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WordPress Themes Team Releases New Plugin for Creating Block Themes

photo credit: Artsy Crafty

Two weeks ago, WordPress theme author Rich Tabor tweeted, “Even with my theme developer hat on, I’m finding it easier and easier to create block themes ~ within ~ WordPress. I’m positive one day (soon) this will be the norm.”

It looks like that day has arrived sooner than expected, as Automattic has had a team working on this capability for awhile. Today, a group of eight full-time sponsored Themes Team contributors released a plugin called Create Block Theme that can create standalone block themes and child themes inside the WordPress admin.

The idea is that users can design their own themes using full-site editing features and then export their finished creation as a theme that can be installed on any other WordPress site. Ben Dwyer shared a video called Designing a theme in the WordPress Editor where designer Beatriz Fialho demonstrated the possibilities. She created a unique new theme using full-site editing features in just a couple of hours.

The plugin offers a variety of exports for different use cases. Users can export their work in the following ways:

  • Export the active theme with user changes included
  • Export a child theme with the active theme as the parent theme
  • Export a clone a new theme based on the active theme with user changes
  • Overwrite the theme files to include the user changes as part of the theme
  • Export a blank theme into the site’s themes directory

All of these export options are available under Appearance >> Create Block Theme.

“This plugin is aimed at theme builders – both designers and developers,” Dwyer said in the announcement. “It is useful for sharing your designs between multiple sites or users. If you’re just building a site for yourself you probably don’t need it.”

I tested the plugin with the child theme option and it worked as expected. I was able to install it on another site with its unique name and template changes instantly applied. The export screen allows users to give the theme a name, description, and author information, which is saved to the new theme’s style.css file.

“At the moment the UI of this plugin is totally separate from Gutenberg,” Dwyer said. “In time we expect more integration with the Site Editor UI, to make it easier to access these features.

It would be helpful if the theme creation options allowed users to upload a unique screenshot that would be packaged with the theme download. I added this as an issue on the plugin’s GitHub repository, where anyone is welcome to contribute.

The Create Block Theme plugin makes designing and authoring a WordPress theme more approachable than ever before. It has the potential to rapidly increase the number of block themes available, if designers understand how to use it and submit their works to the Themes Directory. The Training Team is currently working on a course for Learn WordPress that will teach people how to create block themes using this plugin.

Create Block Theme was released under the WordPress.org plugins account and can be installed by searching for the plugin’s name in quotes.

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Understanding Kubernetes Resource Types

Note: This is the first of a five-part series covering Kubernetes resource management and optimization. We start by describing Kubernetes resource types.

Before we dive into Kubernetes resources, let’s clarify what the term “resource” refers to here. Anything we create in a Kubernetes cluster is considered a resource: deployments, pods, services, and more. For this tutorial, we’ll focus on primary resources like CPU and memory, along with other resource types like ephemeral storage and extended resources.

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MongoDB vs. DynamoDB Head-to-Head: Which Should You Choose?

Databases are a key architectural component of many applications and services.

Traditionally, organizations have chosen relational databases like SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, and Postgres. Relational databases use tables and structured languages to store data. They usually have a fixed schema, strict data types, and formally-defined relationships between tables using foreign keys. They’re reliable, fast, and support checks and constraints that help enforce data integrity.

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Using an Array as Function Parameter in JavaScript

In Javascript, we often have data stored as arrays, and functions we want to call. Sometimes, the data in our arrays is exactly the data we want to pass to a function. Fortunately, there are ways in Javascript to use arrays as the input values for functions. Let's look at how to use arrays as function parameters.

How to Use Arrays as Function Parameters

When we have a function we want to pass an array to, the most basic way to do it would be like this:

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Monitoring Spring Boot Application With Prometheus and Grafana

In this article, we will be looking into how we can monitor our Spring Boot application using Grafana. We would be looking into the whole setup and creating a simple dashboard to view some metrics. 

