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Editing WP-Config From Within WordPress

Editing WP-Config From Within WordPress

By Jeffro on May 29, 2012

If you’re tired of uploading WP-Config.php after each change you make, consider using a brand new plugin by Dgwyer called Config Constants. It currently has support for nine commonly used constants with more possibly being added in the future. While the plugin does not actively add constants to WP-Config.php, it provides a way for you to enable/disable the ones that are discovered. The options for the plugin are fairly straightforward as you can see via the following screenshot:

Config Constants Options

One of the coolest features of this plugin is the information icon next to each constant which is linked directly to its corresponding Codex page. One other nice feature is the ability for two-way editing:

Also, a key feature of the Plugin is the support for two-way editing. This means you can still edit wp-config.php constants manually if you wish and your changes will be automatically synchronized with Plugin settings. Likewise, if you update the value of a constant via the Plugin options page then wp-config.php is immediately updated.

While I’m not sure how many power users are going to bypass their usual method of changing/uploading the WP-Config file to installing this plugin to perform the changes, at least the plugin exists for those that prefer to go this way. Just remember to backup the original WP-Config file, just in case. If you would like to give Dgwyer direct feedback concerning this plugin, you can do so in the comments or via the following forum thread.

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Searching Only The Codex

Searching Only The Codex

By Jeffro on May 16, 2012

When performing a search on the Codex, you’re presented with a slew of search results. However, not all of those results are within the Codex. The search portion of the Codex is powered by a Google custom search box which not only presents results from within the Codex, but from across WordPress.org as well, mainly the support forum.

Searching The Codex

While performing a search for Conditional Statements, the first result was the one I was looking for. However, if you want the results to strictly be within the Codex, I came across this link shared by Otto on the Documentation mailing list. While giving this method of searching the Codex a try, I found it difficult to find the Conditional Statements page I was looking for that was easily displayed by the Google Custom Search box. Even by checking each box, I failed at finding the page using both Conditional Statements and Conditional as my search terms.

My advice, stick to using the Search box that exists on the Codex page.

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My Apologies To The WordPress Foundation

My Apologies To The WordPress Foundation

By Jeffro on May 12, 2012

First off, I want to offer my sincere apologies to the WordPress Foundation. In a previous article, I incorrectly labeled the foundation as harming WordCamps. My main gripe was with the fact that some WordCamp organizers were being denied the ability to have high sponsorship caps and thus, it sometimes adversely affected the event either in terms of it’s size or type of venue they could hold the event in. As time has gone by, I’ve learned that the biggest mistake I made was contributing the organizing and running of WordCamps to the WordPress Foundation which is incorrect. WordCamp Central is the group responsible for all things WordCamp related while the WordPress Foundation oversees the use of the WordPress and WordCamp trademarks. Unfortunately in the original discussion, WordCamp Central and the WordPress Foundation were used interchangeably which muddied the conversation.

Perhaps I should have known better, but even though I’ve been apart of the WordPress community for two years, the project has grown far beyond just being publishing software. There is the foundation, WordCamp Central, Automattic, WordPress.com, various Automattic owned services, Audrey.co, etc. It’s hard to place blame or hold anyone accountable when you have no idea who that person is or what project or group they belong to. It’s frustrating for me but I wonder if many people simply don’t care, just as long as WordPress remains awesome, easy to use publishing software? I’ve often felt that there should be some sort of WordPress White Pages so that the public can know who is responsible for what within the WordPress project. But since so many individuals mingle with various parts, that project would soon be a waste of time.

P.S. There is hope for things to change for the better.

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WordPress Foundation Harming Rather Than Helping WordCamps

WordPress Foundation Harming Rather Than Helping WordCamps

By Jeffro on May 4, 2012

WordCamp San Francisco 2012 has released their sponsorship package prices and once again, the prices almost demand that you include your first born with the top spot. In 2009, the top sponsorship spot for the event was $15,000. In 2010 the top sponsorship spot would have cost you the same amount, $15,000. Last year, the top spot would have set you back $40,000. While the sponsorship prices are astronomical compared to any other WordCamp in the U.S., the real issue lies within the fact that there appears to be a double standard when it comes to setting caps for sponsorship money.

An article on Perezbox that talks about the issue has so far, generated a number of comments from WordCamp organizers. It was disheartening to read so many organizers with roughly the same complaint. Here are a few excerpts from their comments to give you a better idea of the crux of the matter.

