">Jesse Friedman</a> from <a href="https://jetpack.com/">Jetpack</a> and <a href="https://wp.cloud/">WP Cloud</a>. We took the time to catch up on projects we were both doing. In fact Jesse is shared about his new podcast <em><a href="https://impressive.host/">Impressive Hosting</a></em>, which you should check out.</p>



<p>The other conversation was with Aaron Edwards from <a href="https://docsbot.ai/">DocBots AI</a>. It was not only great getting to know Aaron better, but I was really impressed with his product. He even had it hooked up via our site and showed me some it in action. Good stuff!</p>



<p>In fact I got a bonus from him. <a href="https://bobwp.com/2024/10/04/the-many-faces-of-ai-bobwp/">Some AI images that you can see over on my personal blog</a>.</p>



<p>And as I said, so many, many other great conversations</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Podcasting at WCUS</h2>



<p>This one was no different than others. Scheduled times often go awry. We were the victim of confusion around a time slot. The second one, with a couple of our hosts and a sponsor, was slotted in for the last day, early afternoon. Not a great time as all of our energies were low and we just didn&#8217;t have it in us.</p>



<p>Now on the other hand, spontaneous recordings always work out much better. But, again, that just didn&#8217;t happen. </p>



<p>There is one that I will be putting out in a bit. Since the slogan for Portland is <em>Keep Portland Weird</em> I decided to ask some attendees a weird WordCamp question. Nothing edgy or offensive. Just weird. That turned out to be a lot of fun and you can look forward to that.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">And now for something completely different</h2>



<p>Okay, one more thing that will be coming to the blog, though it may take time</p>



<p>At the Woo booth they were giving out disposable cameras. It was really fun to use one of them that I haven&#8217;t used in years and years. Advancing your film manually and moving backwards or forwards without a zoom. It was great!</p>



<p>Now for those who attended, you will know that there was a whole area clustered with Automattic properties. Woo, WP VIP, Jetpack, WordPress.com, Gravatar, etc. Something I named Mattic Town.</p>



<p>As a result I took several pictures of various people and things in the booths with my disposable camera. And from that I am going to use them in a post about my visit to Mattic Town. Slanted towards visiting a &#8220;real town&#8221;. </p>



<p>Right now, having brought the camera back to Portugal, I am researching a local place that will developer the film. So this might be down the road.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">To sum it up</h2>



<p>Well, those are some of the highlights specific to Do the Woo. Between my personal post and this post, it was a busy time.</p>



<p>And if you are curious, here are all of our hosts that attended WordCampUS 2024.</p>



<p><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/adam-weeks/">Adam Weeks<br /></a><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/brad-williams/">Brad Williams</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/carl-alexander/">Carl Alexander<br /></a><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/courtney-robertson/">Courtney Robertson</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/emma-young/">Emma Young</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/jonathan-wold/">Jonathan Wold</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/katie-keith/">Katie Keith</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/marcus-burnette/">Marcus Burnette</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/robbie-adair/">Robbie Adair</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/robert-jacobi/">Robert Jacobi<br /></a><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/tammie-lister/">Tammie Lister</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/tom-willmot/">Tom Willmot</a><br /><a href="https://dothewoo.io/host/zach-stepek/">Zach Stepek</a></p>



<p>And lastly, our sponsors who also sponsored WCUS.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.avalara.com/us/en/index.html">Avalara</a><br /><a href="https://www.godaddy.com/">GoDaddy</a><br /><a href="https://www.hostinger.com/">Hostinger</a><br /><a href="https://kinsta.com/?utm_source=dothewoo&utm_medium=Referral&utm_campaign=website">Kinsta</a><br /><a href="https://www.omnisend.com/">Omnisend<br /></a><a href="https://www.weglot.com/">Weglot</a></p>



<p>So what&#8217;s up next? <a href="https://asia.wordcamp.org/2025/">WCAsia 2025</a> in Manila. We are really looking forward to this one as both a media sponsor and a sponsor. And as we did earlier this year, our booth will be a hub for community conversation and connections. Hope to see you there!</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 07 Oct 2024 13:19:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:5;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:66:"WPTavern: Thank You, Josepha: WordPress Executive Director Resigns";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=163323";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:75:"https://wptavern.com/thank-you-josepha-wordpress-executive-director-resigns";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:6654:"<p>Josepha Haden Chomphosy has stepped down from Automattic, where she served as the Executive Director of the WordPress project. She was also leading Automattic&#8217;s open-source division, championing the efforts of developers, designers, community builders, and WordPress advocates. She has now updated her title in the WordPress Slack to &#8220;Community Steward.&#8221;</p>



<p>Like Josepha, <a href="https://wptavern.com/159-employees-leave-automattic-after-accepting-the-alignment-offer">159 employees left Automattic</a> after accepting the Alignment Offer.</p>



<p>Rumors of her resignation first surfaced on X, to which she <a href="https://x.com/JosephaHaden/status/1841793834931397070">responded</a>: &#8220;Ok, this is not how I expected that news to come to y’all. I apologize that this is the first many of you heard of it. Please don’t speculate about anything.&#8221;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It's been a beautiful and transformative nine years, WordPress. I'm never at a loss for words, but let the main thing you hear be "Thank you"! <a href="https://t.co/lHTPNqwvkS">https://t.co/lHTPNqwvkS</a></p>&mdash; Josepha’s AFK Today (@JosephaHaden) <a href="https://twitter.com/JosephaHaden/status/1842321304583627218?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>In a farewell post titled <a href="https://josepha.blog/2024/10/04/thank-you-wordpress/">Thank you, WordPress</a>, she expressed continued optimism for the future of the open-source project: “There’s still more to do in our shared quest to secure a self-sustaining future of the open source project that we all love, and my belief in our global community of contributors remains unchanged. I have spent nine years working shoulder to shoulder with you, and I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye.”</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>I still believe that open source is an idea that can transform generations. I believe in the power of a good-hearted group of people. I believe in the importance of strong opinions, loosely held. And I believe the world will always need the more equitable opportunities that well-maintained open source can provide: access to knowledge and learning, easy-to-join peer and business networks, the amplification of unheard voices, and a chance to tap into economic opportunity for those who weren’t born into it.</p>
</blockquote>



<p>She continued:<strong> “While my next steps aren’t yet clear, I hope to never be too far from this community that taught me so much.”</strong></p>



<p>Josepha has been uncharacteristically silent since the onset of the Automattic-WP Engine controversy aside from a brief comment on Slack. Since joining WordPress in 2019, she was always actively involved in community discussions or <a href="https://wp-content.co/bay-lights/">controversies</a>.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXejnkbeXF_axw_ioYYMuyFvIVZvox8rUTa5P3BcJSeGx_n3ACeJ3kNIwzwZx5-SfXvZmgR2kOlarUKV5UzFe9m1mb8cL5GS676AoX2iMjJrGcUeaO4dEcTXQ3DrdepkjXvlN60gDS4TE3eNeCMOBiC7xj-1?key=-gzwbuSTOmslNC3WjniK0g" alt="" />



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Community Response</h3>



<p>Josepha always had a special place in the community’s heart and it was reflected in the messages that poured in following her announcement.&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Josepha, we met when you became the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WordPress?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WordPress</a> Training Team Rep. Watching you find your footing to being our executive director for so many years has had a profound impact on me. It has been an honor to work alongside you. Thank you. <a href="https://t.co/Ko3aDxlhak">https://t.co/Ko3aDxlhak</a></p>&mdash; @courtneyr_dev <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f33b.png" alt="🌻" class="wp-smiley" /> (@courtneyr_dev) <a href="https://twitter.com/courtneyr_dev/status/1842327905193324851?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Josepha's leadership is one of the reasons I am an active contributor to WordPress. I am exceptionally pleased to have had the opportunity to work with her over the years. Good luck with whatever comes next, Josepha. <a href="https://t.co/5AyqhRNMOo">https://t.co/5AyqhRNMOo</a></p>&mdash; Peter Wilson <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f3f3-fe0f-200d-1f308.png" alt="🏳️‍🌈" class="wp-smiley" /> (@pwcc) <a href="https://twitter.com/pwcc/status/1842328528735609120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Josepha you are a great leader. You have inspired so many of us. <br /><br />Thank you for everything you had done for the community. It was great interacting with you on multiple occasions.<br /><br />Hoping to cross paths with you again in the future. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1faf6.png" alt="🫶" class="wp-smiley" /></p>&mdash; Meher Bala | WP Mumbai &amp; WC Asia Organiser (@meherbala) <a href="https://twitter.com/meherbala/status/1842645793259602258?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Thank you, Josepha!<br /><br />It’s been an absolute pleasure interacting with you over the years and I do hope you stay close to the project. <br /><br />Either way, best of luck with whatever lies ahead.</p>&mdash; Remkus de Vries (@remkusdevries) <a href="https://twitter.com/remkusdevries/status/1842460273728225477?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 5, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I appreciate your ability to bring people together, to create safe and welcoming spaces, and to thoughtfully listen to and hear a wide variety of voices. I knew from the first time I met you that you were special. Thank you for all you've done for the community over the years…</p>&mdash; Brandon Dove (@brandondove) <a href="https://twitter.com/brandondove/status/1842342417191875005?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>Thank you, Josepha, for all you&#8217;ve done for WordPress. We wish you the best in your future endeavors!</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sun, 06 Oct 2024 16:41:50 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:6;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:76:"WPTavern: New Social Web Foundation Launched with Automattic’s Support  ";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=166856";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:80:"https://wptavern.com/new-social-web-foundation-launched-with-automattics-support";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4218:"<p>The Social Web Foundation was officially <a href="https://socialwebfoundation.org/2024/09/24/launch/">launched</a> on September 24, 2024, with a mission to foster a &#8220;growing, healthy, financially viable, and multi-polar Fediverse.&#8221; This non-profit organization is <a href="https://socialwebfoundation.org/team/">spearheaded by</a> Evan Prodromou (Research Director), Mallory Knodel (Executive Director), and Tom Coates (Product Director) and is dedicated to uniting social networks through the open standard protocol, ActivityPub.</p>



<p>The Fediverse is a collection of interconnected, decentralized social media platforms that communicate using open protocols, with <a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/activitypub/">ActivityPub</a>—developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)—as the primary standard. “Until now, no major organization has taken on advocacy for ActivityPub as its central goal. Many people have ideas about what the Fediverse needs to be bigger, safer, and easier to use. But the solutions they propose fall between the cracks of anyone implementer or service. We want the SWF to be the entity that takes on those jobs.”, <a href="https://write.as/evanp/announcing-the-social-web-foundation">said Evan Prodromou</a>, often referred to as “The Father of the Fediverse.”</p>



<p><a href="http://plasticbag.org/archives/2024/09/on-the-social-web-foundation/">Tom Coates</a> emphasized the foundation&#8217;s straightforward goal: “Fundamentally, its goal is pretty simple – it’s there to help the Fediverse grow in a sustainable and healthy way that benefits everyone.”</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>The Social Web Foundation is our best chance to establish the conditions in which the new social media operates with zero harm.</p>



<p>&#8211; Mallory Knodel</p>
</blockquote>



<p>The foundation aims to address challenges within the ActivityPub ecosystem and support its growth, especially in the commercial sector. Key <a href="https://socialwebfoundation.org/projects/">areas of focus</a> include:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>People: Educating the public about the Fediverse and its benefits.</li>



<li>Policy: Clarifying policy frameworks for international and federated networks.</li>



<li>Protocol: Developing and maintaining open standards.</li>



<li>Plumbing: Building the necessary infrastructure</li>
</ul>



<p>Thirteen prominent companies, including Automattic, Mastodon, Meta, Ghost, and Medium, are backing the foundation.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXf8GjBqJZhiDMXBxukXJ9h34UKYKsVzt6UzrtrPPLBPFwPe1ziQzzIw2YJfOZo0-U5i4y0P69HA8wqca_WqmmKRFFvz9GoFh1IvAUXMmKgiq1P7sThjprXu3fcHGX8mgz93_L8CYqT2bjTLNiGzXlUOD0U4?key=Znh0DVRkNQsoeNp-57L7wg" alt="" />



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Automattic &amp; Fediverse</h3>



<p>Automattic&#8217;s involvement with the Social Web Foundation comes as no surprise, given its long-standing contributions to the Fediverse. Back in 2021, Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg expressed interest in bringing <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2022/11/21/tumblr-to-add-support-for-activitypub-the-social-protocol-powering-mastodon-and-other-apps/">ActivityPub support to Tumblr</a>. In 2023, Automattic acquired the <a href="https://wptavern.com/automattic-acquires-activitypub-plugin-for-wordpress">ActivityPub plugin for WordPress</a> from German developer Matthias Pfefferle and made the ActivityPub feature <a href="https://wordpress.com/blog/2023/10/11/activitypub/">available</a> across all WordPress.com plans.</p>



<p>“Automattic is excited about the launch of the Social Web Foundation and its mission. We’re eager to collaborate with the Foundation to expand platform diversity and enhance the support for various content types—especially long-form content—within the Fediverse, fostering greater interoperability across the ecosystem.”, said Matthias Pfefferle, Open Web Lead at Automattic.</p>



<p>To know more about Automattic and Fediverse, check the YouTube series, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6nDc7ACvovJMt8MEiebpsXnlBuKp158j">The Fediverse Files</a>.&nbsp;</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 05 Oct 2024 18:14:21 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:7;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:76:"WPTavern: 159 Employees Leave Automattic After Accepting the Alignment Offer";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=166873";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:87:"https://wptavern.com/159-employees-leave-automattic-after-accepting-the-alignment-offer";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:11374:"<p>While the controversy between Automattic and WP Engine was unfolding, social media discussions surged about whether Automattic employees not agreeing with Matt were offered an ultimatum to quit and exit with a generous payout.&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">WordPress ecosystem recruiter alert: Rumor has it Automattic has invited employees who are not aligned with the actions of CEO to exit with a handsome payout. Good time to troll LinkedIn for talent if you're quick. Folks have to decide by Thursday.</p>&mdash; Kellie Peterson (@kellie) <a href="https://twitter.com/kellie/status/1841210258422972536?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">According to anonymous sources, 37 people at Automattic have accepted the offer. <br /><br />At the request of a concerned employee looking out for their co-workers, I removed some identifiable information from the original tweet.</p>&mdash; Jeff (@jeffr0) <a href="https://twitter.com/jeffr0/status/1841585100665872569?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 2, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>&nbsp;In response, Matt Mullenweg addressed the situation in a blog post titled <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/10/alignment/">Automattic Alignment</a>. He has clarified that: &#8220;It became clear a good chunk of my Automattic colleagues disagreed with me and our actions. So we decided to design the most generous buy-out package possible, we called it an Alignment Offer: <strong>if you resigned before 20:00 UTC on Thursday, October 3, 2024, you would receive $30,000 or six months of salary, whichever is higher. </strong>But you’d lose access to Automattic that evening, and you wouldn’t be eligible to boomerang (what we call re-hires). HR added some extra details to sweeten the deal; we wanted to make it as enticing as possible.&#8221;</p>



<p>Matt revealed that 159 employees, representing 8.4% of the workforce, accepted the offer. Of these,<strong> 79.2% were part of Automattic’s Ecosystem businesses</strong>, while 18.2% came from Cosmos, working on apps like Pocket Casts, Day One, Tumblr, and Cloudup.</p>



<p>“It was an emotional roller coaster of a week. The day you hire someone you aren’t expecting them to resign or be fired, you’re hoping for a long and mutually beneficial relationship. Every resignation stings a bit.”, Matt added.&nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://automattic.com/2024/10/04/looking-ahead/">Automattic</a> referred to this move as “<strong>a strategic realignment to better pursue our core values and operational goals.</strong>”&nbsp;</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>We remain deeply grateful to all our employees, past and present. For those who have chosen new paths, we sincerely wish them the best, and thank them for helping make Automattic what it is today. We emerge from this chapter with a renewed vigor and clarity in our mission.</p>



<p>&#8211;  Automattic&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">159 People Accepted the Offer&nbsp;</h3>



<p>In a surprising turn, the names of people leaving Automattic include Josepha Haden Chomphosy, the Executive Director of the WordPress project. “While my next steps aren’t yet clear, I hope to never be too far from this community that taught me so much.”, <a href="https://josepha.blog/2024/10/04/thank-you-wordpress/">she said</a>.</p>



<p>Other notable departures include <a href="https://naoko.blog/2024/10/04/leaving-automattic/">Naoko Takano</a> (Open Source Project Manager), <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/danwalmsley/">Daniel Walmsley</a> (AI Engineer and Architect), <a href="https://x.com/jeffikus/status/1842227784350859484">Jeffrey Pearce</a> (Team Lead) and <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/rmartinezduque/">Reyes Martínez</a> (Communications Wrangler &amp; <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/marketing/2024/03/20/making-a-wordpress-media-corps/">WordPress Media Corps</a> lead). Daniel Bachhuber (head of WordPress.com) also left but posted this in <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7247936060008136704/">LinkedIn</a>: “I believe in Matt. Leaving Automattic for other reasons. It&#8217;s a bummer, and I will miss everyone there.”</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Today was my last day at Automattic. I spent the last 2 years building large scale ML and generative AI infra and products, and a lot of time on robotics at night and on weekends.<br /><br />I'm going to spend the next month taking a break, getting married, and visiting family in…</p>&mdash; Dan Walmsley (@danwalmsley) <a href="https://twitter.com/danwalmsley/status/1841882447073706317?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A lot of the WordPress community have reached out to me. There’s been a lot of questions, so I thought I’d answer here. Yes, I am no longer at Automattic. I have peace about all of this. <a href="https://t.co/dJ8UKhouhR">https://t.co/dJ8UKhouhR</a></p>&mdash; Jeffrey Pearce (@jeffikus) <a href="https://twitter.com/jeffikus/status/1842227784350859484?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">91.6% of Automatticians are Staying</h3>



<p>Meanwhile, 91.6% of Automattic employees chose to stay, with many expressing support for Matt’s decisions on X.&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">At the end of a tough week, my decision to stay at <a href="https://twitter.com/automattic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@automattic</a> was easy.<a href="https://t.co/wCYC76NkSm">https://t.co/wCYC76NkSm</a></p>&mdash; zeldman (@zeldman) <a href="https://twitter.com/zeldman/status/1842201921433608640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I've seen some baseless rumors about <a href="https://twitter.com/automattic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@automattic</a> being a toxic workplace—nothing could be further from the truth. When I needed time off to regain balance, they supported me without hesitation. Autonomy and understanding are at the core here. Proud to be part of this team. A…</p>&mdash; Jeff Mills (@NerdwithCoffee) <a href="https://twitter.com/NerdwithCoffee/status/1842351786134229318?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It's been heartbreaking to see so many great people leave <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f494.png" alt="💔" class="wp-smiley" /> but I'm staying because there's never been a more important time for the open source mission to succeed. <br /><br />Here's the latest from <a href="https://twitter.com/photomatt?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@photomatt</a> on the why 159 folks have left <a href="https://twitter.com/automattic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@automattic</a> <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f447.png" alt="👇" class="wp-smiley" /><a href="https://t.co/bDM9pFirWD">https://t.co/bDM9pFirWD</a></p>&mdash; Jamie Marsland &#8211; Head of WordPress YouTube <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/2764.png" alt="❤" class="wp-smiley" /> (@pootlepress) <a href="https://twitter.com/pootlepress/status/1842051172183490811?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The offer was tempting. Not because of misalignment. It was a chance to reevaluate my goals with some financial cushion.<br /><br />I believe in WordPress, and Automattic is the best place to continue the work I've dedicated nearly my entire adult life to.<br /><br />That work isn't done yet. <a href="https://t.co/srYiyYhesU">https://t.co/srYiyYhesU</a></p>&mdash; Justin Tadlock (@justintadlock) <a href="https://twitter.com/justintadlock/status/1842197703272300968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Community Response</h3>



<p>As usual, the community remains divided, with some praising the offer&#8217;s generosity while others are worried.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This is insanely smart, <a href="https://twitter.com/photomatt?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@photomatt</a>. <br /><br />There is no greater drag on a company than low grade toxicity and misalignment:<a href="https://t.co/qptBxi2iGi">https://t.co/qptBxi2iGi</a></p>&mdash; Andrew Wilkinson (@awilkinson) <a href="https://twitter.com/awilkinson/status/1842227042256920691?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Honestly this should be standard for companies that expect excellence, efficiency, and a positive work culture<br /><br />Why keep people that don't WANT to be there? That doesn't seem smart long-term</p>&mdash; Florian Wendelborn (@FloWendelborn) <a href="https://twitter.com/FloWendelborn/status/1842072441280983440?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I'm into WordPress for 15 years. 10 years professionally. This is the beginning of the end of WordPress, if the investors don't get rid of you and don't put someone reasonable in your place. Gutenberg is/was peanuts compared to this.</p>&mdash; Fool's Tech <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f331.png" alt="🌱" class="wp-smiley" />Ⓥ (@foolstechdev) <a href="https://twitter.com/foolstechdev/status/1842220667111932279?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Reminds me of exodus at <a href="https://twitter.com/37signals?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@37signals</a>. Recommend reading posts by <a href="https://twitter.com/dhh?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@dhh</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/jasonfried?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jasonfried</a> about it. <br />We didn’t suffer as a customer a bit because of that. Also Elon firing nearly everyone and we still use X.<br />Curious to what outcomes the WP saga will unfold.</p>&mdash; Maciej Nowak (@mnowak_eth) <a href="https://twitter.com/mnowak_eth/status/1842131124165775653?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>As mentioned above, 79.2% of the people who left Automattic were working on WordPress.org projects. The Marketing Team again got the short end of the stick with <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/marketing/2024/03/20/making-a-wordpress-media-corps/">WordPress Media Corps</a>’s future in doubt due to Reyes Martínez’s resignation. The coming days will provide more clarity on the effects this development has on WordPress. </p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 05 Oct 2024 17:45:40 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:8;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"Matt: CNBC on WP Engine";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=127659";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:40:"https://ma.tt/2024/10/cnbc-on-wp-engine/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:342:"<p>Ari Levy at CNBC has a great article covering the battle between WordPress and Silver Lake / WP Engine: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/05/wordpress-ceo-matt-mullenweg-goes-nuclear-on-silver-lake-wp-engine-.html">Why WordPress [co-]founder Matt Mullenweg has gone ‘nuclear’ against tech investing giant Silver Lake</a>.<br /></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 05 Oct 2024 13:03:13 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:9;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:26:"Matt: Automattic Alignment";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=127517";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:32:"https://ma.tt/2024/10/alignment/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2301:"<p>Winston Churchill said, &#8220;Never let a good crisis go to waste.&#8221; Since I last blogged here, <a href="https://automattic.com/2024/10/03/meritless/">WP Engine filed a meritless lawsuit and Automattic responded</a>, and there&#8217;s been a hurricane of public activity and press. Inside of <a href="https://automattic.com/">Automattic</a>, there&#8217;s been a parallel debate and process.</p>



<p>Silver Lake and WP Engine&#8217;s attacks on me and Automattic, while spurious, have been effective. It became clear a good chunk of my Automattic colleagues disagreed with me and our actions.</p>



<p>So we decided to design the most generous buy-out package possible, we called it an Alignment Offer: if you resigned before 20:00&nbsp;UTC&nbsp;on Thursday, October 3, 2024, you would receive <strong>$30,000 or six months of salary, whichever is higher</strong>. But you&#8217;d lose access to Automattic that evening, and you wouldn&#8217;t be eligible to boomerang (what we call re-hires). HR added some extra details to sweeten the deal; we wanted to make it as enticing as possible.</p>



<p>I&#8217;ve been asking people to vote with their wallet a lot recently, and this is another example!</p>



<p>159 people took the offer, 8.4% of the company, the other 91.6% gave up $126M of potential severance to stay! 63.5% were male. 53% were in the US. By division it impacted our Ecosystem / WordPress areas the most: 79.2% of the people who took it were in our Ecosystem businesses, compared to 18.2% from Cosmos (our apps like <a href="https://pocketcasts.com/">Pocket Casts</a>, <a href="https://dayoneapp.com/">Day One</a>, <a href="https://tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a>, <a href="https://cloudup.com/">Cloudup</a>). 18 people made over 200k/yr! 1 person started two days before the deadline. 4 people took it then changed their minds.</p>



<p>It was an emotional roller coaster of a week. The day you hire someone you aren&#8217;t expecting them to resign or be fired, you&#8217;re hoping for a long and mutually beneficial relationship. Every resignation stings a bit. </p>



<p>However now, I feel much lighter. I&#8217;m grateful and thankful for all the people who took the offer, and even more excited to work with those who turned down $126M to stay. As the kids say, LFG!</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Fri, 04 Oct 2024 03:28:02 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:10;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:76:"WPTavern: WordPress Enforces Plugin Check and 2FA for New Plugin Submissions";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=163317";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:87:"https://wptavern.com/wordpress-enforces-plugin-check-and-2fa-for-new-plugin-submissions";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:3487:"<p>Security Review Lead Chris Christoff has announced <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2024/10/01/plugin-check-and-2fa-now-mandatory-for-new-plugin-submissions/">two new changes</a> for the WordPress Plugin Directory, effective from October 1, 2024. These changes aim to enhance plugin directory security and promote best practices among plugin developers.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Mandatory Two-Factor Authentication</h3>



<p>As of October 1, 2024, all plugin owners and committers must enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) to submit new plugins to the WordPress Plugin Directory. This change was <a href="https://wptavern.com/wordpress-org-introduces-new-security-measures-for-plugin-and-theme-authors">announced</a> by Automattic-sponsored developer Dion Hulse last month.</p>



<p>Plugin owners are encouraged to enable 2FA, review committers’ access levels, and use additional security features like the SVN password option and Release Confirmation. Detailed guides on <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/meta/handbook/tutorials-guides/configuring-two-factor-authentication/">Configuring Two-Factor Authentication</a> and <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2024/06/26/keeping-your-plugin-committer-accounts-secure/">Keeping Your Plugin Committer Accounts Secure</a> are also available.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Plugin Check Tool</h3>



<p>From now on, any new plugin submitted to the Plugin Directory will first go through a pre-submission check using the Plugin Check tool. If any errors are found, the submission will be blocked until they are fixed.</p>



<p>This new step aims to reduce the review queue by enabling plugin authors to catch common issues before submitting their plugins for manual review. Plugin Check helps by identifying frequent issues, such as mismatched versions between the plugin header and the readme.txt file, incorrect text domains, and erroneous &#8220;Tested To&#8221; values in the readme. Although Plugin Check adds a layer of automation,<strong> it will not replace the manual review of plugins</strong>.</p>



<p>David Perez from the Plugin Review Team <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/plugins/2024/09/17/introducing-plugin-check-pcp/">recommended making Plugin Check</a> a part of the development workflow as “In addition to things relevant for the review process, the tool flags violations or concerns around plugin development best practices, from basic requirements like correct usage of internationalization functions to accessibility, performance, and security best practices. It does so using both static checks using PHP_CodeSniffer and dynamic checks, where it actually activates your plugin to test it “live”.”</p>



<p>The Plugins Team is working to expand Plugin Check’s coverage to existing plugins. A roadmap detailing this broader application will be released in the coming months. Contributors can help improve the tool via its <a href="https://github.com/WordPress/plugin-check">GitHub Repo</a>.</p>



<p>The WordPress community has responded positively to these updates. Josepha Haden Chomphosy <a href="https://x.com/JosephaHaden/status/1841810132495143307">tweeted</a> “This was years in the making and is a huge deal. Congratulations (and big thanks) to everyone who contributed!”</p>



<p>These two measures are expected to help the WordPress Plugin Team improve the security of the platform while reducing the backlog of plugins awaiting approval.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Thu, 03 Oct 2024 20:01:51 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:11;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:70:"WPTavern: Automattic Publishes WP Engine Term Sheet Amidst Controversy";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=163230";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:81:"https://wptavern.com/automattic-publishes-wp-engine-term-sheet-amidst-controversy";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5085:"<p>As the Automattic-WP Engine <a href="https://wptavern.com/wp-engine-banned-from-using-wordpress-org-resources">controversy</a> continues, Automattic published the term sheet delivered to WP Engine on September 20, 2024. “In the interest of transparency, we’ve published the term sheet we offered to @LeeEWittlinger and @heatherjbrunner, it’s a simple one-pager.”, <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1841276456162279724">tweeted</a> Matt Mullenweg.</p>



<p>The <a href="https://automattic.com/2024/10/01/wpe-terms/">announcement post</a> reveals that initial discussions between Automattic and WP Engine began in February 2023, led by Matt Mullenweg and continued by Toni Schneider during Mullenweg’s sabbatical.</p>



<p>The <a href="https://automattic.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/term-sheet-wp-engine-inc.-automattic-trademark-license_09.19.2024-1.pdf">term sheet</a> outlines five key points regarding a trademark license agreement. Under the terms, Automattic would grant WP Engine the rights to use WordPress and WooCommerce trademarks and branding, with WP Engine agreeing to follow all relevant guidelines. WP Engine was presented with three options for compensation:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Pay Automattic a royalty fee of 8% of its gross revenue on a monthly basis, along with a detailed report of its gross revenue, granting Automattic full audit rights.</li>



<li>Allocate 8% of its revenue to employee salaries for work on core WordPress features under the direction of WordPress.org, with both WordPress.org and Automattic retaining audit rights.</li>



<li>Combination of the above two options. </li>
</ul>



<p>The term sheet also prevents WP Engine from modifying or forking any software from Automattic, WooCommerce, or its affiliates. The agreement is for seven years with automatic one-year renewals.</p>



<p>However, the announcement post has a critical update: “<strong>Given WP Engine’s behavior, deception, and incompetence since September 20th these terms are no longer sufficient.</strong>”</p>



<p>Matt also told <a href="https://www.therepository.email/mullenweg-threatens-corporate-takeover-of-wp-engine">The Repository</a>, “That deal’s not on the table anymore. We’re seeking more, not 8%. I don’t want to speculate on what the deal might be… In July it was less than 8%, it was smaller. In September it was 8%. The deal they have to do next could be taking over the company, they have no leverage.” </p>



<p>Public reactions to Mullenweg’s tweet sharing the term sheet have been mixed, with most replies critical of him, though some view the terms as reasonable.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">You want to see their revenue as a report monthly broken down by product. You are a direct competitor! That can't be ok in terms of anti trust laws or something. The monetary amount also seems excessive on top of that.</p>&mdash; Steve Struemph (@SteveStruemph) <a href="https://twitter.com/SteveStruemph/status/1841294550221897738?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 2, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeDe4ljBL0nRPgiWup0QhAA_bQO12n6NNjHnixoOIS9Xybum1-zJh-hggqf7xxdRtAkm3NMAJetbOmBKXxMZ8T5qVVAjUSZVLYcNAKIOPp8Ei7OsCEzuGFhYJd3g9R9oKJRulmiGHfsWyAmcPMuse1rLqV1?key=b9ha9SS9oPAGSdj_1r13xQ" alt="" />



<p>The final results of a survey by Matt from The WP Minute:</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Automattic v. WP Engine</p>&mdash; Matt (@mattmedeiros) <a href="https://twitter.com/mattmedeiros/status/1839660169241755740?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>During the ongoing discussions, co-founder &amp; CEO of Cloudflare Matthew Prince <a href="https://x.com/eastdakota/status/1841154152006627663">offered to donate</a> the capacity to power WordPress.org for the community. </p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We’d be happy to donate the capacity to power <a href="https://t.co/NYrfF5j4KC">https://t.co/NYrfF5j4KC</a> for the community.</p>&mdash; Matthew Prince <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f325.png" alt="🌥" class="wp-smiley" /> (@eastdakota) <a href="https://twitter.com/eastdakota/status/1841154152006627663?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>Meanwhile, the controversy seems to be spilling into Automattic, too.&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I've been told by a few sources that it's not a rumor. I don't understand. If you're not with Matt, you're against Matt and he'll pay you to leave? Seems like an odd way of going about things. <a href="https://t.co/Eh3NPrIAfm">https://t.co/Eh3NPrIAfm</a></p>&mdash; Jeff (@jeffr0) <a href="https://twitter.com/jeffr0/status/1841252171012042794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 02 Oct 2024 19:32:08 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:12;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:62:"WPTavern: WP Engine Banned Again, Reports Deploying a Solution";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=163178";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:72:"https://wptavern.com/wp-engine-banned-again-reports-deploying-a-solution";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4296:"<p>After a <a href="https://wptavern.com/matt-mullenweg-announces-temporary-lifting-of-wp-engine-ban">brief reprieve</a>, WP Engine has been <a href="https://x.com/wpengine/status/1840905665440633087">banned again</a> from WordPress.org and the company took to X to share: “Thousands of WordPress community members have once again been blocked from accessing WordPress.org. WP Engine has commenced deployment of its solution for accessing updates and installations for plugins and themes across our customers’ sites. We expect deployment of the solution to all customers to be completed within the hour.”</p>



<p>The next <a href="https://x.com/wpengine/status/1840910240801316924">tweet</a> read: “We are pleased to report that our solution has been fully deployed and regular workflow practices have been restored to our customers around the globe. We thank all our customers for their patience and support over the past week. Like so many of you, we love WordPress, and are committed to the stability and longevity of the community.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">WP Engine Website Updates</h3>



<p>WP Engine has made several changes to its website, including reducing the use of the word “WordPress” and adding a new footer clarifying its trademark usage.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXd9koeDMR5KyJiqM4cqeIumyvqNyx6agVBbHnFqCidKWr1WYFK9ZdouMR7cQMIITZ7Do1GLTKbOsdeyF8Xc_Q0QhRTbmemkZ0gpIPC6E3BJTdYvKiEjFR_p59yhXARlZT6s6KntjRVvlz98U6JddsRN4IpZ?key=ltzJcIAhElrogVEpgiRyHg" alt="" />New Footer in WP Engine Website



<p>The names of its pricing plans have been updated, omitting “WordPress” from the titles.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdwSKLlAGwXjLwFHFKC2ZHedUhrAwr7PuAxB4ZjtMQ3YuZDZI1cShKiOlvbpFhjOWAWVWP0erZw75z_GVznKb5b5f85GFYZVC-Y6JxLR_9nYLTFlTIl4GicAG6MXRqTTbHl-5HNyj-6ivW7Gx2HZondn_ze?key=ltzJcIAhElrogVEpgiRyHg" alt="" />Current WP Engine Pricing Plans 



<p></p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcJnOE9z6belsDyaZK_VYSoAHKInDUVwbLuFtnmLAt4gYvEXUmGlwDgaY18DyBeu5dz8NLzslEdhz7c9fwOUQkrph755ANh-EKckHpoNg3vlmNoyxESDTcjIi7AqsU2i2maHP4VPzMw7eOXxszH-h8dl8DR?key=ltzJcIAhElrogVEpgiRyHg" alt="" />Previous Pricing Plans of WP Engine



<p><a href="https://wpandlegalstuff.com/wp-engine-changes-use-of-trademarks-on-its-website/">WP And Legal Stuff</a> has covered more details on the website changes.&nbsp;</p>



<p>WP Engine has not offered any explanation about the solution beyond what was shared on Twitter, though people have been asking for more details.&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">1. Are you mirroring the wordpress(dot)org repos?<br />2. Is this a permanent or temporary solution?<br />3. What are you doing to stop future interruptions?<br />More information would be appreciated, as communication and transparency from <a href="https://twitter.com/wpengine?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@wpengine</a> has been exceptionally poor.</p>&mdash; Charlie Moss (@charliemoss) <a href="https://twitter.com/charliemoss/status/1840912940372808077?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>WP Engine has been silent since the start of the incidents, while Matt has been going all-out speaking about the issues. Matt even issued an open invite to Lee Wittlinger, Managing Director of Silver Lake. “Lee, let’s debate this publicly. Propose a neutral venue and moderator,” he said in a post titled “<a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/missing-spokespeople/">Where is Lee Wittlinger?</a>” “Why is WP Engine scared of talking to journalists live?”, he had <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/on-theprimeagen/">asked</a> earlier.</p>



<p>He also published his <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/charitable-contributions/">charitable contributions</a> from 2011 to 2023, shared how WP Engine is <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/wordpress-engine/">violating WordPress’ trademarks</a>, and gave interviews to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/live/F6vXWQrQXgY">Theo &#8211; t3․gg</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/live/9sBuHwQpwAU">WP Minute</a>.</p>



<p>The community is deeply troubled by the proceedings but both sides do not show any signs of backing down. </p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 02 Oct 2024 18:23:06 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:13;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:73:"WPTavern: #139 – Andy Fragen on Automatic Update Rollbacks in WordPress";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:48:"https://wptavern.com/?post_type=podcast&p=163149";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:87:"https://wptavern.com/podcast/139-andy-fragen-on-automatic-update-rollbacks-in-wordpress";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:46636:"Transcription<div>
<p>[00:00:00] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Welcome to the Jukebox podcast from WP Tavern. My name is Nathan Wrigley.</p>



<p>Jukebox is a podcast which is dedicated to all things WordPress. The people, the events, the plugins, the blocks, the themes, and in this case, automatic update rollbacks in WordPress, what they are, and why this was a difficult feature to build.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;d like to subscribe to the podcast, you can do that by searching for WP Tavern in your podcast player of choice. Or by going to wptavern.com/feed/podcast. And you can copy that URL into most podcast players.</p>



<p>If you have a topic that you&#8217;d like us to feature on the podcast, I&#8217;m keen to hear from you and hopefully get you, or your idea, featured on the show. Head to wptavern.com/contact/jukebox, and use the form there.</p>



<p>So on the podcast today, we have Andy Fragen.</p>



<p>Andy is a dedicated member of the WordPress community, as well as a trauma surgeon. Somehow he manages to balance the demands of his profession with his passion for the community. And, as you will hear, to important work inside of WordPress Core. Even while in the operating room waiting for patients to be prepped, Andy has been known to find moments to answer forum questions and provide support to others. It&#8217;s truly remarkable.</p>



<p>Andy talks about the important topic of automatic rollbacks in WordPress, a feature aimed at reverting to a previous version if an automatic plugin or theme update fails, ensuring the website remains functional for users. I&#8217;ve managed to encapsulate the idea into the previous sentence, but as you will hear, the execution of that idea was anything other than straightforward.</p>



<p>Andy discusses the origins of the rollback feature. The team working on this problem identified complexities and potential fatal errors during plugin updates, and came up with a simple, yet effective solution, which worked. But as with so much in code, some edge cases meant that the road to a fully workable solution for all WordPress users was not quite in sight. Many times the drawing board had to be dusted off, and the problem looked at once again.</p>



