A while back one of my clients wanted a form that would stand out from the every day form fare. I did lots of searching and saw a ton of forms. They needed something that would pop in the sidebar and I found some really good inspiration, especially from this article on Useful Ideas and Guidelines for Web Forms at Smashing Magazine. In my searching … [Read more...]
WordPress 3.4 and Genesis
Hey folks. WordPress 3.4 "Green" just dropped. I know a lot of folks worry about updating so I thought I would write up a post about this. Point of clarification: this post is mostly about how WordPress 3.4 works with Genesis 1.8.1, for other themes and plugins see if their authors and fans have said anything. I maintain this site as well as a … [Read more...]
Must Have Plugins are a Myth
I can't begin to even guess how many times I've been asked "what are the must have plugins?" I've been asked by clients, in the forums, in comments, and in more direct contacts. Most often it is when I've been hired to optimize a site and tell the client "you need to disable as many plugins as possible." I have been asked to optimize sites with … [Read more...]
Site Recovery Tips and Tricks
Something bad is happening on your WordPress site. You try to login and have a white screen, or the entire site has been replaced with error messages. You're heart is starting to race. Sweat is beading in your face. How will you fix this? First, calm down. The solution is probably pretty simple. You need to be calm and focused to remember what … [Read more...]
Theme Customization Basic Skills
So, you have a nice new theme with tons of features, but you want to make changes so it will be uniquely yours. You are at a crossroad. Do you hire a developer or do you become a developer? There are risks and benefits for both. A skilled developer will know how to accomplish things you never thought possible, they will transform your site into … [Read more...]
Custom Post Types Made Easy
Post types aren't really that hard to start with. You start with some template code, then make a few changes and bam! Now you have a custom post type. However, teh code can get clunky if you register several CPTs. On this blog I have a single CPT, for the child themes used by my Child Theme Matrix. I use some template code I picked up when I … [Read more...]
WordPress Security
However, even the best theme cannot make up for security holes left in WordPress by unwary users. Genesis is a great theme framework and the code is continually checked by professionals and community members alike for any security holes which are repaired with an update to the Genesis Parent Theme. This is one of the great reasons to make proper … [Read more...]