Notepad++ founder’s award-winning open-source text and code editor has been downloaded over 28 million times.
In 1999, Don Ho, a computer science student at the University of Paris, heard about the Free Software Foundation (FSF) movement.
It suggested that software would work better if the code were accessible to the people that used it. Developers would be able to build programs around their own needs without getting caught up in copyright infringements. To achieve this, FSF came up with the GNU General Public License (GPL).
The idea stuck, and in 2003, as a young developer working for another company, Don developed a prototype source code editor written in C++ to substitute the Java-based tool the company was using that was underperforming. He did what any FSF-minded developer would do and proposed the prototype to his boss as a way to sidestep the problems he saw.
The proposal was refused. Don continued to work on the prototype, and on the 25th of November 2003, he made it available on Sourceforge as Notepad++. Nearly twenty years later, it is one of the world’s most popular source-code editors and boasts around eighty thousand daily downloads.
Needs-Based Innovation
The issues with the old editor the company was using were not just related to the limitations of Java. It also lacked the functionality that Don wanted in a genuinely needs-based source code editor.
The ideas that set Notepad++ apart at the time might sound obvious now. Still, features like autosave, tabbing, and find & replace – elements that make a developer’s job so much easier were not commonplace at the time.
Inspired by the FSF, Notepad++ has been open-source since day one. Still, Notepad++ is not just an open-source project but, more specifically, “free software,” which gives people the legal right and freedom to modify the code.
Allowing the community into the creative process has driven the program’s success, and in 2011, the influential blog Lifehacker crowned Notepad++ as “The Best Programming Text Editor for Windows.”
Developing an Open-source Mentality
KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) is the ethos Don follows as he develops Notepad++. Still, since Notepad++ has so many features, the biggest challenge is ensuring top-class functionality while keeping the editor simple for use.
The only solution is to let the community decide which features they like and don’t by allowing them to edit the program.Â
It’s one of Don’s core beliefs. The idea that he can’t do whatever he wants is challenging, but his belief in the open-source mentality always wins out in the end. It reminds him that responding to the community is best for the project and the only way to keep complex ideas on track.
That belief would be vindicated in 2014, when Lifehacker proclaimed Notepad++ the “Most Popular Text Editor,” as evidenced by the sheer size of its dedicated community of developers and the efficiency and simplicity of its creative model.
Contributions to Notepad++ are centralized on GitHub. Coders fix bugs or implement features with pull requests; Don then accepts or rejects them. And that’s how the community refines the product and guides the project in the right direction.
It’s a model that has worked cleanly over the years, and Don stands by its success. He believes that open source is the most efficient method for software development, and he’s confident that in the future, there will be more and more open-source projects, especially for commercial use.
By the Community, for the Community
For Don, the time commitment to developing Notepad++ has always been the most challenging aspect. As always, the answer to his and Notepad++’s problems lay within the developer community.
“Without the Notepad++ community, it wouldn’t have become what it is today,” he says. Having spent a lot of time with the people involved, he realized that the project was not manageable by one person alone. So, instead of controlling the community, Don prefers to guide it by providing the infrastructure and workflow that allows it to manage itself.
As for keeping every user and contributor happy? “Well, it’s impossible,” he says, “but at least I do my best.” His best, however, is an exceptional standard. Today, Notepad++ supports 78 coding languages and has been downloaded over 28 million times.Â
Now, after two decades, Notepad++ is still completely free and one of the best source code editors available online.
Hosting and Distributing World Beating Software
Notepad++, like VLC, GIMP, or Audacity, has become a staple of the open-source software movement and is known for offering high-quality performance for free. Distributing the world’s most popular text editor requires a reliable, highly flexible, and, most importantly, secure central location.Â
Sourceforge, the original place to access Notepad++, had been repeatedly compromised.
To avoid running the risk of both real and reputational damage to the Notepad++ project, Don decided that the only answer to his problem was to build a website of his own.
In the beginning, friends took care of hosting the website, but in 2019 Don moved the website to Hostinger. “I tried some hosts and found that Hostinger is the most featured, ergonomic, and affordable.”
It stands as a testament to the lightweight nature of Notepad++ that a website supporting software as popular as Notepad++ runs perfectly on Hostinger’s Business Shared plan. And he is sure that the move to Hostinger was the right one for his project. “The features of Hostinger are rich, the technical support is proactive and efficient, and the stability is amazing. Once the website is set up, it works like a charm.”
With the right distribution platform, supported by the right hosting, and a committed community, Don has slowly learned to let go of his desire to control the process from start to finish, trust in the developers, and enjoy coding an excellent product for himself and everyone around the world.
His advice: “You don’t need to have the ambition to make your project popular or successful; just enjoy it. That way, your project could be a success, but even if it isn’t, at least you’ll have fun and get to enjoy the most interesting part – coding and managing open-source software.”
PHP 8.2 is just around the corner. It’s planned to launch on December 8th.
PHP 8.2 is purely aimed at making developers’ life easier. Most of the changes simplify the coding process and deprecate some of the older functions. It’s always recommended to upgrade to the latest PHP version to maximize your site’s security and get used to the new syntax.
Let’s look at all the changes that PHP 8.2 is bringing to the table so you can decide if it’s worth making the switch when the new version eventually comes out.
New PHP 8.2 Features
In this section, we’ll go over the changes and new features introduced with PHP 8.2.
