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Drafting Pseudocode Before Building Anything

September 3, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

The longer we work with a given library, framework, set of APIs, or whatever, the more comfortable we get with solving problems using them.

It’s a natural by product of experience, isn’t it?

But that doesn’t mean we’re solving the same problems over and over again. Sometimes, sure, we might be solving a problem like we’ve done previously. And really, in those instances, we should have libraries ready to plug into our work, but that’s content for another post.

Other times though, we may be working with the same foundation to solve new problems.

And that’s where it gets to be a little more touchy:

Because of our familiarity with the tools with which we’re working, we think we’re ready to jump in and solve the problem.

That’s not really the case though, is it? I mean, we might be working with the usual toolset, but we’re still solving a unique problem.

And in that case, shouldn’t we be taking a few steps prior before jumping into our IDE?

Quick Tip: WordPress Helper Functions For Templates

September 2, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

A little over a week ago, I shared a post about one way I try to work well with designers when working with WordPress. That is, I talked about how of stubbing out files they may need in order to get their work done.

Starting Up a Plugin

As mentioned in the post:

There are plenty of tips that can be shared and I’ll probably share more in the future.

So I thought I’d try to make this a regular thing by continuing to share some of the things I’ve learned – both what to do and what not to do – when partnering with designers or I’ve learned when simply working alone or with others on WordPress projects.

And one of the things I’ve found to be helpful is to provide helper functions when needing to call into more complicated functionality.

Pulling Back From Progressive Enhancement

September 1, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

One of the terms we hear a lot in web development is “progressive enhancement.” If you’re new to web development, Wikipedia defines it as follows:

Progressive enhancement uses web technologies in a layered fashion that allows everyone to access the basic content and functionality of a web page, using any browser or Internet connection, while also providing an enhanced version of the page to those with more advanced browser software or greater bandwidth.

Perhaps another way of looking at it is you introduce a basic feature such that it functions without any of the newer-ish technologies – such as Ajax – and then progressively enhancing the feature so it works a bit more smoothly (or flashier, because that’s a proper term).

Ultimately, it should improve the user experience without compromising the feature for those who don’t have access to newer technologies.

But there’s a challenge those who have been in development for a while tend to face.

What Is the Vendor Directory?

August 31, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

With the rise of package managers, build tools, and other similar software being brought to WordPress, we’re seeing more advanced directory structures in both our themes and our plugins.

Some of these tools have been around a long time – at least in one form or another – as it relates to software development, but it’s still relatively new with respect to WordPress.

If you’re new to WordPress development or you’re new to some of the various tools we have at our disposal for working on these types of projects, then it’s easy to get overwhelmed with some of the organizational choices of said projects.

Relax: that’s normal. It’s a natural part of the learning curve.

Though there’s a lot that can be talked about with respect to all of this, I thought it might be worth tackling just one aspect of it in this particular article.

Live Code Reviews at WordCamp Tampa

August 28, 2015 / Tom / 0 Comments

At the end of September (September 25th – 27th, to be exact), there are going to be a lot of great people at WordCamp Tampa.

Code Reviews at WordCamp Tampa

As of now, the schedule is still being put together, so I don’t know any more details than what you can find on the website; however, there is one event that I think anyone who is coming. should consider attending: A live code audit.

In short, it’s your code in front of a panel of other people critiquing it in front of all of your peers. Sounds scary, right?

Years ago, I used to think so – but then I realized just how great code reviews can be and I urge anyone who is writing code for a living to have someone else review their work.

Tom McFarlin