Blog

WordPress 5.6 Released, Led by 10up’s Helen Hou-Sandi

Jeff Paul on December 11, 2020

10up Contributors For WordPress 5.6 Simone

WordPress 5.6, released on Tuesday, features expanded auto-update capabilities, further updates to jQuery, the initial groundwork for PHP 8 support, and REST API authentication with Application Passwords to help third-party apps connect with sites securely and help site owners see what connected apps are doing.

It also delivers new block patterns available in all default themes and a brand-new default theme built for the block editor. Twenty Twenty-One prioritizes accessibility, conforming to the WordPress accessibility-ready guidelines and addressing several specialized standards from the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at level AAA.

This release, with an all-women and non-binary release squad, was led by 10up’s own Director of Open Source Initiatives Helen Hou-Sandì as Core Tech Lead. Nine other 10uppers helped make this release possible, including myself, who along with Helen, was recognized as a Noteworthy Contributor. Thank you for helping make WordPress: Asvin Balloo, Darin Kotter, Evan Mullins, Fabian Kaegy, Felipe Elia, Helen Hou-Sandí, Jeffrey Paul, Junaid Bhura, Ryan Welcher, and Tung Du!

Search Term Highlighting, New Synonym Dashboard introduced in ElasticPress 3.5

Vasken Hauri on November 16, 2020

ElasticPress 3.5 delivers two new features that uplevel onsite search capabilities and improve user experience: a synonym dashboard and search term result highlighting.

This release follows several smaller updates that introduced a sticky post filter that displays specified posts atop search results, improved support for searching terms (like tags), a related posts block for the WordPress block editor, and a widget for filtering WooCommerce results by price.

ClassifAI Adds Image OCR, Easing Facebook And Instagram Embeds

Jeff Paul on November 10, 2020

ClassifAI — our free, open-source plugin that augments WordPress-powered websites with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technology — is taking another step forward in support of content creators and digital publishers. Our newest release, ClassifAI 1.6, integrates Optical Character Recognition (OCR) scanning of screenshots and other imagery.

ClassifAI 1.6 launches on the heels of Facebook and Instagram dropping support for open embeds, which prevents platforms like WordPress from easily displaying original social posts by dropping a link into the editor. The OCR technology in ClassifAI 1.6 arrives at an opportune moment, making it easier to display social media posts on a WordPress site without compromising accessibility.

10up formalizes partnership with Frontity

Taylor Lovett on October 22, 2020

At 10up, we are always looking for innovative solutions that help us make a better web while adding value for our clients. Today, we are delighted to announce a partnership with Frontity — a next-generation JavaScript framework for creating headless WordPress experiences.

Using WordPress as a headless CMS empowers website owners to benefit from the superior editing experience WordPress is known for while also delivering the advantages of a decoupled front-end. Those advantages include the performant, app-like consumer experience popularized by frameworks like React.js.

Avoid Assumptions: Using Research To Define Audiences In Their Own Words

Amy Grace Wells on October 12, 2020

Amy Grace Wells

We hear about audiences from stakeholders. We learn about audiences from analytics, demographics, and surveys. But hearing their feelings, hopes for your product, and motivations is an invaluable tool in shaping content, calls to action, and platform strategies. By exploring audiences in-depth, you can better, and more accurately, define segments.

On October 15, 2020, in partnership with GatherContent, I am presenting the webinar, Avoid assumptions: Using research to define audiences in their own words.

Increase ad impressions with 10up’s Ad Refresh Control plugin for WordPress

Katie Wilkerson on October 8, 2020

Ad Refresh Control WordPress Plugin

Over the past year, in partnership with Google News Initiative (GNI), 10up has been working with hyperlocal publishers like Long Beach Post, VT Digger, Oil City News, and BK Reader to drive digital strategies for audience and revenue growth.

One strategy — refreshing ad slots after a set amount of time — successfully leveraged existing web traffic to increase ad impressions. This revenue-boosting strategy typically requires an ad-savvy web engineer for implementation.

Ad Refresh Control for WordPress

In keeping with the vision of our GNI partnership — providing widely applicable solutions that are relatively easy to implement — 10up created Ad Refresh Control, a free, open source, WordPress plugin that empowers publishers to easily control the refreshing of ads.

Ad Refresh Control works immediately upon activation, enabling active view refresh for Google Ad Manager ad units without needing to modify any code. Active view refresh helps publishers recoup lost impressions by reloading a visible ad unit after a set amount of time.

Distributor 1.6 Introduces New Setup Wizard, Improved Tooling, and Official Hook Documentation

Jeff Paul on September 17, 2020 • 8 Comments

Distributor is our free WordPress plugin that empowers content managers to safely reuse and syndicate content across websites within a WordPress multisite network or across the web using the REST API. Designed with an intuitive user experience, Distributor integrates both “push” and “pull” use cases for sharing content and media between sites.

The release of Distributor 1.6 — with a new setup wizard, improved push/pull management, clearer warnings to facilitate swift troubleshooting when issues arise, and Site Health Info integration, as well as added developer hooks — exemplifies our continued investment in making the plugin easier to use and empowering developers to tailor it to fit even the most complicated workflows.

The Role Of Open Source: A New make|Shift Documentary Short Film

Phil Crumm on September 3, 2020

Ben Ilfeld, Jake Goldman, Phil Crumm

Earlier this year, the feature length make|SHIFT documentary explored the history of modern advertising and the role open-source technology played in its evolution. The film highlights the brands, makers, and agencies — including 10up — who harness new technology, test new business models, and question the status quo in an age that gives consumers the power to determine how, when, and where they connect with brands.

A new make|SHIFT short film, clocking in at just under four minutes, highlights the critical role open source plays in creating the complex experiences consumers demand and features insights from myself, 10up’s President and founder Jake Goldman, and our CEO John Eckman.

Helen Hou-Sandi Announced as Core Tech Lead for WordPress 5.6 All-Women Release Squad

Jeff Paul on August 31, 2020 • 1 Comment

Helen Hou-Sandi speaking at WordCamp Europe

Aiming to increase the number of women involved in leading and regularly contributing to WordPress releases, earlier this year WordPress Executive Director Josepha Haden shared an official stretch goal of an all-women release squad. A May update on the 2020 release squads confirmed the realization of that goal for the WordPress 5.6 release.

With WordPress 5.5 released, the WordPress 5.6 planning announcement officially introduced the women leading the release, including 10up’s own Director of Open Source Initiatives Helen Hou-Sandì who will serve as Core Tech Lead.

John Eckman on August 25, 2020 • 2 Comments

This Thursday I’m participating in the CoRise Summit — a free global startup summit to CoLearn, Collaborate, and CoRise with the community. As a panelist in a session on Building Remote Teams and Company Culture (August 27 at 12:30 PM ET), I’m looking forward to sharing some of our insights on building and managing a distributed team.

I’m also happy to be a contributor to Remote Teams Work. It’s a new book out this month that provides strategic and practical guidance on establishing and running a successful remote team, including tools and methodologies, hiring and salaries, and creating a remote culture.

As more and more companies adjust to remote work and the value of distributed teams, hopefully they can benefit from the best practices we’ve seen and experienced.