New readonly Classes
The new readonly class property was released with version 8.1. PHP 8.2 improves on it further. Now, you’ll be able to declare a whole class as readonly. Doing so will change all that class’s properties to readonly. This won’t work for dynamic properties – declaring them as readonly will result in an error.
Declaring the class used to look like this:
class ReadOnlyClass
{
public readonly int $number,
public readonly int $anotherNumber
}
With PHP 8.2, the process has been thoroughly simplified:
class ReadOnlyClass
{
public int $number,
public int $anotherNumber
}
Keep in mind that it won’t be possible to declare the following PHP features:
Enums – since they cannot contain properties at all.
Traits.
Interfaces.
Allow true, null, and false as Standalone Types
With PHP 8.0, users were presented with support for Union Types. You could declare a type as a union of two or more types. Even though you could use false and null as possible types, using them as standalone types was not allowed.
With PHP 8.2, it will be possible to use false and null as standalone types. With this addition, the PHP type system will be more descriptive as you’ll be able to more accurately declare return, parameter, and property types.
Redact Sensitive Parameter Value Support
PHP allows users to track the call stack at any point of the program. It’s extra helpful if you want to debug an application and see why it failed. However, some stack traces contain sensitive information that you may want to mask.
PHP 8.2 will add a new attribute called SensitiveParameter. It prevents sensitive information from being shown or logged whenever an application runs into trouble. In practice, it will look like this:
function passwords(
$publicpassword,
#[\SensitiveParameter] $secretpassword
) {
throw new \Exception('Error');
}
passwords('publicpassword', 'secretpassword');
New mysqli_execute_query Function and mysqli::execute_query Method
PHP 8.2 introduces an easier way to handle parameterized MySQLi queries. With the mysqli_execute_query($sql, $params) function and the mysqli::execute_query method, you can prepare, bound, and execute queries within the same function. After successfully running a query, you will be presented with ​​the mysqli_result object.
foreach ($db->execute_query('SELECT * FROM user WHERE name LIKE ? AND type_id IN (?, ?)', [$name, $type1, $type2]) as $row) {
print_r($row);
}
Allow Constants in Traits
With PHP 8.2, you will be able to declare constants in traits. Until now, traits allowed users to reuse code by defining methods and properties. Now it will be possible to declare constants in traits as well.
trait Foo {
public const FLAG_1 = 1;
protected const FLAG_2 = 2;
private const FLAG_3 = 2;
public function doFoo(int $flags): void {
if ($flags & self::FLAG_1) {
echo 'Got flag 1';
}
if ($flags & self::FLAG_2) {
echo 'Got flag 2';
}
if ($flags & self::FLAG_3) {
echo 'Got flag 3';
}
}
}
New Disjunctive Normal Form (DNF) Types
With PHP 8.2, you will be able to use a new Disjunctive Normal Form (DNF) types feature. It is a standardized way of organizing boolean expressions. To be exact, it consists of a disjunction of conjunctions or simply boolean OR of ANDs.
// Accepts an object that implements both A and B,
// OR an object that implements D.
(A&B)|D
// Accepts an object that implements C,
// OR a child of X that also implements D,
// OR null.
C|(X&D)|null
// Accepts an object that implements all three of A, B, and D,
// OR an int,
// OR null.
(A&B&D)|int|null
AllowDynamicProperties Attribute
PHP 8.2 will deprecate dynamic variables in classes. This will result in a deprecation message in PHP 8.2 and ErrorException in future versions of PHP.
For this reason, a new #[AllowDynamicProperties] attribute will be added to PHP 8.2 in order to allow dynamic properties for classes. An RFC example looks like this:
class Foo {}
$foo = new Foo;
// Deprecated: Creation of dynamic property Foo::$bar is deprecated
$foo->bar = 1;
// No deprecation warning: Dynamic property already exists.
$foo->bar = 2;
Deprecated Features in PHP 8.2
In this section, we’ll look at all the features that will be deprecated in PHP 8.2.
#utf8_encode() and utf8_decode() Functions
utf8_encode() and utf8_decode()functions are used to convert between ISO-8859-1 and UTF-8 encoding standards. Due to a lack of error messages, warnings, and limited encoding support, PHP 8.2 will deprecate these functions while PHP 9.0 will exclude them entirely. Alternatively, users will be able to use iconv or intl extensions to convert the encoding standard.
Mbstring: Base64, Uuencode, QPrint, and HTML Entity Encodings
Mbstring is used to convert to and from several character encoding standards such as UTF-8/16/32 and ISO-8859-1. It also includes support for Base64, Quoted-Printable, Uuencode, and HTML Entities.
However, these formats process information in raw bytes instead of sequences of bytes. It’s also worth noting that PHP already has separate functions to encode/decode these formats. Thus, PHP 8.2 will deprecate the mbstring extension with the following labeled encodings:
BASE64
UUENCODE
HTML-ENTITIES
html (alias of HTML-ENTITIES)
Quoted-Printable
qprint (alias of Quoted-Printable)
Partially-Supported Callables
PHP 8.2 will deprecate partially-supported callables that don’t work with the $callable() pattern. The list of deprecated callables can be found below:
To prevent the deprecation message, users can convert all self, parent, and static keywords to their corresponding class names.
${var} String Interpolation
PHP allows users to replace variable values within a string literal with double quotes, as in the following examples:
“$myname” – directly embedding variables.
