A couple of weeks ago, I worked through a series of posts on how to write a TinyMCE plugin for the WordPress editor (since the WordPress Editor is TinyMCE).

In a recent project, one of the things that I needed to a build was a feature that allowed users to highlight text such that they would select the text in the editor (you know, with their mouse), click on a “Highlight Text” button in the toolbar, then have the text highlight.

And, naturally, it would return to its normal state of being un-highlighted if the text is selected and then the toolbar button is clicked again.

Though there’s no reason to share how the plugin is built in its entirety, I thought I’d walk through how I added the new command to the toolbar and used the HTML5 mark tag to include this functionality.

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When it comes to posts like this, I often deliberate for weeks on whether or not I should write them because of the various discussions that it will inevitably cause and the blowback that can occur can often times be exhausting (even if it’s deserved).

But that’s not this kind of post. This is a retrospective of my own mistakes, my apologies, and what I’ve learned about moving forward in certain types of situations. More on that in a moment.

Right about now is when the defenses start to go up. Please don’t go into this post with that attitude as it’s not at all about anyone or anything but me. If you already feel like you’re on the defense, take a look at this cool picture taken at River Street in Savannah, Georgia.

Once you’ve calmed down, keep reading :).

River Street in Savannah, Georgia

Okay so before I write any more, don’t get me wrong: Discussions in and of themselves are generally good things to have (except when they go south, but that’s common sense, right?), but right now it appears that WordPress is in a volatile state with regard to various opinions, perspectives, and so on.

Those who follow along with blogs, Twitter, and the like know what I’m talking about. People are being harassed, people are being disrespected, and – for some – it’s more about trying to make a point than it is trying to listen to the points other people are making.

Such an incredible bummer, isn’t it? It’s beyond that, really, but words fail me here.

This should go without saying, but WordPress is representative of many different people of all different walks of life and rather than use that diversity as a way to better ourselves and to grow as people, some are using it as a platform to continually argue points that aren’t productive.

Thus far, I don’t think I’ve said anything new. In fact, I’m talking more about other people than I am myself and, for this particular post, I wanted to actually talk a little bit about myself.

Specifically, I want to talk about:

• The mistakes I’ve made,
• The things I’ve learned,
• And how I’m trying to get better all thanks to the people who I’ve met through WordPress.

So here goes.

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