<p>While developing this feature, numerous challenges were encountered. From finding consistent test conditions to managing technical limitations. Andy shares insights into the critical role of testing and collaboration with hosting companies, meticulous attention to detail and problem solving skills, developed to combat issues like file write delays, and loop back test redirects.</p>



<p>Andy explains how the team managed to avoid fatal errors in active plugins with extensive testing and incremental improvements. They introduce functionalities like WP error checks, simulation features for testing error handling, and a new move directory function to enhance reliability.</p>



<p>Andy also discusses the broader impact of their rollback efforts. Many users might not notice this new feature, but in a sense that&#8217;s how it should be. The more unnoticeable to end-users update failures are, the better. It means that sites that would previously have been broken and are now working, and that&#8217;s a win for everyone.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;re interested in the behind the scenes development of a WordPress feature, that quietly keeps your website running smoothly, and in hearing how a dedicated contributor balances his passion for WordPress with a demanding medical career, this episode is for you.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;d like to find out more, you can find all of the links in the show notes by heading to wptavern.com/podcast, where you&#8217;ll find all the other episodes as well.</p>



<p>And so without further delay, I bring you Andy Fragen.</p>



<p>I am joined on the podcast by Andy Fragen. Hello, Andy.</p>



<p>[00:04:21] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Hello Nathan. How are you?</p>



<p>[00:04:22] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, good. Nice to speak to you. We are in WordCamp US, we&#8217;re in Oregon. We&#8217;re in the convention center. I&#8217;ve actually no conception of what the convention center&#8217;s called.</p>



<p>[00:04:30] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> I think that&#8217;s it. I think it&#8217;s called the Oregon Convention Center.</p>



<p>[00:04:32] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Normally when I come to these events, I&#8217;m talking to people who are doing a presentation of some kind, but we had a conversation, introduced, I think, via Courtney Robertson. She suggested that I might like to talk to you about this particular subject, and I bit her hand off frankly, because this is really interesting.</p>



<p>We&#8217;re going to talk about automatic rollbacks in WordPress Core. And if that doesn&#8217;t mean anything to you, that&#8217;s fine, Andy will introduce the subject a bit later. First of all though, Andy, it&#8217;s a bit of a boring, dull question, but can you give us your little bio, and then I think, unusually, I&#8217;m going to dwell on your bio for quite a long time, if that&#8217;s all right? Tell us what you do in all of your life.</p>



<p>[00:05:08] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> I am a full-time trauma acute care surgeon, and I work in Southern California. And I dabble in WordPress as a hobby.</p>



<p>[00:05:18] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> You are also a Core committer.</p>



<p>[00:05:19] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Yes, sir. I got my first props for a Core commit about nine years ago.</p>



<p>[00:05:23] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Okay. So, to me, Core commit, if you have privileges to commit to Core.</p>



<p>[00:05:29] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Well, I&#8217;m not a committer, I&#8217;m a Core contributor.</p>



<p>[00:05:31] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> A core contributor.</p>



<p>[00:05:33] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> If they ever offered me commit access, I would decline.</p>



<p>[00:05:36] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yes, okay. Nevertheless, you are working at a very high level within WordPress, and this is the kind of thing that I think, this is what people do as a career. You know, they become incredibly skilled at coding, and in this case with WordPress, and this is the level maybe that they reach.</p>



<p>But let&#8217;s just rewind a little bit, because at the beginning of your bio you said you are also a trauma surgeon, which to me seems much more than a regular job. It seems like that would be an incredibly difficult thing to achieve in life, but also a thing which would consume many, many hours. And so I&#8217;m kind of wondering, how do you keep up in life with being a Core contributor as well as a trauma surgeon?</p>



<p>[00:06:13] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> As I said previously, time is the only fungible commodity we have. You spend it how you want to spend it. Obviously, depending on how you work and what the structure is, you have certain time availability, and then certain time not availability.</p>



<p>Some of what I have as a trauma surgeon is downtime. There are certain parts of my day that are busier than others, and there are certain parts of my day that aren&#8217;t as busy. I have been known to answer forum questions, and do support while in the operating room, waiting for a patient to be prepped.</p>



<p>[00:06:46] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So, let me just parse that a little bit. Whilst in the hospital, when there are not urgent things to be done, you are whipping out the laptop and contributing to WordPress.</p>



<p>[00:06:56] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> No, I usually do that on the phone, believe it or not.</p>



<p>[00:06:58] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> I think that&#8217;s remarkable. Honestly, I am really, really amazed that you can manage that. I think you must have an incredible grasp of your own time management.</p>



<p>[00:07:07] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Honestly, a lot of the support stuff is just having been in my own plugins that I&#8217;ve written for a long time. I have a better understanding of what the issue is almost without even getting too much you know, stack traces and things like that. Not that I don&#8217;t need them sometimes, but if you&#8217;ve ever done support and gotten issues from people, sometimes it takes a while to tease out the actual information you need to give a response.</p>



<p>[00:07:31] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Do you regard WordPress as a hobby then, or is it more like a second career almost?</p>



<p>[00:07:36] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Career would imply that you earn something from it. And, yes, I do sell a plugin, and part of the reason my wife allowed me to fly up to Portland for a WordCamp is I could say that the plugin sales paid for an airline ticket and a hotel. The usual deal I had with my wife living in Southern California was I could go to any WordCamp I could drive to. Since Covid they&#8217;ve really just stopped. Everybody&#8217;s sort of burned out, and that&#8217;s a whole other issue unfortunately.</p>



<p>[00:08:01] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah. How much time do you think, let&#8217;s say a month, would you be putting into WordPress?</p>



<p>[00:08:08] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Some of that depends on where you consider your time. If I&#8217;m kind of paying attention to the Core dev Slack when they&#8217;re doing meetings, do you count that towards time? I mean, some people do, some people don&#8217;t. So I have said that I have usually put anywhere between 10 to 15 hours a week into it, depending on where it was. I mean, for a while I was running the Core upgrade install meeting. Sometimes we get, there&#8217;s not much for us to talk about, we&#8217;ve foregone the meeting at times.</p>



<p>Yes, somehow I&#8217;ve found myself as a component maintainer for the upgrade install component, along with several other people.</p>



<p>Over the years I&#8217;ve done, or found my way into, I should say, several different things. And one of the things I did when we met Courtney last WordCamp US in San Diego, she was having trouble getting set up in a dev environment on her computer. And I&#8217;d already sort of figured it out, and sat down and helped her with it and, yes, by the end of the time period, we had Courtney up and running in the docker dev environment for WordPress Core.</p>



<p>[00:09:08] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So 10 to 15 hours a week, 40 to 60 hours a month, that&#8217;s a lot.</p>



<p>[00:09:14] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Yes, and you have no idea what my normal schedule is like. Even if I didn&#8217;t do that, as a trauma acute care surgeon, we work shift work, and our shifts are 12 hours long. And an FTE, full-time equivalent, for being considered full-time is 16 shifts a month. Whether that&#8217;s two shifts in a row in 24 hours, or not, or individually, it just depends. I would&#8217;ve considered at some point in time, in the last several years, only doing 16 shifts quite nice. I&#8217;ve done as many as 30 in a month, and probably in the last several years, averaged somewhere around 20, give or take.</p>



<p>[00:09:54] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> I think what I&#8217;m taking from this, Andy, is that you work quite hard in all things that you do.</p>



<p>[00:09:59] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> I have two adult children, 29 and 23, and I did not encourage them in the least to go into medicine. I think they saw how hard I worked, or how much I worked, and I&#8217;m very pleased to say that neither one of them went into healthcare. I think it&#8217;s just a changing field.</p>



<p>[00:10:16] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah. Where did your interest in WordPress, or coding come from? Is this something that you&#8217;ve had as a child, or did you pick this up later in life?</p>



<p>[00:10:23] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> I took a coding class in college, not my major. But I graduated from college in 1985 as a senior, the first time they had an intro to microcomputers, and there was this new computer out called a Macintosh. And it looked fascinating. And the class had a lab, you could either choose to be in the Macintosh lab or the PC lab. And honestly it was a freshman level class, I took the class just so I could do the lab and learned how to use the computer. And on graduation I bought one, and I&#8217;ve been using Macintosh computers since 1985.</p>



<p>[00:10:57] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So it is not really from childhood this, I guess maybe, I don&#8217;t know exactly how old you are, but certainly at my age, computers were a brand new thing. You couldn&#8217;t really do a great deal with computers back in the day. But I picked up the interest when I was probably a similar age to you, and it just kind of blossomed in me, and I just got really into it. And although it&#8217;s become what I do for a living, I can well imagine that if I hadn&#8217;t have done it for a living, it would&#8217;ve been a big part of my life anyway, a little bit like you by the sounds of it.</p>



<p>[00:11:23] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> I look at it as an interesting hobby. It&#8217;s a lot about problem solving, and it&#8217;s a lot about making a repetitive process simple, defined and consistent.</p>



<p>[00:11:34] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah. We&#8217;re going to talk now about something which is new in WordPress, and it&#8217;s automatic rollbacks. I don&#8217;t know if there&#8217;s a more grandiose title than that.</p>



<p>[00:11:44] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> We call it, I mean, internally we call it rollback auto updates, that&#8217;s just part of it though. Initially we just called it rollback.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s taken several years, and many cycles to kind of get into Core. And part of the issue was, when we first had it, a lot of Core committers don&#8217;t want to touch something, or don&#8217;t want to commit something that touches such a large piece of WordPress, such as plugin updates, or theme updates. And as you can imagine, everybody had a lot of trepidation. And it was a big enough project that somebody who wasn&#8217;t directly involved in it, if they left and weren&#8217;t paying attention for several months, they&#8217;d come back and whole things were new again.</p>



<p>[00:12:24] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Right. Let&#8217;s describe what it is. So this is my understanding of it. A couple of years ago it feels like now, we got this option in the plugin screen to automatically update plugins. And it may be that almost everything in your WP admin, plugin wise, you can automatically update. So you don&#8217;t check a box, but in effect you check a box.</p>



<p>And from that moment on, that plugin, or all the plugins, if you decide to go that route, will automatically update in the background, so you don&#8217;t have to think. I guess it&#8217;s a part of a broader initiative to make WordPress as automatic as possible, so that you don&#8217;t have to log in if you&#8217;re an inexperienced user, or you&#8217;re just not really bothered about WordPress, you just want a website. And it&#8217;ll just all tick over in the background and keep itself updated.</p>



<p>Now that&#8217;s great, except when there&#8217;s a problem with the plugin update, and the updating automatically breaks something. You know, you come back and either you&#8217;ve got an email to say that things have gone wrong, or you just go to your website and discover, why does my website now not function anymore?</p>



<p>The initiative here was to make it so that some automatic detection mechanism would update the plugin, throw an error, say, there&#8217;s a problem, wait, roll it back, so go back to the previous safe version, and go from there. And so everything in theory should be good. Now that all sounds so straightforward to say, but just before we hit record, you indicated to me, and let&#8217;s get into this really granularly, you indicate to me that it was anything other than straightforward. Now, why was that?</p>



<p>[00:13:54] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> So Core has had the ability for a failed update to revert, try again, I&#8217;m not quite sure of the process, since about 3.5 or 3.7. And the ability to roll back a failed update for a plugin, or a theme really just wasn&#8217;t around. Colin Stewart and I, and Paul Baron had kind of gotten together on trac tickets about rolling back, and I think it was Paul&#8217;s initial trac ticket about it and, no, I don&#8217;t remember the number offhand, that really got us started. And it was intriguing to all of us on how to do it, and where to go.</p>



<p>And so we get together in private DMs, and discuss it, and kind of try and figure it out. We would overcome problems and basically create the solution, and I&#8217;d put it in a plugin so that we could test. And what we found was, well, once we got to parts where we had the whole solution, and we had a whole solution for quite a while, including the auto updates before we even had any of it committed.</p>



<p>But again, as I say, it was so complex and, you know, when you have millions of sites, and 45% of the web, and all of them are doing updates to plugins and themes at any given time, it&#8217;s like touching the third rail. I mean, sometimes you can kind of get away with it, but more often than not, you could potentially kill yourself.</p>



<p>So we never had a Core committer deeply involved in it. We had some that came and would give us advice on how to do things, or not do things, and we would seek to solve those issues and those problems. But without having someone with commit access, it made it very difficult to actually get things in. Colin now has commit access, and he got it just before the rollback was complete. But again, he&#8217;s like, I don&#8217;t feel comfortable, as my very first commit, committing this big part of Core.</p>



<p>After we&#8217;d had it done for a while, there was a discussion on the trac ticket about what it would take to test it. And one of the Core committers suggested that we test it on thousands of sites, of various different server setups, to ensure that it didn&#8217;t cause issues or problems.</p>



<p>Now, conceptually I do understand that, because WordPress can run on a vast variety of installations, and hardware, and virtual environments, and all sorts of things. You don&#8217;t want to screw it up. You don&#8217;t want to brick somebody&#8217;s site consistently.</p>



<p>The problem is, I don&#8217;t think anybody&#8217;s ever been asked to do something so extensive before. And so we basically found that it was almost impossible. I was at the first WordCamp in San Diego, the first one after Covid, and I literally went around to all the hosts and said, I need you to test this, I need you to test this, I need you to test this. And everyone was very agreeable, but they would test it on their environment, right? Make sure that it worked in their system, but probably only on one site that was a test site, and not in production on anywhere else. And I&#8217;m not quite sure that that&#8217;s what they were looking for.</p>



<p>We only kind of overcame that process when we broke it down in smaller pieces. So rollback started out with getting, let me go back. Currently, the way Core works, Core updates work, and the way plugin and theme updates work is, Core would download the package, the update, it would store it on your system locally. It would run some checks, it would re-expand the zip into the upgrade folder, and then it would do a recursive file copy into the location of the plugin directory, or the theme directory. Although it would also delete the file first, before it that recursive copy.</p>



<p>Consequently, if something failed, your plugin was gone. You had to go find it again and reinstall it, if somewhere along that process failed. The first thing we did is try and, well, one of the first things I did was made it a zip file. So I back up the plugin or theme is a zip file, store that, do the update. If it failed, I&#8217;d reinstall the zip file. But we heard from several hosting companies, that may be taxing on resources creating, and zipping, and unzipping files at that scale.</p>



<p>And so I&#8217;m like, okay, let&#8217;s come up with something else. And what we ended up with is changing that recursive file copy to use PHPs rename function, with the recursive file copy as a backup, as a fallback for it. Now, you would think that, since this runs on PHP, and everybody has PHP installed, that it would work out just fine, except VirtualBox and VVV. And so these are custom local dev environments.</p>



<p>We did put out a call to the hosting companies, does anyone offer a virtualised solution using VVV or VirtualBox? And the answer was, no. We kept getting failures using the PHP rename and VirtualBox. Partial file transfers, partial rights, and it took a lot of investigation to figure it out. Peter Wilson, one of the Core committers from Australia, uses VVV as his dev environment. And when you get a Core committer, and some basic part of this isn&#8217;t working, it&#8217;s not going in.</p>



<p>So we got the fallback. We did a lot of research, and it appears, from some Composer bug reports, that VirtualBox has sort of a delayed file right. Go figure. And they found that by adding a 200 millisecond delay to things, it solved the problem. We added a 200 millisecond delay to things, it sort of solved the problem. We later had some help from, I want to say it was Andrew Ozz, who&#8217;s clearly been around WordPress for a long time. And he suggested we try flushing the memory for, after we did the rights and stuff.</p>



<p>And we eventually got it so that it did work by doing that. We had a PR for essentially a new function, for a move directory, move dir, underscore dir, that replaced, copied, the recursive file copy, copy dir, in the update process. Copy dir&#8217;s still there as a fallback, but we now had the PHPs rename function working in every environment that we had, and consistently, even with VirtualBox and its limitations, or its peculiarities.</p>



<p>And that was the first big step we had towards getting committed. And I want to say that was committed in 6.2. So if you think back, all the stuff we had, aside from that little piece with the VirtualBox, was all done before 6.2. And the final piece just got committed in 6.6. So when I say this was years in the making, it really was years in the making.</p>



<p>The second part we did was just on manual updates. So we had, when you click a manual update, several things can happen during the course of the update process. Somewhere along the way the file copy, or the download can fail, the file copy can fail, certain pieces can be missing. So we created enough checks during that process and returned errors, such that, if any of those pieces failed, how we started with is storing the file to be updated in a temporary update folder.</p>



<p>And so if any of those processes failed, we would go and restore that folder using our moving function. The process was actually very quick in testing, on the order of, you know, less than a second because PHP rename just sticks the whole chunk and moves it. So you have to remember the first part of the process on the update is, you delete the plugin in the folder that it&#8217;s in, and so as you&#8217;re downloading and installing the other one, you&#8217;ve got nothing left.</p>



<p>The normal update process, you&#8217;ve deactivated the plugin, you reinstall it, and then it reactivates. That&#8217;s in a manual process. Remember when we get to the automatic updates how that&#8217;s different, and where it can be problematic. So we had restore functions, we had our delete functions, because after we had a couple of cron tasks that we created to clean up after ourselves on a weekly basis, so that those copies wouldn&#8217;t be around anymore. Even on a shutdown function, we would delete the folders, and then on a weekly basis we&#8217;d make sure they were all gone.</p>



<p>So once we got that working and committed, we had basically a safe method for manual updates. So if someone would go to the dashboard, they&#8217;d click update, if somewhere along the way their connection lagged, or their connection to wordpress.org was delayed, and things took too long, and the server timed out, it would reinstall the previous version. And you would still show that the plugin or theme required an update, because you&#8217;ve now reinstalled the previous version that was installed.</p>



<p>We didn&#8217;t have to go out to .org and re-download anything. Part of that is really what limited the resources that we were acquiring for servers. Because all we were requiring them to do was copy a directory back and forth to different locations.</p>



<p>[00:22:59] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> What&#8217;s the flag for success or failure in this case? What&#8217;s the thing which determines that the update hasn&#8217;t succeeded?</p>



<p>[00:23:06] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> It depends on different parts of the process. So if there&#8217;s a failure in the download package, and the downloading the package, there are several parts that we&#8217;re already checking, where it would succeed or fail. We either created new WP errors for those, and returned those values, and so when we looked for those returns, if they happened, we would send it to the functions we wrote to restore from the backup or not.</p>



<p>So we&#8217;d start the process by creating the backup. And then if the process continued on without error, the backup just got deleted at the end. If there was an error in the process, the backup was restored. You&#8217;d basically be right back to the place you started from, requiring an update to either the plugin or a theme.</p>



<p>[00:23:44] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah. Does the user in this scenario of the website, do they get some sort of notification that, actually, this didn&#8217;t work out? We&#8217;ve rolled back, your site is now working, but the thing that you intended to do didn&#8217;t happen. And if they do, does it list out what the problem was? Like it was, I don&#8217;t know, a download failure, or the plugin seems to be malfunctioning.</p>



<p>[00:24:03] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> You would see an error message, either in, if you were using the shiny updates on the plugins page, or the themes page, you&#8217;d receive the error message, and kind of a brief description of where the error was. Either the directory wasn&#8217;t writeable, or there was a download problem, or whatever the error happened to be. And then you&#8217;d be back at the place, if you refreshed your screen, it would show that you still needed the update.</p>



<p>If you did the update from the Core update page, you know how the update shows, here&#8217;s the zip I&#8217;m downloading, it&#8217;s doing this, you would see an update error there. And part of what we put in the test plugin, or the feature plugin, was a way to simulate an error. And so we simulated a download error. And so you&#8217;d see that, and it would say it&#8217;s simulated error.</p>



<p>[00:24:47] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> If I was to receive this error, let&#8217;s say that I&#8217;d put a plugin onto automatic updates, and I had received a failure, does your setup then say, okay, permanently stop automatically updating this, or is it more a process of wait for a day, or is there a setting that I can engage to say, try again arbitrarily later, just keep trying the update, or is it a case of, okay, we&#8217;ve identified there&#8217;s a problem here, now it&#8217;s up to you to go and check and fix?</p>



<p>[00:25:15] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Well, at this point it&#8217;s just a manual update, right? So if the manual update fails, you refresh the page, it&#8217;ll say, update now again. And you just try again. Our assumption at that point is, if you continue to get an error because your upgrade path isn&#8217;t writeable, well, it&#8217;ll tell you that, and you probably have to check your permissions on the folder, and make sure that they are writeable. If there&#8217;s some other issue involved in downloading the file, the usual assumption is that will go away. And so you try updating again, and maybe the next time you update it works. You&#8217;re done.</p>



<p>[00:25:47] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> I guess one of the goals of automatically updating plugins was that you could have a site that you essentially could have an autopilot. And it could be, let&#8217;s say a brochure site, where the intention really is just to have a site and never look at the backend ever again.</p>



<p>[00:26:01] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> We haven&#8217;t gotten to that part. That was part one and two. The third part was the auto updates. Now, this does not apply to themes, and I say that doesn&#8217;t apply to themes because themes are kind of a different beast. And I guess we probably could figure that out, and maybe that&#8217;s the next, on the part four, which we haven&#8217;t really defined yet. But there&#8217;s certainly a lot more plugin updates than theme updates.</p>



<p>The difference between an auto update and a manual update is the auto update runs in a cron task. The auto update does not deactivate the plugin, update the plugin, and then reactivate the plugin. The plugin is active the entire time, which means if the plugin has an error in it, and the update completes successfully, you&#8217;ll have a white screen. And this has happened.</p>



<p>What we needed to do was figure out how to catch the error, essentially. And I want to say, the first iteration, there are basically three types of error handlers in PHP. I was checking every single one of them to make sure that we would catch the error. Now the problem with doing that is the shutdown error handler catches everything. So sometimes you catch the error twice, and that&#8217;s okay, but it was trying to figure out how to make sense out of some of those errors that was difficult.</p>



<p>And so we had a list of certain types of errors sometimes, and we would cause a rollback if we spotted any of those things. And it worked. For all the errors that we figured out, it worked. That&#8217;s not what we went with though, because what they don&#8217;t tell you is, when you write these things and you have feature plugins, is that, the way they integrate into Core, when you&#8217;re trying to commit them, may be totally different. So integrating it into Core is like, okay, now I need to update this file in Core, and that file in Core. Some of those things we could not duplicate in a plugin.</p>



<p>One of the things that we ended up with was a change to the load PHP file. There&#8217;s no way to mock it, there wasn&#8217;t. I couldn&#8217;t duplicate it, it loads too early, I couldn&#8217;t replace it. So we were just, okay, this could be the problem. So we tried to work around it a little bit, which is fine too. Colin did a little bit more digging and found out that, if you edit a plugin in the plugin editor on screen, it does a loop back check as it saves, to determine whether or not there&#8217;s a fatal in that plugin, and it won&#8217;t save it for you. And so we reutilise that loop back, as a test for whether the reactivation, or the installation of the plugin causes an issue or not.</p>



<p>We found it worked well. It greatly simplified what we were doing. I don&#8217;t even want to get into the fact that I was using reflection, and reflected objects, and reflected methods, and all sorts of things to fix it in the plugin in the first place. It worked and, yes, there are places in Core that uses the reflection classes, and reflection objects, and things like that, but not many. At least we knew we weren&#8217;t breaking new ground with that. But in adding that to Core, it made it a lot easier to do the loop back request.</p>



<p>Part of the issue in testing was we didn&#8217;t really have a file that would accurately fail every single time it was updated. I make an updater, it was easy to create a file that would fail on an update. So that&#8217;s all we had for a moment, until Aaron Jorbin piped up in one of the Slack meetings and said, here&#8217;s a plugin that&#8217;s been in the repo for a while, the title is, DO NOT USE THIS PLUGIN! And it is exactly for that. It&#8217;s set to fail on an update, it&#8217;s set to fatal on an update. And so now we had a plugin that other people could use more successfully, they didn&#8217;t have to go and install my updater or to find it.</p>



<p>Having both of them installed though did help things out because there&#8217;s all the scenarios you have to test for. What happens when you have a plugin that runs, and then a fatal, and then another plugin update that needs to happen, and maybe another fatal after that, or maybe two fatals in a row? All these things you don&#8217;t really think about, but you should test for, or you have to test for.</p>



<p>And it&#8217;s all manual testing. I had no idea how we could ever write, and then testing for it otherwise, without just doing it manually. I want to say, the first time we tested it for the update rollback, we picked 13 of the largest plugins. And when I say largest, some of the more complex plugins, as far as folders, and files, and size to run, and to see whether we get timeouts, whether they would complete successfully, and things like that.</p>



<p>We found what worked well, and that&#8217;s one of the places we found that VirtualBox error, because it would just time out. It wouldn&#8217;t complete it. We were making it fall back to the file copy originally, and nobody is going to have this list of files to recursively update at any one time, except us and testing, but it just wouldn&#8217;t work consistently. And so that was before we got the move directory function in and working for it, and then it worked.</p>



<p>[00:30:59] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> What I&#8217;m getting from this is you must have incredible patience. Years and years and years of trying different things, problems emerging that you couldn&#8217;t foresee, solutions that you tried to implement, and then discover, okay, that didn&#8217;t work, let&#8217;s try something new. I don&#8217;t know how good you are at not throwing things at the wall, but it feels like there was an opportunity here to throw things at the wall.</p>



<p>[00:31:19] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> You&#8217;re making an assumption Nathan, who says I don&#8217;t throw things at the wall.</p>



<p>[00:31:23] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Was it a fairly, how to describe this? Did it surface things about the open source project, in terms of the way it&#8217;s done, that you wish were different?</p>



<p>[00:31:33] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Certainly. You know, one of the things that certainly helped move us along was having a lead developer, in this case Andrew Ozz, take an interest, and help answer questions and move along the way. He helped us tremendously with the plugin dependencies feature as well.</p>



<p>Since none of us were committers, and it&#8217;s a big feature, it would be nice if the leadership assigned experienced Core committers to feature projects, assuming that most of the people involved in the development of those projects aren&#8217;t Core committers. Another reason I should never have commit privileges.</p>



<p>[00:32:11] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, it sounds like from everything that you&#8217;ve said, that the process could have been expedited in a variety of different ways.</p>



<p>[00:32:17] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> It certainly could have. And some of that made for a lot of frustration because we would have experienced Core committers who would look at the project every couple of months maybe. It was a huge undertaking in total. And it was really only by splitting up into smaller pieces that we were able to accomplish it at all.</p>



<p>[00:32:36] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, and also the dramatically impactful nature of what you were doing. And I&#8217;m sure the irony&#8217;s not lost on anybody, that you could have achieved fatal errors in the attempt to remove fatal errors. Just the idea that such an important thing, from your perspective, maybe didn&#8217;t get the, how to describe it, didn&#8217;t get the.</p>



<p>[00:32:55] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Attention.</p>



<p>[00:32:55] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, the attention, the sort of level of importance that it might have done given the impactful nature of it.</p>



<p>That now is in the past though, this is now a feature of WordPress. How much of a hand on heart moment, and I don&#8217;t know if that&#8217;s the right phrase, how difficult was it for you on the day that the version of WordPress that the shipped with came out? Were you fairly confident at that point that all the things were going to be fine?</p>



<p>[00:33:18] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> I&#8217;ve been running the plugin, which has had a version of the rollback code in it on sites for years, with plugins that would fatal on update. Now, the auto update will only check for the fatal update if the plugin is active, right? Because if it&#8217;s not active and it updates, all you&#8217;ll happen is, is when you go to activate it, it won&#8217;t let you activate it because it&#8217;ll say it fataled. And so you&#8217;ll have to go and reinstall another version or something, but it won&#8217;t take your site down. We specifically don&#8217;t test for plugins that aren&#8217;t active. Honestly, we&#8217;ve been running the code for so long on our own stuff, I wasn&#8217;t worried. I mean, have you heard of anyone having a problem?</p>



<p>[00:33:57] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> No, and that&#8217;s pretty remarkable. Have you?</p>



<p>[00:34:01] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> No. Well, yes, yesterday.</p>



<p>[00:34:04] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Deliberately?</p>



<p>[00:34:04] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Well, it was something we found that we hadn&#8217;t honestly considered.</p>



<p>[00:34:08] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> But just one individual, so far, that you know of.</p>



<p>[00:34:10] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> So far. And I think I actually no way to mitigate it. Apparently, if you have a redirect to your homepage, the loopback doesn&#8217;t work. So what happens is you don&#8217;t see a failure, even if there is a failure. And so because you don&#8217;t see the failure, because you&#8217;re now no longer looking at your actual homepage, you&#8217;re looking at a redirect, it might work just fine. And so you don&#8217;t revert, and your site might, you know, when you go somewhere else in the site, it might fatal then.</p>



<p>[00:34:40] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Given that WordPress occupies 43% of the web, and that this endeavor of yours, and colleagues working on it, is probably now inside of millions of websites, the fact that you&#8217;ve found one character who has been able to show that it didn&#8217;t work in a, it sounds like you can mitigate more or less immediately. That&#8217;s pretty remarkable. And you&#8217;ve just, over the last 40 minutes or so, you&#8217;ve done this, it sounds like a detective story almost. Here&#8217;s a problem, we tried to fix it, this went wrong, we tried to fix that, this went wrong, we didn&#8217;t have the boots on the ground or whatever. You&#8217;ve managed to achieve it. And it also feels as if this is the kind of feature update that nobody will ever thank you for, because it&#8217;s in the background, if you know what I mean?</p>



<p>[00:35:24] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Oh, no.</p>



<p>[00:35:25] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Oh, good.</p>



<p>[00:35:25] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> The people that are going to thank us for this are all hosting companies that aren&#8217;t going to see these issues anymore.</p>



<p>[00:35:30] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> That&#8217;s what I meant. It&#8217;s more of an invisible.</p>



<p>[00:35:33] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> It is exactly invisible. The user has nothing to do. All they have to do is have auto updates enabled, and their plugins will auto update. If there&#8217;s a problem or an issue, it&#8217;ll revert back, and all it&#8217;ll do is show another update again, in 12 hours it&#8217;ll try again.</p>



<p>[00:35:50] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> As we said at the top of this interview, it sounds so simple, just roll back when there&#8217;s a problem, but now we know.</p>



<p>[00:35:56] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> It&#8217;s not that the problem isn&#8217;t simple to define, it&#8217;s finding all the little pieces in creating the solution that isn&#8217;t always simple.</p>



<p>[00:36:04] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, I remember Kennedy saying, we choose to go to the moon.</p>



<p>[00:36:07] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> Not because we have to, because we want to, or something like that.</p>



<p>[00:36:09] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, and the problem was hard, but they got over it. And we have echoes of that here. All I can say is thank you so much for making this an important thing. And hopefully, for me at least, and probably everybody else, the more invisible it is in the future of WordPress, in a sense, the better that is.</p>



<p>The less time that I have to worry about plugins updating, the more time that I can concentrate on building the website, and not thinking about those things. And for the millions, millions of people who have no interest in WordPress, but just want a website, this stuff will be remarkable, but probably they&#8217;ll never know, which is nice.</p>



<p>[00:36:48] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> You know, honestly our goal is if nobody ever knows about it, perfect. That means it works. No one sees a problem. It hopefully pushes people into clicking that little button link that says, enable auto updates, so that they keep their sites up to date. Because one of the biggest security issues in WordPress is out of date websites, or websites with out of date plugins.</p>



<p>[00:37:14] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Well, dear listener, if you are listening to this podcast, I think there&#8217;s a high chance that you obsess about WordPress. So hopefully what Andy has told us today gives you some understanding of the complexities of what&#8217;s been going on in the background, but also will make you aware that it happened. If you haven&#8217;t been reading the change log, and you&#8217;ve just updated to the latest version of WordPress, this fairly consequential, but fairly hidden feature is now available to you free of charge, on the back of Andy&#8217;s, and many other people&#8217;s labor. So just very quick thank you from me. Thank you for taking the time to do that, and thank you for chatting to me today.</p>



<p>[00:37:46] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> It is certainly not me alone. Colin Stewart has been invaluable, and is a brilliant developer.</p>



<p>[00:37:52] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Well, a profound change to WordPress. Yeah, thank you so much for chatting with me today, I really appreciate it.</p>



<p>[00:37:58] <strong>Andy Fragen:</strong> You&#8217;re very welcome, sir.</p>
</div>



<p>On the podcast today we have <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/afragen/">Andy Fragen</a>.</p>



<p>Andy is a dedicated member of the WordPress community as well as a trauma surgeon. Somehow he manages to balance the demands of his profession with his passion for the community and, as you will hear, to important work inside of WordPress Core. Even while in the operating room, waiting for patients to be prepped, Andy has been known to find moments to answer forum questions and provide support to others. It’s truly remarkable.</p>



<p>Andy talks about the important topic of automatic rollbacks in WordPress, a feature aimed at reverting to a previous version if an automatic plugin or theme update fails, ensuring the website remains functional for users. I’ve managed to encapsulate the idea into the previous sentence, but as you will hear, the execution of that idea was anything other than straightforward.</p>



<p>Andy discusses the origins of the rollback feature. The team working on this problem identified complexities and potential fatal errors during plugin updates and came up with a simple yet effective solution which worked, but as with so much in code, some edge cases meant that the road to a fully workable solution for all WordPress users was not quite in sight. Many times the drawing board had to be dusted off and the problem looked at once again.</p>



<p>While developing this feature, numerous challenges were encountered, from finding consistent test conditions to managing technical limitations. Andy shares insights into the critical role of testing and collaboration with hosting companies, meticulous attention to detail, and problem-solving skills developed to combat issues like file write delays and loopback test redirects.</p>



<p>Andy explains how the team managed to avoid fatal errors in active plugins with extensive testing and incremental improvements. They introduced functionalities like WP error checks, simulation features for testing error handling, and a new move directory function to enhance reliability.</p>



<p>Andy also discusses the broader impact of their rollback efforts. Many users might not notice this new feature, but in a sense that’s how it should be. The more unnoticeable to end-users update failures are, the better. It means that sites that would previously have been broken, are now working, and that’s a win for everyone.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;re interested in the behind-the-scenes development of a WordPress feature that quietly keeps your website running smoothly, and in hearing how a dedicated contributor balances his passion for WordPress with a demanding medical career, this episode is for you.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Useful links</h2>



<p><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/afragen/">Andy&#8217;s WordPress.org profile</a></p>



