The Blog
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Fix My Slow Website! Part 3: Plugins
This is part 3 in my series on fixing slow websites. Be sure to check out parts 1 and 2! First off, if you’re following this series as a non-WordPress developer, you might skip out on this particular entry, as it’s very WordPress-oriented. Might I suggest finding something else on the blog? Most WordPress sites…
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Adding a Gravity Forms PayPal Continue URL
Just Get the Plugin Gravity Forms is my go-to plugin for any form-related tasks on WordPress. It does everything. Well, almost everything. Recently, I leveraged it to create an online signup form for Camas Swale Farm’s community-supported agriculture (CSA) program. If you aren’t familiar with CSAs, it’s a way for people to buy into a local farm. Their…
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Fix My Slow Website! Part 2: Optimizing Images
This is part 2 in my series on slow websites, what causes them, and how to fix them. Read part 1 here. Big images are all the rage in web right now. Seems like you can’t turn around without finding high-res hero images and videos. And there’s nothing wrong with these. They generally look great and,…
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Fix My Slow Website! Part 1: Why is my Website Slow?
This is part 1 in my series on slow websites, what causes them, and how to fix them If you ever review a job board for web developers, you’ll see many variations on “my WordPress site is slow, what do I do?” I have got 6 websites. The load speed is very slow. Looking for…
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Capitalize on SEO and appear genuine in 2017: The 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer
Every year, Edelman does a survey of people across the world to determine how much the average person trusts government, business, media and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). 2016 started strong, with respondents showing higher trust levels than at any time since the 2008 recession. However, after a rocky 2016, trust levels have dropped across the board.…
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6 digital resolutions for 2017
New year, new you. Or that’s what I hear. For business owners, the laundry list of resolutions is often inseparable from their business. “Reorganize the filing cabinet.” “Paint the ceiling.” “Be a little more hands-off this year.” While sorting out all the things you want to tackle in 2017, don’t forget about your business’s digital presence!…
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Add Google Fonts to the Divi customizer
Divi is a powerful WordPress theme and page builder from Elegant Themes that allows folks like me to quickly generate modern and professional designs when a custom job just isn’t justified. It’s one of the most popular theme solutions for WordPress out there and offers a lot of customization options. Out of the box, Divi…
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Snapchat group chat, and why you need user research
The latest update to Snapchat includes a feature that has a lot of people excited: group chat. This new feature targets folks who use the app as a primary way of communicating with friends, rather than something like Facebook Messenger, Google Hangouts or traditional text messaging. Like those other apps, users can now set up…
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WordPress 4.7 brings video headers, PDF thumbnails
The WordPress 4.7 update just dropped, and it comes with a variety of great changes. Like most WordPress releases, 4.7 is named after a famous jazz musician. This time around, the WordPress folks celebrate vocalist Sarah Vaughan. Take a listen while you soak in the new features. Justify and underline removed from editor If you’re…
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Getting the most out of Bootstrap, Part 2: Efficiency!
Part 1 of this 2-part series covered compiling CSS extension languages like Sass or LESS. If you haven’t read part 1 and aren’t comfortable with that concept, you’ll want to start there. Rather, if you’re already a pro about compiling your Sass or LESS and want to know how you can start using CSS extension…
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Start a new project and support Eugene Extra Life
One of my big dreams with Sterner Stuff is to use the brand to support causes I’m passionate about. The world has been kind to me, and I’m ready to be kind back. My first foray into that will be channeling some of Sterner Stuff’s revenue to Extra Life, and you can help! Every year,…
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Meeting new projects with arms wide open
To maintain the deep portfolio that large web design firms often have, the staff will ultimately end up with some “9-5ers”. Folks like these probably don’t have the passion shared by their coworkers and, likely, the company owner. And that’s a bummer for you. Nothing against these folks–they get work done just like the next…
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