“{$myname}” – braces outside the variable.
“${myname}” – braces after the dollar sign.
” ${expr}” – variable variables equivalent to using (string) ${expr}
While offering the same functionality, the syntax of the last two options is quite complex. That’s why they will be deprecated in PHP 8.2. You’ll still be able to use the first two options without any issues.
Other PHP 8.2 Changes
Random Extension Improvement
PHP offers a number of functions for random number generation. With PHP 8.2, some of them will be moved to a new random extension. This extension will be included in PHP by default, and there won’t be an option to disable it.
Here’s a list of all the functions and constants that will be moved to the random extension. Keep in mind that they will remain in the global namespace.
Historically PHP supported two libraries to connect MySQL databases: mysqlnd and libmysql. Since PHP 5.4, the default recommended library has been mysqlnd. In order to simplify PHP code testing, it was decided to remove libmysql with PHP 8.2.
From now on, you’ll need to use the mysqlnd library to connect MySQL databases.
Sort Order Changes for the ksort Function
The ksort function sorts an array by key in ascending order. PHP 8.2 will introduce a bug fix to make the output of the SORT_REGULAR parameter consistent with the other parameters. Up until PHP 8.2, it prioritized alphabetic keys before numeric keys.
Now, ksort will place numeric keys before alphabetic keys when sorting. In practice, sorted keys will look like this:
["1" => '', "2" => '', "a" => '', , "b" => ''];
Instead of:
["a" => '', "b" => '', "1" => '', , "2" => ''];
The str_split Function Returns Empty Arrays for Empty Strings
Another bug fix is meant for the str_split function. It is used to split a string into an array.
Up until PHP 8.2, if this function was given an empty string, it would also return an empty string. PHP 8.2 introduces a fix to this bug, and str_split will return an empty array if given an empty string.
How to Change the PHP Version
Usually, hosting providers offer you an easy way to switch between PHP versions. If you’re using Hostinger’s hPanel, all you need to do is select your hosting plan and search for PHP Configuration:
Here, you will find all of the latest stable versions of PHP. Select the preferred version and press Update to save the changes.
Within this utility, It’s also possible to manage PHP extensions and PHP options for all versions individually.
Conclusion
PHP 8.2 offers many improvements over the previous versions. It introduces a number of new features like new readonly classes, deprecates several outdated implementations with complex syntax, and fixes important bugs to streamline the development workflow and make using PHP easier.
We hope this post has helped you prepare for the upcoming PHP 8.2 launch. We’re eagerly looking forward to the new version’s full release on December 8th!
There’s one thing every website owner will say yes to, and that’s more traffic.
But how on earth are you meant to get noticed when the internet is so over-saturated with just about everything else?
If you’re looking for a fool-proof way to drive more traffic to your website and convert those visitors into paying customers, PPC advertising could be just what you need.
Hostinger Academy Webinar: Starting With PPC Ads
Subscribe For more educational videos! Hostinger Academy
PPC or pay-per-click advertising refers to online ads where the advertiser only pays when people interact with their ad through impressions or clicks.
Getting Started With PPC: 6 Top Tips
Contrary to popular belief, PPC advertising is no rocket science. Often, you simply need to know who you’re trying to reach and why they should visit your website.
Some of the best practices every PPC marketer should abide by include the following:
1. Decide On Your Channels
Ideally, you should be advertising where your audience likes to hang out.
If you’re selling to suited-up businessmen, chances are you won’t have much luck with an ad campaign on TikTok. Similarly, you won’t reach teens and tweens as easily on sites like LinkedIn as you would on Instagram or Facebook.
There’s “no one-stop-shop for every available audience.†You need to understand who your ideal customer is, where they spend their time online, and where they are in the buyer journey before you can settle on the best PPC channel.
Since every online advertising platform offers some form of pay-per-click solutions, start by creating a user persona and doing customer research to fully understand your customers’ pain points and habits.
Your customers might already be searching for products or services through search engines, or they may need to be introduced to your brand through social media first.
Overall, for most advertisers, it’s easier to create search ads in the beginning and branch out to other channels as you gather more data on your customers.
2. Determine Your Goals
As they say, “well planned is half doneâ€. That applies to PPC advertising, too. Before you launch a single campaign, you should be clear about your goals. Start by asking yourself:
How and what am I currently doing with my website and online marketing efforts?
What do I want to achieve with this particular campaign?
How does this PPC campaign support my other marketing objectives?
Next, you need to determine goals that you can measure:
Do you want to increase overall traffic to your website?
Do you want the campaign to result in more sales?
Are you looking to generate more sales leads instead of full conversions?
Is the primary focus of your campaign to simply promote an app or offer?
Do you want to build more brand awareness?
Remember that a single PPC campaign should have one or two main goals. If you want to have more, consider running multiple campaigns with different focuses.
3. Set a Budget
The thing with PPC marketing is that in order to set an effective budget, you need to understand how the bidding process works.
In short, when you set up a PPC campaign, you choose the keywords that best reflect your ad and what you’re offering. How much you pay for each click depends on your field of business, overall competition, and how well the platform considers your ad to reflect the chosen keyword.
The cost per click for different fields can differ a lot. For example, eCommerce search ads run a lot cheaper than legal ones, but the average spend on legal services is often a lot higher than the average order value of a standard eCommerce store.
In order to get the most out of your budget, you should allow the platform to increase or decrease your bids based on performance.
