Brad Williams Blog

WordCamp Philly is Next Week!

WordCamp Philly 2012 is next weekend! For a third year in a row I am a co-organizer of WordCamp Philly.

This year we have a packed schedule with some amazing speakers. The entire event will be Halloween themed, which you know I love, so I can’t wait to see all the costumes attendees and speakers will be wearing during the event.

We’re working hard to make sure this year’s WordCamp Philly is even better than last year! If you haven’t already registered get your ticket before they sell out. It’s time for another WordCamp, Illy Philly style!

September

Was busy.

How To: Add and Remove Allowed File Types in WordPress

Recently I had a client request that we block BMP files from being an allowed file type for uploads in WordPress. As always WordPress provides a very simple way to set what file extensions are allowed to be uploaded. To do this we’ll use the upload_mimes action filter. Add the below code example to your theme’s functions.php file or a custom plugin:

add_filter( 'upload_mimes', 'brad_mime_types' );

function brad_mime_types( $mime_types ){

	//remove bmp from allowed types
    unset( $mime_types['bmp'] );
	
	//return the array of allowed types
    return $mime_types;
	
}

As you can see we use the add_filter() function to hook the upload_mimes filter. The filter passes a single variable, which is an array of all allowed file types in WordPress. To remove a type we simply use the unset() PHP function to remove the ‘bmp’ value from the array. The final step is to return the array of allowed file types back to WordPress.

That’s it! Using the above code BMP files are no longer allowed for upload in WordPress.

Date August 31, 2012
Author Brad Williams
Comments 1 Comment

Free WordPress Security eBook

CodePoet.com, a site dedicated to being a solid resource to anyone that builds WordPress websites, has released a free WordPress Security ebook that I contributed to! The book is titled “Locking Down WordPress” and is available in PDF, Kindle, and EPUB formats for FREE!

The ebook was co-authored by Rachel Baker, John Ford, and myself. This ebook is a must-read resource for anyone running a WordPress powered website. It’s jam packed with useful tips and tricks to keep your WordPress installation safe from hacks and exploits.

Don’t wait until it’s too late. Read Locking Down WordPress to find out how to properly secure your WordPress website.

Date July 24, 2012
Author Brad Williams
Comments 1 Comment

I’m Married!

At this exact moment I’m on a beach in Bermuda getting married to the love of my life, April Heline! I truly am the luckiest guy alive.

Date June 25, 2012
Author Brad Williams
Comments 10 Comments

Professional WordPress Second Edition is Coming!

It’s official,Professional WordPress Second Edition is in the works! I’m really excited to update this book, as it’s such a great resource for WordPress design and development. The original Professional WordPress is one of the HIGHEST rated WordPress design and development books on the market, and we plan on making the Second Edition even better!

The original writing team is back, with a slight twist. This version of the book will be written by David Damstra and myself. Hal Stern will serve as our Technical Editor this time around. As with the last book, Professional WordPress takes a more advanced look at WordPress. From dissecting core code, breaking down functions and classes, to exploring WordPress APIs in depth, this book will help you take your WordPress design and development skills to the next level!

The original book was written for WordPress 2.9 and is over two years old now. Surprisingly the book actually holds up pretty well in most areas. The new book will be written around WordPress 3.5 (we’re very forward thinking) and include all of the new features and enhancements that have been released over the past two years. I’m really excited for some of the brand new chapters we’re writing, including chapters dedicated to Multisite and Custom Post Types and Taxonomies. We will even have an entire chapter dedicated to working with WordPress locally!

You can follow our progress and any Professional WordPress Second Edition news with the hash tag #prowp2. The book is currently planned for a December 2012 release date, which will make it a GREAT stocking stuffer!

Date June 13, 2012
Author Brad Williams
Comments 11 Comments

WP Late Night Becomes Most Popular WordPress Podcast!

It’s has been confirmed that WP Late Night, the new podcast I’m a Co-Host on, has become the #1 WordPress Podcast! I’m really excited, especially since we are just getting started. Last night we recorded the 8th episode of WP Late Night and are having a great time!

We’re trying to make this podcast different from the rest. We stream live video of the show using Spreecast. You can watch the video recording of our past shows on our WP Late Night Spreecast channel.

Another reason I think the show is so successful is the synergy between the hosts. I’ve known Ryan and Dre for a few years now. We’ve hung out at many WordCamps (and after parties!) and have become really good friends. Being friends with your co-hosts makes a big difference in the harmony of the show and I think that really comes across in each episode.

If you haven’t tuned in yet I highly recommend you give us a spin. You can listen to all of our episodes by visiting WPLateNight.com. You can also catch us live every Wednesday @ 8pm EDT on the WPCandy.com Stream.

Date May 10, 2012
Author Brad Williams
Comments 10 Comments

April

April Showers bring blogging failure. More coming next month!

I’m Speaking at WordCamp San Diego 2012!

This weekend I’m speaking at WordCamp San Diego 2012! I’ll be giving a presentation on WordPress Multisite. This is a presentation I’ve wanted to do for some time now so I’m really excited to present it in San Diego.

We do a LOT of WordPress Multisite work at my company WebDevStudios. I think the Multisite name can be a bit intimidating, so I’m hoping my presentation will remove some of that fear and get people motivated to try it out. I will also be giving away a few copies of my book: Professional WordPress Plugin Development.

If you are attending the event make sure you track me down and buy me a beer! 🙂