WordPress CMS modifications

The release candidate for WordPress 2.6.1 is now available. Although not a critical update (quote from official blog ‘If you’re happy with 2.6, however, keep on using it.  You need not upgrade to 2.6.1 if 2.6 is getting the job done.‘), it certainly addresses a few bugs that crept in - as you can see on WordPress Trac.

Importantly - it fixes the permalink issue that has been mentioned on this site for those WordPress users based on Windows servers.

There are some international improvements, along with some IE fixes to the upgraded ‘Press It’ browser integration for quick content blogging.

The WordPress 2.6.1 beta 1 is available for download - and a release candidate should be out in a few weeks time. Only download the beta if you wish to help test it - wait for the release candidate if you are unsure!

This features almost 50 bug fixes and reflects the solid commitment from the WordPress core developers to push forward the development of WordPress.

So, if you have been waiting for WordPress 2.6.1 before you upgrade, nows the time to make ready - get backing up and checking your plugins for compatibility - because it’s on it’s way!

A new official WordPress theme website has been launched, which is based on the same format as the WordPress plugins repository. This is great news for WordPress theme developers as it provides a proper central resource for hosting downloads and responding to feedback.

Where it differs from the plugin repository is that they have streamlined the upload process for authors - so you don’t have to worry about Subversion (to quote the announcement post ‘our back end magic takes care of all that for you’ - good work guys! Automated checks are carried out when you upload the theme in a zip file, with error reporting - nice!

This also means that users don’t have to worry about nasty adware and links when using these themes - if they stick to the official WordPress theme repository they should avoid these potential problems.

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WordPress 2.6 is now available for download, codename “Tyner” after jazz pianist McCoy Tyner. The good news is that there should be very little incompatibility with plugins and I myself have already conducted three painless upgrades following the usual procedure of replacing the core files and running the upgrade script.

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Google Summer of Code is a great way for Google to contribute back into the web development community. WordPress once again has been selected to be sponsored on a number of coding projects.

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WordCamp UK organisation is going very well - it seems a venue has been decided on - Aston University in Birmingham.

For those that don’t know, WordCamp is a great opportunity for WordPress developers, designers and bloggers to get together and talk about their favourite subject… WordPress! It’s sure to be a ram packed couple of day, with presentations and developer break-out groups.

It is going to be held on Saturday/Sunday July 19-20th 2008 - see you there!

Relevant links and further reading

WordCamp UK Wiki - Signup, contribute and help make the event want you want!
WordCamp Mailing list - Keep up-to-date with discussions

I have just spotted this WordPress Codex page on WordPress 2.6. It outlines a couple of very interesting new features.

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Wordcamp events are a great opportunity for WordPress developers to get together and discuss the best blogging (and website/CMS!) platform in the world!

There is an event in the process of being organised in Birmingham UK - the current scheduled date is Saturday/Sunday July 19-20th 2008.

So if you are in the UK and want to hook-up with like-minded developers, get contributing to the wiki and spread the word - not too long to go! I have listed all the relevant links below DONT MISS OUT!

Relevant links and further reading

WordCamp UK Wiki - Signup, contribute and help make the event want you want!
WordCamp Mailing list - Keep up-to-date with discussions

Just saw that there is a new plugin competition opening on the 10th of May 2008 over at weblogtoolscollection.com - always great news as there has really been some great work competed in the past.

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WordPress 2.5.1 follows 28 days after the initial 2.5 release - it is an essential update that contains a security fix.

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