I’m excited to launch my latest web-dev book, Wizard’s SQL Recipes for WordPress. I got the idea for this book way back when I was first learning how to build dynamic websites. I thought it would be useful to bring together all of the best SQL snippets in sort of a “spellbook” or “cookbook”. After all, SQL queries can seem like magic to the uninitiated. By entering concise, well-crafted commands, SQL enables anyone to interact with any relational database. It’s […] Continue reading »
Just a heads up! I’m in the process of migrating all book accounts to the new bookstore at Perishable Press Books. The goal is to streamline everything — all books and user accounts — under the new books domain. This will make everything much simpler for everyone. Eventually, the other book sites will be taken offline, after everything is migrated to the new bookstore here at Perishable Press. Continue reading »
![[ Jeff Starr (aka Perishable) ]](https://perishablepress.com/wp/wp-content/images/global/jeff-starr.jpg "Jeff Starr")
When I spend time on something, like an interview, I like to know that it was actually published somewhere. Below is an interview that I completed for a web-hosting company that apparently now is missing in action. It covers how I got into web development, upcoming projects, web security, work flow, writing books, WordPress, and more.. Continue reading »
![[ Perishable Press Books (screenshot) ]](https://perishablepress.com/wp/wp-content/images/2020/books-homepage.jpg)
After six months of on-again, off-again hard work (and plenty of unexpected challenges), I am excited to launch the new Perishable Press Bookstore. The old bookstore was located on a separate domain, but I wanted it to be better integrated with the main site here at Perishable Press. So now there is the site blog at perishablepress.com and the store at books.perishablepress.com. Continue reading »
I like sharing my plans with those who will listen. For example, last year I said what I was going to do in 2019, and as far as I can tell it is mission accomplished. Now my goals for 2020 are a little more structured and ambitious.. Continue reading »
![[ Dashboard Widgets Suite ]](https://perishablepress.com/wp/wp-content/images/2016/dashboard-widgets-suite.jpg)
1 Plugin. 9 Widgets. Awesome Dashboard. Over the years, I’ve assembled a collection of Dashboard widgets that I use frequently on various sites. I find the WordPress Dashboard to be a convenient location for posting notes, viewing debug and error logs, and displaying social media icons, RSS feeds, and other useful information. I find these widgets essential, but I was spending way too much time installing and managing them on all of my sites. Continue reading »
If you are new to WordPress, or even if you have some experience, it may seem impossible to figure out why something isn’t working as expected. It would be nice if we could just wave a magic wand and have everything “fixed” automatically, but reality requires a bit more effort to diagnose and resolve issues. It would be impossible to describe troubleshooting steps for every possible issue, so this post stays focused on troubleshooting things in general. The goal here […] Continue reading »
I use s2member (free version) and s2member Pro on a few of my sites. Have been for several years now. Over the course of time, I have amassed a healthy collection of notes, code snippets and techniques for customizing default functionality, adding features, and so forth. Gonna post the collection online for the benefit of any others who may be seeking for similar modifications and/or related information. Continue reading »
Just a quick post to let people know about the updates now available for my various books and plugins. Basically the entire month of May was spent on plugin and book updates, so here is a quick summary of what’s new. Continue reading »
Today I am pleased to announce the winners of the 2014 Book Giveaway, wherein 9 contestants win free copies of my books — The Tao of WordPress, WordPress Themes In Depth, and .htaccess made easy — including all bonus material and updates. Continue reading »
A few days ago, I launched a Thanksgiving-themed book giveaway for Digging Into WordPress. The post has received some great comments that reminded me of how absolutely awesome people can be. So to chase the feeling and keep the momentum going, I’m giving away more books to 9 lucky winners. Continue reading »
Book Launch! My fourth book, WordPress Themes In Depth, focuses entirely on WordPress theme development. It goes in-depth on how to build, customize, and distribute your own WordPress themes. It’s 10+ years of experience with WordPress jam-packed into 450 pages of non-stop theme-building action. Continue reading »
As mentioned, I’ve been super busy updating stuff, and have new versions available for Digging Into WordPress, .htaccess made easy, and The Tao of WordPress. To celebrate the updates, I’m having a “Fall Sale” on all books, with combo deals available for bundled books. Continue reading »
![[ Screenshot: Demos & Tools ]](https://perishablepress.com/wp/wp-content/images/2012/online-tools-demos.jpg)
Working on organizing the site, I’ve put together two new pages that round-up my Demos and Tools. The demos are organized into sections, Ajax, CSS, PHP, and so on. Most of the tools are for encoding and decoding, but will eventually include stuff for CSS, .htaccess, JavaScript, et al. Both of these new pages are readily accessible from the top menu bar (see left screenshot). It’s better than fun! Continue reading »
![[ The Tao of WordPress ]](https://perishablepress.com/wp/wp-content/images/2013/tao-of-wordpress.jpg)
It’s been quiet around here, but I have a good excuse. I spent the last six months writing, designing, and publishing my third book, The Tao of WordPress. This is an excellent book for beginners, students, designers, and basically anyone who wants to learn how to get the most from WordPress. The book “soft-launched” last week, and now I want to share the news with readers here at Perishable Press. Continue reading »
It’s been an amazing year across the board. Here is a quick recap of some of the things I did in 2012. I don’t keep a journal of every little detail, but here are some of the things I remember specifically setting out to do, sort of organized by month. So much more to report, these are just the highlights. Continue reading »
