Fixing local WordPress dev workflows before they break staging
A dev on PHP 8.2 white-screened a client host still on 7.4. How standardized local environments, Blueprints and selective sync keep that from happening.
Tag: APIs
WooCommerce 10.4.2 fixes a fatal error in old orders
A deleted product used to take down order history with a fatal error. WooCommerce 10.4.2 adds the null check, along with PHP 8.4 transient validation and support for the renamed WordPress 6.9 Abilities API hooks.
WordPress real-time collaboration and what breaks first
Real-time collaboration is targeted at WordPress 7.0 in 2026. Beta feedback says native blocks work fine and legacy post meta does not, so custom fields need registering for the REST API before then.
WooCommerce REST API performance: the 100ms analytics tax
A client’s REST API times kept swinging between 200ms and 400ms on the same call, and the queries were fine. The cost was registering the wc-analytics namespace on every request, which WooCommerce 10.4 now skips.
Why an owned content strategy beats renting an audience
A client lost 70% of their reach in a week when a social platform changed its algorithm. This is the case for keeping your content on your own WordPress install, including how I organize it with custom post types.
What is actually in the WordPress 7.0 roadmap
A client with fifteen editors kept losing work to overwrites, which is exactly what Phase 3 collaboration is meant to solve. Here is what else the 7.0 planning covers: React 19, block validation levels, block bindings and the AI Client API.
The WooCommerce Store API security patch, and who needs it
A client’s customer opened their account dashboard and saw a stranger’s guest order. It was not the cache. GHSL-2025-129 affects WooCommerce 8.1 through 10.4.2, and Automattic backported the fix across 23 releases.
Extending core blocks with the Interactivity API
A client wanted the cycling word effect from a SaaS homepage. A custom block would have meant migrating their existing headings, so I extended the paragraph block instead using the Format API, WP_HTML_Tag_Processor and the Interactivity API.
Generic hosting vs a real WordPress hosting environment
A client moved to a high-end unmanaged VPS and ended up with a six-second WooCommerce store. The specs were never the problem, the server stack was. Notes on what a WordPress hosting environment handles for you that a generic one leaves on your desk.
WordPress 6.9 regressions, hotfix plugins and 7.0 plans
The 6.9 update turned a client’s custom blocks into ghosts and I nearly wrote a core override for it. The December dev chat notes had the answer already: hotfix plugins now, official maintenance release in January 2026.