wordpress

WordPress 2.7

The latest release of WordPress 2.7 really should be 3.0. The changes to the dashboard alone would warrant a major release, IMHO. With the amount of plugin breakage, I don’t know why the plugin developers have not as of yet, released new versions of their plugins. The betas and RC’s have been out long enough for them to either issue a warning or an update.

The good thing is Chris Pirillo’s Wicketpixie Social Media Theme is unaffected, so far.

Breakage:

WPtouch iPhone theme
CSS greyscape
Ozh Admin Management Menus
WP ustream

Thanks for the headsup people. All in all, a nice update. As the dashboard now has a drag and drop arrangement and the ability to remove anything you don’t need to have on it. In fact, even the post page has it. Nice touch. Again, the plugin people need to update their plugins to take advantage of this. I still haven’t seen a way to remove the drafts that are auto saved. Since the database is where they are stored, I really would like an easy way to remove them in bulk. If you know, if, where this ability is, let me know.

Update: The WicketPixie Theme Faves and Sources no longer work.  It’s reading the db tables, just won’t write to them.  Weird.

Artisteer Theme Builder

When I noticed an Adsense ad for the Artisteer Theme Builder for WordPress, I had to check it out. There are two versions, the Home and Standard. With the Standard being the “pro” version. At $149.95 it’s a bit steep, but it is marked down to $99.95 when I saw it. The Home version is $49.95. You can compare the versions here.

It’s a 50meg download and installs in a typical Windows like fashion. You have the option to use the Standard or Home versions at launch. I was impressed with the ease of use, and the options are functional and extensive. In minutes, I had a decent theme up on my blog. However, the trial version has watermarks all over it. I’m sure a photoshop master could deal with them, but that is one thing I am not. For someone that deals with wordpress in their business, I would definitely recommend this, for the casual user that has a spare $49.95, it would make a great addition to the tool box. The purchase gives you one year of updates and support, typical stuff.

Top Ten Reasons to use Artisteer Theme Builder

1. Generate cool Web design ideas.
2. Adjust generated designs to create great looking Web and Blog templates.
3. Create perfectly correct, validated HTML and CSS that conform to Web standards.
4. You don’t need to learn Photoshop, CSS, HTML and other Web technologies to create great looking designs, including images and buttons.
5. If you are a Web designer, generate ideas, prototypes and quick Websites for your clients and friends.
6. Choose and use many included design elements, from backgrounds to photo objects and buttons.
7. Automatically solve problems with image aliasing, Web browser compatibility and other details requiring time and knowledge.
8. Learn how to create professional HTML and CSS code.
9. Save money on WordPress Themes and Web design templates.
10. If you don’t have the time, hire your kids to create great looking Website for you.

I think I will wait for drupal and joomla support before I shell out the bucks.