Every application that is deployed on production needs some kind of monitoring to see how the application is performing. This will give you some insights on whether the application is performing as aspected or if you would need to take some action in order to obtain the desired level of performance. In the modern world, this data is called Application Performance Metrics (APM). Now there are quite many commercial tools like Newrelic, Datadog APM, etc. which are SAAS services providing such capabilities.

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6 Reasons Cybersecurity Awareness Training is Important

We live in a world where all our day-to-day lives have gone digital. There might not be any single piece of our information that is not present on the internet today. With hackers attacking every 39 seconds, cybersecurity has become a major challenge for many organizations. 

Cybersecurity plays an important role in securing data from data breaches. While practicing cybersecurity is essential, cybersecurity awareness training is equally important. 

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How to Solve Context Propagation Challenges in Distributed Tracing

Distributed tracing allows tracking of a specific flow as it progresses throughout microservices systems. With distributed tracing, developers can connect the dots and gain visibility and understanding of a certain flow. This saves time when building and operating modern applications.

However, not all workflows and architectures support distributed tracing mechanisms. This is the case especially when these mechanisms were built as creative and customized solutions to unique situations. In such cases, it can be challenging to implement the context propagation mechanism, which is responsible for gathering the metadata that enables building the distributed tracing flow.

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3 Reasons Why You Should Centralize Developer Tools, Processes, and People

Have you ever worked for an organization that uses 15 overlapping tools, all with different requirements, inputs, and administrators? Pretty hectic, right? Every development team has its unique blend of tools that help it ship code, but it’s hard to keep all those tools seamlessly working together. We recently surveyed developer teams, and they cited fragmented tools as the most common challenge, with 39% of respondents calling it a significant challenge. 

The decentralization of developer tools, processes, and people creates friction in software development workflows and frustration across teams. If you feel like you’re constantly shifting between tools or searching for information and wasting time to ineffective tools, you’re not alone — but you also don’t have to suffer any longer. Here’s a closer look at some common issues and potential solutions:

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5 Benefits of Electronic Data Interchange

The world of corporations can be difficult if you are not moving with the pace of the industry. Having a solid communication channel while aligning with other organizations is one of the crucial aspects of the business today. While there was a time when maintaining accurate records and keeping the communication fast was a challenge for many organizations, today, EDI solutions have made it super easy for them.

Electronic data interchange has been one of the most required technologies that have simplified the basic data transfer and communication among two partnered organizations. You see, companies can't handle everything on their own. There are operations that companies prefer to keep in-house, while there are tasks that need to be outsourced. Partnering with other niche organizations is a great way to maintain quality in the operations. However, the basics of such collaborations depend majorly on the quality of communication that these two have. 

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WordCamp US 2022 Tickets Now On Sale: Limited to 650 Attendees

WordCamp US will be hosting its first in-person event since 2019 in San Diego this year. The three-day event will run from September 9-11 at Town and Country Resort.

Tickets went on sale today and are still available but likely to sell out soon. Unlike previous years, which had attendees number in the thousands, WCUS 2022 will be capped at 650 tickets sold. Organizers said this is to allow for adequate social distancing and to give the team better flexibility in case changes are necessary.

Tickets will include lunch on Friday and Saturday as well as entry to Contributor Day on Sunday. It also includes admittance to the Saturday night after party and a commemorative t-shirt. WCUS will feature more than 30 speaker presentations and six workshops. Attendees will have the opportunity to network with fellow WordPress enthusiasts and approximately three dozen sponsors.

WordCamp US 2022 is requiring all attendees to be vaccinated or test negative within 24 hours of the event. Masks will be required indoors and organizers have hired a company to enforce proper mask wearing and verify vaccination and testing.

WCUS has negotiated a hotel block with a reduced rate ($199/night) at the Town and Country Resort. A reservation link will be published July 7.

