How I built custom error logging in WordPress
A client had a WooCommerce checkout throwing random 500 errors while a 200MB debug log told them nothing. Here is the custom error logging setup I used to catch, count, and get alerted on new errors.
Category: Bug Fixing
How over-engineering broke a WordPress dashboard
A client’s WooCommerce dashboard kept timing out. The cause was a custom framework built for one low-stock widget. Here is how I replaced about a thousand lines with a short function that leans on WordPress and WooCommerce core.
Why generic PHP error monitoring misses WordPress bugs
A WooCommerce checkout kept failing silently while a generic PHP error monitor reported zero issues. The cause was a WP_Error the calling code never checked. Here is why WordPress needs monitoring built for it.
A reusable WordPress AJAX handler class
A WooCommerce store had a live price update that broke half the time, crammed into one function. Here is the small, reusable AJAX handler class I used to replace it, with nonce checks and clean JSON responses.
Why the WordPress MVC pattern is usually a mistake
A client site was grinding to a halt because a plugin forced an MVC structure onto WordPress. Why that fights the platform, and why hooks and filters are the WordPress way.
Why ‘write more code’ is terrible advice for developers
A client WooCommerce checkout kept throwing a random fatal error. The fix was not more code, it was reading the core files first. Why reading code beats writing more of it.
Why clear variable naming is for professionals
A client product-filter was a maze of names like $cert_arr and get_stuff(). Reading it took longer than fixing the bug. Why clear variable naming is a professional habit, not a style preference.
A WordPress plugin file structure that doesn’t suck
Inheriting a plugin with 15 classes crammed into one 3,000-line file is a nightmare to change. How PSR-4 and an autoloader give you a WordPress plugin file structure you can actually navigate.
How WordPress inheritance ended my copy-paste widget mess
A client’s site had the same widget code copy-pasted twelve times. Here is how I use an abstract base class so one edit updates every widget instead of twelve.
Fixing a WooCommerce filter by solving the right problem
A client’s WooCommerce product filter kept timing out. The fix was not a faster query but a custom taxonomy, and the real story is about designing instead of copy-pasting.