Archive for 2011: Page 20

Fixing PressThis On A HostGator Account

By Jeffro on March 23, 2011

It all started with a couple of tweets by Bradley Potter when he mentioned a HostGator specific bug to Andrew Nacin. Since WPTavern.com is also hosted on HostGator, I decided to try and replicate the bug. Following his instructions I was able to replicate the error pointing towards the possibility of something on HostGator not configured just right.

While testing another plugin by Trevor Fitzgerald that ties into his website PressTags.com, I noticed that the Reblog feature didn’t work. It provided the same error as the Comment Trash link bug that Brad had mentioned. The reblog feature uses the built in PressThis bookmarklet in WordPress to republish an article. After going back and forth with Trevor as I thought his plugin was the one causing the error, I decided to install a fresh copy of WordPress within a subfolder to see if I could recreate the PressThis bookmarklet error. Sure enough, even on a fresh install, I would receive a 404 error each time I tried to use it. However, the raw URL for the bookmarklet worked just fine. Thinking that it was an HTACCESS problem, I got with Peter Westwood on Skype to perform some more troubleshooting but we discovered that even with an empty HTACCESS file, the error still occurred.

Trevor and I finally came to the conclusion that there was something wonky with HostGator and the way it treats URLs that had the following in it: _wp_original_http_referer. Both the move comment to trash link and the PressThis bookmarklet utilized this text and from what I can tell, adds the URL to my site twice within the link. Trevor then discovered a thread on the HostGator support forum from 2008 that mentions an Apache upgrade that broke someones site. More specifically, the PressThis bookmarklet.

It looked as though mod_security had something to do with the breakage and in order for it to work again, the URL had to be whitelisted by HostGator. After I created a support ticket with HostGator explaining the situation and linking to the thread, they were able to tell me that some of the things I had been doing were definitely triggering some mod_security rules. They whitelisted those items which ended up fixing my problem not only with the PressThis Bookmarklet but with the Move Comment To Trash link as well.

So if you’re running on HostGator and the same thing is happening to you, create a support ticket and request that you be whitelisted for those mod_security rules. One of the questions I had received after publishing the answer to this support question is whether the whitelist for mod_security opens up the site to any security vulnerabilities. I have no idea. But if you do, please share those within the comments.

Posted in WordPress | Tagged hostgator, pressthis, wordpress | 3 Responses

Please Adopt This Plugin – Comment Quicktags Reloaded

By Jeffro on March 22, 2011

Earlier today, I received an email asking me what plugin I was using that allowed for the quicktags to be displayed within the comment form of the site. I love these quick tags as they provide similar functionality as you’ll find within the post writing panel within WordPress. Unfortunately, the original creator of the plugin is now involved with the Habari project and is no longer maintaining it. I did manage to find Comment Form Quicktags on the plugin repository but I’m unsure as to why I’m not using that one as opposed to my current setup. After browsing the plugin repository, it looks like there are quite a few Quicktag plugins available but the one I’m using has been rock steady and still works, even with WordPress 3.1. You can’t find it on the repository though and it’s not available from the plugin authors site so I’m putting the download link here just in case someone would like to take the plugin, fork it, and maintain it on the repository.

Download Comment Quicktags Reloaded

Posted in Plugins | Tagged comments, Plugins, quicktags, reloaded | 9 Responses

Pet Peeve – Akismet Configuration Link Location

By Jeffro on March 22, 2011

Something that has frustrated me for a long time is trying to figure out where the Akismet Configuration link is. My brain and logical way of thinking always points me to the Settings top level menu only to browse around each area to figure out where it’s at. For some strange reason, the Akismet configuration link is located within the Plugins top level menu. This makes no sense to me. That menu is used to view the plugins page, add plugins, edit plugins but not specifically configure any plugins, except Akismet. It’s with this pet peeve that I request the Akismet Configuration link be moved to within the Settings menu. I don’t think Akismet needs its own top level menu.

If you think the configuration link needs to be moved, let me know where it should go. If you don’t think it should be moved, I want to know why you think it’s a good idea to leave it where it’s at.

Should The Akismet Configuration Link Be Moved?

Yes (91%, 94 Votes)
No (9%, 9 Votes)

Total Voters: 103

Loading ...

Posted in Polls | Tagged akismet, configuration, poll | 19 Responses

My Thoughts On The Atlas Theme Framework

By Jeffro on March 22, 2011

A few days ago, Donal MacArthur of Cranes And Skyhooks reached out to let me know about a new framework he’s developed called Atlas. After playing around with the theme for about an hour, I have a couple of suggestions for Donal.

Out of the gate, Atlas and it’s first child theme Elegance are clean and simple. In fact, I didn’t have to open the Readme file to figure out what to do although I couldn’t if I wanted to since the theme didn’t ship with one. Atlas is still in the testing phases and that could explain why there is no documentation either within a Readme file or a section dedicated to support on the website. I hope this changes prior to the frameworks official launch or some people will be left scratching their heads and ditching Atlas before giving it a real chance.