<p><a href="https://github.com/afragen/core-rollback">core-rollback on GitHub</a></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 02 Oct 2024 14:03:22 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Nathan Wrigley";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:14;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:107:"Do The Woo Community: WordPress Accessibility Day with Michelle Frechette, Sarah Kornblum &amp; Ryan Bracey";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"https://dothewoo.io/?p=85884";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:100:"https://dothewoo.io/wordpress-accessibility-day-with-michelle-freschette-sarah-kornblum-ryan-bracey/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:25581:"Episode Transcript
<div class="wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained">
<p>Michelle:<br />Well, I&#8217;m excited because I host a bunch of podcasts. This is my first time guest hosting on the <em>Do the Woo</em> Podcast. So we&#8217;re here today at WordPress Event Talk because the three of us are going to be working on a very important event coming up. So who is <em>us</em>? I&#8217;m Michelle Frechette. I am the Director of Community Engagement at StellarWP. I&#8217;m also the Executive Director at Post Status, but all of that takes a backseat today to the fact that I am one of the organizers for an incredible upcoming 24-hour event on accessibility called WordPress Accessibility Day, coming up on October 9th and 10th. So who is the rest of <em>us</em>? I&#8217;m going to ask you to introduce yourselves, tell us a little bit about yourselves, and then we&#8217;re going to talk, the three of us, about why WordPress Accessibility Day is so important. Over to you, Sarah. Sarah, tell us a little bit about yourself.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Hi, I am Sarah. I have my own web design company, <em>Two Dogs and a Laptop.</em> Before coming into the WordPress space and the website world, I was a middle school special education math teacher. Accessibility has a very important place in my heart because, given the right tools, anybody can do anything they want to do. So that&#8217;s why I am here today.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I love it. I do have one question though. Does that mean you could never get another dog?</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Right now, I actually have two fosters.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />So it&#8217;s temporarily four dogs and a laptop?</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Yes, right now it&#8217;s four dogs and a laptop. The numbers change every once in a while.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />As long as the URL stays the same, it&#8217;s all good.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />That&#8217;s right. The name doesn&#8217;t change, but sometimes the number fluctuates a little bit.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Exactly. And joining us today, we also have Ryan Bracy. Ryan, tell us about yourself.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yeah, my name is Ryan Bracey. I&#8217;m the Director of Web Development and User Experience at an agency called <em>Second Melody</em> based in New Jersey. I am also an organizing member of WordPress Accessibility Day, which, as Michelle said, kind of takes front row today.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I&#8217;m excited. This is my first time organizing this event. Ryan, this is your second year, is that correct?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yeah, I was a volunteer three years ago and an organizer the past two.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Oh, so it&#8217;s more than, yeah. And Sarah?</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />This is my first time. I&#8217;m new to this space as well.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />So, how have you found our organization? It seems like we had our first meeting at the beginning of the year, thinking we had so much time, but now it&#8217;s coming up very quickly.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />It goes really fast.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />It really does.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />When we&#8217;re talking in January or February, it seems like the event is so far away, and now we&#8217;re here, and it&#8217;s crunch time. It&#8217;s coming up real quick.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />It sure is. Comments, Ryan?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />No, the same. Yeah, I remember a bunch of our updates being like, &#8220;I&#8217;m just in a holding pattern right now,&#8221; and then all of a sudden, it was every day something new happening. But we&#8217;re coming up to it now.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />And now we need flight control because so much is happening all at once.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Yes, exactly.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />So what are your roles within the organizing team? Sarah, what are you doing?</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />I am helping June with social media, so I&#8217;ve been doing a lot of the social media posting. She does most of it. I&#8217;m just here for moral support and backup. But it&#8217;s a lot. I don&#8217;t know how any one person does it on their own, which is why there&#8217;s a team of us, right? Because it&#8217;s not possible to do all of this. It&#8217;s become such a big day that you need as much help as you can get.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Absolutely. It would be like seven full-time jobs if anybody tried to do it alone. It&#8217;s unlikely that one person could handle it all. If anybody could, it’d probably be Amber or Joe, but we&#8217;ll talk about them in a little while. Ryan, what&#8217;s your role on the team?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />I think Amber and Joe did it by themselves for a while, too.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Probably.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />I am the team lead for the speakers&#8217; team. My role this year has been receiving speaker applications, reviewing them with my team, making selections, coordinating with speakers, getting them the information they need, adding them to our Slack workspace, and preparing them for the event. We&#8217;re also holding practice sessions as we lead up to the day. So, pretty much everything with the speakers is coming through me.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Yeah, 24 hours of programming is all but on your shoulders. I know you have a team, and we all work together.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yeah, and day of, I&#8217;ll just be coordinating with speakers, of course. But yes, it&#8217;s not just me, there&#8217;s a whole team.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Absolutely. You asked what I do. I am the team lead for marketing. I&#8217;ve been doing things like asking people like Bob to let us have an episode of his podcast to talk about the event. We&#8217;ve also had great team members on other podcasts and webinars for different companies to spread the word as much as possible. Which brings me to my next question: Why is web accessibility so important? Why should people attend a 24-hour event like this? We don’t expect anyone to listen to all 24 hours live, but why is it important for people to learn more about web accessibility, especially if they don&#8217;t have any disabilities themselves? Ryan, what are your thoughts?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />A lot of thoughts, but I&#8217;ll try to keep it short. So, I&#8217;ve been involved in this space for a few years now, probably since 2016 or 2017, when I started to become aware of accessibility. At first, you think it&#8217;s just about catering to people with disabilities. But as you dive in, you realize that making a website more accessible improves the experience for everyone. Better contrast, more functional UI components, structured headings—all of these make the site easier to use for everyone, not just those with disabilities. By focusing on accessibility, you put out a much better product, which benefits everyone. At the end of the day, you&#8217;re creating something that anyone in the world can use, which is how it should be. There&#8217;s a Tim Berners-Lee quote where he says the internet is for everybody, and accessibility is a way to achieve that.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Oh, I like that. Sarah, when we talk about accessibility, I know you and I echo everything Ryan just said. I don&#8217;t know if you have anything to add, but we often hear that accessibility compromises design and aesthetics. What are your thoughts about that?</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />I don’t think accessibility compromises design and aesthetics. If your design can&#8217;t be viewed by most people, what&#8217;s the point of the design? If you feel it’s a compromise, then the design wasn’t good to begin with. Accessibility means everyone can use it, no matter their background or what&#8217;s going on in their lives. Going back to my teaching background, when I made adjustments to help certain students, all the students benefited. It made the material accessible for everyone, not just those who needed extra help. The same applies to websites—accessibility helps everyone, and it’s often overlooked if you don’t personally need it. Accessibility Day starts the conversations that need to be had.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />That reminds me of something people often talk about when they say accessibility helps everyone. When curb cuts started to be required for wheelchair users, of which I am one, it also made life easier for people pushing strollers, using pushcarts, or walking with a cane or walker. Curb cuts benefit so many people, not just those in wheelchairs. Isn’t that also true of accessibility features on the web?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Definitely.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />So true. And those little plates with bumps on them at curb cuts—those are meant for people with vision impairments, but they help everyone. If you&#8217;re texting while walking and you hit those bumps, you’re reminded that a street crossing is coming up. They benefit everyone, not just those with vision impairments.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Absolutely. Ryan, you had something to add?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />I love bringing in real-world examples like that. It makes the case for accessibility so much clearer. The web is just an extension of that.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I like to compare it to my experience as a wheelchair user. I walk around my house, but as soon as I go beyond 20 or 30 feet, I need accessibility features. If I approach a building with no curb cut and no automatic door opener, I can&#8217;t access it. The same happens on the web—if the tabbing doesn’t work, or the screen reader isn&#8217;t accurate, I can’t access your website, just like I can’t access stairs in the physical world.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yeah, that&#8217;s great.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Exactly. And there are so many people who need the help, so you&#8217;re losing those potential customers if your website isn’t accessible. If somebody can’t access it, they’re leaving. Just like you wouldn’t try to break down a door to get into a building—you’d just go somewhere else.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />We often think of people with disabilities as being born with them or having experienced some tragic accident, like becoming blind or using a wheelchair. But the truth is, most of us—or I’ll say many of us—will end up with some kind of disability as we age. For instance, a large portion of the population will need glasses as they get older. And I think my generation, and younger ones, will experience this even more rapidly because of our constant screen use. This is anecdotal, but from my own experience, I now wear not only glasses for the computer but also bifocals. That didn’t happen because I was born with vision issues—it’s from years of screen use and aging. So, web accessibility benefits all of us as we grow older and need things like larger fonts and better contrast.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />That&#8217;s a great point. Microsoft has an Inclusivity Handbook, which is excellently written, and they break down user impairments into categories: visual impairment, hearing impairment, motor impairment, cognitive impairment. But then they also talk about the temporality of those impairments, meaning that you can have a permanent disability, a temporary disability, or even a situational one. For instance, if someone breaks an arm, that’s a temporary disability. Or if you’re a new parent, breastfeeding a child, you temporarily can’t use both hands, so you have a motor disability. Situational impairments might be something like being on a noisy train and not being able to hear your phone, so captions become really important. Accessibility helps everyone, even in temporary or situational contexts.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />I love how you mentioned situational and temporary disabilities, because those are so often overlooked. When people think about disabilities, they tend to only consider permanent disabilities, but there are so many times when a temporary or situational disability affects someone’s ability to use a website, and accessibility helps in those moments, too. For example, if you’re on the subway, you can’t listen to something at full volume, so you need captions. Accessibility just makes life easier for everyone.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Exactly. And every time you consider these things, you increase the number of users your website reaches by making it accessible.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I live in a condo built in 1988, and every door handle is just a knob. I walk with a cane, so if I have something in one hand and my cane in the other, I have to put something down to turn the doorknob. I just ordered brand-new handles with levers so that I can hit them with my elbow and open the door without putting anything down. It’s a simple fix, but it makes a big difference. It’s the same with web accessibility—it’s often about small changes that make things much more accessible.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />You just have to be careful not to make the doors too accessible for your cats! They might learn how to open them, and then you’ve got a whole new problem.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Right, especially when you have guests in the restroom—awkward! But yes, you&#8217;re always being observed if you live with pets.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />I love the door example. Those are called Norman doors—doors that are confusing to use. It’s a user experience concept introduced by Don Norman in the ’90s. His example was how you don’t know whether to push or pull a door when you walk up to it. Your example ties into that—it’s about making doors, or anything, easier to use.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Exactly.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Something as simple as a door.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />And even with keyless entry cars now, I never take my car key out anymore. It used to be a hassle to find it in my bag or pocket, but now I just walk up to the car, and it opens. Accessibility can be like that—it makes things easier for everyone.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I need one of those cars! My next car will definitely have more features.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />But bringing it back to WordPress Accessibility Day—Ryan, you’re the speaker wrangler, the lead speaker organizer, as we might say in WordCamp talk. What are some of the things we can look forward to that day?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Oh boy, this is a hard question for me because I love all my speakers equally! But yes, I’ll start with the keynote. Our keynote speaker this year is Lainey Feingold, a disability rights lawyer. She’s going to talk to us about the legal landscape surrounding web accessibility, which is really in flux right now, especially with new European laws coming out. Lainey has been involved in accessibility since the early ’90s. One of her major accomplishments is the braille on ATM machines—that was because of her advocacy. So she’ll be kicking off the entire event. It’s definitely a session to attend if you can.</p>



<p>We also have a wide range of topics that cover everything from beginner to expert levels. Whether you’re a content creator, designer, developer, product manager, or team manager, there’s something for you. The full schedule is up now, and you can also register on the website.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I love that. Sarah, what are some of the topics you’re excited about?</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Oh, there are so many that I want to stay up for all 24 hours just to catch them all. It feels like if I’m not there live, I’m missing out. But honestly, there’s so much I want to see!</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Same here. As a non-developer, I’m not as interested in those more technical talks, but I’m excited for developers to hear them. I’m a content marketer, so I’m most excited about the sessions on content and design, but I plan to catch as many as possible.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />I know, it’s hard to pick favorites. But if you can’t attend live, don’t worry—all the sessions will be available on YouTube afterward, and we’re striving to have them translated into as many languages as possible. So if anyone listening speaks another language and would like to volunteer to help with translations, that would be a great way to contribute!</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />And during the live sessions, we’ll have human live captioning, so the transcripts will be accurate. We’ll also have live ASL interpretation on screen during the event. While we recognize that there are different sign languages around the world, for this event we’ll be using American Sign Language (ASL). I’ve also been busy recording all the intros for the sessions that will be on YouTube afterward, so you’ll hear my voice introducing speakers and thanking our sponsors.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Wow, that’s a lot of work!</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Yes, the dulcet tones of Michelle Frechette! (laughs) But seriously, it’s been a lot of fun. And speaking of which, Sarah, tell people how they can register and what they can expect.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />It’s a completely free event! You just need to register ahead of time. The registration link is 2024.wpaccessibility.day/register/. It’s a big register button, so you can’t miss it.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />And Bob assures us that all the links will be in the show notes for this episode, so you can find them there as well. Sarah’s wearing our official T-shirt for this year that says “Focus: It’s a Feature, Not a Bug,” which is a fun inside joke for developers.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yes, it comes from people reporting the focus outline (the box around links when tabbing) as a bug, when in fact it’s a feature for accessibility.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Exactly! Focus outlines aren’t a design flaw—they enhance the design by making it easier for people to navigate the site.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />I still get that comment on almost every website.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />And if you want a shirt like Sarah’s, you can get one when you register with a donation of $50 or more. All the funds go toward running the event—paying speakers, interpreters, and captioners, and covering the costs of the website and other resources.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yes, and no one on the organizing team pockets any of the money. We do this because we love the community and accessibility, and we want to help others.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />If this event had a paid staff, it would cost money to attend, but we’re all volunteers.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Exactly. Any donations go toward making the event possible. And because we operate under the umbrella of a nonprofit, donations are tax-deductible. It all goes back into the event to keep it going year after year.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />October 9th and 10th is coming up fast! Ryan, what time does the event start?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />It starts at 14:45 UTC, which is 10:45 AM Eastern time.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />And are all of our speakers from North America?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />No, we have speakers from 12 different countries this year, which is three more than last year. We’ve made a strong effort to branch out, and we have speakers from Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific, Australia, Canada, South America—we’re very international this year.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />That’s awesome! I think around 25% of our speakers also identify as disabled, which I think is really cool.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yes, I have all the stats. We have 37% of our speakers identifying as male, 57% as female, 7% as non-binary, and 3% as trans. Additionally, 17% of our speakers are non-white, and 23% identify as living with a disability.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />And all of that information was volunteered by the speakers themselves.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />What other stats do you have for us?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Four of our speakers are first-time speakers, which is very exciting!</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />That’s amazing!</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />We’ll definitely need to show up and give them extra support.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Exactly.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />And we can ask questions, right? This is a live event.</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yes, all the sessions are live, and there will be time for Q&amp;A at the end of each talk. We’re asking our speakers to limit their talks to 30 to 45 minutes so there’s about 10 minutes for questions. There will also be breaks between sessions.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />I’m going to try to stay up for all 24 hours, but we’ll see how that goes!</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />All-nighters aren’t kind to us anymore!</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />Exactly. Any final thoughts, Ryan?</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />We’re just really excited for this year and hoping for a huge turnout. There’s no limit on registration, so if you’re interested, definitely sign up! Whether you’re new to accessibility or an expert, there’s something for everyone. You can also volunteer or donate to support the event.</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />I’m super excited for this event! It’s my first time attending live, and I can’t wait to experience it.</p>



<p>Michelle:<br />It’s going to be great! Thanks to both of you for joining me today, and thanks to Bob Dunn for letting us take over this podcast spot to talk about WordPress Accessibility Day. We’ll see everyone on October 9th!</p>



<p>Ryan:<br />Yeah!</p>



<p>Sarah:<br />Yay!</p>
</div>




<p>In this episode of <em><strong>Do the Woo</strong></em>, <strong>Michelle Frechette</strong>, guest hosting for the first time, joins fellow <strong>WordPress Accessibility Day</strong> organizers, <strong>Sarah Kornblum</strong> and <strong>Ryan Bracey</strong>, to discuss the upcoming 24-hour event on October 9th and 10th, 2024. Together, they chat about the importance of web accessibility, the challenges of organizing a global event, and the various ways accessibility improves the user experience for everyone. </p>



<p> Whether you&#8217;re a developer, designer, or content creator, this episode highlights why WordPress Accessibility Day is an essential resource for anyone in the WordPress community.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Takeaways</h2>



<p><strong>Web Accessibility Benefits Everyone</strong>: The hosts emphasize that web accessibility is not just about helping people with permanent disabilities but improves the experience for all users. Features like better contrast, structured navigation, and user-friendly designs make websites easier to use for everyone, including those with temporary or situational impairments.</p>



<p><strong>Small Changes Can Make a Big Difference</strong>: Simple adjustments, both in physical spaces and on the web, like curb cuts or focus outlines, improve access for a wider audience. Accessibility features benefit all users, not just those with specific disabilities.</p>



<p><strong>WordPress Accessibility Day is Global</strong>: The event has speakers from 12 different countries, showcasing diverse perspectives on accessibility from around the world. This international focus enhances the inclusivity of the event and the information shared.</p>



<p><strong>It’s a Free Event with a Wide Range of Topics</strong>: WordPress Accessibility Day covers accessibility for all levels—from beginners to experts. There are sessions tailored for content creators, designers, developers, and team leaders, making it a valuable resource for anyone in the WordPress community.</p>



<p><strong>Inclusivity Goes Beyond Design</strong>: Beyond aesthetics, accessibility is about creating websites and digital experiences that everyone can navigate and use. Good design doesn&#8217;t compromise accessibility—it enhances it.</p>



<p><strong>Live and Accessible</strong>: All sessions at WPAccessibility Day will feature live human captioning, live ASL interpretation, and will be made available on YouTube afterward with translations in multiple languages, ensuring the event is accessible to as many people as possible.</p>



<p><strong>Opportunities to Get Involved</strong>: Listeners can volunteer, help with translations, or donate to support the event. This community-driven approach helps make the event free and accessible to all while ensuring that speakers, interpreters, and captioners are compensated for their work.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Links to WordPress Accessibility Day</h3>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong><a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/">WordPress Accessibility Day 2024</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/">WordPress Accessibility Day Registration</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/schedule/">WordPress Accessibility Day Schedule</a></strong></li>
</ul>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Connect</h3>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong><a href="https://meetmichelle.online/">Meet Michelle</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/michelleames/">Michelle on WordPress.org</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellefrechetteames/">Michelle on LinkedIn</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://secondmelody.com/">Second Melody</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/braceomatic88/">Ryan on WordPress.org</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-bracey-61288324/">Ryan on LinkedIn</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://2dogsandalaptop.com/">Two Dogs and a Laptop</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-kornblum/">Sarah on LinkedIn</a></strong></li>
</ul>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 02 Oct 2024 09:18:57 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:15;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:74:"Do The Woo Community: Tips for the Anonymous Product Developers About Page";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:43:"https://dothewoo.io/?post_type=blog&p=85197";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:78:"https://dothewoo.io/blog/tips-for-the-anonymous-product-developers-about-page/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2788:"<p id="ember607">This is a pet peeve of mine. Being a visible player in the WooCommerce (and WordPress) space, I am inundated with requests to look at stuff, connect, offer advice, all of which I&#8217;m cool with. I also keep my eye on what&#8217;s happening out there.&nbsp;Often this all happens on social media. But regardless of the quality of the product, there is one thing that bugs me.</p>



<p id="ember608"><strong>Who are you?</strong></p>



<p id="ember609">This has happened a lot of times to me. And it happened again, so it&#8217;s fresh in my mind. a month or so ago. I was on X, saw a Woo plugin that I have never heard of and I clicked through to the site. Typically, I do two things. I glance at what the extension does, then I find out who created it. I look for the about page.</p>



<p id="ember610">But as so often happens, there is nothing about the person, team or business behind it. Now I understand that a lot of developers are introverts. And sometimes writing about themselves can be challenging, but yet&#8230;</p>



<p id="ember611">Absolutely <strong>nothing</strong>.</p>



<p id="ember612"><strong>Where is the online authenticity?</strong></p>



<p id="ember613">Guess what people? I am not going to use— or buy— your product out of the blue, even if I really need it. Unless you tell me who the heck you are.</p>



<p id="ember614">In that last example, I did a bit more investigation and in a roundabout way figured out it was the person who had originally tweeted it. But he didn&#8217;t make it easy.</p>



<p id="ember615">And it didn&#8217;t change my mind about using it. Sorry.</p>



<p id="ember616">And not too long ago I saw a different tweet. There was no link for a handle to the plugin&#8217;s Twitter page. Lo and behold, in the description, I found who created it. Following through to the site I was kept in the dark there with little information.</p>



<p id="ember617">I cannot say if other people are like me or not. But I can only wonder if there is some specific reason you don&#8217;t want to let me know you are behind this plugin? Do you really think I will snag it up without any proof of credibility? And I&#8217;m not talking an about page that says something like:</p>



<p id="ember618">We are a dedicated team of WooCommerce developers who really understand your needs and wanted to give you a solution that would make your life easier.</p>



<p id="ember619">And that is it. Well, blah, blah, blah.</p>



<p id="ember620">About pages are important. Otherwise, in the whole scheme of things,&nbsp;you are just another speck of dust in the cosmic universe. So, please tell me, who are you&nbsp;. It will certainly help you and just may put a few more bucks in your pocket and build that needed trust.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 01 Oct 2024 07:50:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:16;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:40:"WordPress.org blog: WordPress 6.7 Beta 1";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17857";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:56:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/10/wordpress-6-7-beta-1/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:13637:"<p id="block-0eaa018b-f0fe-49ae-a80b-762dd1f69d27">WordPress 6.7 Beta 1 is ready for download and testing!</p>



<p><strong>This beta version of the WordPress software is under development.</strong> Please do not install, run, or test this version of WordPress on production or mission-critical websites.  Instead, set up a test environment or a local site to explore the new features.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How to Test WordPress 6.7 Beta 1</h2>



<p>You can test Beta 1 in any of the following ways:&nbsp;</p>



<table><tbody><tr><td><strong>WordPress Beta Tester Plugin</strong>                                  </td><td>Install and activate the<a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/wordpress-beta-tester/"> WordPress Beta Tester</a> plugin on a WordPress install.&nbsp;Select the “Bleeding edge” channel and “Beta/RC Only” stream.</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Direct Download</strong></td><td>Download the<a href="https://wordpress.org/wordpress-6.7-beta1.zip"> Beta 1 version (zip)</a> and install it on a WordPress website.</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Command Line (WP-CLI)</strong>                      </td><td>Use this<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/cli/"> WP-CLI</a> command: <code>wp core update --version=6.7-beta1</code></td></tr><tr><td><strong>WordPress Playground</strong></td><td>Use a<a href="https://playground.wordpress.net/#%7B%20%22preferredVersions%22:%20%7B%20%22php%22:%20%228.0%22,%20%22wp%22:%20%22beta%22%20%7D,%20%22features%22:%20%7B%20%22networking%22:%20true%20%7D,%20%22steps%22:%20[%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22login%22,%20%22username%22:%20%22admin%22,%20%22password%22:%20%22password%22%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22importFile%22,%20%22file%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22url%22,%20%22url%22:%20%22https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wpaccessibility/a11y-theme-unit-test/master/a11y-theme-unit-test-data.xml%22%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22importFile%22,%20%22file%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22url%22,%20%22url%22:%20%22https://raw.githubusercontent.com/WordPress/theme-test-data/master/themeunittestdata.wordpress.xml%22%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22query-monitor%22%20%7D,%20%22options%22:%20%7B%20%22activate%22:%20false%20%7D,%20%22progress%22:%20%7B%20%22weight%22:%202%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22create-block-theme%22%20%7D,%20%22progress%22:%20%7B%20%22weight%22:%202%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22debug-bar%22%20%7D,%20%22progress%22:%20%7B%20%22weight%22:%202%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22health-check%22%20%7D,%20%22progress%22:%20%7B%20%22weight%22:%202%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22test-reports%22%20%7D,%20%22progress%22:%20%7B%20%22weight%22:%202%20%7D%20%7D,%20%7B%20%22step%22:%20%22installPlugin%22,%20%22pluginZipFile%22:%20%7B%20%22resource%22:%20%22wordpress.org/plugins%22,%20%22slug%22:%20%22user-switching%22%20%7D,%20%22progress%22:%20%7B%20%22weight%22:%202%20%7D%20%7D%20]%20%7D"> 6.7 Beta 1 WordPress Playground instance</a> to test the software directly in your browser. No setup required–-just click and go!</td></tr></tbody></table>



<p>The scheduled final release date for WordPress 6.7 is <strong>November 12, 2024</strong>. Your help testing Beta and RC versions over the next six weeks is vital to ensuring the final release is everything it should be: stable, powerful, and intuitive.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How important is your testing?</h2>



<p>Testing for issues is a critical part of developing any software, and it’s a meaningful way for anyone to contribute—whether or not you have experience.</p>



<p>If you encounter an issue, please share it in the<a href="https://wordpress.org/support/forum/alphabeta/"> Alpha/Beta area</a> of the support forums. If you are comfortable submitting a reproducible bug report, you can do so<a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/newticket"> via WordPress Trac</a>. You can also check your issue against a list of<a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/tickets/major"> known bugs</a>.</p>



<p>Curious about testing releases in general and how to get started? Follow along with the<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/test/"> testing initiatives in Make Core</a> and join the<a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/messages/core-test/"> #core-test channel</a> on<a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/"> Making WordPress Slack</a>.</p>



<p>WordPress 6.7 will include many new features that were previously only available in the Gutenberg plugin. Learn more about Gutenberg updates since WordPress 6.7 in the<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/tag/gutenberg-new/"> What’s New in Gutenberg</a> posts for versions <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/06/09/what-is-new-in-gutenberg-18-5-05-jun/">18.5</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/06/20/whats-new-in-gutenberg-18-6/">18.6</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/07/04/whats-new-in-gutenberg-18-7-03-july/">18.7</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/07/17/whats-new-in-gutenberg-18-8-17-july/">18.8</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/07/31/whats-new-in-gutenberg-18-9-31-july/">18.9</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/08/14/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-0-14-august/">19.0</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/08/28/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-1-28-august/">19.1</a>, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/12/what-is-new-in-gutenberg-19-2-11-september/">19.2</a>, and <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/">19.3</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What’s New in WordPress 6.7 Beta 1</h2>



<p>WordPress 6.7 Beta 1 contains over 500 enhancements and over 500 bug fixes for the editor, including more than <a href="https://core.trac.wordpress.org/query?status=closed&milestone=6.7&group=component&max=500&col=id&col=summary&col=owner&col=type&col=priority&col=component&col=version&order=priority">200 tickets for WordPress 6.7 Core</a>. Here’s a glimpse of what’s coming:</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Meet the Twenty Twenty-Five theme</h3>



<p>Launching with WordPress 6.7, the new default theme, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/08/15/introducing-twenty-twenty-five/">Twenty Twenty-Five</a>, embodies ultimate flexibility and adaptability, showcasing how WordPress empowers you to tell your story with a rich selection of patterns and styles. Inspired by glimpses of natural beauty and ancestry heritage, it evokes ideas of impermanence, the passage of time, and continuous evolution–mirroring life’s journey. Experience effortless site creation with Twenty Twenty-Five and follow its progress or report issues on <a href="https://github.com/wordpress/twentytwentyfive">this GitHub repo</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Zoom Out to Compose with Patterns</h3>



<p>The Zoom Out view simplifies your editing experience by allowing you to create and edit at the pattern level rather than focusing on individual blocks. Easily toggle this view from the toolbar to streamline your site-building process, making it faster and more intuitive to design pages using patterns.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Media improvements&nbsp;</h3>



<p>Now supporting HEIC image uploads–automatically converted to JPEG for maximum compatibility–you can add high-quality images without worrying about browser support. Plus, enjoy auto-sizing for lazy-loaded images and expanded background image options at both individual and global levels, giving you greater control over your site&#8217;s visuals and performance.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Expanding Block Supports</h3>



<p>Several blocks now come with expanded support options, enabling even more design possibilities. Notably, the long-requested shadow support for Group blocks has been added, a big win for designers and theme developers!</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Preview Options API&nbsp;</h3>



<p>The latest WordPress release enhances the Preview Options in the block editor, empowering developers to customize content previews. A new API allows plugins and themes to add custom items to the preview dropdown menu, enabling users to see content in different formats or environments. This flexibility enriches the editing experience while maintaining the existing familiar Preview dropdown structure.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Refined Data Views</h3>



<p>The Data Views introduced in 6.5 continue to be improved. This release is focused on refining the experience with a few new features aimed at making these views more flexible for customization and more functional to use.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Manage Block Bindings Directly</h3>



<p>Updates to this API in 6.7 polish and open most of the underlying APIs, improving the overall user experience, and add a user interface (UI) that allows you to connect attributes with custom fields to their binding sources. This new UI makes it possible to create bindings directly in a block instead of needing to use the Code Editor. By default admin and editor users can create and modify bindings, but this can be overridden with `block_editor_settings_all or map_meta_cap` filters.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Simplified and Smarter Query Loop Block</h3>



<p>The Query Loop block is improved, as it now automatically inherits the query from the template by default, eliminating the need for manual configuration. This means your posts display immediately in both the editor and on the front end, streamlining the process so users can focus on content without extra configuration needed.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Edit and Control Font Size Presets</h3>



<p>An enhanced Styles interface allows for greater flexibility when creating, editing, removing, and applying font size presets. You can now easily modify the presets provided by a theme or create your own custom options. A key feature is the ability to toggle fluid typography, which enables responsive font scaling with additional options for finer control over responsiveness.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">View Meta Boxes in the iframed Post Editor</h3>



<p>A new split view option has been introduced that allows you to access both the editor canvas and metaboxes while editing. This change will provide a consistent WYSIWYG experience between the editor and front end views.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Template Registration API</h3>



<p>With this release, developers can now more easily register custom block templates without complex filters. Streamline your development process and create custom templates with ease.&nbsp;</p>



<p><strong><strong>The features included in this first beta may change before the final release of WordPress 6.7, based on what testers like you find.</strong></strong></p>



<p>Get an overview of the<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/6-7/"> 6.7 release cycle</a> and check the<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/"> Make WordPress Core blog</a> for<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/tag/6-7/"> 6.7-related posts</a> in the next few weeks for further details.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Vulnerability bounty doubles during Beta &amp; Release Candidate</h2>



<p>The WordPress community sponsors a<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/security/2024/02/12/welcoming-2024-with-wordpress-6-5-beta-1/"> monetary reward for reporting new, unreleased security vulnerabilities</a>. This reward doubles during the period between Beta 1 on October 1, 2024 and the final Release Candidate (RC) scheduled for November 5, 2024. Please follow responsible disclosure practices as detailed in the project’s security practices and policies outlined on the<a href="https://hackerone.com/wordpress"> HackerOne page</a> and in the<a href="https://wordpress.org/about/security/"> security white paper</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Just for you: a Beta 1 haiku</h3>



<p>Lines of code arise,&nbsp;<br />Testing shapes the future path,&nbsp;&nbsp;<br />WordPress grows once more.</p>



<p class="has-text-align-left is-style-default"><em>Props to <em><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/annezazu/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>annezazu</a>, </em><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/cbringmann/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>cbringmann</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/colorful-tones/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>colorful-tones</a>,</em> <em><em><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/courane01/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>courane01</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/desrosj/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>desrosj</a>, <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/marybaum/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>marybaum</a>, and <a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/priethor/" class="mention"><span class="mentions-prefix">@</span>priethor</a></em> or reviewing and collaborating on this post!</em></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 01 Oct 2024 04:41:44 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"David Baumwald";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:17;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:92:"WPTavern: InstaWP Announces the World’s First WordPress Online Hackathon ‘AnyoneCanWP’";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=162356";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:94:"https://wptavern.com/instawp-announces-the-worlds-first-wordpress-online-hackathon-anyonecanwp";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2545:"<p>InstaWP, known for its innovative one-click WordPress sandbox launcher, has launched <a href="https://anyonecanwp.com/">AnyoneCanWP</a>, the world’s first online hackathon dedicated to WordPress development. Registrations are open now, and participants can submit their projects until October 26.</p>



<p>The hackathon will officially begin on October 11, 2024, with a <a href="https://streamyard.com/watch/FkyPknkrPqFi">keynote address</a> by Joost de Valk, founder of Yoast SEO and a pivotal figure in the WordPress ecosystem. This sets the stage for an engaging competition where developers and designers can showcase their skills.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Important Dates</h3>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Hackathon Start Date: October 11, 2024</li>



<li>Submission Deadline: October 26, 2024</li>



<li>Public Voting Period: October 18 – October 28, 2024</li>



<li>Final Presentations and Judging: November 10, 2024</li>
</ul>



<p>To participate, individuals must first <a href="https://anyonecanwp.com/registration/">register</a> with an email address to receive official details and an invitation. Participants can create their projects using InstaWP’s 1-click sandbox launcher. Projects must be completed within a 15-day timeframe using only free plugins and themes.</p>



<p>During the public voting phase, which runs from October 18 to October 28, participants can promote their projects and engage with the community to gather votes.</p>



<p>The hackathon jury includes WordPress celebrities, including Miriam Schwab (Head of WordPress Relations at Elementor and co-founder of Strattic), Jamie Marsland (Head of WordPress YouTube), Davinder Singh Kainth (curator of the WP Weekly newsletter), and Anne-Mieke Bovelett (Accessibility advocate and multilingual WordPress expert).</p>



<p>The winner will take home $3,000, with second and third places receiving $1,000 and $500, respectively. All top ten participants will also get InstaWP credits and additional partner credits to elevate their WordPress projects and services. Plus, the top winners will receive a complimentary one-year premium account with InstaWP, unlocking a suite of advanced features and tools.</p>



<p>The event is sponsored by Automattic, who also provided <a href="https://wptavern.com/instawp-gets-seed-funding-from-automattic">seed funding</a> to InstaWP in 2022. For more information and to register for the hackathon, interested participants can visit the official <a href="https://anyonecanwp.com/">website</a>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 30 Sep 2024 18:34:08 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:18;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:42:"Do The Woo Community: The Do the Woo Lunch";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:43:"https://dothewoo.io/?post_type=blog&p=85827";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:46:"https://dothewoo.io/blog/the-do-the-woo-lunch/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2850:"<p>For the first time, we had a invite-only lunch during the recent WordCampUS 2024. We invited our sponsors, hosts and some DTW friends. Having it during the day, and on Showcase Day, gave more opportunity to for people to fit it into their schedule. But of course, some were not able to make it as there is so much going on with meetings and other get together. But we are so happy that we were able to do it.</p>



<p>What was absolutely amazing is that our <strong><a href="https://www.avalara.com/">sponsor Avalara</a></strong> stepped up to sponsor the lunch. Oliver St. George who lives in Seattle is very familiar with Portland as he has lived there as well. So he was able to find us a room at the Spirit of 77, across from the convention center.</p>



<p>Avalara is an exclusive sponsor of our <a href="https://dothewoo.io/podcasts/scaling-enterprise-wordpress-and-open-source-software/">Scaling Enterprise: WordPress &amp; OSS</a> and a shared sponsor of <a href="https://dothewoo.io/podcasts/woo-devchat/">Woo DevChat</a>.</p>



<p>So a huge thank you to <strong><a href="https://www.avalara.com/">Avalara</a></strong>!</p>



<p>And check out some photos from the lunch. (We will be adding more soon)</p>




<img width="1024" height="768" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_3831.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85840" />



<img width="1024" height="768" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_3833.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85839" />



<img width="1024" height="768" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_3835.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85837" />



<img width="1024" height="768" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_3838.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85838" />



<img width="1024" height="768" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_3841.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85841" />



<img width="1024" height="683" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_6746.jpg?resize=1024%2C683&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85835" />



<img width="1024" height="683" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_6749.jpg?resize=1024%2C683&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85833" />



<img width="1024" height="683" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/dothewoo.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/IMG_6750.jpg?resize=1024%2C683&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-85836" />




<p>And if you would like to see more <a href="https://bobwp.com/2024/09/30/my-wordcampus-2024-photo-galley/">photos from BobWP from WordCampUS 2024, check the gallery out here.</a></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 30 Sep 2024 09:12:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:19;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:120:"Gutenberg Times: Gutenberg Changelog #108 – Gutenberg 19.3, WordPress 6.7 – Block Themes for Agencies, WordCamp Asia";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:53:"https://gutenbergtimes.com/?post_type=podcast&p=30291";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:85:"https://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast/gutenberg-changelog-108-block-themes-for-agencies/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:61363:"<p>In this episode, Birgit Pauli-Haack and JC Palmes, engineering manager at WebDev Studios, discuss Gutenberg 19.3, WordPress 6.7 &#8211; Block Themes for Agencies, and WordCamp Asia.</p>



<p>Add a summary/excerpt here</p>



<p><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast/gutenberg-changelog-69-gutenberg-releases-wordpress-6-0-1-the-create-block-theme/#shownotes">Show Notes</a> / <a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast/gutenberg-changelog-108-block-themes-for-agencies/#transcript">Transcript</a></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Editor:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandy-reed/">Sandy Reed</a></li>



<li>Logo:&nbsp;<a href="https://markuraine.com/">Mark Uraine</a></li>



<li>Production:&nbsp;<a href="https://icodeforapurpose.com">Birgit Pauli-Haack</a></li>
</ul>



<p class="has-larger-font-size" id="shownotes"><strong>Show Notes</strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">JC Palmes</h2>



<ul class="wp-block-social-links is-layout-flex wp-block-social-links-is-layout-flex"><li class="wp-social-link wp-social-link-x  wp-block-social-link"><a href="https://twitter.com/jpalmes" class="wp-block-social-link-anchor"><span class="wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text">X</span></a></li>

<li class="wp-social-link wp-social-link-github  wp-block-social-link"><a href="https://github.com/khleomix/" class="wp-block-social-link-anchor"><span class="wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text">GitHub</span></a></li>

<li class="wp-social-link wp-social-link-wordpress  wp-block-social-link"><a href="https://profiles.wordpress.org/khleomix/" class="wp-block-social-link-anchor"><span class="wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text">WordPress</span></a></li>

<li class="wp-social-link wp-social-link-instagram  wp-block-social-link"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/khleomix/" class="wp-block-social-link-anchor"><span class="wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text">Instagram</span></a></li>

<li class="wp-social-link wp-social-link-facebook  wp-block-social-link"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jcpalmes/" class="wp-block-social-link-anchor"><span class="wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text">Facebook</span></a></li>

<li class="wp-social-link wp-social-link-linkedin  wp-block-social-link"><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcmaepalmes/" class="wp-block-social-link-anchor"><span class="wp-block-social-link-label screen-reader-text">LinkedIn</span></a></li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://khleomix.com/">Website</a></li>



<li><a href="https://webdevstudios.com/2024/08/26/webdevstudios-wordpress-block-themes/">Embracing the Future: How WebDevStudios Is Leading with WordPress Block Themes</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/themes/powder/">Powder Theme</a> by Brian Gardner</li>



<li><a href="https://github.com/WebDevStudios/wds-bt">WDS-BT on GitHub</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wdsbt.wdslab.com/">Demo Site of WDS-BT Theme</a></li>



<li><a href="https://asia.wordcamp.org/2025/">WordCamp Asia</a> </li>
</ul>



<p><strong>Announcements</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2024/09/17/how-to-build-a-multi-block-plugin/">How to build a multi-block plugin</a></li>



<li><strong>DataViews</strong>
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/2024/09/20/data-views-update-2/">Data Views Update #2</a> was published&nbsp;</li>



<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1fIC4N_HVw">Introduction to Data Views Developer Hours</a> (Developer Hours)</li>



<li>Part 1: <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2024/08/27/using-data-views-to-display-and-interact-with-data-in-plugins/">Using Data Views to display and interact with data in plugins</a>&nbsp;</li>



<li>Part 2:<a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2024/09/23/actions-from-data-views-adding-images-to-the-media-library/">Actions from Data Views: Adding images to the Media Library</a></li>
</ul>
</li>



<li><strong>WordPress 6.7 </strong>
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/6-7/">WordPress 6.7 Beta 1</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/03/roadmap-to-6-7/">Roadmap to 6.7</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>What&#8217;s released: </strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://github.com/WordPress/create-block-theme/releases/tag/v2.5.0">Create Block Theme plugin version 2.5</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/">What’s new in Gutenberg 19.3? (25 September)</a></li>
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<p class="has-large-font-size" id="transcript"><strong>Transcript</strong></p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Hello, and welcome to our 108 episode of the Gutenberg Changelog podcast. In today&#8217;s episode, we will talk about Gutenberg&#8217;s 19.3, WordPress 6.7 briefly, block themes for agencies in WordCamp Asia. I&#8217;m your host, Birgit Pauli-Haack curator at the Gutenberg Times, and a full-time core contributor for the WordPress Open Source project sponsored by Automattic. For the first time on the show, I have a great pleasure to introduce to you, dear listeners, JC Palmes. She&#8217;s one of the local leads of the WordCamp Asia 2025, and in her day job, JC works as the engineering manager at WebDev Studios. Welcome to the show, JC. How are you today? How&#8217;s the weather in the Philippines?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Hi, Birgit. Thank you so much for having me. It&#8217;s a real pleasure to join you on the show. The Philippines is still very warm today. Well, warmer than usual. We are supposed to have a typhoon coming up.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Oh, no. Oh, no. So the Philippines is in the tropics, right? So it&#8217;s similar to Bangkok from the weather in Florida.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> More or less. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. All right. So the Philippines, I don&#8217;t know a lot about the Philippines that will change when I come over for WordCamp Asia, but the Philippines comprises of about 7,000 islands. So where do you live?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. It&#8217;s 7,641 islands to be exact. It changes on a decade to decade basis, I guess. But yeah, I am in the Panay Island in the city of Iloilo and it&#8217;s a small island, but it&#8217;s a vibrant hub for tech and innovation. Yeah. It&#8217;s not as traffic heavy as Manila, which you will experience next year. You&#8217;ll love the people here if we come to visit.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Oh, I&#8217;m sure about it. Yeah. But when you say you&#8217;re active in the community, so you organized WordPress meetups in Iloilo, and you also organized or started the WordCamp Iloilo. When did this all happen?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> We organized WordPress Iloilo Meetup Group around August 2016, 2017.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> You almost at eight years.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes</em>: Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>Over eight years.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Started our first WordCamp in 2018.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Oh, wow. Yeah. And then you had one 2019, right?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. We did.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Did you also organize one after the pandemic?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yes, we did. We organized&#8230; Well, we had one last 2023 and opted not to do 2024 because WordCamp Asia is going to be in the Philippines and most of my local organizers here are also organizers in WordCamp Asia and volunteers as well. So it&#8217;s a lot to ask them to pay local WordCamp as well as the flagship one.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Yeah. No, I wouldn&#8217;t have thought that there would be a local one when there is a regional one, because that takes a lot of out of you as an organizer or especially a lead organizer, but also if you just going to have a team organizing role, it&#8217;s a lot of work and you don&#8217;t want to lose focus on that. Yeah. I totally get it. Yeah. So yeah, we had the last month we got together because I connected with you about two things, right? There was one was the webinar for WebDev Studios on the lunch-and-learn.</p>



