John James Jacoby | The Blog Pros

July 31, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 362 – Fitness, Freelancing, and More With Michelle Schulp

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Michelle Schulp, an independent freelancer and Director of Technology at AIGA Minnesota. We discussed the impacts speaking at multiple WordCamps had on her business early on, why she continues to be a freelance contractor as opposed to managing her own agency, and the role fitness has in her life. We also touch on what her personal experience has been like as a woman in the WordPress community.

Stories Discussed:

WordPress Security Team Discusses Backporting Security Releases to Fewer Versions

WordSesh EMEA Coming September 25: A New Virtual WordPress Event for Europe, Middle East, and Africa

How to Be A WordPress Ally

Fitness and Freelance

Add support for gradients in cover image

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July 25, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 361 – Introduction to the IndieWeb With David Shanske

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by David Shanske. David introduces us to a set of philosophies known as the IndieWeb, explains how it’s different from the Open Web, and how he’s been involved in the community. We discuss tools that help people own their data while still being able to take advantage of the benefits that social networks offer. We also talk about WordPress’ role and how capable it is out-of-the-box for participating in the IndieWeb.

Stories Discussed:

Bridgy connects individual sites with social networks

IndieWeb Wiki

IndieWebCamps

IndieWeb WordPress Plugin

WordPress XFN

IndieWebifying Your WordPress – IndieWeb Summit 2019

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July 17, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 360 – CBD and E-Commerce With Javier Cano

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Javier Cano, Director of Marketing for Liquid Web. We discuss the challenges people are facing selling CBD products on e-commerce platforms such as Shopify and WooCommerce and what Liquid Web is doing to be an ally to the industry. We also talk about high-risk payment processors and the brick and mortar approach versus selling high-risk products online. Cano also shares his experiences from attending and speaking at recent CBD expos.

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July 3, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 359 – Diversity Speaker Training With Jill Binder

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Jill Binder, Founder, and Chief Consultant and Trainer at Diverse Speakers In Tech. We discussed how and why the Diverse Speaker Training group was created, how the training encourages underrepresented people to speak at WordCamps, and how the recent 50% sponsorship funds from Automattic will be used.

We also learned that local communities that have participated in the training at the meetup level have seen a sharp increase in the number of diverse speaker applications submitted to WordCamps. Binder is hoping to be sponsored 100% so she can work on the project full-time. If you’re interested in sponsoring her work, please visit her contact page and get in touch.

Stories Discussed:

Announcing Pantheon Localdev Early Access

WooCommerce 3.6.5 security release

Jetpack 7.5

Discuss This Tweet by John O’ Nolan

Transcript:

EPISODE 359 Transcript

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June 13, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 356 – Gutenberg, Governance, and Contributing to WordPress with Jonny Harris

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Jonny Harris. Jonny describes how he discovered WordPress and some of the core projects he’s been working on including, Site Health Checks, fatal error protection, and Multisite. We discuss WordPress’ focus on users vs developers in recent years, Jonny’s experience contributing to core, and his thoughts on a WordPress governance model.

Stories Discussed:

WordPress Is Borked So Enjoy This Glorious Plant That’s Taking Over the Internet

WP Engine Launches DevKit Open Beta

Drupal Gutenberg 1.0 Released, Now Ready for Production Sites

BuddyPress 5.0 to Update Password Control to Match WordPress

Transcript:

Episode 356 Transcript

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May 30, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 354 – Pantheon Acquires StagingPilot

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I discuss Panethon’s acquisition of StagingPilot and why regression visual testing will likely become a standard feature across managed WordPress hosts if it’s not already. I rant about the size of text on so many sites being too large and having to shrink the site down to 80-90% in order for it to be manageable. We celebrate WordPress’ 16th birthday, discuss what happens to unloved patches, and GitHub’s Sponsors tool.

Stories Discussed:

Robots, Autopilot, and The Holy Grail of WebOps

WordPress Turns 16

Unloved Patches

New GitHub Sponsors Tool Draws Concerns from Open Source Community

Automattic Acquires Prospress, the company behind WooCommerce Subscriptions

Transcript:

EPISODE 354 – Pantheon Acquires StagingPilot Transcript

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May 22, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 353 – Slack of Boundaries and A Walk to WCEU

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I discuss an article published by Vox on how Slack is not improving productivity, especially in large team environments. We highlight what’s new in WordPress 5.2.1, why libraries are important to the communities they serve, and new security features in WordPress 5.2. At the end of the show, we send a shoutout and good wishes to Marcel Bootsman who has begun his walk to WordCamp EU.

Stories Discussed:

WordPress 5.2.1 Released

The Productivity Pit: How Slack Is Ruining Work

Marcel Bootsman begins his walk to WCEU

WordPress 5.2 Improves the Security of Automatic Updates

Loveland Public Library to Host Free Beginners WordPress Class Online May 22, 2019

Transcript:

EPISODE 353 – Slack of Boundaries and A Walk to WCEU Transcript

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May 8, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 351 – Results of the Gutenberg Accessibility Audit

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Rachel Cherry, Senior Software Engineer for Disney Interactive and Director of WPCampus and Brian DeConinck, a front-end designer and developer with the OIT Design and Web Services team, part of the Office of Information Technology at NC State University.