This way, you can make adjustments based on different categories, like the device, overall demographics, users’ language, and so on.
4. Know Your Audience
How likely would you be to click on an ad offering car repairs if you don’t own one? Chances are you’d continue scrolling and not give the ad a second thought.
But if you’re a motorist and have maintenance due, you’re likely to be much more inclined to see how you could save on upcoming repairs.
Successful PPC marketing involves defining your audience – it can make or break your campaign. Ideally, you should do research beforehand to understand who the right audience for your ad is.
This could mean running surveys on your website and conducting interviews with ideal and existing customers to determine what the buying and decision-making process looks like. You should know the general age, location, gender, interests, and usual behaviors of your audience, as well as the type of keywords they use to navigate the internet.
You should also not shy away from utilizing remarketing audiences on platforms like Google and Meta. Remarketing campaigns are a great way of getting customers who have already done business with you in the past to reactivate. Since they already know your brand, you often simply need a good offer to get them to engage with your website again.
5. Copy Is Important
Don’t underestimate the importance of words on your ads or on your landing page.
The best PPC ads speak directly to your target audience member, appealing and offering solutions to potential challenges or pain points the user might have. Give potential customers a reason to do business with you by highlighting your unique selling points in your ad copy.
You should always include the main keywords you’re bidding on in your ad copy and provide a call to action in your messaging. This will help ad platforms determine the overall quality of your ad.
Ideally, your ad should use language that matches your landing page copy for a smooth and cohesive user experience. This way, when users click on it, they won’t get distracted or discouraged from performing the desired action (signing up for a newsletter, making a purchase, scheduling an appointment, and so on).
On the landing page your PPC ad is linking to, you should have a strong headline mirroring it. The copy on the page should be very specific and relevant to the keywords your ad is targeting.
Most importantly, the offer that you are promising in your ad should be clearly present on your landing page, paired with a clear call-to-action button. A clean, intuitive and responsive page design will help your copy stand out and do the heavy lifting.
6. Know Your Competitors
Chances are that you have direct and indirect competitors. But that’s not a bad thing. You should be actively checking your competitors’ websites, landing pages, social media accounts, and PPC activities down to the copy they are using in their ads.
Doing this helps you understand how your competitors are differentiating themselves and how they position themselves in the market overall.
If your main competitor has been around longer than you and can sell their products and services for less, you might want to look for a unique selling point other than the price. For instance, maybe you can offer better customer support or higher-quality products instead.
Get Your PPC Campaign Live Today
Starting PPC advertising is simpler than people often realize.
As long as you know your audience and target the right keywords and channels, you can launch your first campaigns in no time. And the better you can monitor and optimize your ads, the better value you will get for your money.
As this version is still a part of the Gutenberg project phase two, it features many block editor improvements, including backports from over 10 Gutenberg releases after WordPress 6.0. On top of that, it comes with the new Twenty Twenty-Three default theme.
Following the Twenty Twenty-Two block theme released with WordPress 5.9, 6.1 introduces a new default block theme called Twenty Twenty-Three.
It comes with eleven theme styles from the get-go, allowing you to easily switch the color scheme and typography via the global styles switcher feature. Even if you don’t want to use pre-defined theme styles, the wide variety of options is a great starting point for customization.
Another improvement in Twenty Twenty-Three is the typography. Not only do you get more font family options, but they are available across all eleven styles. This allows more freedom to mix and match the typography between styles.
Expert Tip
New users starting with an empty site will be offered the Twenty-Twenty-Three theme by default and can start customizing with the site editor.
The Twenty-Twenty-Three theme, with its style variations, the site editor, and the options to create templates for a single category and other archives, is quite suitable for content-heavy websites.
The site editor might still be in beta, but it gives new users plenty of customization tools in a more coherent interface than a classic theme.
Birgit P.
WordPress Developer Advocate
Block Editor Improvements
With over 10 Gutenberg releases merged into the WordPress 6.1 core, we can see plenty of block editor improvements in the new version. Let’s discuss the most significant updates featured with the WordPress 6.1 block editor.
Improved Template Options
6.1 comes with two new template options – Page and Single Item: Post. The new version also streamlines the template creation process by automatically adding relevant patterns, so you no longer have to start from scratch.
For example, when you add the Single Item: Post template, it will start with block patterns that include post content, the comments query loop, and template parts such as the header and footer. From that point, you can start customizing the layout or design.
Another improvement is that you can choose to add the template to all items or a specific one. For example, when adding an author template, you’ll be prompted to choose whether the template will apply to all authors or just one.
As such, you can create tailored templates for Author, Category, and Single Item: Post.
In addition, there’s now the Custom template option allowing you to create a new template for any post or page. It will feature a pattern similar to the post template, but you can reconstruct it to suit whatever type of content.
Improved Block Locking
Block locking is a neat feature that ensures your content blocks won’t be accidentally deleted or moved. However, locking a nested block can take a lot of time as you have to lock all individual blocks one by one.
WordPress 6.1 introduces a new improvement to this system, allowing you to apply block locking to all elements inside a group block. This option will appear on the block locking pop-up when you want to lock a group block. You’ll see the Apply to all blocks inside toggle switch.
Expert Tip
The locking mechanism for block patterns and inner blocks allows site owners and administrators to curate the editor experience for content creators and standardize designs using the settings from the theme.json file.
Birgit P.