<p>And then we also discussed, I read the article by Lisa Sabin-Wilson on the website, WebDev Studio that you started to have working with Block Themes. And then when I read through the article, I found that you had created a starter theme that your agency is going to use for projects. So today I want to talk to you a little bit about it because we get a lot of questions about how agencies work with Block Themes and all that. So I just wanted to, being with the source as the engineering manager, I think you had a major role in putting that together.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. WDSBT was, well, it&#8217;s kind of a brainchild between Lisa, me, and Mitch, our director of engineering, and it&#8217;s a starter theme. We stands for, of course, WebDev Studios Block Theme. And the goal really was to create a flexible block-based foundation that fully embraces modern WordPress capabilities while also allowing for highly customizable websites. When we initially started this, we started with Brian Gardner&#8217;s Powder theme for inspiration. But because I spearheaded the project, and really when I started this, I was learning about Block Themes, and as I go along, I found that instead of changing, adding into the Powder theme, we needed to make it entirely our own &#8217;cause we have a design system and we need to make sure that the theme that we are going to create aligns with that design system. So the original setup with the Powder theme didn&#8217;t really align with the vision, so it was mostly overhauled by me. So&#8230;</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Tell me a little bit about the design system, because a lot of people think about design system that is not in WordPress, but maybe in Figma or in some other design tool. How are you working with that? Is that something that you now built into the Block Theme or is it separate?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> It&#8217;s built into the Block Theme. So what we did was take that design system, so the design system was created with blocks in mind. We have sort of redesigned the core blocks in a way that it would be easier for us to create the components that we mostly use in our projects and would be easily extendable based on, of course, on a project-to-project basis because every project is different, but all of the elements in a component are going to be the same. And the core blocks as is with our design is pretty solid, but we needed more. Well, clients needed more, and that is what our design system allows us to do. And by integrating that with the theme, it just makes our work with whatever design our senior UX designer, Jennifer Cooley creates and just makes things easier and faster.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Mm-hmm. Excellent. Excellent. So when you put this together, how long did it take you to from learning about Block Themes in zero learning to, &#8220;Okay. We have a solid foundation for our projects.&#8221;</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> It took me probably around two, three months. It would probably take a lot, well, it would probably be faster if I already knew the structure. And I&#8217;m saying that because I&#8217;m dyslexic, so I work with patterns and learning new things kind of takes me out of my comfort zone. But because of how Block Themes in general are structured, it&#8217;s structured enough for me to pick up the patterns right away. And it took two, three months before we are actively using it on projects. So we&#8217;ve used it on three successful projects so far, launched projects.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So what did you find coming from the classic theme in the agency? So what you found easy to do with or easier maybe in switching to Block Themes and what did you think was very hard?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes</em>: So what was relatively easy is the process of working with native WordPress blocks. That&#8217;s the mouthful. Again, my brain works with patterns, right? I&#8217;m not sure if it&#8217;s going to be the same for other engineers, but that was what&#8217;s easy for me. And because of that, it kind of provided us with a solid foundation and really allowed for quick implementation of reusable design elements, which is integrated in our design system. And what was hard, of course, was transitioning from our wd_s PHP-based framework to a block-based approach. Although before it was transitioned into Block Themes already. It was a hybrid theme, but we were mostly using it for PHP based framework still, but transitioning meant rethinking of the entire development process, and that takes a while for it to click, and we are getting there. Again, as I mentioned, we&#8217;ve successfully launched three projects. One of those is a really big site and well, the last project that we launched is the first TrueBP Build where we did not really use any shortcuts, I guess.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Good. Good. Good.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> And it&#8217;s also probably one of the most successful launches that we&#8217;ve had with regards to performance and page speed and all those fun stuff. It&#8217;s a site with 18,000 plus users and it got 100 performance scores on page speed and 93 on mobile, 100 on desktop, 93 on mobile, and 93 on mobile was big.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>That&#8217;s awesome. Congratulations. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Thank you.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So you have a team of developers that also had a different level of familiarity with Block Themes and blocks. How did the transition work for them? What were the blocks mostly?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. So the team that I worked with at WebDevs teachers for this particular project are, well, all of the engineers that I have on WebDevs teachers are amazing developers. The theme that created this site already established in Block Themes, although didn&#8217;t have the actual experience of building one for clients. They built one personally as I did, and I worked with them closely to make sure that we learned together.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Excellent.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> That&#8217;s best, right?</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Mm-hmm. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>And there were a lot of gutters we had to pull in Ryan and Nick.&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> You mean Ryan Welcher and Nick Diego?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Ryan Welcher. Yeah. Ryan Welcher helped us a lot and figuring things out, especially with Block Bindings, that unblocked a lot of stuff for us.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Block Bindings, so it&#8217;s amazing, especially because it works so much with the meta fields and you can have your own data sources. Yeah. So what I often heard from agencies is that they don&#8217;t use core blocks, but that seems to be different in yours, in your case, that you mostly base it all on native core blocks and only have variations and primary block styles that you extend them to or with. So I think that&#8217;s a great way to leverage all the work that the developers do in core to bring those forward and you can build your sites on it.&nbsp;</p>



<p>The last question I have on that, and then I think we can move on unless you want to say something more, is so with the Block Themes, there is also your clients are now able to create their own templates or modify the templates. Is that all open to them or what&#8217;s the training about? What&#8217;s the implementation at the clients? What&#8217;s the process there to give them that freedom?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes</em>: It&#8217;s open to them, but we did add in some guard rails, particularly with what we&#8217;ve set in theme Jason, but then again, it&#8217;s WordPress, it&#8217;s open for clients this time around. We did not sort of think deeply, I guess? That&#8217;s the only word they can really think of right now. Features are with a website that is designed for clients, you&#8217;ll have to be very careful with telling them what to do, how to use this block, how to figure things out.</p>



<p>And with Block Themes, because they&#8217;re able to just create an entire template at an entirely new header and all those stuff, we made sure that we have all of the documentation ready for them. Documentation that is part of WordPress, we just give them the link to that because you don&#8217;t have to change it out. It&#8217;s all there for them to read. We fully document any custom block that we create. And also all of the custom blocks that we do are also just core blocks. We opted to always do core blocks first if it&#8217;s doable, and just go the other route if not. But so far we were able to do everything just using core blocks.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Core blocks. Yeah. Wonderful. Excellent.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> And clients showing them how to use the website and with Block Themes, we thought was going to be hard. It wasn&#8217;t it. They were very happy with just having that freedom and being that it&#8217;s intuitive enough for them to just go in and add in their content. It&#8217;s just amazing to see.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. So when you have one of these large projects, how many block patterns do you&#8230; What&#8217;s the good number that you use there? Is it 25 or is it 50 or is it&#8230; Yeah. I heard other people have 58 patterns in there, or 58 new blocks.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Oh wow. That&#8217;s a lot.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palme</em>s: Because we are leveraging core blocks, we are actively using them for everything. We have variations. So BT, WSBT, we can add in variations with just a couple lines of code and eight variations that variations and block variations. You don&#8217;t really need to create that many patterns or blocks because then they&#8217;ll be able to just use it. But of course, if there&#8217;s a sub layout, we create a pattern for that, a template pattern so that they can just add that in a page and then just change things around. I&#8217;m not exactly sure how many patterns we did for this site. I know that it&#8217;s not 50 plus, it&#8217;s less than that.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Okay. All right. Okay. So if listeners are interested in learning from you, and I know developers like to look at code and theme developers even more, especially your theme JSON and how you set up all the assets. And so your theme is available on GitHub, that&#8217;s public record, right?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Yes.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> It&#8217;s in a public record.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> It is public now. It was silently public for the past few months, and then we opened it up publicly release this post when we set out version 1.0, and it&#8217;s that to go up to 1.5 by this week with some modifications with the versioning cache buster, and then fix this particularly to the mobile menu because that needs a lot of love.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: It does. Yes. Yes. Absolutely. Yeah. Especially when you have things that are you want on a desktop, but you don&#8217;t want them on the mobile and you want to kind of stack things differently in a different order. It&#8217;s really hard to implement that. Yeah. Totally get it.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Yeah. So I will show in the show notes if that&#8217;s okay with you, the GitHub repo for the WDS-BT theme. Well, maybe you could come up with a cuter name.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> We just really call it BT.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Yeah, of course. Block Themes, I get it. Yeah. And it&#8217;s the acronym from your company, WebDev Studio.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Totally get it. I will share that. And I also will share, again, the link to the article that Lisa Wilson put together in the show notes so you can kind of look through it to your listeners. But I find it very interesting to talk to you about that. So thank you for sharing all your insights on that.</p>



<p>JC Palmes: Thank you.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Announcements</h3>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So dear listeners, we have a few announcements for you, and it&#8217;s mostly about what&#8217;s published. So there&#8217;s a data views update number two, has been published on the design make blog with new updates on cam-sounds like what are new features on the data views. There&#8217;s some great work being done there. You can catch up with that. So it was the primary filter visibility has been changed. Then you can reorder table columns and view options. So you can hide columns, a feature that was available in the WP admin, but not always all columns and not always all columns are in there, so you can get them in and out.</p>



<p>And then also have a featured image and the title field in the display for pages. And then you can pin columns and rows. And the advanced filtering is really great. You can have and and/or filtering categories in tag or is any out of particular list of tags. So when you&#8217;re looking at the 2,000 or 20,000 blog posts, you can narrow down the filtering quite a bit in the admin section there. So check it out, I share it in the show notes. Then there&#8217;s two more posts on the developer blog. So if you went to block development more on the beginner side, there&#8217;s an article on how to build a multi block plugin.</p>



<p>So with the create-block scaffolding tool, we had a similar article about two months ago, but this is a little bit of a different approach. So you get more variations on how you can approach that, and it&#8217;s really great because it gets you step by step through that tutorial. Troy Chaplin is a new writer on the developer blog, and he is from Ottawa, Canada and is writing on the second blog now&#8230; blog post. And the second blog post was actually the second part of a series on data views on how you as a plugin developer can use it for your plugin in the admin section. So the first part came out a month ago, like using data views to display and interact with data in plugins. And then the second one is called actions from data views. So how to add the image that you bring in from the data into a media library.</p>



<p>So it&#8217;s kind of an app pretty much that you can build there. It&#8217;s a React app and you get through in the tutorial from beginning to end. So it&#8217;s a really interesting series of blog posts. And with that, there was a data views developer hours where both JuanMa Garrido wrote the two articles that I just mentioned. But then there was also Nick Diego was in the developer hours, and Andre Manero who&#8217;s one of the developers who put this all together. And the recording I will also share in the show notes. And the last announcement&#8230; it&#8217;s not the last announcement, the second last announcement is you take it&#8217;s about WordCamp Asia.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">WordCamp Asia</h3>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Oh, yeah, right. Okay. WordCamp Asia. So the next batch of tickets for WordCamp Asia 2025 will be released on October 3 at 12:00 PM Philippine time. I&#8217;m not sure what that is in UTC. I&#8217;m really bad with time zones.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Oh, it&#8217;s kind of earlier in the day. It&#8217;s in the morning. Yeah. So October 3rd in the morning is the ticket release. Yes. Yeah. Awesome.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> With those who don&#8217;t know WordCamp Asia 2025 will be held at the PICC in Manila Philippines from February 20 to 2022&#8230; No, 20 to 22, 2025. So yeah, be sure to mark your calendars and secure your tickets as soon as they&#8217;re available. Maybe we can talk, if you see me just say hi.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. And I just saw on Twitter a series from Sushi about the photos of the walkthrough of the organizing team in Manila. So it was, if you follow him on Twitter, I can share some links that as well in the show notes. So you can see how grand this convention center is where the conference will be held. So I&#8217;m really looking forward to that.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. They&#8217;re doing that today. I did fly out because, well, I need to fly again in the next couple of weeks. But then again, also I do have one more thing with WordCamp Asia 2025, you&#8217;re also still looking for sponsors.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Okay.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. So if you or your company are interested in supporting the event, feel free to reach out. I&#8217;d love to discuss how you can get involved.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. And I&#8217;ll link the call for sponsors page in the show notes so you can check it out what the options are for different levels and all that and what&#8217;s all included into the sponsor packages. I think that helps. No, that was really good. Thank you. Well, that&#8217;s a few months to go. So some people are really late in their decisions and it&#8217;s the next year, so their budget is not out yet. So I can understand that some people are a little bit hesitant to get this going. So the speaker is also, you got a lot of submissions I heard for speakers.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> A lot.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Was it more than last year?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>I haven&#8217;t checked yet. So I&#8217;m mentoring sponsors, operations and the technology team. Global leads are sponsoring other teams. And then one of the local leads as well, Andrew is he is mentoring venue, which takes a lot.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>Oh, yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> So we all have our hands full. We are getting there. We have an amazing set of organizers as usual, and I can&#8217;t wait to see them.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Yeah. I&#8217;m so grateful that everybody puts things together. And the two WordCamps Asia that I&#8230; &#8217;23 and &#8217;24 were just amazing. And I had a great time and it was great to talk to everybody there. And they were also open. And yeah, I&#8217;ve made a lot of new friends, so happy to also hopefully get there again next year.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>You should. It&#8217;s in my country.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Yeah. And if I come, I&#8217;ll spend a few days. So my approach is always I come in early, maybe a week or four days early, get over the jet lag, get the lay of the land. So I don&#8217;t know. So when I want to meet people. I know where the restaurants are, I know where the venue is, but I also get to do some sightseeing in a place where I haven&#8217;t been. So if it&#8217;s the first time&#8230; Yeah. I&#8217;m really looking forward to exploring Manila the few days that I have beforehand. I haven&#8217;t booked the flight yet. I need to wait for the okay. Of course, I don&#8217;t see why not. We&#8217;ll see how that goes.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> That would be nice. Amazing. I mean, Manila is an amazing city to explore.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> I&#8217;m looking forward to that.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">What’s Released &#8211; WordPress 6.7 Beta 1 &#8211; Create Block Theme</h3>



<p>So next week, WordPress 6.7 Beta 1 is going to come out in October. On Thursday, October 1st, no Tuesday, sorry, on Tuesday, October 1st. And if you want to refresh what&#8217;s on the docket, I&#8217;ll share the link to the roadmap from 6.7 that Anne McCarthy put out. But I&#8217;m also hoping that by then after that, she also publishes a little bit more updated, because I know there is some change in the Zoom out feature, which I really love and I know the best part that I love will get in.</p>



<p>What was a little bit harder was to figure out how the editing works when you edit what you zoom out on your site for design. And if you want to contribute and have some time and want to learn at the same time, keep an eye out for that. The Make test team is about to publish with the beta, the help to test WordPress 6.7 post. It&#8217;s going to be a long one, but you can pick the features that you want to learn about or you want to test about, and the more you test, the better the version becomes. So that&#8217;s a big appeal to help us testing the beta versions.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. For sure. I do want to touch on &#8217;cause you&#8217;ve already mentioned some of the big updates, right? I think it&#8217;s also worth mentioning some of the smaller fixes that don&#8217;t always get a lot of attention, but really make a big difference in day-to-day use. There are a few things that I really love personally and versus there&#8217;s the great Block theme plugin that now allows you to, no, they rename on assets when saving or exporting, and it&#8217;s a small but neat update, but that makes asset management easier for developers working with custom fonts. And we work with custom fonts a lot.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> So fonts are now copied directly to the local theme folder, which is such a time saver when dealing with multiple customizations. One other update that I think is worth mentioning is removal of the categories hidden tag.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> I haven&#8217;t mentioned anything about the&#8230; So when we are talking about now about the create Block Theme plugin new version that was released a week ago, and are you using in your Block Theme building process, the grade Block Theme plugin? How do you use that?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> We are. So it&#8217;s integrated in WDEVS BT, we are able to create&#8230; Well, this scaffold new blocks using a template that we have set in BT and leveraging the create-block script. So we have that added in our package JSON, and when our developers create a new block, we just run the script and it will scaffold all the files they need as part of the theme and they can just start creating a new block right away. It works right away, right away, right away. Yeah. It works. Once you run the script, it takes the template that we&#8217;ve set and then scaffold is a block and you have a very simple block showing up right away.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Oh, okay. So that&#8217;s the create-block script. And that&#8217;s where probably Ryan came in because he&#8217;s a specialist in the…</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Yeah. That one.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> And also we are&#8230; So this is an internal thing that we do with the create blocks plugin where we use it for a versioning thing or when we are doing patterns, changing patterns, and editing patterns and grading patterns. And it&#8217;s still a work in progress of course, but we are actively using that plugin and also the script and amazing plugins.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. So the create block theme, you create the patterns in the editor and then you…</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yes.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Okay. So you export them through the create block theme plugin methods into the…</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yes, part of. So the create-block theme plugin right now does not really take patterns, but we somehow are finding a way to override that.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Mm-hmm. Okay. All right. Yeah. The newest version of the create block theme plugin had a few things, and you mentioned one that was the rename of the font assets, when the theme is saved when exported, there&#8217;s also an attempt to try to add the synced patterns to the theme on save.&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> That one I have not tested yet.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. It hasn&#8217;t been out long enough probably.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Oh, okay. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> It just came out last week. Yeah. So that is definitely something to test for theme developers and that were really waiting for that to happen. And then the remove categories hidden, you wanted to mention that?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. So removing categories hidden from the default pattern header, and it&#8217;s a very subtle fix, right? But it just cleans up the UI, making it easier to manage and organize patterns, especially when you have more than 50 plus patterns.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> So if you want to keep things tidy, you have to organize.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Yeah. And then another new feature is that it wraps the main tag around the Query Loop instead of the post content. It&#8217;s necessary because, so the skip to content kind of goes to the Query Loop instead of the full page kind of thing. So that has solved quite a few accessibility items there. And then the last one I wanted to mention is, oh yeah, that the fonts are copied and you mentioned it as well in the local theme folder. When you use a different font for a style variation, it automatically is downloaded there and added to the theme as its folder. Yeah. Cool.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Yeah. I actually have two more.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Go ahead.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. So you&#8217;ve mentioned the main tag that&#8217;s also one of the things, and I think that just makes it, that&#8217;s an accessibility thing that we really need to improve on and that will help ensure better semantic HTML and accessibility. And also there&#8217;s some behind the scenes cleanups that I really like and it&#8217;s removing unused styles and unused style rules in data views, and it just makes for a leaner code base and better performance.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>Excellent.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Also, the swapping of the pre-published check buttons was another nice tweak because I&#8217;m visual when I&#8217;m coding, so if something changes, I notice right away because dyslexic. I work in patterns. So if one thing changes and I think that is a really good change, I check it out and see how and why that is like one of the&#8230; it&#8217;s one of my top, it just makes it leaner and easier for me to work.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> I&#8217;m glad. Yeah. No. I find it very helpful to have this plugin and in combination with the site editor and then you make some changes there and it gets better and better even goes a little bit further than core, especially with the sync patterns for themes. I think that&#8217;s a little bit of a step forward that is outside of core because core is not yet ready for that and to get it into hands of theme developers to test it out and see how does it work and how good does it fit in into the development process. Yeah. So that&#8217;s our create Block Theme plugin update, and now we come from the big one, that&#8217;s the Gutenberg 19.3 plugin release.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Gutenberg 19.3</h3>



<p>The release had about 165 PRs following 52 contributors, including 7 first-time contributors. Kai Hao was the release lead and he published a release post that I certainly will share with you in the show notes.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Enhancements<strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p>So there are a few enhancements that we&#8217;re going to talk about. There are also new API or one new API. I&#8217;m sorry that my voice is a little horsey. I come from a week of nasty cold and I&#8217;m glad that we can connect today. Yeah. So I&#8217;m happy that you also can take over some of the things JC with me. Okay.&nbsp;</p>



<p>So the first enhancement is actually not an enhancement. It&#8217;s kind of an update on the minimum PHP requirement for the create block script, which is 7.2. You cannot be on an older PHP version anymore. And using that script to create blocks, sometimes they need to point out that thing. So in the restore, there&#8217;s a restore, the move to trash button disappeared in the document settings and people were looking for it. They found them in the three.menu, but they needed it more prominent. So it&#8217;s coming back.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yes.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Thank you.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So the inspector controls, so when the developer talks about inspector controls, they talk about the sidebar on the block editor and now they changed that when for custom blocks, they didn’t always have the block name in there to highlight that out. So that has changed. It was actually a bug I would think, because you want the name of the custom block name also in the inspector control. So that has been rectified and for patterns you can now change. It&#8217;s not for the patterns, it&#8217;s for when you go to add a page, your editor always comes out with a set of patterns that are available and you don&#8217;t want them. Now there is a user preference that you can switch on or toggle on and off in your preference sidebar or tool. So the modal, you can disable that modal and not have the selection in front of you. It took a while, but there was definitely something they listen to users to have that. Same with a move to trash button. The developers always, not always, but often listen to users when there is a strong emotion coming there away.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. That&#8217;s amazing. I have strong emotions with that trash button as well. Having that not there is just, it&#8217;s making things off for me.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. It&#8217;s kind of disconcerting. I want to have just trash it. Where is it? Yeah.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Components</strong></h3>



<p>So in the components, it&#8217;s not a public component yet, but the developers are working on a tabs block component or a tabs component, and that is actually used throughout the editor, but it&#8217;s not available yet for blocks. It&#8217;s not public yet, but you can definitely look at the PR and see how it works so you can prepare yourself and they just improve the animation and the related utilities to make it to prepare for coming out of experimentation.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Tabs block would be amazing. We&#8217;ve had to grade our own custom tabs block just because it&#8217;s not available and having that as one of the core blocks would be really awesome.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>Mm-hmm. Yeah. Same with the accordion block, I think there&#8217;s someone working on that as well. I saw some prototypes how that works. But yeah, it&#8217;s not going to come. I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s going to come for 6.7 because they&#8217;re still in experimentation and we have what? Four days to go. Three days to go for beta, so I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s coming.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. Just three days.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Block Library</h3>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. So what else? The block library had some changes, especially here now for the image block. I think there was…</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Oh, yeah. That one. Sorry. Yeah, with dropping multiple&#8230; not just multiple images, right? So you are now able to drop any kind of media and it&#8217;ll automatically translate to whatever that is. If it&#8217;s a video, it&#8217;ll be an actual video and images. It&#8217;s a time saver.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Mm-hmm. Yeah. It automatically&#8230; So if it&#8217;s all images automatically creates a gallery block.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Gallery. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. I tested it quite a bit and you need to be a little bit&#8230; When you drag and drop, you need to be quite precise with your mouse.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> With that. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. To get it next to the image that&#8217;s already there to create a gallery out of two images, but it&#8217;s just a little practice that you need. And then it&#8217;s really saving so much time to upload and download and gallery block and oh, I changed my mind. I don&#8217;t want one image, I want two images. So now I need to remove the image and put a gallery block in and yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Yeah. It&#8217;s just a time saver really.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Absolutely. Especially when you&#8217;re someone who changed their mind often.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p>Birgit Pauli-Haack: And what&#8217;s also there now is for the gallery list block to have now added a drop-down for the taxonomies so you can really select all the categories that you want to have in there. And then there were quite a few enhancements that are coming under the umbrella of a zoom out feature.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Zoom Out</h3>



<p>So the zoom out mode is officially out of experiment and it&#8217;s now available to all users. And this mode allows you to zoom out, to edit, or create at the pattern level over granular block editing. So you&#8217;ll see it when you want to add a pattern to a site, an existing site kind of zooms out so you see more of your page and then you get the insert outside of that, so where you can insert it without getting into other container blocks kind of thing. Yeah. So it&#8217;s actually really neat to see how a pattern would change the content of your page in relation to the other patterns or other page content that&#8217;s there. So it&#8217;s a really interesting way of helping you with the design of things. Have you experienced that on the Gutenberg plugin level yet?&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Works not so much yet. Yeah. But that is one of the things that I want to play with this week. I just didn&#8217;t have the time to do that last week, but with all of this new things, so I just want to play around with it.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Well, when you say play, it&#8217;s testing, right?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> It&#8217;s testing.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> It&#8217;s testing.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Well, in my brain it&#8217;s still playing love to code. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Yeah. Mine too. Yeah. It&#8217;s kind of, &#8220;Oh, I&#8217;m going to play around with that.&#8221; But it&#8217;s more like, &#8220;Yeah. We need to test it.&#8221;</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Testing, creating, and all that fun stuff.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Thinking about use cases, thinking about how to break it because that&#8217;s-</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Exactly.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> &#8230; yeah. And last month ago, or maybe three weeks ago, I got a kudos from a co-worker who said, &#8220;Well, you always find creative ways to break things.&#8221; It was my superpower, you know?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Super power.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah., the zoom out toggle that is in the header section of the editor, there is a zoom out toggle. So you can say, okay, give me 50% of the view or give me the 100% that&#8217;s next to the preview tab. It might not stay there, but if you just want to kind of test it a bit and you don&#8217;t know, and I don&#8217;t always know when I would trigger that there&#8217;s an automation when all of a sudden it zooms out. But if you want to be in control of it, there&#8217;s a little toggle switch in the editor header and then you drag and drop your patterns into the zoom out mode. And then you also see of course everything in the list view and have the top level section in the zoom out mode and the list view is open. You only see the top sections of your site.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Block Editor<strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p>It&#8217;s really interesting. So the block editor got a few things. So this release also had a few other drag and drops, not only the image or the pattern, but you also can drag and drop a mix of audio and image blocks into the canvas and it will automatically create those individual blocks. That&#8217;s what you mentioned earlier as well.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. And then there is the link editing. That&#8217;s a small fix, but it&#8217;s something that was really missing was to create a link for the phone number. So if there&#8217;s a phone number or a recognizable phone number in your content, it will automatically create the link for it. So when you watch it on or look at it in mobile, you get the button-</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> You&#8217;ll be able to click on it. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> &#8230; call button. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yes. &#8216;Cause adding that is going to be really awesome. It&#8217;s missing, and we&#8217;ve been adding that for some clients who needed that. So having that automatically added is just a nice small thing to have.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Post Editor</h3>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. Absolutely. So there is a new preference modal in the new media section.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> That I didn&#8217;t know about.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. I didn&#8217;t know about it either. Yeah. So this preference for the media section is to switch on client-side media processing. So it doesn&#8217;t all have to go to server sooner or later it will go to the server, but you can do it actually in the browser window. And then you have a lot more options open for dealing with media. And it&#8217;s the first part of the client-side media processing by Pascal Birchler. He had a featured plugin where he tested all that out and now this one comes into core. That&#8217;s really great. I&#8217;m really happy about that. So it&#8217;s definitely for mobile, also interesting for mobile users because they can&#8217;t wait till everything is done on the server because if you have a slow connection, you want it still to be processed without having to wait for all the back and forth there. So that&#8217;s really cool.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> I just let this pre-upload compression and having that as a toggle. And then, yeah, the approval step is sometimes when media is optimized, it just does not always look the way that we want it to look. So having that approval step is nice to have.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: So in the page editor, you can now double-click on the template part. So when you edit a page and you click into the template parts, it&#8217;s going to sometimes tell you this is a template part, you can&#8217;t edit that or go to the edit template part kind of screen. And now with double-click, you can switch over to template part editing. So it&#8217;s much faster now to, and if you know what you&#8217;re doing, it&#8217;s definitely helpful to have that there. I was always trying to do that with a double-click. I don&#8217;t know why, but it was kind of really-</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Oh, same. I do that too. I like this.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So when you publish a post in the pre-publish section there, there is a warning in a notification that you might have pictures and other from a third place so that the images are not on your site and they&#8217;re linking out to either Google or some other place. And the feature offers you to upload all the images to your own media library so you can really have your&#8230; You&#8217;re not surprised when all of a sudden images go away from the third party.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> That is a very helpful fix. We&#8217;ve had issues with that where with patterns, when you copy a pattern, it will try to, it&#8217;ll look for images in your local, right? And you don&#8217;t always know that it&#8217;s referencing your local, because when you look at the site and it&#8217;s uploaded on an environment, you see that images are there and it&#8217;s only because it&#8217;s referencing local images and you are viewing the site in your computer. So you see that, but other people would not know. So having that would be a lifesaver.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>And it was in the section there, but very rarely did it pop up but now&#8230; and it was only working for gallery blocks and image blocks. But if you had an image from a third party in a media text block or in a cover block, it wouldn&#8217;t come over. It wouldn&#8217;t recognize it in that, and now it does. So it&#8217;s kind of expanding that feature to other block types. And I experienced that when I was working. I&#8217;m working on a tutorial on how to use Playground for a theme demo site so you don&#8217;t have to spin up your own site and you can get everybody their own link to Playground.</p>



<p>And I was trying to figure out how is the content or what do I have to do with the content? And I used a theme that had some patterns with the local assets, with the theme local assets, and I needed to get those into the media library. So when I import it to Playground, it knows, okay, I have those images because it wouldn&#8217;t go back to the theme assets for that. So it was really interesting to figure that out, and this was really helpful to at least get the marker, but it didn&#8217;t do it for the cover and the media text blocks. So seeing that here in the new release is really interesting.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah. It&#8217;s going to be very helpful that that is missing for those blocks. And we&#8217;ve been using those blocks quite extensively.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> They&#8217;re wonderful blocks to use. Yeah. They make a really great design all the time. So the next thing is also about the pre-publish screen, but it kind of switch the cancel the publish button so that the publish button is always under the mouse. So when you hit the publish first and then the next one, it had the cancel button there. So people sometimes cancel their publishing, although they wanted to publish, so now you can just keep your mouse there and have the second publish there as well. That&#8217;s a very good and nice quality of life kind of feature, but obviously somebody needed to think of it to do that. Yeah.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes</em>: That&#8217;s one of the things that I mentioned earlier and one of my favorite bits, so just swapping that is just, it just reduces unnecessary cursor movement and improves the user experience.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Block Bindings</h3>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Oh, yeah. So totally. Then is the block bindings, your new favorite feature has an update. So what the feature does not do yet is give you an interface to actually create the post meta data or metafields, but now it uses the label that you put in your registration for the block bindings and not the variable name, which is definitely an improvement for that, especially for users who are not developers who always kind of little put back when they&#8217;re not reading normal words, but words with underscores in it and all that.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> I just love block bindings and I&#8217;ll always be on the lookout for whatever is new that&#8217;s going to come into it. We&#8217;ve been using that and learning more about how it works and just again, playing around with it and trying to make it do things that it&#8217;s not doing yet with core.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Which part? What are those?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes: </em>Well, we&#8217;ve kind of packed it around to be able to.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> I love that when you say, &#8220;Oh, we hacked around it.&#8221;</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Just allowing to show meta that it&#8217;s not supposed to&#8230; Well, it&#8217;s not that it&#8217;s not supposed to show it&#8217;s always there, right? It&#8217;s just not ready yet. But it&#8217;s a play around between checking on the database and then checking things on. It&#8217;s a lot of experimentation in order to get what it natively does not do what we needed it to do for the project that we were working on before.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So you were ahead of your time with your needs.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Well, we had to, right? The client work that would really&#8230; We can&#8217;t really wait for when a feature that we need is going to come out and WordPress the way it is. And with all the things ready for us to just change, I guess. No, not change, build on.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. I heard from a few extenders that&#8217;s plugin developers, theme developers, agency developers that they feel, oh, it&#8217;s time that more blocks are actually&#8230; Because you can only do block bindings for four blocks. One is the paragraph block, the image block, the button block, and the headings block, but all the other blocks, you cannot do a list block with things here and all that. So yeah, it definitely is time to expand the range of blocks that can hold bindings to metadata, definitely. And I know that the team knows that they&#8217;re definitely working on it. I&#8217;m scrolling through things.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Experiments <strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</strong></h3>



<p>Yeah. There is one, speaking of block bindings under the experiments is now bringing the UI to the site editor to edit the values for the metadata or the block bindings. So you can do that in your&#8230; and they built the rest API endpoints for that so they can go back to the server and come back and have it all saved. So that&#8217;s a really good&#8230; It&#8217;s an experiment. You have to enable it through the experiments page. But yeah, test it out. Developers would love your feedback on it.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Oh yeah, we&#8217;ve kind of done the same thing, but it&#8217;s not visible to users. It&#8217;s more in the code where we are able to change things around. But then again, it&#8217;s having that as a visual changeable thing. It&#8217;s just going to be a time saver.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack: </em>Absolutely. Absolutely.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Documentation</h3>



<p>What I also want to point out, for those who are keen on learning more about the data views, the documentation has been updated, and especially the storybook has now better styles for the combined fields stories and also allows more layout for the combined fields storybook. So definitely an enhancement for those who want to look up the documentation for the data of use. And the stories for that storybook is kind of a component, is a documentation style to have each single component outside of the context of the block editor to what are the properties and how does it behave when you change settings just alone for that component.</p>



<p>And it&#8217;s a really great way to learn about all the WordPress components and not a whole lot of people know about it. But that will change because the design system that the design team is working on will be also based probably on storybook because for the admin, if you ever want the data views to be part of the WordPress WPAdmin, there is a whole lot of work to be done to cement the design system about every single screen and all that. So they&#8217;re working on that for the color scheme and the typography and all that to make it more seamless. And I think somebody did a test or an audit on all the color strings that are in the WP-Admin sections. And I think she found 68 different colors. So it&#8217;s all kind of different gray tones. It&#8217;s different. Yeah, blue tones, different dark blue tones. And I was really amazing. And they definitely is not increasing the standardization when you have so many colors and a thing too about the design system-</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> So it could be a nice thing to have that revamped on and just be able to make it more visible to everyone &#8217;cause it&#8217;s a very helpful way to when you&#8217;re creating components and creating blocks.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Code Quality</h3>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> So the next two items I think are more for the developers because they are code quality related. The editor uses hooks instead of higher order components in the block manager. So that&#8217;s interesting for contributors. And then the data view fields store is, and the actions are moving from the editor package into the fields package. So if you have already done some exploration on the data views and data view fields, you need to make a note of that, that the package has changed a bit. I think the Gutenberg developers are very good and do the warnings in the console. So you probably see that when you use them. All right. So that&#8217;s the Gutenberg Changelog for Gutenberg plugin 19.3 and my voice is a bit fading, so I&#8217;m really happy that you walked this through with me. JC, it was wonderful to have you. We are coming to the end of the site, so if people want to get in touch with you, what is a good place for them to reach you? WP Slack or is it more on the social webs?&nbsp;</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> I&#8217;m always in Slack and I&#8217;m always on Facebook and Instagram as well.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Okay. Yeah. So I will share the links in the show notes as well too. So you can get in touch with JC Palmes if you have questions about WordCamp Asia or the Block Theme that they&#8217;re working on. It was wonderful that you have been on the show. Thank you so much. And as always, dear listeners, the show notes will be published on <a href="http://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast">gutenbergtimes.com/podcast</a>. This is episode 108, and if you have questions and suggestions or news you want us to include, send them to <a href="mailto:changelog@gutenbergtimes.com">changelog@gutenbergtimes.com</a>. That&#8217;s <a href="mailto:changelog@utenbergtimes.com">changelog@utenbergtimes.com</a>. All right. Well, thank you everybody and thank you, JC.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Thanks so much for having me, Birgit. It&#8217;s been a great conversation and I really enjoyed diving into all these updates with you. This is also my first podcast, by the way.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack</em>: Oh, right. Oh, we got you.</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> Yeah, amazing. I love it.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> Yeah. So until the next time then if I may, I will ask you to come to the show again, maybe after WordCamp Asia and we talk about our adventure in Manila, how about that?</p>



<p><em>JC Palmes:</em> I love that.</p>



<p><em>Birgit Pauli-Haack:</em> All right. Well, thank you so much. And do you have a wonderful weekend or rest of the evening for you and see you all and hear you all, dear listeners, in two weeks. Thanks again. Bye-bye.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Mon, 30 Sep 2024 09:07:17 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:18:"Birgit Pauli-Haack";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:20;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:26:"Matt: On with Theo / T3.gg";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=127096";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:25:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/t3/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2040:"<p>On Thursday, a prominent developer, YouTuber, Twitch streamer, and journalist posted a video titled <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoTToRfM3iA">This might be the end of WordPress</a>. <em>It was very harsh</em>. In that video you&#8217;ll hear him say about me, &#8220;he&#8217;s a chronic hater&#8221; (7:55), &#8220;seems like he&#8217;s been a pretty petty bastard for a long time now&#8221; (10:22), &#8220;I hate this shit, I hate when people are assholes and they get away with it because I&#8217;m doing it for the greater good, the fake nice guy shit. I&#8217;ll take an asshole over a fake nice guy any day, people whose whole aesthetic is being nice, I hated it.&#8221; (11:25), &#8220;Honestly I&#8217;d rather the license just be explicit about it than this weird reality of &#8216;If you get popular enough you can still use it but the guy who made WordPress is going to be an asshole to you.&#8217; That seems much worse than most open source models.&#8221; (14:39)&#8230; it goes on.</p>



<p>Ouch!</p>



<p>However, one of my colleagues <a href="https://bt.hn/">Batuhan</a> is a follower of <a href="https://x.com/t3dotgg">Theo&#8217;s</a> and suggested I engage with him. It turns out we were both in San Francisco, and he was game for a livestreamed, no-conditions interview at his studio. I believe discussion is the best way to resolve conflict, that&#8217;s why my door is open to Lee Wittlinger, Heather Brunner, <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1839134832846327894">Brian Gardner</a>, or any WP Engine or Silver Lake representative who wants to talk to resolve things.</p>