There were only 50 tickets remaining at the time of publishing. Speakers have not yet been announced. Volunteers and speakers will receive a free ticket but are advised to buy one just in case and will be able to receive a full refund. Sponsors and organizers do not need to purchase a ticket.

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DevOps Compliance Essentials

From new and changing data protection laws to the widespread occurrence of data breaches, consumers are more aware than ever of how their data is being used and when their privacy is compromised. Companies must commit to an intentional, strategic approach for ensuring compliance across their infrastructure, throughout the software development and delivery lifecycles, and within the very fabric of their DevOps culture.

This Refcard covers the fundamental components of DevOps compliance as well as key steps for organizations to take in order to meet regulatory and security requirements, improve operational efficiency, and adapt as policies inevitably change.
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Bunny Fonts

Bunny Fonts bills itself as the “privacy-first web font platform designed to put privacy back into the internet.” According to its FAQ:

With a zero-tracking and no-logging policy, Bunny Fonts helps you stay fully GDPR compliant and puts your user’s personal data into their own hands.

Hard for my mind not to go straight to Google Fonts. Bunny Fonts even says they are a drop-in replacement for Google Fonts. It offers the same open source fonts and holds the same API structure used by Google Fonts.

Now, I’m no GDPR expert but the possibility of Google collecting data through its Fonts API is hardly unsurprising or even unexpected. I was curious to check out Google’s privacy statement for Fonts:

The Google Fonts API logs the details of the HTTP request, which includes the timestamp, requested URL, and all HTTP headers (including referrer and user agent string) provided in connection with the use of our CSS API.

IP addresses are not logged.

Comparing that to what Bunny Fonts says in its FAQ:

When using Bunny Fonts, no personal data or logs are stored. All the requests are processed completely anonymously.

Or perhaps more thoroughly explained on the bunny.net GDPR statement:

In most cases, the data held and collected by bunny.net does not contain any user identifiable data. In some cases, which depend on how you are using bunny.net and how your website is structured, personal data may be collected from your users. Such information includes hosting user uploaded content as well as personal data that might be transmitted in the URL, User-Agent or Referer headers of the HTTP protocol.

Sounds pretty similar, right? Well, it may not have been that similar earlier this year when a German court ruled that embedded Google Fonts violated GDPR compliance. It appears that one line in the Google Fonts privacy statement about IP addresses came after the ruling, once the API scrubbed them from collected data.

So, do you need to ditch Google Fonts to be GDPR compliant? I would imagine not if IP addresses were the sole concern, but I’ll leave that for folks who know the rules to comment on that.

But if you are concerned about Google Font’s GDPR compliance, I guess Bunny Fonts is worth a look! And seeing that it’s powered by bunny.net’s CDN services, you should get pretty comparable performance marks.

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Quantum Computers Explained

Human technology, for the majority of our history, was limited to our brains, fire, and sharp objects. The biggest advancement has been made to human brains, while fire and sharp objects evolved into power plants and nuclear weapons.

Since the 1960s, the power of our brain machines has continued to increase dramatically, enabling computers to become smaller while also becoming more potent. But the physical boundaries of this process are about to be reached. Computer components are getting closer to atom size. We must establish certain fundamentals in order to comprehend why this is an issue.

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Neosec Enhances API Security Platform

Neosec, a company committed to discovering and identifying API threats using behavioral analytics, recently announced additions to its platform for discovering and assessing all APIs in use by an organization and preventing fraud and abuse of business assets and processes through them.

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How to Add an Author’s Photo in WordPress

Do you want to add an author’s photo in WordPress?

By default, most WordPress themes show the author’s gravatar as their profile picture. However, authors may want to replace this gravatar with another image.

In this article, we will show you how to add an author’s photo in WordPress.

How to add an author's photo in WordPress

When Do You Need to Add an Author’s Photo in WordPress?

