WordPress Evolution

Note: this was originally published on Jun 24, 2008.

Since switching to WordPress, I have been surprised by how many plugins people work on. Open Source is a delight for those who want and don’t want to code.

With my work in Villahermosa, I have time to spend on the blog; I am doing so to test some functions I will put on my customer’s website.

I have seen how quickly this platform evolves. Virtually everything you can think of is already programmed. Even plugins (extensions) are updated automatically. The platform itself does it… It’s like a monster that takes on a life of its own.

To give you an idea, here are some recent examples WordPress does for me:

For the system update process:
It downloads the update file, unzips it to the corresponding folders, runs the configuration files, updates the databases, and confirms if everything went perfectly.

All that (and surely more) with just one click.

I had a problem with a plugin I use for surveys. I couldn’t add new ones, so I moved on, and later, WordPress notified me that a new version was available; I updated it and tried it again. It was already working! I didn’t even have to look at the code.

Another plugin, the one for photo galleries, I wouldn’t say I liked to use because I had to upload one photo at a time. They updated it, but it still didn’t convince me.

With the new WordPress update, it now turns out that galleries are already part of WordPress, and it is not necessary to install a plugin.

You can even upload folders. You don’t even have to worry about adjusting the size of the photos. While they are uploaded, you can update their title and additional information.

Additionally, each photo generates a page to be commented on.

In the support forums, I asked for a function that returns a random photo. People can help you find what you need.

Another excellent example is language support. Some people are dedicated to translating WordPress into Spanish and do it neutrally, as standard as possible. You replace a tiny file, and everything is already translated.

And the list goes on… For example, I send an email to a specific address on my domain, and a new entry is automatically published, taking the Subject as the post’s title and the email body as the post’s content.

Jos.

CC0 licensed photo by 文派翻译（WP Chinese Translation） from the WordPress Photo Directory.