WordPress Developer Advocate
Content-Only Editing
WordPress 6.1 supports content-only editing for group, cover, and column blocks using the templateLock attribute. This lets you lock the content layout while writing, uploading images, or in any other way editing the content.
Patterns allow practical use of content-only editing. If a pattern uses a group block to contain several blocks, add the templateLock attribute to the pattern’s code and set it to contentOnly.
With that pattern active on the block editor, the design tools will be removed from the sidebar panel. Instead, you will see a list of the content blocks in the group. The toolbar will also contain no block-moving tools after selecting a block. With the feature active, you can freely edit the actual content.
You can temporarily disable content-only editing by clicking Modify on the group block’s toolbar. When disabled, you can access all design and layout tools for the group block and its components. Click Done on the group block’s toolbar to enable content-only editing again.
Updated Quote and List Blocks
Quote and list blocks can now contain inner blocks for more content flexibility.
The block inserter is now available in the quote block. You can use it to add any block in the quoted content by clicking the add block (+) icon or typing / in the quote block line.
For example, you can use this improvement to add a heading block before writing the text below or to incorporate an image in the quote block.
Multiple blocks inside the quote block allow you to easily rearrange the inner content. Use the block moving tools in the block toolbar to move a block up or down.
The list block now treats the items as individual blocks, resulting in a nested block structure. This allows for a more streamlined workflow as you can rearrange or remove list items more easily.
The improved list block uses a nested structure and treats the list items as individual blocks. The advantage is that you can rearrange or remove list items easily. The nested structure can also be seen from the block list view for easier bulk actions.
Featured Image in Cover Block Placeholder
The previous major WordPress release introduced featured image support to the cover block. However, users had to add an image and then replace it with the featured image using a button on the toolbar, resulting in an awkward workflow.
WordPress 6.1 comes with the option to use the featured image when you add a cover block. This way, you can set up the cover block easier and faster.
Design Tools Consistency
Starting with WordPress 6.1, we’ll see improvements in design tools consistency for more customization using the block editor without custom CSS. This will allow users to find certain tools for a specific block easier.
In 6.1, over 50 blocks have typography and color tools, over 40 have dimension tools, and 30 have all three. You can find a complete list of the design tools available for each block in the WordPress 6.1 Dev Notes.
Expert Tip
Contributors are working to bring most design tools to all blocks to ensure more consistency in the future.
Some design tools still need to be tested in different contexts and for different use cases and are only available for theme developers via the theme.json file. Once the feedback from that user group is incorporated into future updates, the design team will work on the user interface to bring the design tools to the site editor, allowing end users to customize their sites.
Birgit P.
WordPress Developer Advocate
Dimensions Settings Presets
WordPress 6.1 adds a slider with seven presets for dimensions settings, such as block spacing and margin. This allows users to set a value quickly and apply the same value for other blocks easily.
That said, there’s still a button to switch back to the old custom pixel field if you want to include custom values.
Updated Preview Button
The block editor’s Preview button is now labeled View, but it still functions similarly. It lets you choose between the editor’s desktop, tablet, and mobile views and open the preview in a new tab.
The only significant difference is the new View site option in the site editor, which will open your site in a new tab. In the previous WordPress version, you had to manually type your URL in a new tab or go back to the dashboard to visit your site.
Template Parts in Block Inserter
Template parts are now available in the block inserter. This makes it easier to create or customize new templates as you can insert them in a few clicks.
Moreover, with the existing options to create template parts from existing blocks, this feature can open more possibilities to utilize custom template elements.
New Preference Option
A new Always open list view option is available in the block editor preferences. To access it, click the Options button at the top-right corner of the editor and select Preferences.
By enabling this option, the list view will be opened by default when you open the block editor.
Updated Editor Details
New metrics have been added to the editor Details menu. Now you can see the Time to read information along with the word and character counts. This way, you can better estimate how long the content you’re writing will be and the time it will take to read it.
Post Summary Update
The Status & visibility section of the post editor is now called Summary. The post’s permalink and template settings are now within this section.
Theme Improvements
WordPress 6.1 brings a lot of enhancements to theme customization, including the improved global styles panel and custom starter patterns. Let’s overview all the theme improvements in the latest version.
Improved Global Styles
There are some new additions to the global styles interface.
The first one is the headings element that you can configure in the typography and color sections. In the previous version, headings followed the global text style, but in WordPress 6.1, you can make headings use different typography and colors throughout the website. This improves the workflow, as you no longer need to customize the heading blocks individually.
The Buttons element is now also available in the typography and color. Similar to the headings element, you can now set different typography and colors for the button’s text and background.
The next are the layout global styles. In the previous version, you could only change padding settings. WordPress 6.1 significantly improved on this by adding content area width and block spacing controls. The padding and block spacing controls also feature a slider with presets to simplify customization.
Starter Patterns for All Post Types
Theme authors and users can set up starter patterns for all post types to provide pattern options when creating a new post.
This requires adding the patterns’ PHP files into the theme’s patterns folder. Such files contain code snippets that specify the pattern’s title and post type, followed by the pattern’s code.
Note that the new Twenty Twenty-Three theme already has the patterns folder by default. You may have to create the folder if you use another block theme.