<p>Saturday afternoon I went to Theo&#8217;s studio, we had a vigorous <em>two hour</em> debate and discussion with some real-time chat polling that also changed my mind on a few things, and his, too. I left feeling like I had a new friend. &#xfe0f;And met some awesome cats. Check out the video.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">

</div>



<p></p>



<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/@t3dotgg"></a> </p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sun, 29 Sep 2024 20:35:11 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:21;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:71:"Do The Woo Community: We Are Looking for Guest Posts from our Listeners";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"https://dothewoo.io/?p=85872";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:70:"https://dothewoo.io/we-are-looking-for-guest-posts-from-our-listeners/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:3510:"Episode Transcript
<div class="wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained">
<p>BobWP:<br />Hey everyone, BobWP here on Community. Well, this episode is more or less about the return of our blog here at Do The Woo, but it really is about community. Now, before I even get into that, a little news about this show, BobWP on Community. I know everyone loves conversation, and often when I go solo on this show, it just really doesn&#8217;t fit like our other shows do, which are centered around conversation. So, very soon, I&#8217;ll be announcing a new member of our hosting team and co-host of this show. It will be BobWP and whoever I choose on Community. We will have conversations between ourselves and an occasional guest.</p>



<p>What I really want to share with you is that we have everything in place to accept guest posts on our new blog. As with our podcast, the blog is by the community, for the community. During WordCamp US, I recorded more details on that. I talked about some of the past decisions regarding whether to have a blog or not. I also outlined the blog&#8217;s future, including contributions from hosts, guests, and even listeners. It was pretty brief, but I talked about moving forward with this new blog.</p>



<p>Now, as I said, we are ready for you, the listener. We have an invitation for you. Our guest posts are unique in that we’re looking for you to add to the conversation. For example, do you have a story that relates to an episode you&#8217;ve listened to? Do you want to expand your thoughts and insights on a particular episode through a short post or maybe a longer post instead of a comment? Or were you a guest, and would you like to update something from your episode or maybe even elaborate on something you mentioned?</p>



<p>So, as a listener, if you have an idea for a post, you can go to dothewoo.io/guest-posts, or you can reach out in another way, and I’ll send you the link. The link will also be in the show notes. But I&#8217;m pretty excited about this blog because it’s a little different in that we want to tie all the posts into episodes from our podcasts. So, if you&#8217;re interested, reach out to us. I&#8217;m looking forward to you being a bigger part of the Do The Woo community.</p>
</div>




<p>Here’s a suggested intro for your show notes:</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />



<p>In this episode of <em><strong>BobWP on Community</strong></em>, Bob shares  news about the return of the Do The Woo blog and how it will further engage the WooCommerce community. </p>



<p>He chats about the future of the blog, opportunities for listeners to contribute guest posts, and the plans to bring on a new co-host for this show. </p>



<p>Whether you&#8217;re a longtime listener, guest, or simply a member of the community, <strong><a href="https://dothewoo.io/guest-posts/">Bob invites you</a></strong> to join in and become an even bigger part of the conversation.</p>



<p>More on the blog</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong><a href="https://dothewoo.io/guest-posts/">More info on being submitting a guest post.</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://dothewoo.io/a-blog-for-the-community-by-the-community/">A Blog for the Community, by the Community</a></strong></li>



<li><a href="https://dothewoo.io/blog/the-soft-relaunch-of-the-do-the-woo-blog/"><strong>The Soft Relaunch of the Do the Woo Blog</strong></a></li>
</ul>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sun, 29 Sep 2024 15:30:48 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:22;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"Matt: Where is Lee Wittlinger?";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=127055";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:43:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/missing-spokespeople/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1464:"<p>Lee controls the board of WP Engine. The board is why WP Engine hasn&#8217;t done a trademark deal for <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1840115470768451991">their use of the WordPress and WooCommerce trademarks</a>.</p>



<p>You hide behind lawyers and corporate PR when you&#8217;re wrong, not when you&#8217;re right.</p>



<p>I&#8217;m <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/with_replies">replying on Twitter</a>, I&#8217;m <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/photomatt/">commenting on Reddit</a> <a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/threads?id=photomatt">and Hacker News</a>, I&#8217;m <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/on-theprimeagen/">dropping into livestreams with ThePrimeagen</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sBuHwQpwAU">WPMinute</a>. I&#8217;m talking to journalists whenever they reach out, and I&#8217;m happy to go on any large credible podcast or show to discuss these issues.</p>



<p>Lee could do the same. Why isn&#8217;t he? </p>



<p><a href="https://www.silverlake.com/people/lee-wittlinger/">Lee is a managing director of a $102B private equity firm</a>, he is probably richer than me. (<a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/charitable-contributions/">Though I doubt he gives back as much</a>.)</p>



<p>&#8220;Because their lawyers are telling him not to.&#8221; Why do you think their lawyers are telling them not to?</p>



<p>Open invite: Lee, let&#8217;s debate this publicly. Propose a neutral venue and moderator.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 28 Sep 2024 20:12:58 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:23;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"Matt: Multidots Support";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=127003";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:40:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/multidots-support/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:234:"<p><a href="https://www.multidots.com/updates/taking-a-stand-for-the-wordpress-ecosystem-why-we-must-all-give-back/">Anil Gupta has made an amazing commitment to the WordPress ecosystem</a>. I applaud the way he runs his business.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 28 Sep 2024 05:50:25 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:24;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:69:"WPTavern: Matt Mullenweg Announces Temporary Lifting of WP Engine Ban";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=162894";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:80:"https://wptavern.com/matt-mullenweg-announces-temporary-lifting-of-wp-engine-ban";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4356:"<p>Matt Mullenweg has <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine-reprieve/">announced</a> that the restrictions on WP Engine will be temporarily lifted until <strong>October 1, 00:00 UTC,</strong> allowing them to access WordPress servers. <a href="https://wptavern.com/wp-engine-banned-from-using-wordpress-org-resources">WP Engine was banned</a> on September 25 from utilizing any WordPress.org resources following legal actions related to trademark disputes, which left WP Engine customers unable to access the Plugin/Theme directory or update their websites</p>



<p>The temporary reprieve gives WP Engine time to &#8220;spin up their mirrors of all WordPress.org’s resources that they were using for free while not paying and making legal threats against us.&#8221;, according to the official statement.</p>



<p>The announcement post blamed WP Engine for the situation: “WP Engine was well aware that we could remove access when they chose to ignore our efforts to resolve our differences and enter into a commercial licensing agreement.&nbsp;<a href="https://usaawards.ceotodaymagazine.com/previous-winner/heather-brunner/">Heather Brunner</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.silverlake.com/people/lee-wittlinger/">Lee Wittlinger</a>, and their Board chose to take this risk. WPE was also aware that they were placing this risk directly on WPE customers. You could assume that WPE has a workaround ready, or they were simply reckless in supporting their customers. Silver Lake and WP Engine put their customers at risk, not me.&#8221;</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I see <a href="https://t.co/FwFPhIHs7i">https://t.co/FwFPhIHs7i</a> is still showing issues.<br /><br />We've removed all network blocks so anything they've having trouble with is a result of their own work.</p>&mdash; Matt Mullenweg (@photomatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/photomatt/status/1839810649599422801?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>Matt tweeted, “We&#8217;ve removed all network blocks so anything they&#8217;ve having trouble with is a result of their own work.” In another tweet, he clarified, “Silver Lake is the only entity we have beef with.” During the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sBuHwQpwAU">WP Minute</a> live stream, Matt reiterated that the WP Engine situation was uniquely bad and that he doesn&#8217;t foresee this happening again with any other hosting provider.</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">That's not true, every other WP host in the world has been just fine through this. Silver Lake is the only entity we have beef with.</p>&mdash; Matt Mullenweg (@photomatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/photomatt/status/1839780429060288683?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>On the same livestream, Matt was asked by Brian Coords about allowing WP Engine users more time to transition to new hosts. Matt acknowledged the suggestion, admitting it was a valid point.</p>



<p>WP Engine tweeted: “We’re pleased to see access restored to the repository of WordPress plugins for our customers who operate their sites with us at WP Engine.”</p>



<div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We’re pleased to see access restored to the repository of WordPress plugins for our customers who operate their sites with us at WP Engine.</p>&mdash; WP Engine (@wpengine) <a href="https://twitter.com/wpengine/status/1839805389036036424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
</div>



<p>The community remains divided—some support the decision, while others are less impressed.</p>



<a href="https://x.com/SolespireMarcus/status/1839774942977569048"><img width="500" height="136" tabindex="0" src="https://wptavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/image-500x136.png" alt="" class="wp-image-162900" /></a>



<a href="https://x.com/charliemoss/status/1839786470615261661"><img width="500" height="129" tabindex="0" src="https://wptavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/image-1-500x129.png" alt="" class="wp-image-162902" /></a>



<p>While the reprieve is a temporary solution, it remains to be seen how the situation will unfold in the long run.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 28 Sep 2024 04:37:11 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:25;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:104:"Gutenberg Times: Gutenberg 19.3, Simplified Query Loop and blocks in theme.json — Weekend Edition #306";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://gutenbergtimes.com/?p=30242";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:109:"https://gutenbergtimes.com/gutenberg-19-3-simplified-query-loop-and-blocks-in-theme-json-weekend-edition-306/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:15599:"<p>Hi there, </p>



<p>This was anything but a slow WordPress news week, though, however none of it related to the software and the block editor. There are a few WordPress news places where you get updates and opinions. Official <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/">WordPress news</a> is one, <strong>Michelle Frechette </strong>over at Post Status has a great summary with links: <a href="https://poststatus.com/give-back-deeply/">Give Back &#8230; Deeply</a>, <strong>Matt Medeiros</strong> and the <a href="https://thewpminute.com/automattic-vs-wp-engine-heres-what-we-know/">WP Minute team share what they know</a>, and <strong>Anil Gupta</strong>, Multidots is <a href="https://www.multidots.com/updates/taking-a-stand-for-the-wordpress-ecosystem-why-we-must-all-give-back/">taking a stand for the WordPress Ecosystem: why we must all give back&nbsp;</a></p>



<p>Next week, <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/6-7/">WordPress 6.7 Beta 1</a> is on the schedule for October 1, 2024. To refresh what is on the docket for this next version you can consult <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/03/roadmap-to-6-7/">Roadmap to 6.7</a>. If you want to contribute and learn at the same time, keep an eye out for the &#8220;Help to test WordPress 6.7&#8221; post from the Make Test team as well. </p>



<p>I&#8217;ve been battling a nasty cold all week, and it seems I just need to let it run its course. I apologize in advance if my thoughts aren&#8217;t entirely coherent. To minimize any potential embarrassment, I&#8217;m keeping this weekend&#8217;s edition brief.</p>



<p>I will be taking a social media break for a few days, too, it&#8217;s good for my mental health people tell me. </p>



<p>Yours, 💕<br /><em>Birgit</em></p>





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<p><strong>Table of Contents</strong></p>



<ol><li><a class="wp-block-table-of-contents__entry" href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/gutenberg-19-3-simplified-query-loop-and-blocks-in-theme-json-weekend-edition-306/#0-word-press-release-information">Developing Gutenberg and WordPress</a></li><li><a class="wp-block-table-of-contents__entry" href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/gutenberg-19-3-simplified-query-loop-and-blocks-in-theme-json-weekend-edition-306/#0-p">Plugins, Themes, and Tools for #nocode site builders and owners</a></li><li><a class="wp-block-table-of-contents__entry" href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/gutenberg-19-3-simplified-query-loop-and-blocks-in-theme-json-weekend-edition-306/#2-word-press-6-0-1-and-6-1-scheduled">Theme Development for Full Site Editing and Blocks</a></li><li><a class="wp-block-table-of-contents__entry" href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/gutenberg-19-3-simplified-query-loop-and-blocks-in-theme-json-weekend-edition-306/#3-building-themes-for-fse-and-word-press">Building Blocks and Tools for the Block editor. </a></li></ol>
</div></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="0-word-press-release-information">Developing Gutenberg and WordPress</h2>



<p>Release lead, <strong>Kai Hao</strong>, shared in his post <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/">What’s new in Gutenberg 19.3? (25 September)</a> the highlights from the new version:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/#drag-and-drop-grid-items-in-manual-mode">Zoom Out Mode</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/#content-panel-for-template-parts">Swap the position of the publish buttons</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/#use-custom-block-names-in-inspector-controls">Use custom block names in inspector controls</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/#allow-opting-out-of-the-choose-a-pattern-modal-when-adding-new-pages">Allow opting out of the “Choose a pattern” modal when adding new pages</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/#automatic-phone-number-linking">Automatic phone number linking</a></li>



<li><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/25/whats-new-in-gutenberg-19-3-25-september/#allow-dropping-multiple-images-to-the-image-block">Allow dropping multiple images to the image block</a></li>
</ul>



<img width="652" height="369" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/gutenbergtimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Zoomed-out.png?resize=652%2C369&ssl=1" alt="Zoom Out view Gutenberg 19.3" class="wp-image-30254" />



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<p><strong>Joen Asmussen</strong> published his 64th <a href="https://make.wordpress.org/design/2024/09/24/design-share-64-sep-9-sep-20/">Design Share</a> and shows off the work of the WordPress Design team of the last two weeks: </p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Global styles iA</li>



<li>WP Briefing Landing Page</li>



<li>Adding “Drag” to Image Placeholder Text</li>



<li>WP.org: Moving “Log in” to the secondary navigation</li>



<li>Figma Organization for the new design system</li>



<li>Secondary button appearance concept</li>



<li>Unify DropZones</li>



<li>Updated shadows / elevation in WP Components</li>



<li>Updating ToggleGroupControl</li>



<li>Storybook Improvements</li>
</ul>



<img width="652" height="336" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/gutenbergtimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Screenshot-2024-09-28-at-13.00.18.png?resize=652%2C336&ssl=1" alt="An early in-the-clouds exploration of how the global styles iA" class="wp-image-30256" />An early in-the-clouds exploration of how the global styles iA



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<p>🎙️ Latest episode: <a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast/gutenberg-changelog-107-gutenberg-19-2-data-views-and-design-systems/">Gutenberg Changelog #107 – WordPress 6.6.2, Gutenberg 19.2, Data Views and Design Systems</a> with special guest Maggie Cabrera</p>



<img width="652" height="185" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/gutenbergtimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Screenshot-2024-09-14-at-17.11.43.png?resize=652%2C185&ssl=1" alt="Maggie Cabrera and Birgit Pauli-Haack, recording the Gutenberg Changelog podcast episode 107" class="wp-image-30068" />
</div></div>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="0-p">Plugins, Themes, and Tools for #nocode site builders and owners</h2>



<p><strong>Anne McCarthy</strong> continued in their <em>Core Improvements</em> series about the <strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/23/core-editor-improvement-simplified-query-loop-block-with-smarter-defaults-intuitive-settings/">Simplified Query Loop block with smarter defaults &amp; intuitive settings</a>.</strong> The enhancements streamline how you create  dynamic post lists, making it more user-friendly and customizable.  McCarthy explains how stronger defaults help with the first time usage, a toggle switch lets you change from default query to using a custom query, and the block&#8217;s filtering options include post formats now.</p>



<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/2024/09/23/core-editor-improvement-simplified-query-loop-block-with-smarter-defaults-intuitive-settings/"><img width="652" height="479" tabindex="0" src="https://i0.wp.com/gutenbergtimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Query-Loop-Post-format-support-1024x753-1.png?resize=652%2C479&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-30260" /></a>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="2-word-press-6-0-1-and-6-1-scheduled">Theme Development for Full Site Editing and Blocks</h2>



<p><strong>Fabian Kägy,</strong> director of editorial engineering at 10Up, documentation release lead for WordPress 6.7 was a guest on the <a href="https://shoptalkshow.com/634/"><strong><em>ShopTalk Show</em> 634th podcast episode</strong></a>, with hosts <strong>Chris Coyier </strong>and <strong>Dave Ruppert</strong>. &#8220;Fabian Kägy helps us understand the modern WordPress development process, Gutenberg vs Block editor vs full site editing, building with blocks or pages, what&#8217;s coming in the Twenty Twenty-Five Theme, and whether the theme authoring process has been made too difficult in 2024?&#8221; they wrote in the description. </p>


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<em><a href="https://shoptalkshow.com/634/">634: </a>Fabian Kägy on WordPress, Blocks, and Enterprise Dev on<a href="https://shoptalkshow.com/634/"> ShopTalk Show</a>. </em>
</div>


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<p>In the article, <a href="https://kinsta.com/blog/theme-json-blocks-property/"><strong>What WordPress developers need to know about the blocks property in theme.json</strong></a>, <strong>Jeremy Holcombe</strong> breaks down the &#8220;blocks&#8221; property in the <code>theme.json</code> file for WordPress. This lets developers set up block settings globally. It makes customizing Gutenberg blocks a breeze by centralizing design options like colors and typography. Plus, it keeps everything consistent and boosts site performance by cutting down on custom CSS. Holcombe also includes easy-to-follow implementation tips, practical examples, and code snippets to help theme developers get the most out of this feature. It really streamlines the development process and amps up overall site optimization.</p>



<p><strong>&nbsp;<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&#8220;Keeping up with Gutenberg &#8211; Index 2024&#8221;</a>&nbsp;</strong><br />A chronological list of the WordPress Make Blog posts from various teams involved in Gutenberg development: Design, Theme Review Team, Core Editor, Core JS, Core CSS, Test, and Meta team from Jan. 2024 on. Updated by yours truly. The previous years are also available: <strong><strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index-2020/">2020</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index-2021/">2021</a></strong>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index-2022/">2022</a></strong></strong>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://make.wordpress.org/core/handbook/references/keeping-up-with-gutenberg-index/gutenberg-index-2023">2023</a></strong></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="3-building-themes-for-fse-and-word-press">Building Blocks and Tools for the Block editor. </h2>



<p><strong>JuanMa Garrido</strong> published <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2024/09/23/actions-from-data-views-adding-images-to-the-media-library/">Actions from Data Views: Adding images to the Media Library</a>. It&#8217;s a continuation of the tutorial, he published earlier this month: <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/news/2024/08/27/using-data-views-to-display-and-interact-with-data-in-plugins/">Using Data Views to display and interact with data in plugins</a> in which he walked you through on  how to create a plugin that displays a React app in the WordPress admin to list a dataset of pictures using Data Views. In this second part, you learn how to provide users with tools to directly add any listed images to the Media Library.</p>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity is-style-wide" />



<p>In this week&#8217;s Live Developer Hours<a href="https://www.meetup.com/learn-wordpress-online-workshops/events/303330393/?eventOrigin=group_events_list">, </a><strong>JuanMa Garrido, André Maneiro </strong>and <strong>Nick Diego </strong>gave<strong> </strong><a href="https://www.meetup.com/learn-wordpress-online-workshops/events/303330393/?eventOrigin=group_events_list"><strong>An Introduction to Data Views</strong></a> and answered a ton of questions. They covered, the fundamentals of the DataViews component, how to add a React app to a custom WordPress admin page and how to display a custom dataset using Data Views. </p>


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<p><strong><a href="https://gutenbergtimes.com/need-a-zip-from-master/">Need a plugin .zip from Gutenberg&#8217;s master branch?</a></strong><br />Gutenberg Times provides daily build for testing and review. </p>



<p>Now also available via <a href="https://playground.wordpress.net/?blueprint-url=https://gutenbergtimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/playnightly.json">WordPress Playground</a>. There is no need for a test site locally or on a server. Have you been using it? <a href="mailto:pauli@gutenbergtimes.com">Email me </a>with your experience</p>



<p><img alt="GitHub all releases" src="https://img.shields.io/github/downloads/bph/gutenberg/total?style=for-the-badge" /></p>



<p class="has-text-align-center has-small-font-size"><em>Questions? Suggestions? Ideas? </em><br /><em>Don&#8217;t hesitate to send <a href="mailto:pauli@gutenbergtimes.com">them via email</a> or</em><br /><em> send me a message on WordPress Slack or Twitter @bph</em>.</p>



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<p class="has-text-align-center has-small-font-size">For questions to be answered on the <a href="http://gutenbergtimes.com/podcast">Gutenberg Changelog</a>, <br />send them to <a href="mailto:changelog@gutenbergtimes.com">changelog@gutenbergtimes.com</a></p>



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<p>Featured Image: &#8220;Mitchell Library, Sydney (#24)&#8221; by Christopher Chan is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0</p>



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<p class="has-text-align-left"><strong>Don&#8217;t want to miss the next Weekend Edition? </strong></p>


<form class="wp-block-newsletterglue-form ngl-form ngl-portrait" action="https://gutenbergtimes.com/feed/" method="post"><div class="ngl-form-container"><div class="ngl-form-field"><label class="ngl-form-label" for="ngl_email"><br />Type in your Email address to subscribe.</label><div class="ngl-form-input"><input type="email" class="ngl-form-input-text" name="ngl_email" id="ngl_email" /></div></div><button type="submit" class="ngl-form-button">Subscribe</button><p class="ngl-form-text">We hate spam, too, and won&#8217;t give your email address to anyone <br />except Mailchimp to send out our Weekend Edition</p></div><div class="ngl-message-overlay"><div class="ngl-message-svg-wrap"></div><div class="ngl-message-overlay-text">Thanks for subscribing.</div></div><input type="hidden" name="ngl_list_id" id="ngl_list_id" value="26f81bd8ae" /><input type="hidden" name="ngl_double_optin" id="ngl_double_optin" value="yes" /></form>


<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-wide" />";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 28 Sep 2024 03:09:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:18:"Birgit Pauli-Haack";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:26;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:38:"WordPress.org blog: WP Engine Reprieve";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17850";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:54:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine-reprieve/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1506:"<p>I&#8217;ve heard from <a href="https://wpengine.com/">WP Engine</a> customers that they are frustrated that WP Engine hasn&#8217;t been able to make updates, plugin directory, theme directory, and Openverse work on their sites. It saddens me that they&#8217;ve been negatively impacted by <a href="https://www.silverlake.com/">Silver Lake</a>&#8216;s commercial decisions.</p>



<p><a href="https://wpengine.com/">On WP Engine&#8217;s homepage</a>, they promise &#8220;Unmatched performance, automated updates, and bulletproof security ensure your sites thrive.&#8221;</p>



<p>WP Engine was well aware that we could remove access when they chose to ignore our efforts to resolve our differences and enter into a commercial licensing agreement. <a href="https://usaawards.ceotodaymagazine.com/previous-winner/heather-brunner/">Heather Brunner</a>, <a href="https://www.silverlake.com/people/lee-wittlinger/">Lee Wittlinger</a>, and their Board chose to take this risk. WPE was also aware that they were placing this risk directly on WPE customers. You could assume that WPE has a workaround ready, or they were simply reckless in supporting their customers. Silver Lake and WP Engine put their customers at risk, not me.</p>



<p>We have lifted the blocks of their servers from accessing ours, until October 1, UTC 00:00. Hopefully this helps them spin up their mirrors of all of WordPress.org&#8217;s resources that they were using for free while not paying, and making legal threats against us.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Fri, 27 Sep 2024 21:03:26 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Matt Mullenweg";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:27;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:65:"Do The Woo Community: Our Weekly Recap is Coming Back to the Blog";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:43:"https://dothewoo.io/?post_type=blog&p=85803";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:69:"https://dothewoo.io/blog/our-weekly-recap-is-coming-back-to-the-blog/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:822:"<p>Over the years, we have done a weekly recap on Friday&#8217;s. It evolved over time and I always strategize exactly what we will be dropping in here. </p>



<p>It&#8217;s not going to be the latest news, products, etc. in the space, as there are more than enough sites doing that.</p>



<p>Instead, this will serve as a good weekly collection of:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Posts and episodes here on Do the Woo</li>



<li>Content from our hosts, partners and sponsors.</li>
</ul>



<p>Plus, if any listener comments on a specific episode or post, we will also be including a snippet from their comment in the recap. <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f642.png" alt="🙂" class="wp-smiley" /> </p>



<p>Just a solid list of content that you may have missed. That&#8217;s it. </p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Fri, 27 Sep 2024 09:58:36 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:28;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:21:"Matt: On ThePrimeagen";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=126890";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:38:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/on-theprimeagen/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:469:"<p>I dropped on the livestream for ThePrimeagen earlier today after a colleague pinged me that he was talking about the Silver Lake / WP Engine situation.</p>



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</div>



<p>Afterward, I also privately shared with him the cell phone for Heather Brunner, the WP Engine CEO, so she can hop on or debate these points. As far as I&#8217;ve heard she hasn&#8217;t responded. Why is WP Engine scared of talking to journalists live?</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Fri, 27 Sep 2024 06:31:18 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:29;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:76:"WordCamp Central: Quarterly WordPress Event Sponsorship Report, 2016-2024 Q3";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:39:"https://central.wordcamp.org/?p=8020458";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:100:"https://central.wordcamp.org/news/2024/09/quarterly-wordpress-event-sponsorship-report-2016-2024-q3/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4060:"<p>Below is the total amount of sponsor invoices generated to date for WordCamp and WordPress events, including the Community Summit fund and the Global Sponsorship fee.</p>



<div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
<div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow">
<h2 class="wp-block-heading has-text-align-left">Global Sponsorship</h2>



<p><strong>$1,500,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Automattic</li>



<li>Bluehost</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$1,000,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Bubblestorm Management</li>



<li>GoDaddy</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$200,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>DreamHost</li>



<li>BoldGrid</li>



<li>Liquid Web</li>



<li>Weglot</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$100,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>OnTheGoSystems</li>



<li>GreenGeeks</li>



<li>Awesome Motive</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$50,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>HubSpot</li>



<li>Pantheon</li>



<li>InMotion Hosting</li>



<li>Nexcess</li>



<li>SiteGround</li>



<li>SiteLock</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$10,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Parallels International</li>



<li>Yoast</li>



<li>WiredTree</li>
</ul>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow">
<h2 class="wp-block-heading has-text-align-left">Per Event Sponsorship</h2>



<p><strong>$2,000,000 or above</strong></p>



<p>Automattic</p>



<p><strong>$500,000 or above</strong></p>



<p>WP Engine</p>



<p><strong>$100,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Pantheon</li>



<li>SiteGround</li>



<li>Google</li>



<li>GoDaddy</li>



<li>SiteLock</li>



<li>Elementor</li>



<li>Hostinger</li>



<li>Wordfence</li>



<li>Cloudways</li>



<li>A2 Hosting</li>



<li>Yoast</li>



<li>Flywheel</li>



<li>Plesk</li>



<li>Gravity Forms</li>



<li>DreamHost</li>



<li>WPMU DEV</li>



<li>Nexcess</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$50,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>GreenGeeks</li>



<li>WordPress VIP</li>



<li>InMotion Hosting</li>



<li>dotblog</li>



<li>Media Temple</li>



<li>Pressable</li>



<li>Weglot</li>



<li>BoldGrid</li>



<li>Liquid Web</li>



<li>StellarWP</li>



<li>WEDOS</li>



<li>BigCommerce</li>



<li>PayPal</li>



<li>Omnisend</li>



<li>DigitalCube</li>



<li>Kinsta</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$25,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>NitroPack</li>



<li>Qualpay</li>



<li>Avalara</li>



<li>Setka</li>



<li>Rocket.net</li>



<li>Hover</li>



<li>Sucuri</li>



<li>Patchstack</li>



<li>FastSpring</li>



<li>KnownHost</li>



<li>Jilt</li>



<li>Themeum</li>



<li>GiveWP</li>



<li>WebPros</li>



<li>PeachPay</li>



<li>WP Buffs</li>



<li>WP Rocket</li>



<li>YITH</li>



<li>Litespeed</li>
</ul>



<p><strong>$10,000 or above</strong></p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Amazon Lightsail</li>



<li>ilkli</li>



<li>Pagely</li>



<li>10up</li>



<li>VendorFuel</li>



<li>Verisign</li>



<li>HubSpot</li>



<li>RunCloud</li>



<li>GoWP</li>



<li>Square</li>



<li>Oliver POS</li>



<li>WPDeveloper</li>



<li>LearnDash</li>



<li>InstaWP</li>



<li>Stackabl</li>



<li>BuddyBoss</li>



<li>Beaver Builder</li>



<li>ServerPress</li>



<li>doMEn Ltd</li>



<li>WS Form</li>



<li>rtCamp</li>



<li>Crocoblock</li>



<li>FIU College of Business</li>



<li>Deer Designer</li>



<li>AddThis</li>



<li>Blockonomics</li>



<li>WP Beginner</li>



<li>Monarx</li>



<li>CookiePro</li>



<li>miniorange</li>



<li>Airwallex</li>



<li>AdRoll</li>



<li>Prime Strategy</li>



<li>CloudAccess.net</li>



<li>UpdraftPlus</li>



<li>Rochen</li>



<li>TextExpander</li>



<li>Titan</li>



<li>GoGoCreate</li>



<li>TraitWare</li>



<li>Tutor LMS</li>



<li>Cloudinary</li>



<li>EasyWP</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Thu, 26 Sep 2024 12:56:13 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:12:"Isotta Peira";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:30;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:26:"Matt: WPE &amp; Trademarks";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=126793";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:39:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/wordpress-engine/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1859:"<p>I&#8217;ve been writing and talking about <a href="https://wpengine.com/">WP Engine</a> a lot in the last week, but I want to be crystal clear about the core issue at play.</p>



<p>In short, <strong>WP Engine is violating WordPress&#8217; trademarks</strong>. Moreover, they have been doing so for years. We at Automattic have been attempting to make a licensing deal with them for a very long time, and all they have done is string us along. Finally, I drew a line in the sand, which they have now leapt over.</p>



<p>We offered WP Engine the option of how to pay their fair share: either pay a direct licensing fee, or make in-kind contributions to the open source project. This isn&#8217;t a money grab: it&#8217;s an expectation that any business making hundreds of millions of dollars off of an open source project ought to give back, and if they don&#8217;t, then they can&#8217;t use its trademarks. WP Engine has refused to do either, and has instead taken to casting aspersions on my attempt to make a fair deal with them.</p>



<p>WordPress is licensed under the GPL; respect for copyright and IP like trademarks is core to the GPL and our conception of what open source means. If WP Engine wants to find another open source project with a more permissive license and no trademarks, they are free to do so; if they want to benefit from the WordPress community, then they need to respect WordPress trademark and IP.</p>



<p>Further reading:</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><a href="https://automattic.com/2024/09/25/open-source-trademarks-wp-engine/">Automattic&#8217;s cease and desist to WP Engine</a>.</li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine/">WP Engine is not WordPress</a>.</li>



<li><a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine-banned/">WP Engine is banned from WordPress.org</a>.</li>
</ul>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Thu, 26 Sep 2024 08:25:45 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:31;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:61:"WPTavern: WP Engine Banned from Using WordPress.org Resources";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=162706";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:72:"https://wptavern.com/wp-engine-banned-from-using-wordpress-org-resources";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:3393:"<p>The <a href="https://wptavern.com/highlights-from-matt-mullenwegs-spiciest-word-camp-presentation-at-wordcamp-us-2024">dispute</a> between Automattic and WP Engine has intensified. Both companies have issued <a href="https://wptavern.com/automattic-responds-to-wp-engines-cease-and-desist-with-legal-action">Cease and Desist</a> orders to each other, leading WP Engine to remove the news feed from the WordPress admin dashboard. In response, WordPress.org has now <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine-banned/">banned WP Engine</a> from utilizing any of its resources.</p>



<p>The WordPress.org <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine-banned/">statement</a> read: “Pending their legal claims and litigation against WordPress.org, WP Engine no longer has free access to WordPress.org’s resources. WP Engine wants to control your WordPress experience, they need to run their own user login system, update servers, plugin directory, theme directory, pattern directory, block directory, translations, photo directory, job board, meetups, conferences, bug tracker, forums, Slack, Ping-o-matic, and showcase. Their servers can no longer access our servers for free.”</p>



<p>The statement continued: “The reason WordPress sites don’t get hacked as much anymore is we work with hosts to block vulnerabilities at the network layer, WP Engine will need to replicate that security research on their own. Why should WordPress.org provide these services to WP Engine for free, given their attacks on us?”</p>



<p>The announcement also reiterated what was shared in the <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine/">WP Engine is not WordPress</a> article. “WP Engine is free to offer their hacked up, bastardized simulacra of WordPress’s GPL code to their customers, and they can experience WordPress as WP Engine envisions it, with them getting all of the profits and providing all of the services.”</p>



<p>For those wondering about Flywheel, Matt has clarified that Flywheel also would be affected as WP Engine had <a href="https://wptavern.com/wp-engine-acquires-flywheel">acquired Flywheel</a> in 2019.</p>



<p>The new <a href="https://wpenginestatus.com/incidents/640187">status page</a> on WP Engine explains: “There is currently no impact on the performance, reliability or security of your site nor does it impact your ability to make updates to your code or content. We know how important this is for you and we are actively developing a remediation for this issue.”</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeAQc3Uvv-sdYlDvR-sesI4GM_0abvuj-gjLbBxh1o5CzMTM6eJ-5z_laSZ5PuTd9_HdkRLEKQERXahbi1WlnOAZ3uAAJ0tpq_xa92-y-dG-cXyWjCH3si0O8NBRMbiYPYkJXf8amRLhN7JxDGJWlR0gx6A?key=PALVa_N-_6uIHSJtAE9ORA" alt="" />



<p>Meanwhile, Automattic-owned Pressable has a new <a href="https://pressable.com/wpe-contract-buyout/">page</a>. <img width="624" height="377" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXe0BT5uhA913OiWkflUOtk1zOA5M9XibhsVvNpd3mCQzpep3j76wq7Q7ebxFjo0bxwDjnULqTX9JG7aHTfENyKvZTD8GdGl-3pA1sgePFi_XuJLNigboMiExpnf7HzqyJCZcKCQgwRJo6Ly-8Osy3aCc1f1?key=PALVa_N-_6uIHSJtAE9ORA" /> The WordPress community is not happy with these events. Several people have come forward to <a href="https://x.com/MetaPrinxss/status/1839093092525421061">offer help</a> to those caught in the crossfire.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Thu, 26 Sep 2024 06:55:38 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:32;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:58:"WordPress.org blog: WP Engine is banned from WordPress.org";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17834";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:52:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine-banned/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1922:"<p>Any WP Engine customers having trouble with their sites should <a href="https://wpengine.com/contact/">contact WP Engine support and ask them to fix it</a>.</p>



<p>WP Engine needs a trademark license, they don&#8217;t have one. I won&#8217;t bore you with the story of how WP Engine <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1838502185879167069">broke thousands of customer sites yesterday in their haphazard attempt to block our attempts to inform the wider WordPress community</a> regarding their disabling and locking down a WordPress core feature in order to extract profit.</p>



<p><strong>What I will tell you is that, pending their legal claims and litigation against WordPress.org, WP Engine no longer has free access to WordPress.org&#8217;s resources.</strong></p>



<p>WP Engine wants to control your WordPress experience, they need to run their own user login system, update servers, plugin directory, theme directory, pattern directory, block directory, translations, photo directory, job board, meetups, conferences, bug tracker, forums, Slack, Ping-o-matic, and showcase. Their servers can no longer access our servers for free.</p>



<p>The reason WordPress sites don&#8217;t get hacked as much anymore is we work with hosts to block vulnerabilities at the network layer, WP Engine will need to replicate that security research on their own.</p>



<p>Why should WordPress.org provide these services to WP Engine for free, given their attacks on us?</p>



<p>WP Engine is free to offer their hacked up, bastardized simulacra of WordPress&#8217;s GPL code to their customers, and they can experience WordPress as WP Engine envisions it, with them getting all of the profits and providing all of the services.</p>



<p>If you want to experience WordPress, use any other host in the world besides WP Engine. <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine/">WP Engine is not WordPress</a>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 25 Sep 2024 22:50:29 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Matt Mullenweg";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:33;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"Matt: Charitable Contributions";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=126720";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:47:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/charitable-contributions/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:1816:"<p>I knew <a href="https://automattic.com/2024/09/25/open-source-trademarks-wp-engine/">going to war with Silver Lake</a>, a $102B private equity firm, they would pull out every dirty trick to try to smear my name, do <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opposition_research">oppo research</a>, imply I&#8217;m a mafia boss trying to extort them, etc.</p>



<p>I have kept my personal philanthropy  private until now. I would like to offer up one piece of evidence for the public to consider, which is the IRS accounting of my 501c3 charitable donations. </p>



<p>This is something I&#8217;ve tried to keep quiet, because true philanthropy isn’t about recognition. As you can see, my personal liquidity goes up and down but I give back as much as I can when I can.</p>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong>2011:</strong> $295,044.60</li>



<li><strong>2012: </strong>$401,121.00</li>



<li><strong>2013: </strong>$2,088,890.88</li>



<li><strong>2014:</strong>  $98,648.00</li>



<li><strong>2015: </strong> $101,947.00</li>



<li><strong>2016:</strong> $42,300.00</li>



<li><strong>2017:</strong> $51,562.50</li>



<li><strong>2018:</strong> $606,957.68</li>



<li><strong>2019:</strong> $620,802.65</li>



<li><strong>2020:</strong> $607,452.48</li>



<li><strong>2021:</strong> $2,151,602.26</li>



<li><strong>2022:</strong> $2,780,054.20</li>



<li><strong>2023:</strong> $2,276,425.06</li>
</ul>



<p>If <a href="https://www.silverlake.com/people/lee-wittlinger/">Lee Wittlinger</a>, who controls Silver Lake&#8217;s investments in the WordPress ecosystem, or <a href="https://wpengine.com/newsroom/leadership-team/heather-brunner/">Heather Brunner</a>, the CEO of WP Engine, would like to publish their charitable contributions  over the past 12 years, they are welcome to do so.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 25 Sep 2024 20:06:55 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:34;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:82:"WPTavern: Ajmer in India to Host its First WordPress Event ‘WP Campus Connect’";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=162370";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:87:"https://wptavern.com/ajmer-in-india-to-host-its-first-wordpress-event-wp-campus-connect";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:2971:"<p>Ajmer, a city in the Indian state of Rajasthan, is all set to organize its first-ever WordPress event &#8211; <a href="https://events.wordpress.org/ajmer/2024/wpcampusconnect/">WP Campus Connect</a>. This month-long initiative in October aims to empower students across multiple campuses by introducing them to the powerful tools and opportunities that WordPress offers.</p>



<p>Organizers have partnered with four different colleges to host a series of interactive workshops over four weekends &#8211; October 5-26, 2024. Each workshop will take place on a different college campus, providing students with the chance to learn in a hands-on environment.</p>