If you run a multi-author WordPress site, then you may decide to add an author info box in WordPress posts. These author bio boxes typically show the author’s profile photo, a brief bio, and link to their website or social profiles.

By default, most WordPress themes use the person’s gravatar as their author photo. However, sometimes you may prefer to use a different image for the author photo.

As a WordPress website owner you may even have rules about the kind of photos you want to show in your author bio boxes. For example, maybe you require your authors to use a professional headshot.

If the author’s gravatar doesn’t meet your rules, then you may want to edit their profile and upload an image that better suits your WordPress blog.

With that in mind, let’s see how you can add an author’s photo in WordPress.

How to Add an Author’s Photo in WordPress

The easiest way to add an author photo in WordPress is by using the PublishPress Authors plugin. This plugin lets authors edit their own profile and author photo by adding a new ‘Author Profile’ area to their WordPress dashboard.

Changing your author photo

It also gives site admins the power to edit the author’s profile including changing their photo.

First, you’ll need to install and activate the PublishPress Authors plugin. If you need help, then please see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, head over to Authors » Settings. You can then go ahead and click on the ‘Display’ tab.

PublishPress' author settings

Once you’ve done that, open the ‘Layouts’ dropdown and choose a layout that includes an author photo.

Let’s look at your options.

The default layout is ‘Boxed.’ This shows the author’s information in a box, complete with their author photo.

How to add an author's photo in WordPress

The ‘Centered’ layout is similar to the boxed layout, but with all of the author’s information centered inside the author bio box.

‘Inline with avatar’ and ‘Simple List’ are both layouts that includes space for an author photo. Here’s an example of the Simple List layout.

An author photo displayed in the simple list layout

Just be aware that those two layouts don’t have space for a bio. Even if the author has added a bio, it won’t be shown on your website.

After choosing your layout, click on the ‘Save Changes’ button. You can now visit your website to see the author photos on your WordPress posts and pages.

Anyone who has registered on your site with the Author role will now be able to upload a photo using the ‘Author Profile’s settings in their WordPress dashboard.

How To Change an Author’s Photo in WordPress

As admin, you can also use PublishPress Authors to change any of the individual author photos that appear on your website. This is useful if an author chooses a photo that isn’t a good fit for your site.

To change an author’s photo, simply go to Authors » Authors.

Adding an author's photo to WordPress

You will now see a list of all the authors who are registered with your WordPress blog.

From here, you can click on an author’s ‘Edit Author Profile’ link.

Changing the author's photo in WordPress

Then, just click the ‘Image’ tab.

By default, PublishPress will try to find a gravatar that’s linked to the author’s email address. To use a different author photo, click on the ‘Custom image’ radio button.

Changing the author's profile picture

Once you’ve done that, click on ‘Select Image.’ You can now choose any image from your WordPress media library, or upload a new image.

Then, just click on the ‘Update’ button.

Saving a new author photo in WordPress

Your website will now use this new image as the author’s photo.

We hope this article helped you learn how to add an author’s photo in WordPress. You can also go through our comparison of the best WordPress membership plugins, or see our expert guide on how to install Google analytics in WordPress.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Add an Author’s Photo in WordPress first appeared on WPBeginner.

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3 Best Tools to Implement Kubernetes Observability

A properly managed and implemented observability system provides DevOps with granular insights that can be used to debug and heal complex systems. Observability combines monitoring, alerting, and logging with metrics visualization and its analysis.

It allows development teams to get detailed insights into the real-time performance of Kubernetes clusters and applications so that they can make timely and informed actions. Here, in this blog, we’ve discussed three important tools to implement Kubernetes Observability. Let’s take a look!

Kubernetes at Its Boom

Today, containers and microservices are emerging as the cornerstone of a flexible hybrid cloud strategy. Kubernetes have completely revolutionized the deployment and lifecycle management of containers across public clouds and private data centers. So profound was its effect that initially, Kubernetes was considered a “be-all and end-all” for software lifecycle management.