Couldn’t agree more. I remember being told by the WP Foundation that the highest level sponsorship package for WordCamp Philly was too high. The price was $2,500, so we were forced to bring it down to $2,000. So our HIGHEST level was identical to their LOWEST level.- Brad Williams organizer of WordCamp Philadelphia

I organized Chicago in ’09 and ’10. The 2010 camp hosted 580 attendees and in Chicago, that is no small task. Each city has its own things to deal with … in Chicago its unions. 2010 cost us roughly $42,000.00 (and, in my opinion, it was a bare bones camp) – – and we raised that much through sponsorships, so we broke even. That was a couple of months before the Foundation took over. I was told that $30K for a local WordCamp was a ridiculous amount and way too much for a local camp…which is why the Foundation would be taking over to help local camps deal with these financial issues. – Lisa Sabin-Wilson organizer of WordCamp Chicago

As last years organizer of WordCamp Las Vegas I can totally understand and feel the frustration with the sponsorship package limits being set in place by the foundation, especially once you see that the price points for WCSF are so far above and beyond what is allowed. Overall I think the limits that are put in place for all of us common folk to follow is pretty low and should be revisited as the cost of WordCamp’s can vary on geographical location. – Shelby DeNike organizer of WordCamp Las Vegas

I am one of the organizers of the Seattle WordCamp. We have almost 900 people in our local Meetup community and I know we easily could have packed in a 600 person crowd between us and the rest of the community with no problem, and we wanted to! We ran into a brick wall with the Foundation limitations that wound up restricting us to a 300 person venue due to lack of flexibility primarily in sponsorship abilities. – Ben Lobaugh organizer for WordCamp Seattle

If the WordPress Foundation is going to tell WordCamp organizers what the limit is on their sponsorship packages and quite possibly make it too low which can make or break an event, WordCamp San Francisco should be held to the same procedures. If WordCamp San Francisco can not put on a successful event because of the regulations of the WordPress Foundation, they should change its name so they can hold an event without anyone telling them what to do. But, I don’t think they’ll be doing that anytime soon.

This site reaches thousands of people. I’m especially interested in hearing from WordCamp organizers. I want to know if the experiences described by others were also experienced by you.

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PressNomics – Conference Specifically For Commercial WordPress Entities

PressNomics – Conference Specifically For Commercial WordPress Entities

By Jeffro on May 4, 2012

Pressnomics LogoIn what I believe is the first of it’s kind, PressNomics aims to bring together the various commercial entities that are successfully making a living around WordPress. The conference is being held in Chandler, Arizona which by the way, is a great name for a city between November 8th and 10th, 2012. There is room for around 150-200 attendees with ticket prices starting at $150.00. The tickets go on sale starting in June but most of the attendees will be personally invited. While Joshua and Sally Strebel are among those organizing the conference, this is not a Page.ly focused event. Among the list of confirmed speakers thus far include Mark Jaquith and Mikkel Svane, the CEO of ZenDesk.

When I asked Josh why he’s helping to put on this event, here was his response:

I had this idea for a while and finally decided to execute on it after discussing it with others. People seem to agree that having a meet up of sorts to discuss best practices and learn from each others experiences and stories would be helpful. The programming is for the benefit of the businesses that drive the WordPress economy, not so much the end user of WordPress. + it is a good excuse to get together with our peers.

Sounds like a great idea to me. There is already a lot of collaboration between commercial WordPress entities in the community but I think this will do a lot of businesses some good to get together in person, especially to share success and failure stories. One thing worth noting is that this is definitely not a WordCamp event as illustrated via their disclaimer.

This is not a WordCamp, and it has not been endorsed by or is affiliated with the WordPress Foundation. WordPress is a trademark of the WordPress Foundation, respect.

While organizing an event like this is not easy, it has to be considerably easier to be able to put on a conference about a specific aspect of WordPress with 0 restrictions.

Related But Not Required Reading:

– The Concept Of A PressNomics Conference

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Import/Export Options Now Available With Widget Logic

Import/Export Options Now Available With Widget Logic

By Jeffro on May 1, 2012

The latest release of one of my favorite plugins, Widget Logic, now has the option to import and export options. The options are saved to a text file which contains all of the conditional logic.

Widget Logic Export Import Options

Widget Logic Text File

Conditional Logic Saved Within A Text file

Despite using this particular plugin for a long time, it never really occurred to me how nice it would be to have such a feature. This really comes in handy for those times when you want to reformat your website and instead of remembering the conditional logic for each widget, you simply import the text file and the configuration is taken care of.

While I didn’t dedicate much time to it, there is an additional enhancement that comes with Version .52 of the plugin. You can now select when the logic code runs. Here is a screenshot that should help clarify what it does.

Oh, and if you get lost trying to find out where the new features are located, you’ll find them at the bottom of your Widget configuration page.

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WooThemes Excels At Customer Service During Crisis

WooThemes Excels At Customer Service During Crisis

By Jeffro on May 1, 2012

While WooThemes was experiencing a crisis that involved the loss of 6 months of data along with their main website going offline, they still managed to provide great customer service. During the entire ordeal, WooThemes kept customers and the public updated with what they knew and what they were doing to fix the problem via their status blog. Their status blog was updated multiple times a day. Many people commended the company on Twitter for doing such a great job and it’s definitely deserved.

I wish companies whether they be WordPress based or not would so something similar when a crisis hits. Customers want to know what happened, what’s currently happening, who’s doing what, etc. When a crisis hits and takes a website offline, people don’t want a canned response to a support ticket or email, they want information. Information keeps customers calm or at least, calmer then they would be without it. I personally hate that feeling I get when a company seems to shove me off and pretends as if nothing is wrong. As for information, inform the masses, not just a few. That way, everyone is on the same page. Use your company site as a means of controlling the conversation so people don’t have to guess what’s happening.

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