<p>Participants can expect comprehensive training sessions led by experienced professionals from the WordPress community. In addition to technical skills, the workshops will also cover various career paths within the WordPress ecosystem.&nbsp;</p>



<p><a href="https://x.com/PoojaDerashri">Pooja Derashri</a>, event organizer and co-founder of WPVibes, said: “By introducing students to WordPress, we’re providing them with more than just technical knowledge; we’re giving them access to a world of career possibilities. This initiative will help students not only build valuable skills but also connect with professionals and peers who can guide them in their career journey.”</p>



<p>The Ajmer WordPress Meetup group has been active since 2017, and the organizers had planned to engage with students even before the pandemic caused the group to go quiet. They later shifted their approach, opting to conduct workshops at colleges rather than gathering students in one location.</p>



<p>With an anticipated turnout of 350 to 400 students, WP Campus Connect promises to be a vibrant hub for learning and collaboration. The event is designed not only to educate but also to inspire students to consider future careers in web development, digital marketing, and more.</p>



<p>The organizers have ambitious plans to expand the program in the future. They aim to bring in global speakers to offer valuable industry insights and establish a mentorship program that connects students with experienced WordPress professionals. They also plan to host hackathons and competitions focused on WordPress while collaborating with industry partners to create internship and job opportunities for students.</p>



<p>Recently, much emphasis has been placed on attracting new users, especially students, to WordPress. Josepha Haden Chomphosy, Executive Director of the WordPress project, discussed this month the importance of WordPress and how it <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/episode-85-wordpress-in-education/">equips students with essential skills</a> for thriving in their future careers. WordPress.com is also giving away <a href="https://wptavern.com/wordpress-com-offers-1000-free-premium-websites-to-students">1,000 free premium websites</a> exclusively to university students.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 25 Sep 2024 17:04:29 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:35;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:106:"WPTavern: #138 – Isla Waite, Bet Hannon and Ryan Bracey on What to Expect From WP Accessibility Day 2024";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:48:"https://wptavern.com/?post_type=podcast&p=162588";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:119:"https://wptavern.com/podcast/138-isla-waite-bet-hannon-and-ryan-bracey-on-what-to-expect-from-wp-accessibility-day-2024";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:55708:"Transcription<div>
<p>[00:00:00] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Welcome to the Jukebox podcast from WP Tavern. My name is Nathan Wrigley.</p>



<p>Jukebox is a podcast which is dedicated to all things WordPress, the people, the events, the plugins, the blocks, the themes, and in this case, what to expect from WP Accessibility Day 2024.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;d like to subscribe to the podcast, you can do that by searching for WP Tavern in your podcast player of choice, or by going to wptavern.com/feed/podcast. And you can copy that URL into most podcast players.</p>



<p>If you have a topic that you&#8217;d like us to feature on the podcast, I&#8217;m keen to hear from you and hopefully get you, or your idea, featured on the show. Head to wptavern.com/contact/jukebox, and use the form there.</p>



<p>So on the podcast today, we have Isla Waite, Bet Hannon and Ryan Bracey.</p>



<p>Isla Waite, originally from the UK has lived in Sacramento, California for 17 years. With a background in graphic design and over a decade in website project management, she recently started her own accessible web design business. Three years ago, Isla joined the WordPress accessibility meetup led by Amber Hinds, which also led to her involvement with the WordPress Accessibility Day. She is now a team lead, managing the tech and vendor teams to promote web accessibility.</p>



<p>Bet Hannon has worked with businesses and nonprofits for over 16 years, helping them build WordPress websites, integrate other communication channels, and learn how to use digital marketing tools more effectively. She is the founder and CEO of AccessiCart, a services agency that focuses on accessibility and e-commerce, along with other high user interaction websites. Bet lives in Bend, Oregon and is a co-organizer of the WordPress meetup there.</p>



<p>Ryan Bracey is the director of web development and user experience at Second Melody, a mid-sized branding agency located in New Jersey, which builds custom WordPress websites for clients of all sizes and industries. In this role, Ryan has taken a holistic approach to accessibility within the agency by promoting collaboration between clients and departments alike, to ensure all phases of a project are completed with intention.</p>



<p>During the podcast, we discussed the significance of WordPress Accessibility Day, which is a 24 hour virtual conference running on the ninth to the 10th of October, 2024.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s free to attend, and we&#8217;ll offer a wealth of resources around the topic of WordPress accessibility. The event will include live captions, ASL interpreters, and professionally created event transcriptions.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s being driven by a team of passionate volunteers, and is geared towards making the digital space accessible for all.</p>



<p>We&#8217;ll cover the logistical details, including how to register, and the optional donations and sponsorships that can enrich your participation. Our guests share their personal motivations and experiences that fuel their dedication to the accessibility cause.</p>



<p>We also get into the global reach of the event with translation efforts and volunteer opportunities that make WordPress accessibility day 2024 for a truly inclusive initiative.</p>



<p>Isla, Bet and Ryan talk about the challenges and triumphs of advancing web accessibility. The importance of both conformance and compliance, and practical steps you can learn about during the event to make your website more accessible.</p>



<p>Whether you&#8217;re a developer, a designer or a content creator, this episode is packed with insights and inspiration to help you contribute to a more accessible web using WordPress.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;re interested in making the web a more accessible and inclusive place, this episode is for you.</p>



<p>If you&#8217;d like to find out more, you can find all of the links in the show notes by heading to wptavern.com/podcast, where you&#8217;ll find all the other episodes as well.</p>



<p>And so without further delay, I bring you Isla Waite, Bet Hannon and Ryan Bracey.</p>



<p>I am joined on the podcast by Isla Waite, Bet Hannon and Ryan Bracey. Welcome to you all.</p>



<p>[00:04:51] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Great to be here.</p>



<p>[00:04:52] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Thank you, yeah.</p>



<p>[00:04:52] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Very, very nice to have you. I can&#8217;t actually remember if we&#8217;ve had three guests on the podcast before.</p>



<p>A quick hat tip before we begin to Michelle Frechette, who has been instrumental in lining up this podcast episode and wrangling today&#8217;s three guests.</p>



<p>In no particular order, I&#8217;m just going to go in the list that I&#8217;ve got them written down on my screen. Would you mind just doing a very quick one minute introduction, quick bio about who you are? Something relevant to what we&#8217;re going to be talking about today, which is the WordPress Accessibility Day 2024. So let&#8217;s start with Isla. Could we just have your little bio please?</p>



<p>[00:05:24] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> Okay, my name is Isla Waite, I hail from the UK, but I live in Sacramento, California for the last 17 years. I have been in website project management for, gosh, more than a decade. Graphic design was my original life, and before that I was in Britain doing things.</p>



<p>I recently started my own business in accessible websites. I stumbled upon WordPress Accessibility Meetup, run by Amber Hinds, about three years ago. And through that discovered WordPress Accessibility Day and said, yes, I&#8217;ll get involved in that. And now I am one of the team leads, I&#8217;m the tech and vendors team lead.</p>



<p>[00:05:58] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Very, very nice. Thank you so much for that. Okay, next one on the list is Bet. Bet, would you do the same? Just introduce yourself.</p>



<p>[00:06:05] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Absolutely. So I&#8217;m Bet Hannon, I&#8217;m the CEO of AccessiCart. We are an accessibility services agency that focuses on e-commerce and other high user interaction sites. And this is my third go around with WordPress Accessibility Day. I serve on the board of directors, I&#8217;m the treasurer, and I am the team lead for finance and sponsors. So I primarily do money things for WordPress Accessibility Day.</p>



<p>[00:06:32] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Okay, thank you so much. And finally, last but by no means least, Ryan.</p>



<p>[00:06:36] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Thanks. So yeah, Ryan Bracey, I&#8217;m the director of Web Development at Second Melody. We&#8217;re a branding studio located here in New Jersey, where I&#8217;m also located. Yeah, much like Isla, I stumbled across Accessibility Day through Amber Hind&#8217;s Accessibility Meetup. Joined as a volunteer three years ago, been an organiser for the past two years, and this year I am helping out as the team lead for speakers. So, dealing with everything related to talking to speakers, reviewing speakers, making the schedule, with the help from a lot of other people.</p>



<p>[00:07:06] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Thank you very much. I obsess about WordPress, and so it&#8217;s not news to me that the WordPress Accessibility Day is a thing, but it occurs to me that maybe a bunch of people listening to this podcast will not have heard of this event before. So, whoever wants to take the question, could you just briefly outline what it is, what the intent is, and maybe, given that it&#8217;s coming up very soon, let&#8217;s get the date and the URL out there as well, so that people can pause this podcast, go and have a look, and then come back and press play again. So whoever wants to take that, just give us the lowdown, the introduction to when it is, and what it&#8217;s all about.</p>



<p>[00:07:39] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Yeah. So WordPress Accessibility Day will be held this year, October 9th through 10th. We are a 24 hour conference, that&#8217;s why it spans the 9th through the 10th. So there are 24 hour long sessions. You can tune in starting on the 9th, watch all the way throughout the day, the night, into the next day. We are an international conference, a hundred percent virtual, so this is why we&#8217;re able to do a 24 hour day.</p>



<p>So no matter where you are in the world, you can find a session that you&#8217;re interested in, that works for your schedule, participate how you want to participate. And our main focus here is just WordPress accessibility. So looking at educating and informing people on accessibility within the space, how they can help out, how they can get involved, and hopefully educating some people on things they didn&#8217;t know.</p>



<p>[00:08:27] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Nice. Thank you so much. I don&#8217;t know about the schedule too much. We can come to that in a moment. I don&#8217;t really want to particularly cherry pick out individual speakers, although you may wish to later.</p>



<p>But given the fact that it&#8217;s running around the clock, so this 24 hour cycle, has that given you an opportunity to highlight different parts of the world, and raise the profile of different communities?</p>



<p>So, you know, we&#8217;ve got three flagship events which span the globe, Asia, Europe, and America. But, you know, there&#8217;s communities in Australia, the Philippines, Taiwan, South America, all of these things. Has that been an endeavor? Is that part of the whole 24 hour nature, to raise the profile of different community members throughout the world?</p>



<p>[00:09:04] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> Absolutely, yeah. This year in particular, we have grown our marketing department of this nonprofit Accessibility Day, and thank you to Michelle. We are sending out social media, and blogs, and podcasts in all different areas of the world. She&#8217;s connected with all kinds of people to make sure stuff is pushed out at appropriate times for different time zones.</p>



<p>We&#8217;ve had good responses to those things. So we now have team members coming in from different regions in Australia and Hungary. Speakers from all different places, all around the world. I think this year, as it should be, is better than the last, and next year will be better than this year, and that will keep happening.</p>



<p>[00:09:42] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Bet I think it was, that mentioned that she was a director. And when I hear that word, it immediately summons up some sort of structure in the background, you know, a hierarchy of people and what have you.</p>



<p>A lot of the events that I&#8217;ve seen online, I get the impression that it&#8217;s a bunch of friends that get together sometimes, and organise an event around a particular theme. But given that there&#8217;s directors and things like that, I&#8217;m presuming that there&#8217;s more going on in the background, a little bit more of a professional nature to it. Perhaps like a, well, we call it in the UK a charity, I think it&#8217;s called a nonprofit in North America. But is there some sort of structure in the background like that?</p>



<p>[00:10:16] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Yes. Intentionally done in 2021, as we were going into 2022, was really thinking about, and one of the things that we, as a community, felt was really important was making sure that our speakers were compensated. All over the world, often people with disabilities are not compensated, and we expect them to do the educational work, but we expect that we want our speakers to be compensated.</p>



<p>So there&#8217;s a small stipend that they get, and that was not allowed by the WordPress Foundation. So we explored other options, and we incorporated ourselves as a 501 C3. So we are a nonprofit organisation within the United States. And we exist under the fiscal umbrella, or the kind of oversight, fiscal oversight, of a larger nonprofit called Knowbility, that does a lot of work around education and accessibility awareness.</p>



<p>That gives us the, we have the nonprofit piece, and so we just have three board members, so it&#8217;s not huge. And then we have the organising team for the event that has grown quite dramatically. You know, Isla talked about things kind of improving year to year, but this is by far the most organisers and volunteers that we&#8217;ve had, in terms of getting things put forward.</p>



<p>And we&#8217;ve been able to do some amazing new things. You know, Isla mentioned the marketing efforts that have really stepped up this year. But we&#8217;ve also had some folks step forward, not so much related to the day of the event, but to start doing some translation so that we&#8217;re able to, you know, all the talks happen in English, but we are wanting to be sure that we&#8217;re finding some ways to translate those into Spanish, and French, and other languages that folks are interested in having them appear in, so we can spread the word.</p>



<p>[00:11:56] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> Shout out to Joni for all the work she&#8217;s done for that.</p>



<p>[00:11:59] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> New translation lead, so that&#8217;s been amazing.</p>



<p>[00:12:01] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So a lot of the events that are online in the WordPress space, a lot of them are free to attend, certainly. Some of them are, you know, there&#8217;s a gatekeeping aspect to it, it might be financial, it might be the surrender of an email address or something like that. Is there any barrier to participating in this event during the day, or can literally anybody rock up and consume the content that you are creating?</p>



<p>[00:12:23] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> I was just commenting that, wouldn&#8217;t that be terrible if we put a barrier in the way of people accessing WordPress Accessibility Day?</p>



<p>[00:12:30] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> We&#8217;ve worked really hard to make sure that there are no financial barriers for attending this. And so you can come to WordPress Accessibility Day. The only thing you need to do is surrender your email because you need an account to log into the Zoom, to attend the events. You can opt in or out of our mailing list though. So it&#8217;s free to attend.</p>



<p>We offer you the option to give a $10 donation. If you want an event t-shirt, you can make a $50 donation. If you want to micro sponsor your company for $150, you can do that. But we have some amazing sponsors that have come in to help us put on the event.</p>



<p>It&#8217;s more than just needing a streaming service to be able to do the event, because we&#8217;re offering live captions, because we&#8217;re talking about technical matters, sometimes that&#8217;s an issue, right? We have to have folks that are really skilled at doing those sorts of live captions. We&#8217;re offering live ASL interpreters during the event. And then, really quickly after the event, within the next few weeks, there&#8217;ll be professional transcriptions done.</p>



<p>As you probably know, when you are doing a transcription of an audio, not a lot of them that are technical get everything right, the AI versions of those. And so having folks that are skilled to do that is a piece of that.</p>



<p>So those things together, having the streaming service, and all those other things to get it all out, our amazing sponsors are helping us to do that in a way that makes it free for people to attend.</p>



<p>[00:13:52] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So if I was to show up and I surrender my email address, it&#8217;s going to be taking place through Zoom, and you&#8217;ve given some nice options there for some things that you can do to help the cause, if you&#8217;d like to buy a T-shirt or what have you.</p>



<p>But if I turn up and I wish to read the captions, I think you mentioned there that you&#8217;re going to be having live captions. That implies, although I could be wrong, that you&#8217;ve got a human, a person actually transcribing them in real time.</p>



<p>And I think you&#8217;re right, the option to do that with technology falls over so quickly with technical terms. And no doubt, a WordPress event, there&#8217;s going to be hundreds of words bandied around, which wouldn&#8217;t be accurately transcribed, so that&#8217;s really nice. So you&#8217;ll be able to read those, and I&#8217;m guessing that that will be in English.</p>



<p>[00:14:33] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Yes. Initially, all the presentations and all the captions will be in English.</p>



<p>[00:14:36] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> And is that the case for all of the presentations as well? I was to, yeah. So everything throughout the 24 hours is in the English language, and the captions will be in the English language as well, okay.</p>



<p>[00:14:46] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Right. And our hope is that, you know, our volunteer translators are going to be getting to work fairly quickly, and starting to put those out as they can, right? Again, the translation pieces are all done by volunteers.</p>



<p>[00:14:58] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Oh, okay. So, as soon as the session has ended, you&#8217;ve got, in your team of volunteers, there&#8217;s a bunch of people who are going to be transcribing those into, well, I&#8217;ll just name some languages and you can tell me, things like Spanish, and Italian, and what have you, and Japanese and things like that.</p>



<p>[00:15:11] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> The big focus is Spanish, and then after that French, just in terms of the number of places that those languages are spoken. But we do have volunteers that pop up, for example, you know, there&#8217;s some languages in the different regions of India that people have an interest in making sure that the talks are available to their communities, and so folks can step up. And so if you have folks that, you know, I was in an interview earlier today, and someone expressed an interest in translating for Arabic because they want their community to be able to access this information. So if you have a community that you want to volunteer to help translate for, reach out.</p>



<p>[00:15:46] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Bet, where would we reach out to?</p>



<p>[00:15:48] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> So the wpaccessibility.day is the website, and we&#8217;ll get you the link for that. And then there&#8217;s a volunteer section, and people can volunteer.</p>



<p>[00:15:56] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> I think it very much depends on where we can get volunteers from. We have ideal languages that we know are very popular in our part of the world, but we want as many languages as possible. So there&#8217;s really no restriction on who might volunteer and from where. And if you can speak another language, then we want you.</p>



<p>[00:16:13] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> I&#8217;m just going to ask a question one at a time. And, again, we&#8217;ll just go in the order of the people that we did before, so I&#8217;ll start with Isla. It&#8217;s a personal question so you can answer this in any way that you like.</p>



<p>Why have you gone in the direction of accessibility? Given all the interesting things that you can do online, why has accessibility become such a crucial part of your life, such that you are being involved, and giving up probably quite a lot of your time to organise an event like this? So it&#8217;ll be the same question, but we&#8217;ll begin with Isla.</p>



<p>[00:16:38] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> For me, I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s any one thing. I think a number of things sort collided at the same time for me in my professional career and private life. Like I said, I&#8217;ve been a project manager for more than a decade, with a background in graphic design. Before that I was in the military.</p>



<p>I am a very mission-focused person, and I was finding after a decade that, as much as I love my clients, I have some wonderful clients, I felt like, I need something to dig my heels into, and my fingers, and my brain, that has a bigger impact. And I think a lot of people find that at some point in their career. I just needed to see that I was somehow making a difference. Just little me, you know, little part of it, little butterfly wing situation.</p>



<p>So that was part of it. And then, like I said, I stumbled across the Accessibility Day, Accessibility meetup. I was just intrigued. At that point I was really just learning what accessibility was. I stumbled upon the quote by Tim Berners-Lee, you know, the internet, access for everyone regardless of disability, which is now in my signature block.</p>



<p>And then my father was diagnosed with Alzheimer&#8217;s, which is one of those hidden diseases for a long time. But early on, I watched him struggle on the internet. So he&#8217;s, at the time, in his sixties. I was watching over his shoulder, just sort of trying to do something really simple. I was like, huh, this could happen to anybody, it&#8217;s not just Alzheimer&#8217;s. I&#8217;m very interested in the cognitive side of things, as much as the seen disabilities.</p>



<p>Anyway, that all sort of happened at the same time, and I decided, this is a path for me I think. And then just recently, I got involved with IAAP, the International Association of Accessible Professionals, and I just passed my CPAC. So yeah, for me it&#8217;s about getting on a path for the rest of my working life, and maybe beyond, where I feel like I&#8217;m doing something that my heart is driving.</p>



<p>[00:18:18] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> What a lovely answer. That&#8217;s great, thank you. Same question to Bet.</p>



<p>[00:18:23] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Yeah, so I had been around flagship WordCamps and hearing about accessibility a little bit. But in 2016 we had a, one of our clients mentioned they needed help making their site accessible. And so that was when we really, about eight years ago, we really dug into learning about accessibility.</p>



<p>And when our team did that, we realised all of us on the team had people that we knew that were impacted. And we saw the difference it makes in people&#8217;s lives, to be able to be independent, and have sense of human dignity in being able to do stuff on the web.</p>



<p>And so much so that we shifted the focus of the agency. So it is what we do, but it&#8217;s, my take on it is, I hope we work ourselves out of work. I mean, if we could get to the point where nobody needs help learning how to do accessibility, because it&#8217;s just something we all do and know how to do. And so that&#8217;s a piece of what drives me to work.</p>



<p>With Accessibility Day, is really just sort of extending that education and finding ways to help people learn and grow, and know how to do accessibility better. Because I think when we know better, we can do better. But to think about building in empathy for different ways of accessing the web. It&#8217;s just a huge part of what I want to be about, so this organisation gives me a chance to do that.</p>



<p>[00:19:40] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, another great answer. No pressure at all, Ryan.</p>



<p>[00:19:43] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> I know, I can&#8217;t believe I have to follow those two.</p>



<p>[00:19:46] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Two really powerful messages, so over to you.</p>



<p>[00:19:49] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Similar to Bet&#8217;s timeline, right around 2016 for me. I&#8217;ve been a developer for, gosh, probably over a decade as well. But around that time period, 2016, we had a lot of clients coming to us mentioning accessibility. And up to that point in my career, it hadn&#8217;t really been something I knew much about, or given a lot of focus to.</p>



<p>Started really focusing on it because it was a client ask, obviously something I needed to do for work. And as I went down that path of researching, what is this? What do I need to do to be compliant? I stumbled across Amber Hind&#8217;s accessibility meetups, started attending those, found this really warm and welcoming community.</p>



<p>And just the whole push behind it, or the movement behind it even of, when you do this work it&#8217;s, I mean, yes, at the end of the day, we&#8217;re just creating websites, but it&#8217;s something so small that, why should we ever create a website that not everyone on earth can access? Meaning, yes, it doesn&#8217;t seem like a huge impact overall, in the big scheme of the world, but everyone has the right to be able to do anything anyone else can do. So why not just something as simple as browse the web.</p>



<p>And then as you really dive more into it, you realise a lot of the things you do to help cater to the accessibility crowd, you&#8217;re also catering to everybody in the world. So when you make something easy for one person, you make it a lot easier for everybody. So there&#8217;s added benefit across the board. It makes your work a lot better, it makes your work more accessible, everyone can participate.</p>



<p>I was also lucky around that time to find WordPress Accessibility Day. So I volunteered as a moderator, I believe I was three years ago. At the same time in my professional life, at my company, we went through massive growth. We had some restructuring, I was promoted to director of the website department. So as part of that role, I was tasked with also becoming more active in the community. So already had spoken at Amber&#8217;s Meetup, I was already a little bit of a part of Accessibility Day, so I took a larger role as an organiser. Lucky enough to work at a company that gives me the ability to do those things, and encourages me to do those things.</p>



<p>I think to echo what both Isla and Bet have said, it just really kind of gives meaning to your day, to know that what you&#8217;re doing is making someone&#8217;s life a little bit easier.</p>



<p>[00:22:08] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> That was also a fabulous answer. I think, in the last sentence, you encapsulated it in the one word, meaning. I think maybe that sort of sums it up. It gives some significance to work, which could otherwise be fairly technical and a bit dry. You know, if you&#8217;re just building websites all day, every day, I think it would be easy to, I don&#8217;t know, maybe you are fascinated by that for its own sake, but it would be easy to lose sight of that.</p>



<p>And everything that you&#8217;ve, the three of you have just mentioned, points to a kind of more moral dimension to the work of building a website. I get this intuition, having spoken to many people in the community that you are in, that it seems to be replete with genuinely nice people, which is just lovely. I mean, the WordPress community itself is fairly nice, but then there&#8217;s a subset of that community, the WordPress community, the accessibility in WordPress community, which seems to have its own high level of loveliness, for want of a better word.</p>



<p>[00:23:07] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Well, Ryan kind of touched on that, you know, like finding this warm community. And I think that&#8217;s, you know, a lot of us work from home, and serving on this planning, organising team, for me, and I think for others too, is a way that we really connect every week. You know, we&#8217;re meeting most of the year, every two weeks. We&#8217;re now in the kind of pitched lead up to the event, so we&#8217;re meeting every week, and we get a chance to know one another. A lot of us have never met face to face yet, but we&#8217;re just a part of each other&#8217;s lives in a way that is genuinely warm and supporting, and that&#8217;s awesome too.</p>



<p>[00:23:38] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, that&#8217;s really nice. If somebody was to be listening to this and decides, you know what, I&#8217;m going to show up for the Accessibility Day 2024. Are there parts of the event which enable socialising, for want of a better word, or is it all about the presentations, or do you have, I don&#8217;t know, breakout rooms, or some way in which people can facilitate what you&#8217;ve just mentioned? You know, this kinda moral aspect, this nice camaraderie that you&#8217;ve all got.</p>



<p>[00:24:02] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> If you only log into the Zoom, then you&#8217;re just consuming the presentations. But there is a Slack channel that you can get access to, and there will be a lot of chatting going on there. And that&#8217;s where you&#8217;ll get notified if you win any of the sponsors prizes, and the drawings and those kinds of things. So the Slack channel is the place where you could start to make some connections.</p>



<p>[00:24:24] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> So there are opportunities for that. So, dear listener, if you are going to attend then, you never know, you might come out of it with a bunch of new friends as well, which is really nice.</p>



<p>I&#8217;m just looking at the website itself, you have the most fabulous URL, by the way. It&#8217;s wpaccessibility.day. I mean, it couldn&#8217;t be better, that&#8217;s just great. Well done for bagging that one. That website itself, I&#8217;m presuming had to go onto the microscope quite a lot. Given the nature of the event, it would be somewhat remiss if the website had glaring accessibility errors in it.</p>



<p>I don&#8217;t know if any of you three have been involved directly with the website, but I&#8217;d be interested in hearing some of the challenges. I think we all know that the idea of a hundred percent accessibility is something a bit off there into the distance, and it may never be achievable in anybody&#8217;s timeframe. But, what are some of the things that you&#8217;ve really gone out of your way to make as accessible as possible over there?</p>



<p>[00:25:14] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> I want to like give a shout out to Ryan because he designed that website for us.</p>



<p>[00:25:19] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Thank you Bet.</p>



<p>[00:25:20] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> It&#8217;s awesome. Do you want to talk a little bit about that, Ryan?</p>



<p>[00:25:23] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Yeah, absolutely. So as I mentioned, I do work for a branding agency, and as part of my involvement last year with Accessibility Day, we donated our agency resources to the group. There was interest to go through a rebrand, get a new logo, get a new entire branding.</p>



<p>So my wonderful branding designers that I work with, and I&#8217;ll give him a shout out, Jay Zawislak, he is our creative director, took this on. He designed the logo, chose the color palette, chose the fonts. And when he went through that exercise, he worked pretty closely with myself, just because I&#8217;m a little more versed in accessibility.</p>



<p>But we were really looking at, from step one of coming up with the brand, are these fonts accessible? And accessibility, as you mentioned, there is no a hundred percent, it is a spectrum. What works for one person might not work for another person, and vice versa. But you can look at small things like, if I do a lowercase l, a capital i, the number one, are those glyphs all different? Is the spacing between letters enough that it&#8217;s easy to read? Are the characters distinct enough that they&#8217;re easy to read?</p>



<p>So even looking at fonts in that way, when we were picking colors, we were comparing all the colors against each other to make sure contrast worked. So wherever text is laid over a color, those have been checked.</p>



<p>We also then took an opportunity to kind of showcase what can be done in an accessible website design. So when I designed it, I worked closely with our other board member, Joe Dolson, who actually started Accessibility Day, and now leads our website team as well, developed the website. And we decided to try to showcase things that can be done to make a site beautiful and accessible, because there is a little bit of a misconception within the design community that accessible design means ugly design, which is not true.</p>



<p>So we even, you&#8217;ll notice at the top of the site if you are on it, there is a toggle to go into kind of a dark mode. We really wanted to showcase that this can be done in an accessible way. It honors users&#8217; browser preferences. If you prefer dark, it&#8217;s in dark by default. If you prefer light, it&#8217;s in light by default. We made sure when you switch it over everything is accessible in that mode as well. So that was done very intentionally too, because dark mode was kind of a big trend last year. So when we did the site, we wanted to show that can be done accessibly as well.</p>



<p>We used a lot of pastel colors. Again, those are often seen as inaccessible. So showing that actually you can have a very colorful site, you can have a soft colorful site in a very accessible way. So a lot of thought went into it. And it was, like I said, kind of used as a showcase piece to say, actually, you can be accessible and beautiful at the same time. You just have to put a little bit more thought into it, but you can have a good product at the end of the day.</p>



<p>[00:28:08] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> It&#8217;s really nice. I should say, I probably misspoke a little bit, given when this podcast is going to air, the URL that maybe would be more relevant is 2024. So the URL is the numerals 2024.wpaccessibility.day. That will actually get you to the current version of the site. It looks broadly similar, doesn&#8217;t it? You know, the design aesthetics, and what have you. But it&#8217;s absolutely marvelous. And so thank you for all of the hard work you&#8217;ve put in there.</p>



<p>Just out of interest, Ryan, because you&#8217;ve been in the weeds with that, how much extra work, if you like, and I know this is a sort slightly contentious question, but if you had built this website, I don&#8217;t know, with some kind of page builder technology built inside a WordPress, and you&#8217;d had no thought to accessibility at all, against the version that we&#8217;re looking at now, how much more time do you actually have to spend on it? Was it a significant overhead, or is it just now muscle memory for you that you can just do it all at the same speed as you would with any website?</p>



<p>[00:29:05] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> I find there&#8217;s actually not a lot of extra work that goes into making something accessible, like I kind of alluded to, it&#8217;s just having that thought in your head beforehand. So to kind of draw a design analogy, if you know you&#8217;re working with a brand that has a red and black color palette, you know you have to design in red and black. It&#8217;s no harder, or easier, or more work, or less work than designing a blue and green website, it&#8217;s just a different approach. You have to think about it a little differently.</p>



<p>So accessibility works in the same way, you just go into it knowing, I have to make sure that my fonts are big enough, I have to make sure I&#8217;m not pairing fonts, colors, and background colors that no one can see. I have to make sure, if I&#8217;m introducing functionality, I&#8217;m introducing something that&#8217;s well known, it&#8217;s being introduced in the right way, I am doing it in a way that&#8217;s easy for everyone to use.</p>



<p>[00:29:57] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> It&#8217;s really just kind of an additional, thinking about user experience.</p>



<p>[00:30:01] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Right. I was going to say, at the risk of sounding controversial, it kind of just is, if you&#8217;re good at user experience, you&#8217;re good at accessibility.</p>



<p>[00:30:09] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> And it gives you boundaries. I know so that many designers flail without some kind of boundaries. And yes, the brand gives you some boundaries but, you know, I was talking to another designer recently, and it&#8217;s designed with purpose. That&#8217;s how I look at accessibility. Yes, you have a brand, but now you&#8217;re designing with a purpose. And going after it like that, everyone just totally is on the same page immediately. As long as the team has an accessible culture, it&#8217;s not any different to designing the old way.</p>



<p>[00:30:35] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Yeah, it&#8217;s essentially just laying out a larger set of design requirements at the beginning of a project.</p>



<p>[00:30:40] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> We&#8217;re at an interesting time with accessibility because I feel, I&#8217;ve said this a few times on this podcast, that if we rewound the clock a decade, then accessibility wasn&#8217;t really, it didn&#8217;t really have a spotlight on it particularly. But now it really does, almost that it&#8217;s the thing of our time. You know, in the year 2024, it really does feel like one of the most talked about subjects.</p>



<p>I think there&#8217;s a couple of reasons for that, and the one is the moral dimension that you mentioned, all three of you alluded to that. And actually it felt like that was the dimension for the three of you, you know, the moral aspect to it. And probably behind that a little bit, the community that is behind that moral dimension.</p>



<p>But increasingly, I think there&#8217;s going to be a legal dimension as well, where the carrot, if you like, the moral thing, you know, dangle the carrot and hopefully people will come along. That will work for some people, you three being prime examples. But the stick, the legal aspect I think is coming fairly soon. I know that in the European Union, we&#8217;re going to have legislation coming around next year, which will make this all the more important.</p>



<p>So attending events like this feels like, really, if you&#8217;re not skilled on this, this is the perfect moment to get involved, because at some point somebody might be knocking on the door with some paperwork that you don&#8217;t necessarily want to read. That&#8217;s not a particularly great reason to do it, but it is a fairly compelling reason. And I don&#8217;t know if anybody&#8217;s got anything to say about that, about the legal aspect, and the ambulance chasing lawyers and all of that coming up.</p>



<p>[00:32:10] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> The reality is, for a lot of medium and small businesses, they tend to put off a lot of compliance things until they have to. That&#8217;s just sort of the way that they are, because of the revenue is just not there to do it often, so that happens. But people do come on board, and try to work at what they are required to do.</p>



<p>And you&#8217;re right, we already have that in the US with the serial plaintiff lawsuits. We&#8217;re gearing up for the enforcement of the European Accessibility Act. But even in the UK and other places, there are other laws already there that are starting to be more enforced.</p>



<p>And so, yeah, legal compliance is a thing. That is the main topic of our keynote speaker at the event this year in fact. Lainey Feingold is a US attorney who has been instrumental in accessibility law throughout the United States. She got involved with some of the early lawsuits around bank customers who were suing their banks over non-accessible ATMs, primarily blind consumers suing them. And out of that developed a kind of, structured negotiation, bringing together the people who build the ATMs, and the people who are blind who need to use them, and the users.</p>



<p>And so it kind of builds on that user experience that we were talking about before, bringing folks together rather than being antagonistic. I mean, I think people do want to do the right thing. So I don&#8217;t know how much of those stories she&#8217;ll tell us in her keynote, but she was very, you know, if you&#8217;re in the US and you have an ATM with braille on it, Laney was a part of that. She&#8217;s going to be talking about the legal landscape for the WordPress community, and I&#8217;m really excited about that.</p>



<p>[00:33:52] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Yeah, that&#8217;s a nice segue Bet actually because, again, the URL 2024.wpaccessibility.day, and then if you add forward slash schedule, to the end of that, you&#8217;re going to be able to see what&#8217;s going on. And as you said, right at the top of the list is Lainey&#8217;s keynote address.</p>



<p>But then underneath that we have all of the different bits and pieces that are rolling out over the following 24 hours, and they&#8217;re all clearly labeled, the times that you can see them live, and what have you.</p>



<p>I&#8217;m going to put you all on the spot and ask for you to pick one, or maybe two, that you are particularly excited about. Now, caveat emptor, I am not suggesting, even for a moment, that if you pick two, that means the others are in any way, shape, or form, less worthwhile, let&#8217;s put it that way. We understand how this works. We can&#8217;t mention all of them because we just don&#8217;t have the time. But if you find that to be a fair thing to do, I&#8217;ll start with, well, let&#8217;s go with Isla. Couple that you are particularly excited about, or one, whichever you like.</p>



<p>[00:34:48] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> Well, I&#8217;m going from my brain, and I&#8217;ve only really studied the schedule twice. Once when I was, this is how the process goes, I was eliminating all indication of who these speeches, presentations come from, so that the speaker&#8217;s team could go through that, and it was anonymised so there&#8217;s no favoritism or anything, so yeah, that&#8217;s how it&#8217;s done.</p>



<p>So that was my first exposure to, all of the applications of the speakers, which were somewhere in the region of 80 to 100. So the team did an amazing job of getting through all of that, and coming up with the 24, 25 presentations.</p>



<p>I&#8217;ve since looked at it once because we&#8217;ve been pretty busy. So from the top of my head, I know there is one that focuses on a culture among developers, and that stuff is obviously very, very interesting to me because I work, I guide the team or whoever&#8217;s involved in a particular project.</p>



<p>And that involves people who work predominantly with me, and people who work with the organization that we&#8217;re helping. It becomes a very molded team of people who need to understand how this all works, and how you&#8217;re going to keep doing it going forward.</p>



<p>So I&#8217;m always interested on other people&#8217;s approaches to that. And I believe that speakers from Hungary, so I&#8217;m super excited to hear about that perspective from another country.</p>



<p>[00:35:57] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> There&#8217;s one right in front of me at the moment which is entitled, Creating a Developer Culture of Accessibility and it&#8217;s Jessie Frio, Mark Steadman. So maybe that was the one that you were thinking of. So there we go, we&#8217;ve managed to find that one. That&#8217;s great. Okay, let&#8217;s go to Bet. Same question.</p>



<p>[00:36:12] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> I am, not so much the presentations, I am super excited about hearing Lainey&#8217;s keynote. I do a lot of work with folks that are trying to wrestle through all those legal compliance things, and that&#8217;s just the nature of what I end up doing with a lot of folks. So I just eat that stuff up, and I really eager to hear from her, she&#8217;s a great presenter too.</p>



<p>[00:36:31] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Perfect. So we&#8217;ve had a culture one, we&#8217;ve had a compliance one. So, yeah, over to you, Ryan, for the last one or two.</p>



<p>[00:36:37] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Oh wow. As the speaker lead organiser, I feel like I love all my children. We do have some really interesting topics this year, maybe I&#8217;ll answer it that way.</p>



<p>To go off Lainey&#8217;s keynote, we do have a few other talks that kind of focus around the legal landscape this year. This was a big push for us to get speakers in that area because it is becoming more prevalent.</p>



<p>We also have some interesting talks that focus around accessibility from a designer aspect, which I think is an oft overlooked topic. I think a lot of times it just falls to the developer, when it&#8217;s really something that starts in the beginning.</p>



<p>We do have some interesting culture ones, that talk about how to structure accessibility within your company.</p>



<p>But there is one talk I am actually pretty excited about. It is called, How to Remediate Accessibility Issues in WordPress by Cam Coulter. And I think that one&#8217;s going to be very interesting to our audience because he&#8217;s talking specifically about how to address issues that pop up in WordPress, which, as WordPress developers, we know is not often a fully hardcoded, self-built system. You&#8217;re working with a lot of page builders, plugins, third party developers, software systems. So he&#8217;s talking about how to identify those things, and make changes when maybe you don&#8217;t have access to that source code.</p>



<p>[00:37:53] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Oh, well, thank you. That was nice, all three of you giving us a very different answer.</p>



<p>If you go to that page though, although it might sound on the face of it that accessibility is a niche, it turns out that niche is really broad. I&#8217;ll just go through a few, I&#8217;m just looking at the page now. So the one that you just mentioned, Ryan, How to Remediate Accessibility Issues in WordPress.</p>



<p>Then there&#8217;s one about agile accessibility, Building Inclusivity into the Product Roadmap. Practical Accessibility Tips for Content Creators. Accessibility Challenges with Single Page Applications. Why can’t I use my brand color there, and if not there, then where? That&#8217;s an interesting one. Is your page builder, accessible? Captchas and other gotchas. CSS tiny tips. Insights from a community driven survey. Developing accessible Gutenberg blocks. That one would capture I think.</p>