For example, we can add a travel blog pattern from the WordPress pattern directory. First, we must create a PHP file called blog.php with the following code:
<?php
/**
* Title: Travel Blog
* Slug: twentytwentythree/travel-blog
* Block Types: core/post-content
* Post Types: post
* Categories: featured, text
*/
?>
You can change the title and categories to your liking. The next step involves copying and pasting the pattern from the pattern directory into the file using the Copy Pattern button.
Paste the pattern on the blog.php file. Once done, the PHP file will look like this:
Save the file and open your WordPress admin panel. To confirm that the pattern has been registered, navigate to Posts -> Add New to create a new post. You should see a pop-up with a selection of the registered patterns.
You can add as many starter patterns as you want. To add more, create another PHP file for the pattern and repeat the steps.
Expert Tip
You can review the patterns bundled with a particular theme in the theme folder before deciding on an installation. Using a series of patterns helps any user to create a page rather quickly by just replacing text and images once the patterns are added to the canvas of the block editor.
Birgit P.
WordPress Developer Advocate
Fluid Typography
WordPress 6.1 introduces fluid typography support via the theme.json file. It enhances responsiveness as the text size will automatically adjust based on the user’s viewport.
To change the fluid typography settings in the theme.json file, include the fluid parameter in the settings.typography.fluid section. If you’re using an older block theme, it may have fluid typography disabled by default, but you can add the fluid parameter and set its value to true.
You can configure the size for fluid typography in the settings.typography.fontSizes section of the file. Here, you can set the minimum and maximum values for each font size and disable fluid typography for specific font sizes.
For example, you can set the fluid typography size for the Normal font size by setting the fluid parameter value to true and specifying the minimum and maximum values. Then, disable fluid typography for the Large font size by setting a false value for the fluid parameter.
You can configure the text size for fluid typography in the settings.typography.fontSizes section.
Fluid typography lets users increase or decrease font sizes dynamically between screen sizes. For now, it requires modifying the theme.json file to use it, as there is no tool in the site editor that allows end users to control the settings.
Birgit P.
WordPress Developer Advocate
Block-Based Template Part Support for Classic Themes
WordPress 6.1 also introduces the block-based template part support feature that expands classic theme usability with the block editor.
Enabling this feature takes two steps. First, you must add template part support by adding the following function to the theme’s functions.php file:
You’ll see the Template Parts option in the dashboard’s Appearance menu.
However, you’ll find no template parts options in the editor – you’ll have to add them manually by creating an HTML file in the parts folder within the theme’s root directory.
For example, we’ll add a footer template part to the Twenty Twenty-One theme. Start by creating an HTML file with the path of /public_html/wp-content/themes/twentytwentyone/parts/footer.html.
Paste the the following code snippet into the file:
Go back to the WordPress dashboard and navigate to Appearance -> Template Parts. You should see the footer template part is now available, and you can start editing it using the block editor.
You can add more HTML files in the parts folder to register more block-based template parts for the theme.
Expert Tip
When it comes to integrating classic themes with the block-based environment, WordPress 5.9 introduced the theme.json file that allows configuring blocks for classic themes, and WordPress 6.1 comes with the ability to use block-based template parts.
Both features are provided to the theme developers to offer their end users block-based customization in classic themes. It will be up to them to deliver the features to their users.
Birgit P.
WordPress Developer Advocate
Block Theme Filters
Following the update to the WordPress theme repository, which features a new Block Themes filter, the WordPress dashboard has received a similar update.
When you navigate to Appearance -> Themes -> Add New, you can see the Block Themes filter.
How to Update to WordPress 6.1
Updating to WordPress 6.1 should only take a few minutes, and there are a few ways to do it easily. We recommend creating a backup and testing the new version in a staging environment before proceeding with the update on your main site.
This way, you’ll be sure that the new version works perfectly with your website’s content, themes, and plugins.
Once you’re ready to proceed, choose one of the following ways to update WordPress:
WordPress dashboard – go to the update page by navigating to Dashboard -> Updates or clicking the Please update now button on the top banner. Once you’re in the update page, click Update to version 6.1.
hPanel – navigate to WordPress -> Dashboard and click Update to 6.1 on the WordPress version section in the bottom right corner. Note that this method is only possible for users of Hostinger’s WordPress, Shared, and Cloud hosting plans.
Manual update – download the WordPress 6.1 files from WordPress.org. Extract the .zip file and delete the wp-content folder and wp-config-sample.php file. Then, use an FTP client or a file manager to overwrite the WordPress core files and folders, excluding the wp-content folder and wp-config-sample.php file.
WordPress command-line interface (WP-CLI) – use SSH to access your website’s public_html root directory and run the wp core update command to perform the update.
Conclusion
WordPress 6.1 adds more enhancements to the block editor to simplify the workflow and introduce additional customization, such as an improved global styles panel and block locking features. The new version also comes with a new default theme and more options available in the theme.json file.
Update your site to WordPress 6.1 if you haven’t done so already. This way, you’ll benefit from the new features and protect yourself from potential vulnerabilities. Remember to back up your site and use a staging environment to test the latest version beforehand.
Whether picking up some phrases in a new language via a YouTube video or ending up deep down a Wikipedia hole, we’ve all used the internet to learn something.Â
Online learning, or eLearning, presents many opportunities to reinvent the learning process. It can engage students on many levels and tailor the learning experience to individual needs. Passing on information and teaching new skills can be done in new and exciting ways, and there’s plenty of space for innovation.Â
The pandemic prompted schools and universities to offer their services online (98% of universities have moved online since 2020), while many of us were pushed to consider changing careers. The eLearning industry has since seen giant leaps forward and is constantly innovating.