One of the nice things about Atlas is that its option pages blend right in with the UI back-end of WordPress which is always nice to see. Custom back-ends developed my theme authors usually look messy and out of place.

Various Option Pages In The Back-end

For the layout of the site, users have a few options to choose from for their index, single, archive and attachment pages as well as single posts. Selecting a specific layout for a page is as easy as using the drop down box but it comes with a price. After using the visual editor by Headway this approach to viewing changes feels old school. It’s like the old days of making a change, uploading the CSS file, clicking refresh, possibly clearing out the cache, refresh again and if you don’t like the changes, revert to the old CSS file. It’s not as difficult as I describe but you do end up having to select a layout and refreshing the page to see if you like it or not. There is no way around this except to use some sort of live preview.

For themes that give end users the ability to use a custom logo for a header, the method I like best is an upload box that will upload an image using the WordPress media library. This is completely feasible and is much easier than providing a logo URL box.

Best To Use WP Media Manager For Custom Logo

The other area of Atlas that made me screech in pain are the text area boxes that require me to know the ID numbers for Pages and Categories that I wanted to exclude from the drop down menus. I hate this technique. Please don’t make end users go through the pain of trying to figure out those ID numbers even if they are somewhat easy to discover. Instead, provide some UI such as check boxes or selection boxes that support multiple choices.

Death To Knowing ID Numbers

One of the nicer points of Atlas which I’m sure other theme frameworks are going to adapt despite plugins being available is a way to disable the admin bar for all users, disable the admin bar for all non-administrator level users or enable the Atlas info panel on the WordPress admin bar for logged-in Administrators. The Atlas info panel shows the total number of database queries executed on the page with the total page generation time.

Conclusion:

Other than the pain points I discovered, Atlas is not a bad Parent theme for its first version. However, if it’s going to have a chance to succeed with the big boys, it’s going to have to step it up in terms of ease of use. Also, support and documentation for some are the most important aspects of any theme and if it’s not available when this thing launches to the public, I doubt it will gain any traction.

For a limited time you can get free copies of both Atlas and its first child theme, Elegance, by becoming an Atlas beta tester or more aptly, a feedback provider. Donal is looking for feedback and is willing to give you the framework as well as the first child theme for free to thank you for that feedback. So if you have a spare moment or two, give Atlas a spin and let him know what you think.

Posted in Themes | Tagged atlas, framework, Themes | 6 Responses

WordCamp Montreal 2011 Looking For Speakers

By Jeffro on March 22, 2011

WordCamp Montreal has recently announced that they have nailed down a date of July 9th-10th 2011 while the venue quite possibly will be UQAM like last year. While the website devoted to the event used to be WPMTL.org, the new website is WCMTL.org. WordCamp Montreal is one of those unique events where speakers and sessions intertwine with both the English and French languages presenting some diversity. Early bird tickets are currently at a discount of $30.00 which will soon be raised to $40.00 so register now if you’re interested in attending. Last but not least, WordCamp Montreal is currently seeking sponsors as well as speakers. If interested in speaking, please go through their speaker application process.

I wonder if Ron and Andrea will be making the trip to Montreal this year?

Posted in Meetups | Tagged montreal, speakers, wordcamp | 3 Responses

John Battelles Interview With Matt Mullenweg

By Jeffro on March 16, 2011

John Battelles interview with Matt Mullenweg in Austin Texas. The discussion around the topic of Blogging being dead was pretty good. Also interesting is Matts thoughts on scaling advertising. What are your comments on the interview?

Posted in Video | Tagged battelle, interview, mullenweg, Video

WordPress iPhone App 2.7 Released

By Jeffro on March 16, 2011

Version 2.7 of the WordPress for iPhone app has been released to the App Store. In this version, there have been over 100 bug fixes which should help alleviate crashes and increase stability. The development blog states 2.7 is more of a performance and stability update rather than a feature upgrade.

The main focus of this release is to improve the app’s performance and reliability. The app has been moved to Core Data, which is a much improved way of managing information locally on the device. Also, the methods used to communicate over XML-RPC have been updated to better handle communication issues and increase reliability of the app. In total there have been 117 changes in this release.

Besides the bug fixes, the UI for the Post editor has been revamped to make it easier to write and edit posts. The question I have and I know many others are wondering the same thing is when will Post Format support be added?

Posted in News | Tagged app, apple, iphone, wordpress

Is Akismet Still Free?

By Jeffro on March 15, 2011

The short answer is yes, it’s still free for personal use. However, over the past few weeks, it seems as though many people believe that the free use of Akismet has disappeared and it’s now only a paid service. So in order to understand where this line of thought is coming from, I decided to erase my Akismet key and start the process over as if it were just installed. When my API key was cleared, I clicked on the Get Your Key link from within the Akismet configuration editor. This redirects to http://akismet.com/wordpress/ where on that page, I can read information concerning how cool it will be to use Akismet. One of the first things that are pointed out is that it’s free for personal use while being a bargain for businesses with the following quote afterward:

We’re not trying to make a killing, but we still need to pay our bills.

