Stick around till the conclusion to discover a cat bunk bed. (Yes, it’s true!)
In this issue:
- We have an exciting affiliate opportunity we can’t pass up from WP Forms.
- The arrival of Twenty Twenty-Five and the fleeting allure of time’s passage, man.
- How to ensure your WordPress site (and your XML sitemap) doesn’t get misinterpreted.
Just In: What’s Happening?
We Appreciate You Too, WP Forms!
We were thrilled to recently witness WP Forms joining the conditional logic movement. And not a moment too soon! (what’s up with decades here
)
Groundbreaking! Fresh! I bet this has Gravity Forms a bit nervous. Nervous, I say!
Or could it be that Forminator (which has offered these features for ages without charge) continues to gain ground in the wp.org plugin directory.
Not that they appear overly concerned about that. I mean purchasing forminator.com (and pointing it to WP Forms) is definitely not the move of someone who’s anxious. Definitely not. Plus, very sophisticated.
However, perhaps the best part is that we just received this fantastic proposal from the WP Forms team at Awesome:
We invite you to join our affiliate programs, which boast a commission rate starting at 20% (and can rise based on your performance). We can discuss additional perks for you, like complimentary licenses and personalized code.
Wow, it’s so thoughtful of you to keep us in mind! We’ll contemplate it and respond soon
WordPress Playground Has Transformed into Your Uhh… Playground
You can use WordPress on a plane, you can use WordPress on a train, you can use WordPress here or there, you can use WordPress everywhere!
*Ahem*
Apologies, that was a bit Dr. Seuss-like, but we were just pondering all the locations you’ll explore.
Alright, we’ll genuinely stop now.
If you’ve ever aspired to keep experimenting with WordPress Playground, even while traversing by train, plane, or stuck in a remote area with a fox in socks but no internet connection, you’re in luck.
WordPress Playground is now operable in offline mode, and it can be set up as a Progressive Web App (PWA), enabling you to develop your concepts wherever you go.
Exciting times for those constantly on the go and productivity enthusiasts wanting to continue working in every possible moment!
Or, for anyone who dreams of taking their laptop and a walking stick, strolling off into the woods and never coming back. Good luck out there!
Psst… If Your WordPress Meetup Group Is Lethargic, It’s Going to Be Disbanded
Now is a perfect moment to check on that WordPress Meetup Group you almost forgot, having created it such a long time ago.
If it hasn’t been active for a while, it’ll be given the boot by September 16th, 2024 as the Community Team does a little cleanup.
Here’s the list of groups marked for deletion, so if yours appears on there, be sure to email support@wordcamp.org before the deadline.
Hey… now that you don’t need a reliable internet connection to utilize Playground to demonstrate WordPress to first-time Meetup attendees, maybe you can hold your next Meetup in a remote and thrilling location… like the Moon or sunny Hell, Michigan*.
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*We nearly felt guilty suggesting you visit Hell, but after reviewing that tourism info page, it genuinely seems like a fun spot.
Twenty Twenty-Five Is Approaching.
Last week, WordPress unveiled the release team for 6.7 and also stated that the default theme for the upcoming release will be Twenty Twenty-Five (no surprises there…)
During the development of WordPress themes, there’s usually a plethora of lofty descriptions that sound like they were shared by an art student in a beret, puffing on a tiny cigar.
This one is no different:
The glimpses of natural beauty and heritage interwoven into the theme stimulate thoughts of transience, the flow of time, and constant evolution.
Come on. It’s a website theme, not a Georgia O’Keeffe painting.
HOWEVER, we must admit it does look rather lovely and sophisticated, likely fitting well for personal blogs, photography portfolios, news websites, and online shops.
The new theme will fully support the Site Editor and will incorporate innovative design tools, like the Grid block and Pattern/Section Styles.
Have thoughts on it?
Believe it should possess more or less natural beauty and impermanence?
Whether you adore it or detest it, you can dive into the Figma file and share your feedback. Alternatively, join the weekly Slack meetings in #core-themes to voice your opinions (beret not required).
New Annual Hosting Packages: We’re Ready to Commit (If You’ll Take Us)
Until now, we’ve been going month to month… not really considering the future.
