Tag Archives: wordpress

Mobile Detection and Redirection using the HandSetDetection API

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Me and the boys at DealerTrend have been trying to provide a scalable solution for mobile sites to our clients. We’d experimented with the many plugins available in the WordPress repository and most of them made the following mistakes.

  • Do all the running all the logic server side, which means caching is no longer possible via a proxy server.
  • Rendering the new content under the same domain. In essence restructuring an entire sites markup and outputting the new content. This could be seen as duplication within the same product.
  • Use static formulas for user agent detection.

Let’s take a look at the reasons I think these are mistakes.

First, running the logic on the server side produces an outcome…if that outcome is cached then someone else will see that outcome even if it doesn’t fit their situation. This means you can’t cache from an external server, it has to be done at the object level within WordPress. Which may not be ideal given that WordPress is using MySQL and in some cases, Apache which can only handle a (relatively) small load.

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Plugin Review: Raw HTML Snippets

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Like the Goddamn Batman, my services are required yet again.

It’s plugin judgment day!

Sometimes users need to use HTML/CSS/Javascript in pages or posts. While this is no doubt going to produce quality worse than the anything containing Kyra Sedgwick (seriously this will RUIN your acting career), sometimes people need to do what they need to do.

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Plugin Review: Members

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Another day, another WordPress plugin review!

Today I’ll be reviewing the Members plugin.

Description:

Members is a plugin that extends your control over your blog. It’s a user, role, and content management plugin that was created to make WordPress a more powerful CMS.

The foundation of the plugin is its extensive role and capability management system. This is the backbone of all the current features and planned future features.

Members

Let’s get this show on the road!

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WordPress 3.2 now available

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A while ago I posted an article stating that WordPress was going to stop supporting PHP 4 and MySQL 4. As of July 4th, that statement has come to fruition.

Under the hood there have been a number of improvements, not the least of which is the streamlining enabled by our previously announced plan of retiring support for PHP4, older versions of MySQL, and legacy browsers like IE6, which allows us to take advantage of more features enabled by new technologies.

Matt Mullenweg

Aside from those major anouncements, I’ve been actively using WordPress 3.2 for weeks now and it’s awesome. I like the UI enhancements as well as the new distraction-free writing mode.

Here’s a glimps into some of the latest and greatest from the WordPress dev team.

The focus for this release was making WordPress faster and lighter. The first thing you’ll notice when you log in to 3.2 is a refreshed dashboard design that tightens the typography, design, and code behind the admin. (Rhapsody in Grey?) If you’re starting a new blog, you’ll also appreciate the fully HTML5 new Twenty Eleven theme, fulfilling our plan to replace the default theme every year. Start writing your first post in our redesigned post editor and venture to the full-screen button in the editing toolbar to enter the new distraction-free writing or zen mode, my personal favorite feature of the release. All of the widgets, menus, buttons, and interface elements fade away to allow you to compose and edit your thoughts in a completely clean environment conducive to writing, but when your mouse strays to the top of the screen your most-used shortcuts are right there where you need them. (I like to press F11 to take my browser full-screen, getting rid of even the OS chrome.)

Matt Mullenweg

Head on over to wordpress.org to see the full article.