<p>I&#8217;m about halfway down the page and I&#8217;ll stop there. But you&#8217;ve immediately got the idea that this not one thing, there really is a whole broad church of things to be consuming and getting involved in.</p>



<p>So I know it&#8217;s not the three of you entirely, but I think this event is going to be absolutely fabulous. So just quickly, one more time, 2024.wpaccessibility.day. Just before we knock it on the head, as we say in the UK, just before we finish, is there anything that you want to just mention as a way of rounding it off? Something that I failed to ask, something that you think was important say. Let&#8217;s go round the houses. Let&#8217;s start with Isla.</p>



<p>[00:39:19] <strong>Isla Waite:</strong> Yeah, I want to tack on a little bit to Bet&#8217;s comments about the legal stuff. It&#8217;s been a big thing in California recently, and I&#8217;m definitely not going to go into the details of that. But, you know, eventually California will sort itself out and there&#8217;ll be some kind of law that makes sense.</p>



<p>But something that came up in the draft of that bill was compliance, and somewhere else, I believe the word conformance was used. I&#8217;ve studied those words a lot having just done my CPAC. Compliance being a legal thing, conformance being in the spirit of. And with all this talk of laws, and people definitely being worried and, scared and, you know, Bet&#8217;s clients and mine as well, oh my gosh, how do I get compliant?</p>



<p>Yes, that is super important and, yes, it&#8217;s probably going to be the law. But for everyone else who&#8217;s just trying to get on board and figure this out, start with conformance. Start with doing something in the spirit of accessibility. All you have to do is squint at your colors and figure out, can I see them if my eyesight&#8217;s not very good? There&#8217;s so many places you can start to conform, and work in the spirit of accessibility. And I hope lots of those people come to WordPress Accessibility Day 2024.</p>



<p>[00:40:25] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Nice. Thank you for that final comment, that&#8217;s lovely. And, Bet, anything you wanted to add?</p>



<p>[00:40:30] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Yeah, I think a lot of times, we&#8217;ve kind of alluded to it a couple different times, some of the stuff Ryan talked about. A lot times people think accessibility is something very complex, that only specialists can do. And I try to help people understand, you know, start where you&#8217;re at, and if you can put alt text on images, and make sure your heading structures are right, and make sure your link texts are there, and work on your color contrast. That&#8217;s a lot of accessibility issues, and they don&#8217;t necessarily require very much technical knowledge at all, right? Content creators do a lot of that work. And so get started and start learning, but also, the more you educate yourself, the more you can stop creating inaccessible content.</p>



<p>[00:41:11] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Nice. And it feels like this event is perfectly poised for that. Whether you are really deeply into this journey, there&#8217;s content here you. But you are the 101 stage, and you just want some tips right at the outset, there&#8217;s things here well. Okay, thank you. And, Ryan, rounding us off.</p>



<p>[00:41:25] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Yeah. And I just wanted to say, and Nathan, you alluded to this but, as you read our schedule, we do have a little bit for everybody, and we took a really concerted effort to make sure that this wasn&#8217;t a fully technical conference. If you&#8217;re not a developer, there are going to be talks for you here. If you&#8217;ve worked in accessibility for years, there will be talks for you here. If you&#8217;ve just heard about accessibility today on this podcast, there are talks for you there.</p>



<p>So as we&#8217;ve mentioned, it is free to attend. So if you go to our website, you can register right now. It&#8217;s October 9th, block off your calendar. Each session only lasts for 45 minutes. One happens every hour, so you can kind of watch them at your leisure throughout the day. And like I said, we have something for everybody. So no matter what position or role you work in, no matter where you are in your accessibility day journey, you can probably find a talk that is relevant to what you are looking to get out of it.</p>



<p>[00:42:15] <strong>Nathan Wrigley:</strong> Thank you so much. And playing it forwards a little bit, I would also draw attention to the menu on the URL, which we&#8217;ve been mentioning, 2024.wpaccessibility.day. Couple of things, there&#8217;s a volunteer menu item, maybe go and check that out if you&#8217;re interested in supporting the event going forwards. And also a donate menu item as well if you want to support the endeavors in that way.</p>



<p>That has been a really interesting podcast. If you are new at accessibility, this event is for you. If you&#8217;re experienced, this event is for you. And if you would like to possibly make some new friends in a different community, this event is also for you. So it&#8217;s got a bit of everything for everybody.</p>



<p>Thank you so much for chatting to me about it today. Thank you, Isla, thank you Bet, and thank you, Ryan. I really appreciate it.</p>



<p>[00:43:03] <strong>Bet Hannon:</strong> Thanks for having us.</p>



<p>[00:43:04] <strong>Ryan Bracey:</strong> Yeah, thank you.</p>
</div>



<p>On the podcast today we have <a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/people/isla-waite/">Isla Waite</a>, <a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/people/bet-hannon/">Bet Hannon</a> and <a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/people/ryan-bracey/">Ryan Bracey</a>.</p>



<p>Isla Waite, originally from the UK, has lived in Sacramento, California for 17 years. With a background in graphic design and over a decade in website project management, she recently started her own accessible web design business. Three years ago, Isla joined the WordPress Accessibility Meetup, led by Amber Hinds, which has led to her involvement with the WordPress Accessibility Day. She is now a team lead, managing the tech and vendors teams to promote web accessibility.</p>



<p>Bet Hannon has worked with businesses and nonprofits for over 16 years, helping them build WordPress websites, integrate other communication channels, and learn how to use digital marketing tools more effectively. She is the founder &amp; CEO of AccessiCart, a services agency that focuses on accessibility and eCommerce, along with other high user interaction websites. Bet lives in Bend, Oregon, and is a co-organizer of the WordPress Meetup there.</p>



<p>Ryan Bracey is the Director of Web Development &amp; User Experience at Second Melody. A mid sized branding agency located in NJ, which builds custom WordPress websites for clients of all sizes and industries. In this role Ryan has taken a holistic approach to accessibility within the agency by promoting collaboration between clients and departments alike, to ensure all phases of a project are completed with intention.</p>



<p>During the podcast we discuss the significance of <a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/">WordPress Accessibility Day</a>, which is a 24-hour virtual conference running on 9th to the 10th October, 2024. It’s free to attend and will offer a wealth of resources around the topic of WordPress accessibility. The event will include live captions, ASL interpreters, and professionally created event transcriptions. It’s being driven by a team of passionate volunteers and is geared towards making the digital space accessible for all.</p>



<p>We cover the logistical details, including how to register and the optional donations and sponsorships that can enrich your participation. Our guests share their personal motivations and experiences that fuel their dedication to the accessibility cause. We also get into the global reach of the event, with translation efforts and volunteer opportunities that make WordPress Accessibility Day 2024 a truly inclusive initiative.</p>



<p>Isla, Bet, and Ryan talk about the challenges and triumphs of advancing web accessibility, the importance of both conformance and compliance, and practical steps you can learn about during the event to make your website more accessible. Whether you’re a developer, a designer, or a content creator, this episode is packed with insights and inspiration to help you contribute to a more accessible web using WordPress.</p>



<p>If you’re interested in making the web a more accessible and inclusive place, this episode is for you.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Useful links</h2>



<p><a href="https://2024.wpaccessibility.day/">WP Accessibility 2024 website</a></p>



<p><a href="https://www.meetup.com/wordpress-accessibility-meetup-group/">WordPress Accessibility Meetup</a></p>



<p><a href="https://accessicart.com/">AccessiCart website</a></p>



<p><a href="https://secondmelody.com/">Second Melody website</a></p>



<p><a href="https://knowbility.org/">Knowbility website</a></p>



<p><a href="https://www.accessibilityassociation.org/">International Association of Accessible Professionals website</a></p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Wed, 25 Sep 2024 14:00:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Nathan Wrigley";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:36;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:81:"WPTavern: Automattic Responds to WP Engine’s Cease and Desist with Legal Action";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=162542";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:89:"https://wptavern.com/automattic-responds-to-wp-engines-cease-and-desist-with-legal-action";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:9830:"<p>After the <a href="https://wptavern.com/highlights-from-matt-mullenwegs-spiciest-word-camp-presentation-at-wordcamp-us-2024">incidents</a> at WordCamp US 2024, <a href="https://x.com/wpengine/status/1838350670564377051">WP Engine</a> sent a “cease and desist” letter to Automattic demanding that Automattic and its CEO, Matt Mullenweg, retract and stop making false, harmful, and disparaging statements about WP Engine.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Automattic Confirms Legal Action&nbsp;</h3>



<p>Matt Mullenweg has confirmed that they have officially initiated legal action against WP Engine for the “Unauthorized Use of WordPress Foundation and WooCommerce, Inc. Intellectual Property” and requested them to stop the unauthorized use of trademarks belonging to Automattic &amp; Woo.&nbsp;</p>



<div class="wp-block-file"><a id="wp-block-file--media-82fb2235-2325-468a-8a3a-ff60fd229f1d" href="https://wptavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/acnd_09_23_2024.pdf">acnd_09_23_2024</a><a href="https://wptavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/acnd_09_23_2024.pdf" class="wp-block-file__button wp-element-button">Download</a></div>



<p>The document reads, “Our Client owns all intellectual property rights globally in and to the world-famous WOOCOMMERCE and WOO trademarks; and the exclusive commercial rights from the WordPress Foundation to use, enforce, and sublicense the world-famous WORDPRESS trademark, among others, and all other associated intellectual property rights. We are writing about WP Engine’s web hosting and related services that improperly use our Client’s WORDPRESS and WOOCOMMERCE trademarks in their marketing.“</p>



<p>The letter further asserts: “<strong>We understand that our Client has contacted you about securing a proper license to use its trademarks, yet no such agreement has been reached. </strong>As such, your blatant and widespread unlicensed use of our Client’s trademarks has infringed our Client’s rights and <strong>confused consumers into believing, falsely, that WP Engine is authorized, endorsed, or sponsored by, or otherwise affiliated or associated with, our Client.</strong> WP Engine’s unauthorized use of our Client’s trademarks also dilutes their rights, tarnishes their reputation, and otherwise harms the goodwill they have established in their famous and well-known trademarks, and has <strong>enabled WP Engine to unfairly compete with our Client, leading to WP Engine’s unjust enrichment.</strong>”</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcCORhRC2nP1xvKhcURh5NbA7nVdxbFGd5W0ff2Iq8RB5ucrBu2xfWTagUNu3dy5KlrA4M8ruvg62cqj6bnvlE-YPxUVCzU1zOk9ZfOCS3djHu5dD9RKk7qLw708ovapaEzk0E8t93OBmSDvyENiR_D9dM?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p>The legal team also accuses that, “WP Engine has developed a business generating annual revenues of over $400 million, which has been based entirely on extensive and unauthorized uses of our Client’s trademarks.”</p>



<p>Automattic&#8217;s lawyers warned, “Our Client is entitled to file civil litigation to obtain an injunction and an award of actual damages, a disgorgement of your profits, and our Client’s costs and fees. Our Client also is entitled to seek an award of attorney’s fees due to the bad faith and extraordinary nature of WP Engine’s knowing and willful infringements.” </p>



<p>But <strong>Automattic is willing to amicably resolve this matter, including through a licensing relationship for use of its trademarks. </strong>WP Engine has time till October 03 to confirm its understanding of and compliance with Automattic’s requests including the below ones.&nbsp;</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdYDl96k1WlilwAU8pryXiuNFfY9udoDjcwppQrVTRaZroUEi-w28pu5UH0XlPAOtvX3HL_N42MEKxFmyj21u4AHmNKFrlHaqtNSSlICiA8nogcT4E1EXwS5jRasSv7ZTHo-qx8gI8GkXkCvbfOHvjPE3Fq?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p>The document also contains screenshots (shared below) from social media and WP Engine’s website, highlighting alleged misuse of trademarks and community confusion.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcWUarZwMNkiS5izIbQwTe91unuMK1YW8K58q4JgOqn6YuHL7eDpS748XiCbZteOvNIKumrk2eEYjpYiAXcKvTHnKV3seaJZsxw4O8KSHMiNwZ5NEO59jRSJIEv0dQXpQl3qxZa0-iiichta9E8XCisRW5-?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfys6Mjc-Qrs41MRjyL4oW2FZIly-LO4nWl9AiWQgT6bSkcMltSkRK07zabQpHQHewxwkhPWGeowlTTKksa2at-BEVPVVvGLpvaikD01DlpAWl6LqoKe4Ih2KZPfkHt3iEA9caLhHWh76jaTBsH6kV6ung?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXfdJF3LfO7SeeS4-uO7oiG1UivXQ2ROoGDcvYyrVUigC3x2fs6L-msS8uRl46gArk4YY0wJ7s0Aauz5_MJAj23SYHHTUIGHehw6nxjrMCGnARxqQ8lxokxEys7Kg9AG1ebxiKmZnFxsd0AUAmVScUqQ2qHp?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p>The legal battle between the two giants will have long-term effects on the community at large. Even more interesting is that Automattic had <a href="https://wptavern.com/automattic-makes-second-investment-wpengine">invested</a> in WP Engine in 2011.&nbsp;</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">More About Cease and Desist Letter From WP Engine&nbsp;</h3>



<p>WP Engine’s <a href="https://wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Cease-and-Desist-Letter-to-Automattic-and-Request-to-Preserve-Documents-Sent.pdf">cease and desist</a> letter stated that “WP Engine is fully prepared to take all necessary steps to protect its business, employees and customers, as well as the entire WordPress ecosystem, from the harm Automattic is attempting to inflict upon them.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>The document stressed that “Automattic and its CEO Matthew Mullenweg must immediately cease and desist from disparaging WP Engine and/or its investor by making false factual statements.”</p>



<p>“Mr. Mullenweg’s statements also reflect a clear abuse of his conflicting roles as both (1) the Director of the non-profit WordPress Foundation, and (2) the CEO of at least two for-profit businesses that compete with WP Engine. From his sham assertion of trademark rights, to his market-wide disparagement, to disruption of known business relationships by either convincing or coercing WP Engine’s customers from doing any further business with it, these acts reflect just a few examples of Mr. Mullenweg’s unethical abuse of power. That Mr. Mullenweg quietly demanded tens of millions from WP Engine for his for-profit company while publicly claiming to be selflessly safeguarding the interests of the community is shameful.” WP Engine’s legal team stated.&nbsp;</p>



<p></p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdF0GrTuLpJmk5XnZrGbNXDS19oW6Pmghgyh1lncgs-yCR9wp2h76ugSJKUnoBQfcQ2lHQ5jKrFyjBO7754Lj33cuuNlU_B6WdHBgrARw4yxauV7trDBr9Yb66FZ4JkK_TWGjiwxI6VtRzf8J6I4GxgpG3Y?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />From WordPress #Announcements Slack channel



<p><a href="https://wordpress.slack.com/archives/C024MFP4Q/p1727128075148229"></a>Matt also attended a <a href="https://x.com/MetaPrinxss/status/1838653973655699681">Twitter Spaces discussion</a> and Courtney Robertson has <a href="https://x.com/courtneyr_dev/status/1838395777636254129">shared</a> an AI-generated version of its transcript.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Other Developments</h3>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">WP Engine’s News Feed Removed?</h4>



<p>Matt <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1838502185879167069">tweeted</a> about rumors that WP Engine removed the news feed from wp-admin dashboards. Some users confirmed that the whole WordPress News Metabox has been <a href="https://x.com/Maximebj/status/1838521044732113389">removed</a> from the WP Engine dashboard but is still available in <a href="https://x.com/ravisoni6262/status/1838555523563819424">Local</a>.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXc187GCzYtpDHKrCw2vdSwCpI3olcG9G4ohWEdfBRTniXOg4TEjB1ZxGuoH6riYYBSwTUIa5eyjR5IIWO7lSgfF8pKL8JxmvyoTPbLNMIl-C16s712m_rps_yZ7AMpsRMq0Q-LuavqaM46iRw7-c7LojinG?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://x.com/amitcha/status/1838581885347201448"></a></p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXc_sfTdHpiUZ-24xYmJ2O0wb68rybJhzMjvS2seqZDEuC3vFIc4CZYPLIYrx9iAxHPA3Rq-A2AMeqw0zEeCAdU2mzzvlmm_YKFojwXqgKqRlcK9z1ilJAqegXrGGdTsCF5NyzoTk6LJtUAFMSQnIb7w-x-J?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://x.com/ravisoni6262/status/1838555523563819424"></a></p>



<p>Users were divided on the widget’s importance, but several people expressed dissatisfaction with WP Engine’s move.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdc6qQRjN3cnONQ47hXvSPTOLXtnXwt7FHj8jbiF8lSHUBDpb1E7j3_ylHNda-0n_7M5VC1WEJPSjy0cymnEGSRWVIYorwcOGe1jHVrpqKQIXZqPoHXAaBJC-Qgx5U-kJkyoVrub84tRpEzkiaQMt96iqw?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p></p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXeY21VBZNWIKS6Ans8E4YNenVfpL1v97AT5LtS37SekyoBGaxofyqz7Iyu2LnrfjmviJwHNl56Kx4EgyzpR1oji7fMNtUAC6bX042XKtRtuMv_emDDBFIKj4xZTXlPMgnJKKwwlutpvNSvND2rF4_C-oZUC?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">WP Tavern Articles Missing?</h4>



<p>A <a href="https://old.reddit.com/r/Wordpress/comments/1fofdpy/wp_tavern_articles_that_recently_went_missing/">Reddit post</a> alleged that several WPTavern posts had disappeared after the WC US Q&amp;A session. However, WPTavern founder Jeff Chandler debunked the claims, <a href="https://x.com/jeffr0/status/1838653542392885531">stating</a>, “With some help, I conducted a thorough investigation and I can confidently say that not only were those posts not deleted, they never existed.” The Reddit post was later deleted.</p>



<p>(This concludes Part 2. Stay tuned for Part 3.)</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 24 Sep 2024 23:58:41 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:37;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:96:"WPTavern: Highlights from Matt Mullenweg’s Spiciest Word Camp Presentation at WordCamp US 2024";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:30:"https://wptavern.com/?p=162483";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:104:"https://wptavern.com/highlights-from-matt-mullenwegs-spiciest-word-camp-presentation-at-wordcamp-us-2024";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:15480:"<p>The highly anticipated Q&amp;A session with Matt Mullenweg at WordCamp US kicked off with him stating, “This might be one of my spiciest WordCamp presentations ever.” He opened the session by reading his recent article, <a href="https://ma.tt/2024/09/ecosystem-thinking/">WordCamp US &amp; Ecosystem Thinking</a>, set against the backdrop of jazz music. Matt then used the analogy of the &#8220;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragedy_of_the_commons">Tragedy of the Commons</a>&#8221; to discuss the importance of Five for the Future. He also addressed his cryptic tweets and warned about the potential threat of private equity hollowing out and undermining open-source communities.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXe_D3O4YGt8kjma3RfJ_Q5SFZWeWzvmpW21KsxPIieVpE-t7z2U-TwEnhSIr0wY_R2MF2StJ4xaXSNzttVJo8H7V3f55ymR5Lt5oVYOSs-iwdKKxVnYcNM6Jfvz-_6-cz9S-QkyqjwtEYJetaXCiG7VE8Y?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Key Points from the Q&amp;A Session</h3>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>This might be the last Word Camp you see WP engine have a booth at.</p>



<p>&#8211; Matt Mullenweg</p>
</blockquote>



<p>Matt said that most of the information he’s about to share in the presentation has come from WP Engine employees who reached out to him. WPEngine is controlled by Silver Lake a Private Equity Firm that in Matt’s words “doesn&#8217;t give a dang about your open source ideals it just wants return on Capital.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>He went on to discuss the fate of other companies Silver Lake has acquired. In 2010, they bought 25% of Talend and proceeded to monetize its open-source user base, eventually generating 20x returns over seven years. Silver Lake also bought 5% of Unity for $400 million and raised prices drastically, leading to multiple CEO changes and the rise of the open-source alternative, Godot Game Engine.</p>



<p>Silver Lake, valued at $102 billion, also owns WP Engine, but Mullenweg criticized the company for contributing little to the WordPress community’s “Five for the Future” initiative. He referred to Lee Wittlinger, the Managing Director of Silver Lake, as “a schoolyard bully” and announced that WP Engine would no longer be allowed at future WordCamps. &nbsp;</p>



<p>Mullenweg offered to return the $75,000 WP Engine had paid to be a Super Admin Sponsor and also accused them of misusing the WordPress trademark. “WP Engine sounds like WordPress, and their colors are even similar to WP&#8217;s blue. There&#8217;s brand confusion.”</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdJjFvA5Xd_t3AgkhvRkVWySLDcXTSkDmtX29gvFNlIpc0y82v9ikSm7-l2gLZI4m6A4_frudo-gqeHvaFLWUFjSUW4cy_Y-O3rP0DZZKemYWVYZIpUHzctsOaQ7tNo5d48gRe8sq7QLJ8DlQQf4WJxdYLk?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://wpengine.com/agency-directory/axelerant-technologies-inc/"></a>He also touched on broader issues, noting that WordPress growth had slowed in the last 18 months, partly due to changes in W3 Techs&#8217; methodology and non-contributing companies outcompeting contributing ones. However, he pointed out that WordPress had recently regained momentum and &#8220;grown an entire Drupal of market share.&#8221;</p>



<blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow">
<p>What we create together is bigger than any one person.</p>



<p>&#8211; Matt Mullenweg</p>
</blockquote>



<p>Matt admitted he didn’t want to make the presentation but felt compelled to speak out against bad actors. “The only way to fight a bully is to fight them back. If you just allow them to run rampant on the playground they&#8217;re just going to keep terrorizing everyone.”</p>



<p>Mullenweg explained that he had attempted to discuss increasing WP Engine’s contributions, but after receiving no positive response, he felt it necessary to call them out publicly. He encouraged users to consider switching to hosts that actively contribute to WordPress when their WP Engine contracts are up for renewal. He also emphasized that WP Engine employees are not at fault and that he supports those who speak out about their company’s lack of participation in the WordPress community.</p>



<p>Mullenweg also shared some exciting developments for WordPress, including upcoming Google Docs-like collaboration features. He stressed the importance of software licenses, likening them to the Constitution, as they guarantee freedom. Additionally, he expressed his pride in seeing WordPress adopted by the U.S. Army and the federal government.</p>



<p>A fan of AI, Mullenweg advised developers to explore AI-assisted tools like Cursor and also promised to honor Jessica Lyschik’s Speed Build Challenge.</p>



<p>The video of Matt Mullenweg’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/live/fnI-QcVSwMU?t=5s">Q&amp;A session at WordCamp US</a> is now available on YouTube.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Phase 2 &#8211; Matt’s Next Steps</h3>



<p>Matt&#8217;s statements at the WordCamp session were just the beginning. He then followed up the attack on WP Engine by publishing <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine/">WP Engine is not WordPress</a> in WordPress.org. One of his major criticisms was that WP Engine is the only WordPress hosting provider that disables revisions by default.&nbsp;</p>



<p>He didn’t mince words, stating, “What WP Engine gives you is not WordPress, it’s something that they’ve chopped up, hacked, butchered to look like WordPress, but actually they’re giving you a cheap knock-off and charging you more for it. This is one of the many reasons they are a cancer to WordPress, and it’s important to remember that unchecked, cancer will spread.”&nbsp;</p>



<p>“WP Engine is setting a poor standard that others may look at and think is ok to replicate. We must set a higher standard to ensure WordPress is here for the next 100 years.”, he continued.&nbsp;</p>



<p>He then launched a <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1837303425106837784">Twitter poll</a> asking the community if WP Engine should be allowed to have a booth at the next WordCamp, and the majority voted in favor of WP Engine&#8217;s continued presence.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcR8pXgijgE1EQ2wxPs207gWBQV0S_zDR2Ab-Zx7XZydVk5YjyemmbDka3ZUBH9E-x_lqp0kFT8rQ0zCMox1p-QHTwIKWy04D4QtL6tlQf8zMbr02tka50qpt9ZYE_4DzqUZK-5u9agEsftss6C6gQPVP5Z?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<h3 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1837303425106837784"></a>Response From WP Engine</h3>



<p>In response, WP Engine published a blog post titled <a href="https://wpengine.com/blog/highlighting-wordpress-innovation-contribution/">Highlighting Over a Decade of Innovation and Contribution to the WordPress Community</a>. In it, they detailed their contributions to WordPress, including sponsoring WordCamps, organizing educational events like DE{CODE}, and empowering the WordPress community through content like the <a href="https://wpengine.com/blog/wordpress-roundup-august-2024/">WordPress Roundup</a> and <a href="https://wpengine.com/blog/why-wordpress/">Building WordPress</a> series. They also highlighted their products like Faust.js, WPGraphQL, Headless WordPress platform, &nbsp;Local,&nbsp; Advanced Custom Fields (ACF), and Genesis Blocks.&nbsp;</p>



<p>However, WP Engine did not address any of Mullenweg’s specific accusations. They concluded their post by reaffirming their dedication to WordPress, saying, “WP Engine’s commitment to WordPress and its passionate community is unwavering…WP Engine will remain at the forefront, finding new and exciting ways to drive the WordPress ecosystem’s success for years to come in partnership with this vibrant, innovative community.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Community&nbsp;Reactions</h3>



<p>Matt Mullenweg’s comments sparked intense debate within the WordPress community, leaving it shocked and divided. While some rallied behind Matt, even going so far as to cancel their WP Engine subscriptions, others were uncomfortable with his approach.</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXe1QO5KiT2R0VNVC5Sm_XNLIKpmI_GQ79VyGSlLjKeTdr9mrSpYgX7ibRjGWJrxsyp0qXyJVR9XOt34P12vWxOnU73r1946oXos2iATQcfnJ_-t93XsPeCgSQiGsNeeOQQr2cVxyWw_OJK2ecjUdHiLCxpU?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://x.com/danielstn10/status/1837490652516335830"></a></p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXdWQR3zxKaXfbTD5wp3a7cs213ajf9s2DdNbsOXrLvd98ZWaRvj7W_ynpoDYXv0pWCBu0xUr9IyZqz5mPixyedJ3Yu3r-wKfC9SDI1UpJJVWVJYyibZG1v-9zxTG71nPWNkAkX9rCtQeNWBv-Q5maWAcE-Y?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://x.com/hellosammunoz/status/1837225569798226082"></a></p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXf5pJ8EOERgtH4LL0NtTlEV1qgIw6VoBT5RgGC6p0z914WLMGZ75y1DPQcOuRIfEDSG10HcXUoaxNtUk-bwMZmnPonuYuk5tN9kIs0zZV5D7ND4RmA1Z7v2gugjiuqZny4wnc9Z3jW7ngjrgI_TsQhN7zCx?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://x.com/VicDrover/status/1837275144492044393"></a>Rodolfo Melogli, founder of Business Bloomer <a href="https://x.com/rmelogli/status/1837386256264610163">tweeted</a>, “I don&#8217;t think a CEO should attack people/corps based on personal opinions, no matter if right or wrong. Not good for the WordPress ecosystem tbh.”</p>



<p>Nate Finch, author at Level Up Tutorials <a href="https://x.com/n8finch/status/1837503920362688798">suggested</a>, “As far as I know, there is no requirement that any company that sponsors a WordCamp be involved with 5FTF, let only hit a certain threshold. If this is the case, and maybe it should be a requirement, it should be added to the sponsor agreement for WordCamps.”</p>



<p>“It’s not enough to provide services and products and marketing at WordCamps; if you&#8217;re making millions of dollars off WordPress I think we all can agree you really need to contribute some real hard value back into it.”, said <a href="https://x.com/SethRubenstein/status/1837356406992949486">Seth Rubenstein</a> of Pew Research Center.</p>



<p>Hendrik Luehrsen, CEO of Luehrsen // Heinrich was <a href="https://x.com/photomatt/status/1837671613791444999">worried</a>, “With his recent remarks, @photomatt may have just killed the #FFTF program. It’s a tough sell to maintain public profiles on a platform that can be weaponized against someone &#8211; deserved or not.” However, Matt assured that his goal is to raise awareness of the 5FTF initiative.</p>



<p>“You can’t really promote the benefits of open source and then moan when companies build on that free platform and monetize it.” <a href="https://x.com/WPTutz/status/1837529360862949755">tweeted</a> WPTuts.&nbsp;</p>



<p>WPHercules published <a href="https://wpherc.com/wordpress-com-is-not-wordpress-1369/">WordPress.com is not WordPress</a> as a parody countering WP Engine is not WordPress. They point out that “plugin extensibility is sacred,” but WordPress.com restricts plugin installation in lower-priced plans.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Andrew Palmer, in <a href="https://fundwp.com/the-complex-dynamics-of-wordpress-a-passionate-critique/">The Complex Dynamics of WordPress: A Passionate Critique</a>, pointed out Matt’s difficulty letting go of certain issues, which at times contradicted his own WordPress philosophy. He recommended elevating other leaders within the WordPress community to help balance decision-making and ensure clearer guidance and recognition of contributions.</p>



<p>Kevin Geary’s <a href="https://geary.co/wordpress-big-tragedy-of-the-commons-problem/">WordPress’ Big “Tragedy of the Commons” Problem</a> shares, “The problem is that Matt is putting a massively important project, and our future, in the hands of a historically failed model. Some of the smartest minds in economics have arrived at another obvious conclusion when tackling the Tragedy of the Commons problem: owned land is better cared for than public land because it benefits the private owner to protect and care for it.”</p>



<p>He suggests, “WordPress should be driven by a proper funding model, a proper visionary, a consistent core development team, and consistent marketing.”</p>



<p>James Giroux analyzed Matt&#8217;s actions as a Project Lead in <a href="https://jamesgiroux.ca/wcus-freedom-isnt-free/">WCUS: Freedom Isn’t Free</a>. &#8220;Matt is the Project Lead, and he has a track record of calling things out in a direct, and sometimes uncomfortable way&#8230;I think it’s pretty hypocritical to say that Matt is mean or a bully while also saying things like “it’s because Matt wants Automattic to win” or “it’s because Matt doesn’t like competitors to Automattic”.</p>



<p>Another hot topic was the brand confusion Matt highlighted between WP Engine and WordPress. Robert DeVore <a href="https://x.com/deviorobert/status/1837328835752181988">pointed out</a> that more people are confused by WordPress.org vs WordPress.com than by WordPress vs WP Engine. Daniel Schutzsmith also <a href="https://x.com/schutzsmith/status/1837999842037293528">shared his experience</a> with a client who faced the same confusion.</p>



<p>Discussions are taking place on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Wordpress/comments/1flqqm5/matt_just_threw_wp_engine_under_the_bus_hard/">Reddit</a> too.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Pantheon &amp; GoDaddy &#8211; Then &amp; Now&nbsp;</h3>



<p>Matt&#8217;s criticism of companies is not new. One of the most memorable incidents took place the night before <a href="https://wptavern.com/pantheons-100k-wordcamp-us-sponsorship-revoked-the-night-before-the-event">WordCamp US 2016</a> when Pantheon’s $100K sponsorship was abruptly revoked. Their promotional materials, including their booth, were stashed away in a storage room, and the sponsorship fee was later refunded in full.</p>



<p>Fast forward to this year’s WordCamp, and Pantheon returned as an Editor Sponsor alongside Automattic. Courtney Robertson of GoDaddy <a href="https://x.com/courtneyr_dev/status/1837376492151656747">tweeted</a>: “Wild how we are all talking about @wpengine and not the elevator doors from Pantheon sponsored. I would like to know more about standards changing.”</p>



<img src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXcxOl6OpxH49B5zFo2kF9sjX4AfDO3VC1Bx0OvyNVvxpwWpS92tzBkQNeCYi1yMhOX2em5wWlAkpyIGQ8ly2GwrOTkLLFjhqWfEHLbzPwmjpj0lB0fMnVEAhMQepFMVPrehh5syzvkZQg_iJwAW5b6thcKT?key=gSgzezlYMuW2Mx-hWXqG-A" alt="" />



<p><a href="https://x.com/miriamschwab/status/1836462121946878325"></a>In 2022, Matt identified <a href="https://wptavern.com/matt-mullenweg-identifies-godaddy-as-a-parasitic-company-and-an-existential-threat-to-wordpress-future">GoDaddy</a> as a “Parasitic Company” and an “Existential Threat to WordPress’ Future”. And this year, the very same GoDaddy was a Super Admin sponsor. They sponsored Courtney Robertson for Contributor’s Day and <a href="https://www.thewpcommunitycollective.com/fellowships/godaddy-wc-fellowship/contributor-day-stipend-form/">allotted $2,000</a> for eight self-funded Table Lead contributors. Matt even mentioned their contributions in his Ecosystem Thinking article.</p>



<p>(This concludes Part 1. Stay tuned for Part 2.)</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 24 Sep 2024 18:55:18 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:7:"Jyolsna";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:38;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:118:"Do The Woo Community: The Ultimate Guide to WooCommerce Hosting: Performance, Support, and Growth with Marcel and Mike";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:28:"https://dothewoo.io/?p=85702";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:114:"https://dothewoo.io/the-ultimate-guide-to-woocommerce-hosting-performance-support-and-growth-with-marcel-and-mike/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:55030:"<div class="wp-block-group has-border-color has-light-gray-background-color has-background has-small-font-size has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-8 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained">
<p class="has-secondary-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-9acf640b7ba38a84a982fc35d618387f">This show is sponsored by&#8230;</p>



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<p class="wp-container-content-2"><strong><a href="https://developer.avalara.com/">Avalara</a></strong>: help developers make sure their Woo projects are tax compliance done right with Avalara&#8217;s API. Visit their extensive developer resources today.</p>
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<p class="wp-container-content-4"><strong><a href="https://woocommerce.com/partners/">WooCommerce</a></strong>: Join the official WooCommerce Marketplace and get your products in front of millions of engaged WooCommerce store owners.</p>
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Episode Transcript
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<p>Marcel:<br />Well, hello there. Welcome to the show. Hi, Mike, how are you?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Hey, Marcel. I&#8217;m good. And yourself?</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />I am wonderful. It&#8217;s September, summertime is ending. Vacation was just a couple of weeks ago, so I guess I’m in the most perfect mode you can get in the year.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, the gray weather has really shown us that summer might be over. I think we&#8217;ll get a second wave, right? Usually.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Yeah, it seems there&#8217;s going to be some cold weather coming. There&#8217;s something in Portugal that’s a special time of year in October, where there’s just this little extra sun coming in and warm weather that gives you a last goodbye kiss of the summer. And it seems like this year we&#8217;re going to have it a little bit earlier than October.</p>



<p>Well, today we’re going to go ahead and talk about WooCommerce and hosting—the critical aspects for anyone running an online store in WordPress. And unlike a regular WordPress site, WooCommerce introduces, I guess, unique challenges due to the dynamic nature of e-commerce. Things like product catalogs, customer data, and orders, all of which place more demands on your hosting environment. And the right hosting can mean the difference between a smooth shopping experience or a sluggish website.</p>



<p>I guess sales are directly affected by good hosting. So, I guess we could break down a little bit what our listeners need to know to ensure that WooCommerce sites perform at their best. And okay, let’s kick things off by discussing—we keep talking about performance here, Mike. I feel like this is the third or fourth episode where the word “performance” is going to come out multiple times per minute, or per episode. And I don’t want this to be maybe yet another episode about performance and how important this and this and this and that is. But having said that, the only—or not the only—but the main task of a good hosting service is effectively to provide performance to your website. So, performance is actually crucial for both the user experience, SEO, sales results, and all of that. If the store loads slowly, visitors will leave before making a purchase, search engines may rank you lower. So, it’s definitely a key factor in performance—the hosting, the server response time, and all of that. As a general rule, or if you had 30 seconds to give somebody good advice about hosting, what would you say?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Pick something with enough resources, tools, and quality support to help you through any challenges that may arise as part of being an e-commerce store owner. And what you said is a very good list. I would add employee productivity. I have some clients who have 10 people in the backend processing orders all the time. That’s all un-cached, it requires a lot of resources and checking in the database for stuff. And then also business-to-business components—if your business needs to talk to another business, that’s fetching information, that’s going to require resources as well. I think, yeah, those three things I think are the most important. The support, quality tools, and resources. Without those, you’re going to be sacrificing some kind of quality overall, whether it’s for your users, your employees, or for your own, if you’re a stakeholder, profits and stuff like that.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Right, right. And when you say support tools, do you also mean the actual support service that a hosting company provides? Not only whatever you can get through a dashboard of some sort, but also talking to somebody—is that important to you?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, definitely. I think talking to support staff, if you’ve worked with WooCommerce long enough, is generally one of those like, “Oh, how is this going to go?” moments. It could either go really well—you get someone who is enthusiastic and interested in troubleshooting together, finding solutions. And then you have other support staff who are like, “There’s nothing we can do,” or they try and point the finger somewhere else and are not trying to help you directly with the issue. And then as well as that too, it’s having the tools available to do troubleshooting, like having the command-line access with SSH, phpMyAdmin or similar tools to be able to investigate things in the database, New Relic or other things for gathering rich amounts of data. I know some service hosting companies have their own APM tool, and they have their own in-house scripts that they’ve built over time to help you scan logs and look for patterns and that kind of stuff. So I think both are really important.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Yeah, that’s why I asked you, because in our freelance work that we do, sometimes we need to do the job of a good host support agent and sort of translate—let the client know what the issue is or might be—and just do a little bit of the bridge that one has to do between support and our client. Because sometimes support will say, “Yeah, this is this plugin that is running slow, this is this other thing and you should contact your developer” and stuff like that. And sometimes they’re right, but sometimes it seems like they’re definitely lazy about investigating the issue. But I think there are a couple of, well, this is getting better from time to time. I guess competition is responsible for improving all these services, and there are some really good ones, like you said, that have their own tools, and they’re very quick and immediately identify what the issue is, or being proactive as well—maybe mentioning that your website is running slow, there’s a long-running task occupying a lot of CPU power, and they go ahead and inform the client about it. All of this, I think, is super important. Right?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, you just reminded me, there are a few hosts that’ll send out emails if there’s been a 502 Bad Gateway or a 504 Timeout, or “Hey, we found malware,” or “You’re running this plugin version that has a known security vulnerability.” So, I think proactivity is one of the most attractive components of a hosting company, for sure.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />So I guess if we would begin establishing a list of all the things that people should look out for in a hosting company—well, besides price and CPU power and memory and all of that, I guess one of the most important factors is really how support works and what support provides in terms of service when things go wrong, or when you need help and when you need advice. So yeah, before committing to any host service, just try to figure out a little bit more about how support provides, because I personally think it’s probably the most important thing you can get. I mean, if the memory is low, that support guy will tell you, “Raise the memory,” and it’ll work, right? Or if CPU is not enough, “Add more CPU power to your hosting,” or this or that. So, it’s always going to end up being that support provides the information you’re looking for when you have difficulties, and managing hosting and leveraging what is the best plan and what I need, etc., is a decision that you will make today. But probably in a month’s time, or in a year’s time when your store grows, you’re going to have to revisit all of those choices again, and you’re going to have to fine-tune the hosting service that you’ve just hired to be more efficient for your successful store that’s running. And so that’s not that much important at the beginning, I would say.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, I agree. I think, like I said, if you have enough resources and things are performing well, things are smooth, then there’s not too much to worry about. But hopefully, as the store is growing and being successful, you then have to adapt over time, and it’s really useful to have support staff at the hosting company who can help you assess what your needs actually are resource-wise and be able to accommodate. Every store is different. I think we’ve both seen plenty of them. They’re never exactly the same. There are always a few differences.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And when you see those pricing tables, they usually talk about the bandwidth, the CPUs, and this and that. And some of them do mention a couple of support services or support nuances, but talking to someone before committing to hosting services is a good idea. Or maybe asking other people or the community or any social media for advice on that. But having said that, okay, so now let’s see. We’ve talked about the support. It’s important. The different places where the data centers are and the different areas of the world the hosting service covers is also important, especially for stores. If you want to have a very fast-running store and if you’re operating worldwide, it’s important for you to know where that hosting service has its data centers so that you can expand your assets or different resources to those data centers. But let’s dive into more specifically really what’s important about memory, disk speed, PHP workers, caching systems, database optimization, security, backups, and scalability at the end. So, let’s start with the memory. I will just introduce very quickly how important memory is. And Mike, maybe I’ll propose to you this format: I give you a statement about what memory is and how important it is for WooCommerce, and you either agree or disagree with me and add your points to it. Sounds good?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Sounds good.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Alright. So, if we talk about memory, why is memory important? We know that WooCommerce requires more memory, more RAM than a typical WordPress</p>