But we’re finally prepared for a longer commitment.
What do you think?
Should we consider yearly together?
Astonishing Stats
- On average, WordPress usage has been growing by 12% annually since 2011. On track to dominate the world, right? (Source)
- Reportedly, less than one percent (0.2%) of individuals using WordPress plugins bother to review them. (Source)
- After English (52.1%), the most prevalent languages online are Spanish (5.5%), German (4.8%), Russian (4.5%), and Japanese (4.3%). (Source)
- At least 13 thousand WordPress sites are compromised daily. Yikes! Examine those sketchy plugins! (Source)
- The amount of spam messages hitting WordPress sites is 6,208 times greater than genuine comments. *sigh* Seems bots are putting in more effort than we are! (Source)
In-Depth: Traducción de WordPress: ¿Cómo Puedo Hacer Que Funcione?
56% of WordPress sites are created in languages other than English, and the number of non-English websites is increasing.
There are clear reasons to translate your WordPress website, including making it accessible to a worldwide audience, broadening your user base, and ensuring that daunting little green owl doesn’t come for you in your dreams.
A variety of plugins are available that claim to facilitate this, including TranslatePress, Loco Translate, WPML, and Polylang.
But what should you keep in mind when translating your site?
Keep reading for some useful tips (je suis vraiment désolé) and pitfalls to avoid.
First, Determine If You Truly Need a Multilingual Site
Translating your WordPress site will require some effort, so ensure you’re actually getting international traffic first. There’s a great guide here on using Google Analytics to determine which languages your visitors have set their browsers to.
Additionally, consider the significance of quality and accuracy for the content on your website. Is it a site that sells products and services where clarity is crucial, like law, healthcare, or finance?
Be Cautious of AI-Driven Translations
WPML has recently launched their AI-driven translation engine, utilizing OpenAI’s API to evaluate the full context of your content for “perfect or near-perfect” translations. They assert their forthcoming AI assistant feature Maiya will perform translations “Better Than Human” in German, Spanish, French, and Portuguese for your WordPress site.
Yet, we remain skeptical. While AI translations can amaze, they may overlook subtleties and cultural references, and can certainly misinterpret your site’s message. It’s always prudent to have a Human translator review your AI-translated site to avoid cringe-worthy errors.
Ensure The Translation Works Well With Yoast
As Xevi Baena Ortigosa notes in this forum thread, automatic translation with DeepL could lead to significant issues with the Yoast plugin.
It might prevent the XML sitemap from refreshing correctly for translated URLs, leading to numerous 404 errors and a chaotic site. “Hallo Welt” indeed!
Be cautious of this and conduct tests to ensure translation doesn’t disrupt everything. Google suggests employing a URL structure that facilitates geotargeting your site, utilizing country-specific domains for each language.
Think About Using hreflang Tags
Hreflang tags allow you to mark up the translated pages of your website that convey similar meanings but cater to different languages.
They are beneficial for SEO as they aid users who speak various languages in finding the appropriate version of a page, and also solve the issue of duplicate content.
Here’s Yoast’s helpful guide for implementing hreflang on your website.
Good luck and Bonne Chance!
Blogs & Resources You Shouldn’t Overlook
Does WordPress need to COOL IT with rolling out new features and instead concentrate on a unified dashboard instead? Paul Charlton of WPTuts believes so.
The WPwatercooler podcast bids farewell after 12 years. Check out their final episode and send them off.
Did you know that Usain Bolt’s website was crafted with WordPress? Naturally, it should load at lightning speed.
On the WPTavern Jukebox, Katie Keith & Matt Crowell unveil the secrets to a thriving WordPress product. Spoiler: It involves listening to your customers and making it user-friendly. Who knew?
David Bushell concludes that AI is all “just so unfortunately disappointing.” Go on, David, share your true feelings!
Coffee Break Distractions
Test your ability: Can you differentiate between AI images and real ones?
Combine items and observe the outcomes without the risk of explosions.
The (spurious) link between per capita margarine consumption and the divorce rate in Maine.
If the Moon were just one pixel. Also known as a painstakingly accurate map of the solar system.
Wikipedia article titles that can be sung to the TMNT theme tune.
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