Sessions

Code track

Beyond FTP: my WordPress development workflow

Presented by Mark Wilkinson in Code.

We have all used FTP as developers to move files from editing them locally to our production server. Developers know the problems this can cause and why alternatives are needed. In this talk I will introduce my WordPress development process and how you can move on from FTP to a more robust development and deployment system. The talk is suitable for developers and designers who build complete sites, or work in teams in which they are responsible for delivering part of a project, collaborating with others.

View Mark’s slides

How to develop an iOS app using the REST API

Presented by Sergio Estevao in Code.

Do you ever had to develop an iOS app with dynamic content? Did you need to roll out an CMS system for it?
Forget the custom CMS and use WordPress by leveraging the WP-REST-API to build an iOS app using WordPress has your backend.
In this talk I will introduce the WP-REST-API, it’s main endpoints and how to use it on an iOS app to get the content of your site in the app.

View Sergio’s slides

Lightning talks

Presented in Code.

No constraints: building a minimum viable product with WordPress

Presented by Samuel J Parsons in Code.

Sam will tell the story of how the Digital communications team at the University of St Andrews used WordPress to rapidly create a prototype site to explore and communicate a new vision of the University website.

https://twitter.com/sjparsons/status/668097184777285634

Open source: the story of Herbert

Presented by Jason Agnew in Code, Content.

The story begins with a simple, but valuable, warning from experience: that even the best developers can fall victim to the pressures of routine. This talk discusses how results can quickly be replaced by burnout and imposter syndrome.

The cure for Jason was a WordPress plugin framework, purpose-built to rediscover his confidence and fall in love with coding all over again. We follow his journey back to development bliss through the challenges of creating space for experimentation without the usual client pressures, transitioning from pet project to collaborative product, and learning to accept that it’s okay not to know everything.

The success (and failures) of the experiment soon fed into the philosophy of Big Bite and began to influence everything from how they worked to the environment they created for their staff, as well as how they communicated with clients and gave back to the digital community.

Learn the ways in which open source can be embraced, from the smallest acts of personal knowledge sharing to the broadest business practices.

View Jason’s slides

Panel and audience discussion, The REST API, WordPress and the future of web development

Presented by Tim Nash, Sergio Estevao in Code.

Will the REST API change the world?

Presented by Tim Nash in Code.

With the REST API coming into WordPress 4.4 & 4.5 now is a great time to be looking at what it is, how we can use and why we might by exploring examples from it in production. For many the REST API is being heralded as a game changer, for others it’s just a bunch of end points. So together let’s see if the REST API really will change the WordPress world forever?

Slides coming soon

Content track

Assistive Technology (AT) Demo

Presented by Graham Armfield in Content.

I’ve spoken about web accessibility techniques and tests at many WordCamps and meetups, and I’ve realised that for some people the key to realising why accessibility is so important comes from understanding how people with disabilities actually use the websites we build.

So in this presentation I’m going to demo two pieces of assistive technology, and show you how they are actually used by people who rely on them to access the web.

Featured assistive technology (AT):

  • Dragon NaturallySpeaking – voice recognition software, typically used by those with motor impairments for whom using mouse and keyboard is not an option.
  • NVDA – a free, open source screen reader, typically used by those who are blind, or with poor eyesight, but also sometimes used by dyslexics and others with cognitive impairments.

Come and learn what it’s like to browse the web from a different perspective.

Big ideas for all sizes

Presented by Ben Usher Smith in Content.

Ben will look at three adapted techniques used by web professionals to help projects run smoothly and successfully:

1. Finding a common language to talk about design that involves everyone.
2. Understanding how using stories can help you manage your project.
3. Adapting modern project management techniques (Agile-ish).

View Ben’s slides

Contracts for WordPress projects

Presented by Heather Burns in Content.

Business relationships are like lifts. You don’t notice them when they’re working, but when they break down, your life becomes very difficult very fast. You need a contract to protect you when it happens.

In this talk we’ll walk through the basic elements of a good project contract. Using wisdom gleaned from eight years of full time professional work – as well as a few lessons learned the hard way from difficult clients – you’ll learn how to build your client relationships on a solid and safe footing. We’ll also cover pain points such as IR35, copyright, and abandonment of project.

View Heather’s slides

Glow Blogs: 150,000+ WordPress sites for weans

Presented by John Johnston in Content.

The talk will give a view of how blogging with WordPress fits well with Scottish education’s ‘Curriculum for excellence’. Some loose linkage of Community, Connections & Openness in software and education. How Glow blogs, a set of 32 multi-sites with a total of >160,000 blogs are used and are developing. Some notes of the ‘Product Owner’ role and working at large scale to fit the needs of stake holders from a wide range of ages and needs.

View John’s slides

Open source: the story of Herbert

Presented by Jason Agnew in Code, Content.

The story begins with a simple, but valuable, warning from experience: that even the best developers can fall victim to the pressures of routine. This talk discusses how results can quickly be replaced by burnout and imposter syndrome.

The cure for Jason was a WordPress plugin framework, purpose-built to rediscover his confidence and fall in love with coding all over again. We follow his journey back to development bliss through the challenges of creating space for experimentation without the usual client pressures, transitioning from pet project to collaborative product, and learning to accept that it’s okay not to know everything.

The success (and failures) of the experiment soon fed into the philosophy of Big Bite and began to influence everything from how they worked to the environment they created for their staff, as well as how they communicated with clients and gave back to the digital community.

Learn the ways in which open source can be embraced, from the smallest acts of personal knowledge sharing to the broadest business practices.

View Jason’s slides

The ultimate guide to image optimisation

Presented by Steven Jones in Content.

On average images comprise over 2/3rds of the size of a page request. This gives us a wide berth in order to look at different ways in order to optimise images and potentially reduce this proportion and decrease the total page size.

View Steven’s slides

Your website? It’s not for you!

Presented by Valerie Adler in Content.

The hardest thing for many clients to understand is the PURPOSE of their website…who it’s for (their customers) and what it’s supposed to do (attract new or more business). In SEO terms, the most important thing is the matter of relevance. Valerie asks: relevant to what, relevant to whom?

Understanding one’s client is the key to knowing how to present the content of the site. In this session, Valerie will discuss the importance of defining business objectives and identifying one’s target audience in creating content that both engages that audience AND satisfies Google’s directives on creating an SEO-friendly website.

View Valerie’s slides

https://twitter.com/romyviflic/status/668090616782446592