Category: Articles (Page 136 of 258)

Personal opinions and how-to’s that I’ve written both here and as contributions to other blogs.

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.

Clean Up WordPress Because It’s a Mess?

January 28, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

“Clean up WordPress” is a phrase that those of us involved in WordPress hear a lot. It’s misleading though because if you’re a developer, it might mean one thing. If you’re a user, then it likely means another thing.

But without any more context, you can still ask: Clean up WordPress? In what way?

Does it mean the database?
Does it mean part of the file system?
Does it mean something in a theme or all of themes?
Does it mean various plugins or part of a plugin?

And so on. You see what I’m saying, though? It’s a particular point of discussion, but your experience may vary depending on how you use WordPress.

Though I try not to talk about content from other blogs on my blog, sometimes an article and/or a comment brings up a point that strikes a chord with me. So I feel inclined to do so.

Being More Efficient with Email

January 27, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

Becoming more efficient with email is one of those things I think many of us aim to do. After all, we spend a significant chunk of our day working out of our inboxes, don’t we?

The ironic part of is we all complain about the amount of email we have in our inbox, but yet we’re also responsible for filling up other people’s inbox.

First, when it comes to the idea of inbox zero, I see that like a dog chasing its tail: Even if you’re to reach it, what then? The tail still exists, and more email comes in.

I’m being a bit facetious of course, but if I’m honest, I don’t worry about constantly being in a state of inbox zero. If I can reach it by the end of the work day, I’m good.

So, if your an Inbox user (and I am), how can we turn this into something that helps us be a bit more efficient with email?

In Defense of “In Case You Missed It” (or ICYMI)

January 21, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

In case you missed it, or ICYMI, is one of those new-fangled Internet terms that people use when tweeting something that they’ve previously tweeted. Ultimately, it’s a strategy to raise awareness to a group of followers that may have missed something when sharing it the first time.

It used to annoy me so much.

I get it. You’ve shared something. You want more people to see it. Why not just expect them to catch up on their feeds later?

What a bad attitude. I know. Bear with me, though.

Check your computer, check your phone.

As I’ve done before, I decided to give it a try. And you know what? It works. I’ve no problem admitting that I was wrong, nor do I have a problem defending the whole idea behind it.

If you’re a blogger or someone who has a following or is working on building a following or you just want people to see your content, then go for it.

Introducing Shorter Blog Posts

January 20, 2016 / Tom / 0 Comments

In a previous post, I began talking about how one of the things I wanted to begin doing this year is to introduce shorter blog posts.

Notes

Because the truth is with the amount of information coming from other blogs, Twitter, and whatever other social networks and news sources you read, odds are that this site is one that can also be easily marked as read or thrown into Pocket oblivion never to be read again.

And I’m perfectly okay with that! But if I can make any changes on my end to help mitigate that, then why not?