This article will discuss all aspects of this exciting new industry and consider its future.
What Is eLearning?
eLearning is essentially digital learning. It represents all techniques and methods used to pass on information electronically. These can vary from simulations, quizzes, and games to more conventional forms such as online lectures and workshops.
eLearning, for the most part, involves structure. Think of it like a regular course, but online. Typically, a Learning Management System (LMS) is used to deliver the course material in an efficient manner.
Interest in eLearning is growing significantly, especially since the pandemic began. Statistics about online learning suggest the market is expected to grow by 110% by 2026. Our lifestyles have changed, with many of us eschewing the commute to work from home. We have clawed back time, and many of us are interested in using the extra hours to develop and educate ourselves.
What Are the Advantages of eLearning?
The advantages of eLearning are clear, both for the provider and the student. For the former, it opens up the chance to attract a more extensive base of learners. Class numbers are no longer restricted to lecture theater size, and lectures themselves can be pre-recorded and used repeatedly. To put it simply, it is very cost-effective.Â
For students, eLearning offers the freedom to study however and whenever they like. Learning material can be repeated, notes can be shared, and teachers can be reached quickly. Multimedia implementation makes learning fun and engaging, not to mention more efficient.
Consequently, eLearning speeds up the learning process. Many aspects of teaching, such as grading, can be automated, and answers can be obtained from learning resources without waiting for a teacher to be available.Â
It also opens up the possibility of learning wherever you are and, for the most part, whenever you are available. eLearning does much to level the learning playing field, giving people from all backgrounds the chance to acquire knowledge in a way that suits them.Â
eLearning is adaptable. Because of technological development, online courses can keep up and provide skills matching job requirements – courses can change or be adjusted to meet the job market’s needs. This is particularly true for tech-related courses focusing on the latest in-demand programming languages. As demand shifts, so do courses.
What Are the Disadvantages of eLearning?
There are plenty of critics of the eLearning style of teaching. Some say studying online with others takes away the social element of learning, a crucial aspect of education. While interaction is limited, many eLearning companies promote discussion between coursemates to foster camaraderie and knowledge sharing.
Another point to consider is student self-motivation – retention rates for eLearning courses vary from 35% – 60%. eLearning requires a bigger personal drive and better time management skills. That’s because students are effectively on their own and must push themselves to interact with the course in a meaningful and effective way. This is why eLearning companies go to great lengths to encourage students, and many offer mentors whose aim is to keep up motivation and enthusiasm.Â
Lastly, eLearning, by nature, focuses on theory, which isn’t that useful for some subjects. Conducting an experiment or carrying out a repair can be taught much more effectively in real life. That said, by providing an immersive online learning environment, this hurdle can be overcome.
How Is Online Learning Changing Education?
The pandemic forced learning online overnight. It was this need to bring learning resources online that has pushed through many innovative developments in education.Â
By trial and error, new ways of passing on knowledge electronically have been developed. Higher Ed’s 2021 annual report, which provides plenty of online education statistics, notes that half of the professors surveyed said eLearning is an “effective teaching method.â€
What Are the Most Popular Online Learning Courses?
Many courses follow eLearning trends, which are often related to job market demands. While more traditional academic curricula exist, eLearning courses often focus on preparing people for work. There are a few types of online courses that stand out due to how popular they are.
Especially highly rated are eLearning courses that teach skills required by tech companies. Coding and analyzing data can be taught easily online and, more importantly, can be learned by anyone regardless of their language.Â
Similarly, online marketing courses are also popular. Demand for marketing roles is very high, with Marketing Week reporting that such positions are increasing at the highest rate.
Finally, the demand for online courses focusing on personal development has risen sharply since the beginning of the pandemic. This broad term encompasses everything from language learning to cookery classes. Future Learn reports that 40% of Americans are interested in studying the topic in the next five years.
How Much Do Online Learning Courses Cost?
Online course prices vary vastly. An analysis of online eLearning courses found that, on average, a course costs $177. The length of the course, resources needed, and perceived value all play a part in the overall pricing.Â
eLearning is constantly evolving and adapting. There are many trends and technologies that are pushing eLearning forward.Â
Of all the eLearning trends, the rise in adaptive learning is possibly among the most interesting. Adaptive learning is a user-centric method of education where all resources and assignments are adapted to the student’s individual needs. This highly personalized learning experience adapts in real-time to suit the individual student’s pace of learning.Â
Social learning is another growing eLearning trend. The concept is simple – we all learn from people around us, so why not incorporate that into the eLearning experience? An instant chat feature in eLearning software helps students overcome boundaries in their learning. Similarly, having an online forum and dedicated communities can help foster a learning environment that provides invaluable help to students.
Elearning Is Forcing Through Progress in Education
eLearning solves many of the problems associated with traditional learning models, which often present geographical and financial barriers. It is more adaptable and dynamic than conventional forms of learning.Â
But with this new learning model comes new challenges. The social aspect of learning is taken away, which is clearly valuable to many people. ”Learning by doing” is, for the most part, impossible, presenting obvious challenges. As a result, engagement is an issue.
It’s undoubtedly clear that eLearning is here to stay and is revolutionizing the education industry. Stuffy lectures, unhelpful handouts, and unengaging exercises are being pushed out in favor of dynamic and exciting courses that engage students better. What happens next will be very exciting – and we’re curious to see it through.
