WordPress is an Application Framework

I make the argument that we shouldn't be thinking of WordPress as either blog software or a CMS but as an application framework that can be used to power the back-end of any web app.

1. WordPress is an Application Framework Monday, 24 September 12
2. Tom Willmot humanmade • happytables • wpremote tomwillmot.com hmn.md wpremote.com happytables.com @tomwillmot @humanmadeltd @wpremote @happytables github.com/humanmade Monday, 24 September 12
3. WordPress is not just for blogging. Monday, 24 September 12
4. WordPress is a CMS. Monday, 24 September 12
5. WordPress is not just a CMS. Monday, 24 September 12
6. WordPress is an Application Framework. Monday, 24 September 12
7. Monday, 24 September 12
8. • What is an Application Framework • What makes WordPress an Application Framework • How we built the WP Remote web app on WordPress. What is an Application Framework Monday, 24 September 12
9. What is an Application Framework Monday, 24 September 12
10. A web application framework is a software framework that is designed to support the development of dynamic websites, Web applications and Web services. The framework aims to alleviate the overhead associated with common activities performed in Web development. For example, many frameworks provide libraries for database access, templating frameworks and session management, and often promote code reuse. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_application_framework Monday, 24 September 12
11. That sounds a lot like WordPress! Monday, 24 September 12
12. A web application framework is a software framework that is designed to support the development of dynamic websites, Web applications and Web services. The framework aims to alleviate the overhead associated with common activities performed in Web development. For example, many frameworks provide libraries for database access, templating frameworks and session management, and often promote code reuse. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_application_framework Monday, 24 September 12
13. A web application framework is a software framework that is designed to support the development of dynamic websites, Web applications and Web services. The framework aims to alleviate the overhead associated with common activities performed in Web development. For example, many frameworks provide libraries for database access, templating frameworks and session management, and often promote code reuse. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_application_framework Monday, 24 September 12
14. WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog. Monday, 24 September 12
15. WordPress is an Application Framework that happens to come with a default app called “Blog”. Monday, 24 September 12
16. WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful app, website or blog. Monday, 24 September 12
17. Application Frameworks are libraries of useful API’s & Classes Monday, 24 September 12
18. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Core API’s Monday, 24 September 12
19. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
20. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
21. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
22. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
23. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
24. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
25. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
26. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
27. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
28. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
29. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
30. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
31. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
32. • HTTP • XMLRPC • WP_User • WP_Rewrite • WPDB • WP_Cache & Transients • WP_Scripts • WP_Filesystem • admin-ajax.php • I18N • WP_Query • Security • Templating system • An Administration interface Monday, 24 September 12
33. What did I miss? Monday, 24 September 12
34. The thing that makes WordPress uniquely powerful? Monday, 24 September 12
35. Monday, 24 September 12
36. add_filter(); Monday, 24 September 12
37. 3rd Party API’s • TLC Transients • WP Thumb • Custom Meta Box API • WordPress Objects Monday, 24 September 12
38. • TLC Transients https://github.com/markjaquith/WP-TLC- Transients • WP Thumb • Custom Meta Box API • WordPress Objects • Term Meta Monday, 24 September 12
39. • TLC Transients • WP Thumb https://github.com/humanmade/WPThumb • Custom Meta Box API • WordPress Objects • Term Meta Monday, 24 September 12
40. • TLC Transients • WP Thumb • Custom Meta Box API https://github.com/humanmade/Customs • WordPress Objects • Term Meta Monday, 24 September 12
41. • TLC Transients • WP Thumb • Custom Meta Box API • WordPress Objects https://github.com/humanmade/WordPress- Objects • Term Meta Monday, 24 September 12
42. • TLC Transients • WP Thumb • Custom Meta Box API • WordPress Objects • Term Meta https://gist.github.com/2953813 Monday, 24 September 12
43. All these API’s can be used without the “Blog” part of WordPress Monday, 24 September 12
44. Still need convincing? Monday, 24 September 12
45. Still need convincing? • Continuously improved. Monday, 24 September 12
46. Still need convincing? • Continuously improved. • Great backwards compatibility support. Monday, 24 September 12
47. Still need convincing? • Continuously improved. • Great backwards compatibility support. • Super easy to jump in and get started. Monday, 24 September 12
48. Still need convincing? • Continuously improved. • Great backwards compatibility support. • Super easy to jump in and get started. • Can run on literally any server. Monday, 24 September 12
49. Still need convincing? • Continuously improved. • Great backwards compatibility support. • Super easy to jump in and get started. • Can run on literally any server. • Widely tested, runs 16.7% of the web, some of the largest sites in the world. Monday, 24 September 12
50. Why Not • Some of the core API’s are old and nasty. • It doesn’t enforce a strict MVC structure. https://github.com/markjaquith/WordPress-Skeleton/ • People might think your not a real software engineer if your not using Ruby to build your web app. Monday, 24 September 12
51. WordPress powered Apps! Monday, 24 September 12
52. WP Remote Quick Demo Monday, 24 September 12
53. WordPress Back-end WordPress Plugin Client Site Knockout.js Front-end JSON JSON Monday, 24 September 12
54. • Users • Sites • Site Meta • Core, Plugin and Theme updates • Groups • History • Backups • Settings Monday, 24 September 12
55. • Standard WordPress subscriber level users. • Custom Login, Registration and Lost Password pages and Change Password pages. Users Monday, 24 September 12
56. • Sites are stored as a custom post_type. • Each site has the post_author set to the user that owns the site. • The site status is set to private to signify that users sites are private to them. • Meta information about the site like home_url, admin_url etc. are stored in post_meta. As are lists of backups, history items and plugins and themes that need updating. Sites Monday, 24 September 12
57. • Site Group is a custom taxonomy • Each group is a new term in that taxonomy • Doesn’t matter if 2 users unknowingly use the same group as each user only sees sites that they own. • We use a custom term_meta table to store things like whether a group is collapsed or not. Site Groups Monday, 24 September 12
58. • Installed on each of the users sites • We use the HTTP API to communicate between the back-end and Plugin. • The Plugin hooks into the Core, Plugin & Theme update API’s to do the actual updates. Plugin Monday, 24 September 12
59. • AMC Story Sync http://www.amctv.com/shows/breaking-bad/ story-sync • Bendy Words http://bendywords.com/demo-board/ • StudioPress http://www.woothemes.com/2011/07/ supportpress/ Others Monday, 24 September 12
60. Done! Monday, 24 September 12
61. Thanks For Listening Monday, 24 September 12
62. Ask Questions Now Or later on twitter @tomwillmot Monday, 24 September 12