WordCamp is just around the corner
Yes, this is the second email I’ve sent in a month. I could’ve left it until tomorrow when it’ll be November! Can you believe it? I couldn’t wait because I just discovered this year’s WordCamp schedule has a cool new feature. I was able to select which sessions I’d recommend to you my clients and friends who are mostly “users” and not designers or coders. These sessions are WHY I think you can’t go wrong spending $40 to attend this fabulous conference. There’s even lunch and swag included. Plenty of time for networking too.
This link shows all the options with my picks highlighted. The picks are just meant to inspire you and get you started. There are a lot more options to choose from. If you’d like to get an idea without clicking a link here are my picks for you:
Saturday, November 10, 2018
- 10:30 am | DIY Content Strategy by Larry Swanson
- 11:30 am | Write Right, Right NOW! The Ultimate Writing Boot Camp for Content Writers by Liz Coursen
- 1:30 pm | User Experience and Branding for WordPress sites by Jennifer McKnight
- 2:30 pm | MailChimp & WordPress Goes Together Like Peanut Butter & Bananas by Amy Hall
- 3:30 pm | What is Caching? by Zachary Brown
- 4:30 pm | Connecting the Dots: The Relationship Between WordPress, SEO, and Social Media. by Robert Nissenbaum
And if you can come back on Sunday you can learn about Gutenberg, the new editor coming soon to WordPress
- 10:00 am | Introduction to Gutenberg and the Future of WordPress editing by Grant Landram
- 11:00 am | Storytelling with Gutenberg: How to Use the New Editor to Boost Your Blog by Andrea Zoellner
Caching your WordPress website for speed
You’ve probably heard about caching at one point or another. And you can attend a full session on it at WordCamp. I wanted to mention it because I’ve just done an update for my clients. Even if you’re not hosted with me, if you have a WordPress site this is useful information in a very basic form. There are 3 kinds of caching:
- local browser caching
- static caching
- dynamic caching
When you see something amiss on your own website the first thing to do is clear your own browser’s cache. Here’s a place that explains how to do that depending on your browser. You can also simply open a private or incognito browser window which never caches to see if the issue persists.
For several years I’ve included static caching using the WP Rocket plugin. This makes a static copy of your website so visitors can see it without their browser having to reach into the database to pull the information, thereby speeding things up. When you make changes you’ll see them because you’re logged in, but visitors will continue to see the cached version which is why WP Rocket prompts you to Clear Cache with changes. If you’re hosted with me you’ll see a WP Rocket tab on the top of your dashboard and in the drop down there’s a Clear Cache button.
What I’ve just added is a dynamic cache which works in conjunction with WP Rocket and further speeds your site. You may notice a speed improvement. This cache is provided by our host SiteGround and is called SG Super Cache. You’ll now see an additional button next to WP Rocket that says Purge SG Cache. It’s configured already to Automatically flush the Dynamic cache.
You shouldn’t really have to KNOW or DO anything. But knowledge is powerful. So if you ever see something amiss on your site, you now have 3 steps you can try to see if you can fix it yourself before panicking and contacting me! 🙂
Fall Bicycle Trip
I mentioned last time that I’d be away for a bit in October. We just got back. I thought you might enjoy seeing some photos of our 7 day, 350 mile bike ride in New England.
