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Really Simple SSL For WordPress

February 5, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

SSL for WordPress is one of those topics that’s been a bit of a big deal (at least regarding being a point of discussion) ever since Google announced they were going to be using it as a signal for ranking.

For these reasons, over the past few months we’ve been running tests taking into account whether sites use secure, encrypted connections as a signal in our search ranking algorithms.

If you’re not a technical user, then the idea of setting up SSL on your site has to be a pain. Purchasing a domain, pointing nameservers, and hooking everything up to a hosting account is already enough to get people frustrated (and rightly so).

And though this post isn’t necessarily about setting up SSL (perhaps I’ll cover it in the future as I’m a big fan of Let’s Encrypt for some of my latest projects), it is about arguably one of the best plugins I’ve found for quickly making sure your WordPress site is set up once you have a certificate installed.

The Difference Between Parameters and Arguments

February 4, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

When reading the documentation, reading technical articles, or dealing with anything programming related you’re going to come across both parameters and arguments.

Sometimes, people will use these phrases interchangeably. For what it’s worth, I think that’s okay. People know what the speaker or author is referring to when they are using these terms.

But there is a difference between the two. So if you find yourself in a situation – maybe an interview or a setting that requires a bit more precision – here’s the difference.

Learn WordPress. It’s Easy! (Except It’s Not.)

February 3, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

When it comes to what it means to learn WordPress, and depending on who you talk to, you’re going to find one of two answers:

WordPress has a steep learning curve.
WordPress has a small learning curve.

You know what’s true about both of those statements? They are both true but they are only true within the context of the implied assumptions they make. And if you’re new to WordPress and you make the wrong assumption, then you’re going to feel as if you’re at a loss.

Learn WordPress

So here’s my take on if it’s really is easy to learn WordPress (or not).

How We Talk About WordPress Influences Others

February 2, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

Originally, I was going to title this post “changing the vernacular of WordPress” but I didn’t think that was as clear as just saying “how we talk about WordPress influences how others perceive it.”

The bottom line of what I’m trying to say, though, is that we use the word “WordPress” to mean something different depending on the context in which we’re speaking.

As Developers, Designers, Users, etc. “All of you involved in WordPress…”
As a Core Developer or Developer. “I’m working on WordPress…”
As a Community Member. “WordPress is a pretty great community…”
As a Developer, Designer, User, etc. “WordPress can change your life…”
…and so on

And I’m sure you can come up with much better examples than I have.

Anyway, though it works for those of us who are using the platform, it doesn’t necessarily clarify what we’re talking about to outsiders.

Touch a File (Before Creating It)

February 1, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

If you do any type of WordPress development for clients, then you’re likely familiar with having to work within many different environments.

Sure, the backend of each system may be very similar: That is, they are all running on some form of Linux with Apache or Nginx and MySQL. But, depending on the project that you’re working on, you may end up facing a variety of file permissions.

For example, let’s say that you’ve been hired to write a plugin or some custom functionality for someone and the work that you’re doing has to integrate with work that someone else has done. On top of that, it has to integrate with permissions on a file system that you can’t change.

Furthermore, a portion of the work you have to do must write a file to the disk. The problem? The code for saving a file isn’t working.

What then?

Tom McFarlin

Really Simple SSL For WordPress

The Difference Between Parameters and Arguments

Learn WordPress. It’s Easy! (Except It’s Not.)

How We Talk About WordPress Influences Others

Touch a File (Before Creating It)