<p>site because it’s all dynamic content. We have products, we have reviews, shopping carts, we have customer data. So, if you’re running a small store, maybe 1 or 2 gigabytes of RAM may be sufficient. But for larger stores and high-traffic websites, you would need 4, 8, 10, 12, 16, I don’t know, to run just to make sure everything runs smoothly. And without enough RAM, your server could become very overwhelmed. You could have slowing down pages and crashes, which is obviously the last thing that you want to have. What do you think about RAM? How important is RAM?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, it’s really important for sure, especially for the database. If you don’t have enough RAM, the database queries will time out or get terminated. And that can cause all kinds of weird issues where things didn’t get synchronized or it didn’t add to a queue that needed to be processed later. And then you also have some plugins that use a lot of RAM, right? So one of the things we often have to adjust is the memory limit in PHP so that certain tasks can execute. So, it’s one of those things you can’t oversell. On hosting, if you start to allocate more RAM than what’s physically available, it won’t work. And if you try and use virtual memory—if you remember back in the day, we would have a RAM disk and stuff like that—RAM is always going to be faster than hard drives. Even if—I don’t think SSDs will ever get—eventually, maybe SSDs will just be RAM chips. That would be cool. But I have a feeling that’s quite expensive.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And RAM specifically has to have the ability to quickly read, write, read, write in a way and at a speed that SSDs are not designed to do. If we would have a world where SSDs and RAM would be the same chip, I guess the only company that could be able to do that would be Apple. But jokes aside, it’s sort of like every one of these two components has its own job to do in the environment. You talked about the database and RAM’s importance for the database, but there’s also the PHP side of it. So, when you’re working with RAM, RAM is basically shared between two main things: the database and the PHP. So, PHP, when it runs, it needs memory to do its calculations, and when it’s done, it just serves the results to the web server, which then displays it to the client. So, having PHP tasks that also take a lot of memory is also important in this case. But that is fairly easy to measure and to know. And if you have a PHP task that takes a lot of memory, then that’s usually a bad sign. So, increasing memory to cover up PHP memory leaks is not a good thing to do, but it’s also an important part of the process.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I agree.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Then we have disk speed. The disk is another critical factor, particularly when you&#8217;re handling large amounts of data. And we know that with WooCommerce we can get that. But basically, for WooCommerce, I guess SSDs—the solid-state drives—are almost always a better choice than the traditional HDDs, and SSDs are mainly faster to read and write data, which is especially important for large WooCommerce stores with, I would say, thousands of products or images or orders or customers. So having SSDs can significantly improve site load times, which obviously are crucial for keeping customers engaged. We are old enough to have been around to witness the transition from HDDs to SSDs in the hosting world. Was that the same for you? Thank God we already have SSDs for hosting. And did that, in your experience, provide a huge performance impact?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, I mean nowadays you wouldn&#8217;t ever choose a host that didn’t use solid-state drives. It’s directly related to performance and the database. You want the database stored on SSD, not a hard drive like the old school ones. I’m pretty sure there are instances where I&#8217;ve witnessed this happen, usually from very low-cost hosting on a machine that was older than it should have been for being allowed to be in the web hosting space. And then you move them somewhere that uses modern technology, and the client is like, “Whoa, my time to first byte used to be 15 seconds, and now it’s a second.” And they’re like, “I cannot believe that that makes that big of a difference.” So if you are lucky enough to find a client’s site that’s still using an old-school hard drive, and you move them to SSD, I’m sure you’ll see a significant boost.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />I guess nowadays, HDDs in a hosting environment are used for more static data or for large data sets that you don’t provide specifically in a dynamic way to a web server. They would be more considered for saving data files that are just accessed sporadically. And so you do see some hosting companies offering this large amount of hosting space for this specific use, and they are usually using… there is still this discussion around which one of these two different types of drives lasts longer, because SSDs are more prone to fail, I guess, than HDDs. But then again, we have bad experiences with HDDs as well. If you mess with them too much or if… well, when they’re in the hosting environment, nobody will touch them, but they’re also very sensitive to movement and heat and other factors. I do remember the time when we had this transition from HDDs to SSDs on our personal computers, especially for the people who had Apple computers in early around 2012, 2011, 2012, when there was a transition between HDDs and SSDs. And people were buying these external SSDs and putting them into the USB connection and just booting off of external SSDs.</p>



<p>And some people also tweaked their computers and opened them up and installed the SSDs inside and replaced the HDD. And we got huge improvements in speed and suddenly the operating system was loading, we would say, it seemed like it was running off the memory only, there would be no hard drive. And I guess we can say the same for hosting. So files being read very quickly is a lot more efficient for hosting.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, definitely. I do remember there&#8217;s one hosting company that they had… I brought a client that had so many images, it was like an Android news website, so they had so many images and they needed terabytes and terabytes. It was insane how much this was. And we ended up, because the SSDs were going to be so expensive, we ended up using hard drives in a RAID or something like that. And because it was just for the images—obviously you want to read the images as quickly as possible as well, similar to the database—but it was the only way that they could have sustainable long-term growth because of how much the image library grew every day. They needed something that made sense for the next 10 years at least. So yeah, I would just add to that. It’s an important little piece too. They still have their place, right? My Synology NAS, you have one as well, right? I chose Western Digital Red hard drives for the enterprise drives.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Exactly.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />They’re designed to run 24/7 and also last the longest. I think SSDs have a limited number of writes, right? Isn’t that…?</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Yeah. There are some calculations around how many times they can read and write, which defines their lifetime cycle, yeah.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Whereas hard drives are not unlimited, but it’s like, you have other problems at that point. You probably won’t be alive anymore.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Exactly. Alright, that’s the disk topic. Let’s talk on another topic, and let’s talk about PHP workers, which not every hosting company discloses how many PHP workers one can get when we do a hosting plan with them, but basically—and I think they’re often overlooked—but they are a very essential aspect of hosting for WooCommerce specifically. So for everyone listening who doesn’t know what PHP workers are, in simple terms, they handle the simultaneous processes that occur on your website. So let’s say, for example, multiple users adding products to their carts or checking out at the same time. If you don’t have enough PHP workers, your site will slow down during busy times because there aren’t enough resources to process all the requests, and people are going to wait for their requests to process. So from the time that you ask for a specific URL and by the time you get the result delivered, that’s the time that the hosting will spend doing some sort of work, calculating some result for you to show on the website.</p>



<p>And PHP workers are essentially the processes that take that request, process it, run the PHP script, and deliver the page that they’re requesting. So those 200 milliseconds, 400 milliseconds, they’re going to be busy doing something. So if you have 10 people coming in, there’s going to be eventually a queue, and people are going to be waiting for their turn to get the process running, to get the PHP worker running. So if you think of it like a restaurant, if there aren’t enough waiters, service gets slow. It’s kind of the same thing. PHP workers are expensive for hosting companies, and they’re also expensive for the resources that you have on your hosting side, but they’re an important part of it. What’s your take on PHP workers?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, I wanted to add to the waiter example that service will slow down, but you also get people leaving,</p>



<p>which would be like a 502 Bad Gateway, where it’s like there’s not enough service, I’m leaving with a bad review.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Yeah, exactly.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Which is what happens if a visitor comes to your site to try and buy something, and they just see an error message, right? 502 Bad Gateway. It’s like, oh, then they just leave. Some people will be patient and try to reload, but…</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Right.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Attention is harder and harder to maintain these days.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Yeah. Why do you think most hosting companies don’t disclose how many PHP workers they have?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I think it’s a tricky thing to make equal because it’s very related to CPU and also the way that your site functions. So, I think it can be misleading to, for example, say you have 32 virtual CPUs and 500 PHP workers, though CPU cores and PHP workers, in my experience, are not created equally across hosting spaces. CPU is something that you can oversell and split. So, if I have 32 physical CPU cores, I can easily split that into 20 or 30 virtual machines that have four or eight CPUs, and it will just split and make them weaker between them. Whereas the kind of hosting I really like is when it’s a physical dedicated machine, and you’re not using virtual CPUs at all. And the PHP workers from that kind of machine tend to be way more powerful in executing scripts compared to ones on oversold VPS-style hosting.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And PHP workers, because they work simultaneously on a specific task, they are consuming CPU resources, and it’s sort of like, you would think, “Okay, I have four cores, so I can have at least four PHP workers, but I could also have eight PHP workers. We could split each core between two PHP workers.” But the more PHP workers you add, the slower they themselves will run because they’re concurrently running and doing their task. And so that will eventually also slow down, and you will serve more people at the same time, but everybody will get a slower response at the end of the day. So it’s not a linear thing. It doesn’t seem like the more PHP workers you have, the faster it will go. There are certain limits. So that’s why I think also hosting companies don’t disclose their PHP workers, because it’s a game of being the best performer but also not just wasting a lot of resources on PHP workers that aren’t clearly needed. And also there’s some sort of energy consumption concern behind this as well. You don’t just want to have a bunch of processes running all the time, so it’s kind of like a balancing game. But some hosting companies do provide those numbers, and they market offering according to PHP workers. And more isn’t always better.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, very true. And it also depends a lot on the nature of the site and what it’s doing. I remember a client who did a lot of un-cached activity, so the idea was you would land on a website, and then they had a single sign-on system that you could connect your login to, and it would make an API request to a third party to authenticate, and then it would let you go shopping for some exclusive deals or whatever. We were doing load testing to get ready for the holiday season. It was for a very large company, and we found that they were running out of PHP worker threads. And even though we had a dedicated server with a huge amount of resources, and the CPU was basically flat, and the RAM wasn’t going that high, PHP workers were running out, and we were getting errors.</p>



<p>I had a long discussion with the hosting company to say, “Look, yes, we’re using that lane, right? Yeah, we’re sort of keeping a waiter at the table, but it’s because we’re waiting for information from—we’re taking an order from a friend who’s running late, and we’re just waiting for the feedback from them to give to the waiter.” So, it’s not like the waiter is stressed or carrying a lot of plates necessarily. Sometimes the PHP worker is not actively processing a lot of information; sometimes they’re idle and waiting for information to come back. And I think that’s an important part: if the PHP worker is not actively processing and you picture the waiter running around constantly, sometimes they’re not doing much. And it’s okay to allocate more PHP worker threads in situations like that, if you’re monitoring the system and you can see that it’s not stressed. If CPU and RAM are showing very low levels of usage, then you can ramp up the PHP workers.</p>



<p>But in the opposite way, if you have… I remember one of the first VPSs I ever provisioned and set up. It had one CPU core and 512 megabytes of RAM, and I was determined to run things on as few resources as possible and just rely on caching. It was a very cache-heavy website, it wasn’t a WooCommerce store, and I just kept increasing the PHP worker threads available, the MPM max children, and you can put it as high as you want. But then when I did load testing for un-cached responses, the server froze completely. And when I SSH’d in, the load number was like 200 and something, which it should be as close to 1 or 1 times the number of CPU cores that you have. You could just imagine these poor waiters, there was a lot of very, very tiny waiters carrying a lot of stuff, and none of them knew where they were going anymore. They were all confused, and the queue just got so backed up.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />I would imagine if this podcast included video, we would put up a graphic of tiny waiters in multiple restaurants just running around and being unorganized, and it would be very interesting to visualize that. I completely forgot. So, we’ve been talking about the importance of RAM and disk space and PHP workers, but not naming numbers. So I will try to give people a little bit of some ideas of what the numbers are for each of these individual components. Let’s call them, and I’ll name some numbers, and you correct me if I’m good with my numbers or not. But this is basically the same thing with engines in a car. If you have BMW, for example, they’re famous for having these big engines, they have 3 liters, 4-liter engines, and you just throw a bunch of gasoline in it. The explosion is huge. They have thick engine walls that can handle all the explosion. Then you have superpower, you have a lot of power because you really just have thick walls and a lot of gasoline exploding inside those cylinders. So that’s one way to do it. Let’s call it the easy way. It’s not an easy way to have a very big controlled explosion inside a cylinder, but let’s call it easy. The more tricky way is to have a 1-liter engine or a 1.5-liter engine and have an explosion that has almost the same kind of force or power that has this bigger explosion, but because you&#8217;ve adapted the shape of the cylinder, but because you made a special mixture between air and combustion and all of that, because you took a little bit more time into figuring out how to almost get the same kind of force with a lot less energy.</p>



<p>I guess that’s a little bit the comparison that we’re making here. You can obviously have 16 GB of RAM and 16 CPUs and a lot of disk space and everything will run smoothly, yes. But is that efficient? Do you need all of that? Are you using your BMW to drive 5 kilometers to take your kid to school, or do you drive 300 kilometers every day and really need that strong engine to work in your favor? So, having that in mind, and taking into consideration that everything is running smoothly—you don’t have custom code that is just occupying a lot of resources—I would say less than 50 concurrent users, 2 gigabytes of RAM is enough. If you have 100 to 200 concurrent users, I think 4 gigabytes. And more than 200 concurrent users, it’d be 8+ to 16 gigabytes. I think these are good numbers. Would you agree with these numbers?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I think those are probably safe starting points, assuming the database is not huge. That would be my one caveat. If you have a 20-gigabyte database, then you’re going to want to start with at least 32 GB of RAM, I’d say, or more. But yeah, and then load tests—now people are getting prepared for the holiday season, Black Friday is coming up, and I would load test the most resource-hungry scenarios you can think of in terms of the marketing stuff you’re doing, whether it’s newsletters or paid traffic on Meta or Google or whatever it is. And we’re doing something right now with a client, and once they get to 200 users, things are not going well. So, we’re identifying the bottlenecks with New Relic and coming up with strategies of how to mitigate them.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And the strategy is definitely not just, “Okay, let’s just double the RAM and everything will be good,” right? Because that’s also a cost that people have to take into consideration. You don’t have infinite money to pay for these resources and just be happy with it, right?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, I think during the holiday season is when people tend to be more open to the idea of just throwing resources at the problem. It’s certainly the easiest solution. Even if it costs more, usually it’s going to be worth it. If your site is crashing, you’re not making as much money, for sure. But yeah</p>



<p>, in general, I don’t like the idea of, “Oh, just keep throwing resources at it until it works properly.” I think you and I would go and identify what is taking so long. Is the code optimized correctly? Is there a way to rewrite it so it’s more efficient in processing data and using less RAM and stuff like that?</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And it’s a lot more intelligent and rewarding if you figure out what’s consuming that much resource, and then suddenly, with the same kind of resources, the website’s speed doubles. There’s something special about tuning that, right? Obviously, if you&#8217;re time-constrained, and the holiday season is coming, then okay, let’s add some more RAM for the next three months, and then we’ll figure it out later, fine. But the figuring out later part needs to happen sometime.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, websites are just like a house or an F1 car. You can’t just keep adding stuff to it or turning something on and forgetting you left it on. If you have a basement and you turn the water on to do some sort of task, and then you got distracted and left it on, you’re adding more and more resources to accommodate a flood that you don’t need for any business purposes. I think that’s really important because a lot of the times when I do investigations, the thing that’s gobbling up CPU or RAM or disk space is a feature that they tested once upon a time and no longer use. The person at the company who suggested it is no longer with the company or whatever. So, I think this sort of website hygiene maintenance stuff is just so, so important. Also, hosting companies can help you with that, right? Good hosting companies will tell you if you’re about to run out of hosting, sorry, disk space, because without disk space, nothing will work. You won’t be able to do database operations, you won’t be able to log into your WordPress site.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />You might not even be able to SSH into your hosting and do anything in there, yeah.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, you can usually SSH in, but running commands will just give you weird output.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And the same thing with RAM, right? If you run out of RAM and you need just a little extra to run some command to just basically kill something or fix something, it’s the same thing.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah. You can SSH in, but running commands will just give you weird output. It’s a funny experience.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And as far as CPUs are concerned, for 50 concurrent users, I’d say 2 CPUs, for 100 to 200 concurrent users, 4 CPUs, and for more than 200 concurrent users, you’ll need 8 CPUs. I would say that’s a round number or more depending on the situation. Would you agree with those numbers as well?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />In general, I’d say they’re probably good starting points. It’s going to depend again on how many of those people are window shopping versus adding items to their cart. I think if you have caching set up properly and you don’t have a huge product catalog where every user is visiting different products, you can have tons—you could have hundreds or even thousands of window shoppers. But as soon as people start adding items to their cart, then the majority of caches are bypassed. Depending on how your site is tuned, we’ve seen this plenty of times where code is running unnecessarily for uncached visitors. WordPress runs a lot of functions, plugins execute a lot of code that doesn’t need to be, and that can slow things down.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And as far as PHP workers are concerned, I would say on the same scale—50 concurrent users, 2 PHP workers; 100 to 200 concurrent users, 4 PHP workers; and more than 200, 10 PHP workers.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, you could start with those and see what happens.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Let’s talk about the big elephant in the room—caching systems. Caching is definitely one of the most effective ways to improve the performance of an eCommerce store. There are different types of caching. There’s page caching, which saves a static version of your website. But we all know that WooCommerce stores can only have so many static versions of pages. Not all pages can be static like on a regular site, and those will be delivered without making your server do all the work from scratch. Right? Then you have object caching, you have Redis cache, you have… those would help you with database queries. You have browser caching, so the client side can also do some caching to save the resources locally on the user’s devices. You have OPCache or code caching, and you have a bunch of different caching systems to reduce the load on the server.</p>



<p>I was thinking about asking you this question—how important is caching to you? But it seems like a silly question. I would rather ask you about the experience that you’ve been having with your most recent clients. Taking into consideration that hosting can provide some caching solutions, and based on the hosting services you&#8217;ve worked with, do you think there’s a hosting service that really nails the caching system for WooCommerce?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I would say it’s really difficult to do it perfectly because all stores are different. So, the best you can really expect from a hosting company is that they provide the tools and configuration possibilities necessary to set up caching correctly for your site. Most hosts do a decent job of setting up things where the cart and checkout are excluded, and they make sure the right cookies are excluded, like the ones for items in the cart. Edge caching is becoming more popular now, thanks to Cloudflare Enterprise integration, which is becoming easier. You get to take advantage of that, which reduces time-to-first-byte across different locations.</p>



<p>So, no hosting company gets it perfectly right, but a lot of them offer a good starting point, a springboard, so you can configure caching yourself. I saw one hosting company recently that helped their client cache logged-in users for a Woo store, which I thought was really clever. Caching logged-in users sounds like dark magic, but their business model required users to register an account and log in to see the product catalog. Everything else was uncached, but once they logged in, they had a custom system where a cookie allowed for logged-in pages to be cached. It was really clever.</p>



<p>That’s a special use case, and I wouldn’t expect every hosting company to offer that, but it was a great example of a very customized solution that worked well. Usually, though, it’s a balance of having good tools and knowing how to use them.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />The thing that’s special about WooCommerce is that some of the pages cannot be cached in the same way that other pages can. So, the least a hosting company needs to be aware of when offering WooCommerce-specialized hosting services is that there are certain pages within the WooCommerce store environment that need to be treated differently. You might also have custom pages where you want to insert exclusions for certain types of caching. Caching needs to be adapted to the nature of the store, not only for WooCommerce generally, but also for your own unique needs. I think that’s an important part of choosing a hosting provider. If you know they have the capability to adapt to your needs, that’s crucial.</p>



<p>And yeah, hosting services are getting better at accommodating those requests. If you have the knowledge, you can still go to AWS or Google Cloud and configure everything yourself, but most store owners don’t have the time or expertise for that. Thankfully, many of these caching techniques are now available through hosting companies, and they take care of a lot under the hood. So, it’s definitely something to look for when choosing a host.</p>



<p>Let’s talk very quickly about database optimization. This is one that site owners often overlook. Since WooCommerce stores store a lot of data, and we talked about this in our previous episode, everything from customer and order history… your database can get bloated, and that can slow things down. Regularly optimizing the database by removing transients or optimizing tables can make a big difference in performance. There are plugins that can help with that, and some hosting providers might also offer database optimization services. In 30 seconds, because I want to get to the end of the topics I have, Mike, how important is database optimization?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I think it’s similar to disk space and other stuff. If you don’t have an optimized database, everything is slower. Especially with WooCommerce, where the post table holds so much data, things can get really bloated. If your database is cluttered with unnecessary data, queries take longer, and that can impact performance. So yeah, it’s critical. Optimizing the database is not an optional thing. It’s like a house—if things are disorganized, or if there are too many of the same item in one drawer, it’s hard to find what you need. The same applies to your database.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />And also, I would say if people want to know more about database and performance optimization, they should check out our previous episode here on <em>Do the Woo</em>.</p>



<p>Now let’s talk security and backups. Security is vital, obviously, since you&#8217;re handling customer data and payments. So, there are a couple of measures that hosting providers take to provide more security. SSL is mandatory—there&#8217;s not even a need to discuss that. But backups are also very important, and backups can be tricky. If you have a store that’s running 24/7 and you have a lot of orders coming in, if something happens and you need to restore a database, you’re going to lose some data unless you have a smart backup system. Some automated backup systems are more clever than others, but that’s definitely something to keep in mind. Your hosting provider will help a lot if they take care of that. Would you agree, Mike?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yes, absolutely. Backups are crucial. Hosting companies need to have quick, reliable backups, and the ability to restore them quickly. And backups should not take hours and hours to complete unless your database is absolutely massive. But without a proper backup and restore plan in place, you’re in trouble if something goes wrong. Hourly backups, for example, can be a lifesaver, especially for stores that have a lot of transactions.</p>



<p>Also, good hosting companies will take a snapshot before you restore a backup. In case you made a mistake or restored the wrong version, you can roll it back. It’s important to have that safety net.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Right. And snapshots are very useful. Having backups done quickly is important, but knowing how to restore them is just as important. You need to be able to get your site back up quickly if something goes wrong, and that’s where good hosting support comes in.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I would also say verifying that your backups are actually valid and work should be part of every store&#8217;s maintenance. Test your backups periodically to make sure they restore properly. You don&#8217;t want to find out when something goes wrong that your backups were incomplete or corrupted.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Exactly. It’s like a fire drill. You need to run it once or twice a year to make sure everything works as expected.</p>



<p>Lastly, let’s talk about scalability. When your WooCommerce store grows, you’ll need to scale it. You might start with shared hosting, which we haven’t really mentioned in this episode, but as your traffic increases, you might need to upgrade to a VPS or even a dedicated server for larger businesses. Usually, companies use AWS or Google Cloud because they allow you to scale resources up and down easily. It’s important to choose a hosting provider that can grow with your store, so you’re not stuck with limits that could hurt your business.</p>



<p>How important do you think it is when people start out to choose a hosting company that can scale? Or do you think there are hosts that are</p>



<p>better suited for different stages of a business’s growth?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />That’s a good question. I think it’s always a good idea to bet on your own success. You should anticipate growth unless you&#8217;re sure that your business model is limited and won’t require much scaling. It’s important to choose a hosting company that can grow with you. I’m sure you’ve experienced this too—migrating a WooCommerce store from one hosting platform to another is a nerve-wracking experience for clients. Many people have had bad experiences with migrations, and it can be traumatic if something goes wrong. So, it’s better to start with a hosting company that offers both shared hosting and scalable options like VPS and dedicated servers. You want to be able to grow without needing to change hosts.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Exactly. And we fall back to what we talked about earlier—support is key. When you hit a threshold and need to upgrade, you want the hosting company to handle that transition smoothly. If you have a hosting provider that says, “Unfortunately, now you need to do this and that,” and they just put the whole thing back on the client, that’s not a good service. When scaling, the hosting company should be a partner in that process.</p>



<p>Ideally, they should say, “Hey, you&#8217;re growing. Shared hosting is not an option anymore. Don&#8217;t worry. Let&#8217;s schedule a migration during your least busy hours, and by tomorrow morning when you wake up, you&#8217;ll have a new hosting service that can accommodate your growth.” That&#8217;s the kind of hosting service you want, right?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, definitely. When we’re offering advice to clients, we usually want them to be prepared for the next 10 to 20 years with whatever challenges or growth opportunities they may face. We have a handful of hosting providers we know can accommodate different types of stores and business models, so they will scale as needed.</p>



<p>It’s hard to find hosts that can do horizontal scaling—multiple servers. Usually, once you&#8217;ve added a domain name that maps to a specific server, you can’t add another. Vertical scaling is more common; they’re happy to let you resize your server and make it bigger. But some clients want parallel processing or geo-redundancy. I have one client that has servers in Chicago and New Jersey, with a primary and secondary database setup. If Chicago goes down, New Jersey takes over. Not every host supports that kind of infrastructure, though.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />There are two other things I want to add before we wrap up: bandwidth and monitoring tools.</p>



<p>Bandwidth is something people need to keep an eye on, even though most hosting providers offer scalable or unlimited bandwidth. But you should calculate your bandwidth needs by taking the average page size and multiplying it by the number of visitors and pages viewed. For example, if your average page size is 2MB, and you get 5,000 visitors per month, each viewing five pages on average, you&#8217;re looking at 50GB of bandwidth a month.</p>



<p>I haven’t had a client run into bandwidth limits recently, but it’s still something to watch out for. Have you seen any issues with bandwidth?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />No, not in recent years. Most hosting providers have moved toward offering unlimited bandwidth, especially since many use Cloudflare to handle some of the load. I see more issues with outgoing emails being rate-limited, though. Some hosts will restrict the number of outgoing emails, especially if they think there’s suspicious activity, like a flood of order confirmation emails during a sale. It’s not great if you&#8217;re running a big sale and your emails are getting blocked, because customers start to wonder where their order confirmation is. That leads to support tickets and frustration.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Right, good point. And finally, monitoring. As a developer, I really appreciate hosting companies that provide good monitoring tools. I’m talking about dashboards where you can see CPU usage, memory usage, disk space, PHP workers, and even bandwidth. Some hosts offer integration with tools like New Relic, or they have their own monitoring tools. It’s important to be able to check on your website’s health regularly.</p>



<p>The first thing a developer or freelancer will ask a client is, “Do you have a staging website?” If your hosting provider allows you to spin up low-end environments like staging or performance environments, it’s incredibly helpful. You don&#8217;t need production-level power for staging, but you do need an environment to test things. And most hosting providers do offer them, but not all of them are free. So, having that capability without extra charges is key.</p>



<p>What do you think about that?</p>



<p>Mike:<br />I completely agree. As developers, we’re always asking for a staging environment. It’s the first thing we ask before making any significant changes. Having a staging site on the same host is crucial for testing updates, new features, or troubleshooting problems without affecting the live site. And yes, it shouldn’t be expensive.</p>



<p>Monitoring is also essential. The good hosting companies will provide a robust dashboard with real-time stats. And if you’re using New Relic or similar tools, you can get deep insights into performance, slow queries, and which plugins are hogging resources. That can save you a lot of headaches in the long run.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Exactly. And I would say the most successful clients I’ve worked with are the ones who focus less on dashboards and numbers and more on working with the right people. Having a good relationship with a hosting company that offers solid support is often more important than staring at charts all day. When something goes wrong, it’s the support that matters most.</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Yeah, and that’s something we’ve noticed too. If the client has a skilled development team, then having good monitoring tools is great, because they can dig into the details themselves. But if you’re a store owner who doesn’t have that technical expertise, then having access to a knowledgeable and responsive support team is far more valuable.</p>



<p>It’s like giving someone a spaceship—if they don’t know how to fly it, it’s useless. So having both—good tools and good support—covers all your bases. But if you had to choose between them, I’d recommend going with quality support.</p>



<p>Marcel:<br />Exactly. The store owners I’ve worked with who have been the most successful aren’t necessarily worried about the fancy dashboards—they care about the people they work with. And having a reliable hosting partner with good support is more important than anything.</p>



<p>Alright, everyone, that’s it for today. Thank you so much for listening and tuning in. This was, once again, Mike and I talking about WooCommerce and performance. We keep talking about performance—it’s important, I know! We’re probably getting a bit repetitive on that subject, but we have some future episodes ahead with different guests. We’re going to talk a lot more about development, too. So yeah, tune in for those.</p>



<p>Mike, I’ll talk to you in the next one!</p>



<p>Mike:<br />Sounds good, man. Thanks!</p>
</div>




<p>In this episode of <strong><em>Woo DevChat</em></strong>, <strong>Marcel</strong> and <strong>Mike</strong> dive deep into the critical aspects of hosting for WooCommerce stores. </p>



<p>They explore how hosting directly impacts your store&#8217;s performance, sales, and user experience, and discuss essential factors like RAM, CPU power, PHP workers, caching systems, and database optimization. </p>



<p>The conversation highlights the importance of choosing the right hosting provider that can scale with your store’s growth, while providing top-notch support. Whether you’re just starting out or building a high-traffic WooCommerce site, this episode will equip you with valuable insights to ensure your WooCommerce store runs smoothly and efficiently.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Takeaways</h2>



<p><strong>Hosting Directly Impacts Performance and Sales</strong>: A slow-loading WooCommerce store can lead to lost sales and lower search engine rankings. Choosing a hosting provider with sufficient resources, speed, and reliability is crucial for success.</p>



<p><strong>The Importance of Support</strong>: Quality support is just as essential as having the right hosting resources. A knowledgeable support team that can proactively troubleshoot and resolve issues can be a game-changer, especially for non-technical store owners.</p>



<p><strong>RAM, CPU, and PHP Workers</strong>: WooCommerce sites require more RAM and CPU power than regular WordPress sites due to the dynamic nature of e-commerce. PHP workers are crucial for processing simultaneous tasks, and understanding the right balance of resources can prevent slowdowns during peak times.</p>



<p><strong>Caching Systems</strong>: Implementing effective caching strategies, such as page caching, object caching, and browser caching, is one of the most impactful ways to improve performance. However, WooCommerce stores require customized caching due to the dynamic content of e-commerce sites.</p>



<p><strong>Database Optimization</strong>: Regularly optimizing your database by clearing transients and optimizing tables can significantly boost site performance, especially as your store grows and accumulates more data.</p>



<p><strong>Scalability is Key</strong>: As your WooCommerce store grows, having a hosting provider that can easily scale from shared hosting to VPS or dedicated servers is important. Scaling smoothly without disruption requires the right provider and strong support.</p>



<p><strong>Backups and Security</strong>: Frequent backups and a robust security setup are non-negotiable for WooCommerce stores. Automated, smart backup systems and proactive monitoring can save you from major losses in the event of a failure or security breach.</p>



<p><strong>Monitoring and Staging Environments</strong>: Good hosting providers offer monitoring dashboards and the ability to create staging environments. These tools help developers test changes without affecting live sites and provide insights into performance, memory usage, and potential bottlenecks.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Links</h3>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li><strong><a href="https://wpvip.com/">WordPressVIP</a></strong></li>



<li><a href="https://newrelic.com"><strong>New Relic</strong></a></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://www.cloudflare.com">Cloudflare</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://redis.io">Redis</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://www.phpmyadmin.net">phpMyAdmin</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://aws.amazon.com">AWS (Amazon Web Services)</a></strong></li>



<li><strong><a href="https://cloud.google.com">Google Cloud</a></strong></li>
</ul>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Tue, 24 Sep 2024 08:55:00 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:5:"BobWP";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:39;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:18:"Matt: On WP Engine";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:23:"https://ma.tt/?p=126284";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://ma.tt/2024/09/on-wp-engine/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:182:"<p>I wrote a bit more on Lee Wittlinger / Silver Lake and WP Engine over on WordPress.org: <a href="https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine/">WP Engine is not WordPress</a>.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sun, 22 Sep 2024 00:12:54 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4:"Matt";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:40;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:46:"WordPress.org blog: WP Engine is not WordPress";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17786";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:45:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/wp-engine/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:4411:"<p>It has to be said and repeated: <em>WP Engine is not WordPress</em>. My own mother was confused and thought <a href="https://wpengine.com/">WP Engine</a> was an official thing. Their branding, marketing, advertising, and entire promise to customers is that they&#8217;re giving you WordPress, but they&#8217;re not. And they&#8217;re profiting off of the confusion. WP Engine needs a trademark license to continue their business.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnI-QcVSwMU">I spoke yesterday at WordCamp</a> about how <a href="https://www.silverlake.com/people/lee-wittlinger/">Lee Wittlinger</a> at <a href="https://www.silverlake.com/">Silver Lake</a>, a private equity firm with $102B assets under management, can hollow out an open source community. (To summarize, they do about half a billion in revenue on top of WordPress and <a href="https://wordpress.org/five-for-the-future/pledge/wp-engine/">contribute back 40 hours a week</a>, Automattic is a similar size and <a href="https://wordpress.org/five-for-the-future/pledge/automattic/">contributes back 3,915 hours a week</a>.) Today, I would like to offer a specific, technical example of how they break the trust and sanctity of our software&#8217;s promise to users to save themselves money so they can extract more profits from you.</p>



<p>WordPress is a content management system, and the content is <em>sacred</em>. Every change you make to every page, every post, is tracked in a revision system, just like the Wikipedia. This means if you make a mistake, you can <em>always</em> undo it. It also means if you&#8217;re trying to figure out why something is on a page, you can see precisely the history and edits that led to it. These revisions are stored in our database.</p>



<p>This is very important, it&#8217;s at the core of the user promise of protecting your data, and it&#8217;s why WordPress is architected and designed to never lose anything.</p>



<p><strong>WP Engine turns this off.</strong> They disable revisions because it costs them more money to store the history of the changes in the database, and they don&#8217;t want to spend that to protect your content. It strikes to the very heart of what WordPress does, and they shatter it, the integrity of your content. If you make a mistake, you have no way to get your content back, breaking the core promise of what WordPress does, which is manage and protect your content.</p>



<p>Here is a screenshot of <a href="https://wpengine.com/support/platform-settings/#Post_Revisions">their support page</a> saying they disable this across their 1.5 million WordPress installs.</p>



<img width="1024" height="864" src="https://i0.wp.com/wordpress.org/news/files/2024/09/Screenshot-2024-09-21-at-4.05.03 PM.png?resize=1024%2C864&ssl=1" alt="" class="wp-image-17787" />



<p>They say it&#8217;s slowing down your site, but what they mean is they want to avoid paying to store that data. We tested revisions on <em>all</em> of the recommended hosts on WordPress.org, and <em>none</em> disabled revisions by default. <strong>Why is WP Engine the only one that does?</strong> They are strip-mining the WordPress ecosystem, giving our users a crappier experience so they can make more money.</p>



<p><strong>What WP Engine gives you is not WordPress</strong>, it&#8217;s something that they&#8217;ve chopped up, hacked, butchered to look like WordPress, but actually they&#8217;re giving you a cheap knock-off and charging you more for it.</p>



<p>This is one of the many reasons they are a cancer to WordPress, and it’s important to remember that unchecked, cancer will spread. WP Engine is setting a poor standard that others may look at and think is ok to replicate. We must set a higher standard to ensure WordPress is here for the next 100 years.</p>



<p>If you are a customer of &#8220;WordPress Engine,&#8221; you should <a href="https://wpengine.com/contact/">contact their support</a> immediately to at least get the 3 revisions they allow turned on so you don&#8217;t accidentally lose something important. Ideally, they should go to unlimited. <strong>Remember that you, the customer, hold the power; they are nothing without the money you give them.</strong> And as you vote with your dollars, consider literally any other WordPress host as WP Engine is the only one we&#8217;ve found that completely disables revisions by default.</p>";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:7:"pubDate";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:31:"Sat, 21 Sep 2024 23:57:40 +0000";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}s:32:"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/";a:1:{s:7:"creator";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:14:"Matt Mullenweg";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}}}}i:41;a:6:{s:4:"data";s:13:"
	
	
	
	
	
	
";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";s:5:"child";a:2:{s:0:"";a:5:{s:5:"title";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:44:"WordPress.org blog: PDX + WCUS 2024: A Recap";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"guid";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:35:"https://wordpress.org/news/?p=17750";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:4:"link";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:57:"https://wordpress.org/news/2024/09/pdx-wcus-2024-a-recap/";s:7:"attribs";a:0:{}s:8:"xml_base";s:0:"";s:17:"xml_base_explicit";b:0;s:8:"xml_lang";s:0:"";}}s:11:"description";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:"data";s:11596:"<img width="1024" height="627" src="https://i0.wp.com/wordpress.org/news/files/2024/09/IMG_7364-scaled-e1726885354749-1024x627.jpg?resize=1024%2C627&ssl=1" alt="I love Oregon sculpture at The Oregon Convention Center in Portland, Oregon USA" class="wp-image-17751" />