We learn how Tenon was chosen as the vendor to perform the audit and what conditions needed to be met. We then dissected the results of the Gutenberg Accessibility Audit conducted by Tenon. We discuss the state of Gutenberg’s accessibility, recommendations for those in Higher Education environments, and where Gutenberg development might go from here.

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April 4, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 350 – Don’t Touch My Plugin Search Results

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I discuss a controversial feature in Jetpack 7.1 that adds feature suggestions to plugin search results. We also talk about extension suggestions that are coming to WooCommerce.

We talk about the security implications from the recent investigations into the Pipdig plugin and what users can do about it. Near the end of the show, we send a shout-out to Carole Olinger for her contributions to the WordPress community.

Stories Discussed:

Pipdig Updates P3 Plugin after Reports Expose Vendor Backdoors, Built-in Kill Switch, and Malicious DDoS Code

Jetpack 7.1 Adds Feature Suggestions to Plugin Search Results

Extension Suggestions in 3.6

On Health, WordPress and a Tough Decision

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March 22, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 349 – Sandy Edwards and the Kids Event Working Group Initiative

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I are joined by Sandy Edwards. Sandy gave us a behind the scenes look at what it takes to organize a WordPress event for children and teens.

She also provides background information on a new group that’s been formed called the Kids Events Working Group. This group is responsible for setting the foundation for organizers to create and manage WordPress events geared towards children.

John recaps his experience at WordCamp Miami last weekend and we discussed some noteworthy news items.

Stories Discussed:

WordCamp Miami Draws 100+ for Kid’s Camp, Plans to Host Standalone Kid’s WordPress Conference in Summer 2019

WordPress 5.1.1 Patches Critical Vulnerability

Dark Mode WordPress Plugin Up for Adoption

Gutenberg 5.3 Released

FireFox 66.0 Released

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February 28, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 347 – Chair Buying, Pressing Issues, and Block Management

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I start off by discussing the office chair purchasing process. I recently needed to buy a new chair and was surprised by some of the features that were highlighted.

We talked about block managers and some of the pitfalls that will need to be overcome. For example, what should WordPress do if a user disables a block that’s already used in a post?

We wrap up the show by sharing some of the most pressing issues people are having with WordPress.

Stories Discussed:

Yoast CEO Responds to #YoastCon Twitter Controversy, Calls for Change in the SEO Industry

WordPress 5.1 Improves Editor Performance, Encourages Users to Update Outdated PHP Versions

Block Management Features Proposed for WordPress 5.2

5.2 Proposed Scope and Release Schedule

UI/UX Changes for the Site Health Check Plugin

Jeffrey Zeldman Promoted to Automattic Employee

The Most Pressing Issues People Have with WordPress These Days

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February 21, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 346 – Cancer Sucks

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I reflect on Alex Mill’s latest blog post where he announced that he’s ending his battle with Leukemia. We highlight some of the impacts he’s had on people’s lives and the contributions he’s made to open-source software.

Stories Discussed:

Leukemia Has Won

Alex’s WordPress Plugins

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February 13, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 345 – The Relationship Between Corporate Cash and Open Source Software

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I discuss a thought-provoking post published by Morten Rand-Hendriksen that takes a deep look at equity in open source software. Morten suggests that the mantra of decisions are made by those who show up be changed to decisions are made by those who can afford to show up.

We talk about the relationship and influence money from businesses can have on open source software, especially if they’re employing someone to contribute to that project full-time. We discuss the pros and cons of financial contributions and whether or not WordPress could fall victim to progressing only at the whims of corporate sponsors.

Near the end of the show, John provides an overview of what’s new in Sugar Calendar 2.0.

Stories Discussed:

PetersenMediaGroup is Relaunched

https://www.petersenmediagroup.com/

WordPress 5.1 Field Guide

Gutenberg 5.0 Adds New RSS Block, Amazon Kindle Embed Block, and FocalPointPicker Component

Gutenberg Blocks Design Library Offers Pre-Built Page Designs Using Existing Core Blocks

Google+ is shutting down in April with some APIs shutting down in March

Sugar Calendar 2.0 Beta Released

The Dark Mode plugin developed by Daniel James is no longer a featured plugin.

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January 18, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 343 – Newspack, Expanding Leadership, and Cory Miller

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I discuss Automattic’s quest to create a new service tailored to journalists. We discuss what’s next for Cory Miller as his chapter at iThemes ends later this month. Near the end of the show, we talk about recent leadership changes in the WordPress project and share our opinions of Slack’s new logo.

Stories Discussed:

Thirty-Five

Journalism and Newspack

Embarking On My Next Adventure

WordPress 5.1 Schedule Updates

Expanding WordPress Leadership

Slack’s New Logo

How WordPress Knows What Page You’re On

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January 11, 2019

WPWeekly Episode 342 – GitHub, Commercials, and Governance

In this episode, John James Jacoby and I discuss what’s new in WordPress 5.0.3. We share insight into a new feature in WordPress 5.1 that will protect users from fatal errors or more commonly known as the white screen of death.

We discuss the WordPress Governance Project and WordPress’ leadership overall throughout the past few years. Near the end of the show, we share our opinions on WordPress.com’s new marketing campaign.