This is where things get dicey. On the Akismet key signup page, I get to see three specific plans for the service. One for $5.00 a month, $50.00 a month and $100 per month. Below the three plans is the personal site option.

After clicking the personal site option, you’ll need to fill in your details such as a First name, last name, etc. What’s interesting is on this page, there is a slider that asks, What Is Akismet Worth To You? By default, it’s set to $3.00 per month equaling $36.00 per year. The slider can be set to $0.00 as well but then you’ll have to contend with the fact that you made the emoticon show a sad face. By the way, this is a nice touch as I can see some people willing to create a custom price point to match how they feel about Akismet on their site.

After going through the checkout process, the API key was sent to me via email and I was able to use Akismet for free thanks to the personal plan.

Akismet Personal Plan

Conclusion:

I’m happy to report that Akismet can still be used for free but it’s meant for personal sites. One of the biggest changes from a few years ago is that to get access to Akismet, you needed to sign up to WordPress.com, obtain an API key from them, place that API key within Akismet and enjoy the benefits of the service. Now, you must go through a checkout process while choosing a specific plan before you get access to an API key. While Akismet has always been Software as a Service while charging large sites money for anti spam protection, the recent changes have transformed the site and the service into more of a revenue stream for Automattic by opening up lower price points for individuals.

It’s not as if the free or personal option is hidden away on some unknown page within the sitemap which has me confused on why so many people are convinced that you must pay $5.00 to use the service. If anyone else can suggest to me why this line of thought has taken place, I’m interested in reading it in the comments.

Posted in Plugins | Tagged akismet, anti spam, api, automattic | 32 Responses

New Forum For WordPress Meetup Organizers

By Jeffro on March 13, 2011

Earlier today, there was a new section of the WordPress.org forums created specifically for meetups. In the announcement post, Jane Wells explained what the purpose of the forum was.

This forum is the first step toward WordPress.org helping to facilitate local WordPress meetups. Some meetups are specific to skill/interest (users, developers, theme designers, etc) while others are general interest groups that touch on all topics around publishing with and developing for WordPress.

We’ll be rolling out features on this site over the coming year to help support these groups, but in the meantime, we hope this forum will provide an easier way to find like minded WordPress friends and collaborators in your area.

If you’re an organizer of a WordPress specific meetup, this is an excellent opportunity for you to spread the word. Although the service is not free for organizers, you can see if there is a meetup in your area by visiting WordPress.meetup.com which is what I used to find a few meetups near me.

Speaking of meetups, there is one coming up for the Northeast Ohio area on March 24th that will go in depth on WordPress 3.1.

Posted in News | Tagged community, local, meetups, wordpress | 5 Responses

WordPress.com To Self Hosted For 99 Bucks

By Jeffro on March 11, 2011

Just a few days ago, Automattic launched a new plugin pack called Jetpack which takes some of the best features of WordPress.com and puts them into plugin form to be used on self hosted WordPress sites. Today, Automattic announced that they are now offering a Guided Transfer service which will enable WordPress.com users to easily migrate to a self hosted WordPress install on a WordPress.org recommend host.

When I first saw the news, I didn’t think any people would be buying such a service considering most of what needs to be transferred between the two is content and that is easily done via the WordPress XML file. However, after giving it some thought, I realized that the user base on WordPress.com is mostly made up of people who either don’t want the hassle of maintaining their site or do not have the technical skills to do so. So after spending some time on WordPress.com and feeling comfortable with the software, I can see how someone would pay $99.00 for the convenience and satisfaction of having their hand held for two weeks so they can keep on publishing content without worrying about all the technical fuss to get things situated.

I’m not quite sure why GoDaddy and Network Solutions are among the list of recommended webhosts considering I hear nothing but bad things about GoDaddys setup. Meanwhile, Network Solutions definitely didn’t have the best of years as it relates to WordPress. I know webhosting companies make mistakes but the mistakes that were made by some of the webhosts that are being recommend were rookie mistakes at best dealing with permission issues. One has to think if some of the webhosts being recommended are purely because of they payout based on affiliate or referrals. The reputation of WordPress is on the line so to speak if those webhosts don’t deliver. Then again, some of the hosts have been recommended by WordPress for years as they’ve gone through a series of problems.

It’s too bad HostGator was not added to the list. Ever since I switched to them early in 2010, I’ve had nothing but good experiences with the company ranging from up time to their support. They are big fans of WordPress and do a good job of keeping their customers informed as to what’s going on within the company. So while HostGator doesn’t make their list, I can say that I fully recommend them for your hosting needs.

Posted in News | Tagged automattic, revenue, services, transfers | 9 Responses

Page 20 of 23« First «...5 10...192021...»Last »