For your business to amplify its growth, you must turn to your customers as early as possible and put the insights you get into action. Otherwise, you risk not knowing your clients enough, resulting in products and marketing activities that do not resonate with your users.
That’s why Customer Obsession is one of the guiding principles at Hostinger. We’ve been reaching out to our clients so we could actually connect with them and make Hostinger the best platform for SMBs and prosumers to achieve their goals online.
This mindset is what led to the conception of the Customer Interview initiative. I’ll share how this project came to be and how it has helped Hostinger so you can implement a similar initiative to scale your own operations!
Identifying the Issue
The web hosting industry is tough, and the competition is constantly increasing. Only the fastest and most effective businesses survive and can thrive. On the other hand, the global market is enormous, so many different players can emerge and succeed.
Hostinger is focused on having the best product and exceptional customer support. We know that users value that immensely since they like sharing their experiences within their circles.
When I joined Hostinger back in 2017, our team’s main goal was – and still is – to use the traction we have to create scalable new user acquisition loops and keep our pace of growth increasing.
At some point, we realized that we didn’t know our clients enough. We develop products and services or activate various marketing strategies but lack certainty whether they actually strike a chord with our core audience.
We understood that this was inhibiting Hostinger’s growth – for it to accelerate, we’d need to unlock real relationships with our clients.
So, we got to work.
Planning Pathways
I was aware of the Golden Questions by Sean Ellis, CEO of Qualaroo. They emphasize the importance of asking the right questions to uncover where exactly your customers are coming from, what their reservations and fascinations are, and how they see your business in relation to your competition.
The Golden Questions are a surefire way to get actionable feedback that can actually improve conversions. For example, asking your customer, “What’s the one thing that nearly stopped you from buying from us?†may reveal surprising answers and information you would’ve never come across otherwise.
There may be a lot of noise, but all it takes is one brilliant idea – and your customers are full of them, I assure you.
After some deliberation, we implemented the Golden Questions in our CRM process. This was very helpful, sure, but I still felt that it hadn’t allowed us to truly know our clients – not to mention the process wasn’t flexible enough.
That’s why I started looking for a different approach. While networking and seeking information from within the industry, I found the tips by Louis Grenier, the founder of EveryoneHatesMarketers.com, that changed everything.
Top Tips for Understanding
Here’s Louis’ six-step guide on talking to and setting up efficient interviews with your clients:
Create a segment of your best customers (based on whatever info you have available).
Write a customer interview script for your team with simple directions (listen more than you talk, don’t be afraid to improvise, etc).
Add your entire team to your Calendly (or similar) account.
Create an evergreen Zoom meeting and set it to “Automatically record on the cloud.â€
Create a round-robin event by allowing customers to choose a time with any available member of your team and link the Zoom meeting to it.
Set up an automated email after a specific customer event (e.g., registered 30 days ago) and add that Calendly link.
These six simple steps were exactly what we needed. We took some time for internal promo campaigns to rustle up the project’s release.
It felt essential to have everyone from the CEO to engineers and designers take part, not just the client-facing colleagues. So we drummed up excitement within our teams, encouraging an atmosphere of communication and creativity.
And after two weeks, everything was ready to go.
Everyone Has a Story to Tell
I was overjoyed to see the levels of interest in participating. The initial challenge of the sheer volume of interviews we had to navigate resolved itself naturally. While waiting their turn on the schedule, colleagues watched other conversations taking place. This also helped calm the nerves of anyone new to client interaction.
It was super inspiring to watch this project develop. The more interactions we had with clients, the more amazing worlds unfolded, and we learned from each other. A deeper understanding of your customers builds empathy and establishes connections through confidence, helping all the involved parties grow.
So far, we’ve had around 1,500 client interviews. To say they’ve been inspiring would be an understatement.
For example, I talked with Paul of Peedie Models, who lives on a Scottish island with few inhabitants. Even though he is a gifted model maker, this made it challenging for him to grow the business, especially during the pandemic.
Following Hostinger Tutorials, he learned the basics of getting his craft online and spurred his online business, which is now highly successful. Without our services, this wouldn’t have been possible. He expressed so much appreciation for Hostinger during the interview – I was touched beyond words.
Talking with individuals like Paul has allowed me and other Hostinger team members to really understand how our services impact people’s lives and livelihoods.
Hearing how we’re helping a single mother move her business online, so she’s not tied to a geographical location while her son is studying abroad or how an 84-year-old pastor can reach out to his parishioners without worrying that his church’s site would go down gives new meaning to how we approach our client relationships.
And the best thing – it lets me and the other Hostingerians really live and breathe the Customer Obsession principle.
What’s become clear from the customer interview initiative is that everyone wants to interact, learn new things, meet new people, and feel good vibes.
Next up is making the insights gained from the interviews actionable. We are taking business decisions based on them, like improving the access management systems for freelancers and agencies for more convenient functionalities or tailoring our Hostinger Academy YouTube tutorials around our customers’ needs and observations.
You can always do better, so we are constantly improving our processes. The initiative has started us on an exciting new journey – it’s rare for any strategy to be as valuable and as inexpensive.
We now factor customer interviews as essential to client feedback and interaction. I suggest you do the same. So grab the toolbox, put your own spin on it, and use it to scale your business.
And most importantly – don’t forget to rock & roll!
