dima, Автор в Wanted Magazine

Thinking like an agency: the key to success in web development

Wanted Magazine - Articles by: dima

7.10.23

What requirements do we have for programmers and why?

0 min.

7.10.23

Web development is not only about technical skills, but also about the ability to think broadly, considering business goals and client needs. At our agency, we emphasize this aspect, striving to bring every developer to this level of thinking.

The rather famous book “The Clean Coder” by Robert Martin (Uncle Bob) emphasizes that developers should be professionals, like lawyers or accountants. This means that we should not only write code, but also take responsibility for decisions that can have a significant financial impact on the business. This thought was once the basis for the development of a particular concept within our agency. We actively communicate our “ideology” to every new employee, helping them become not just good, but great developers.

Often developers focus on new technologies, libraries, code testing platforms, etc. This is certainly important and is ‘fresh blood’ for the company, however we also need to think commercially and on behalf of the business and clients we work for. This is a skill that many developers lack, but one that can elevate anyone from being a good developer to being a great one.

It’s important to remember that all websites eventually become obsolete, and sometimes it’s more cost-effective to scrap what you already have and start from scratch. You don’t want to reinvent the wheel when time-tested solutions already exist. Take advantage of the platforms and libraries that already exist.

In conclusion, it’s important to emphasize that developers should evolve with the industry. It’s not just about technical skills, but also the commercial mindset that will help us offer the best value to our team and our clients. At our agency, we strive to ensure that every developer thinks like an agency, and that makes us a better agency.

Thinking like an agency: the key to success in web development

2 min.

7.10.23

Embracing the Future: Why the WordPress 6.3 Shift from PHP 5 to PHP 7 Matters for Web Development

WordPress, one of the most popular website building platforms, is officially dropping support for PHP 5 in the upcoming 6.3 release, which is expected on August 8. The minimum supported version of WordPress was PHP 5.6.20 as of 2019, but this will be updated to 7.0.0 in the next release. The recommended PHP version will remain the same – 7.4+.

This is an important update as PHP is the primary programming language that WordPress runs on. Outdated versions of PHP can pose security risks and degrade the performance of websites. Therefore, web developers and website owners should pay attention to this and update their PHP versions to 7.0.0 or higher.

Sites that remain on PHP 5.6 will not be able to upgrade beyond WordPress 6.2, but they will still receive security updates. Moving to 7.0.0 will bring many benefits to the WordPress ecosystem, including themes and plugins, significantly reduced memory usage for upgraded sites, and better security and improvements to core tools.

It’s important to note that WordPress support for PHP 8.0, 8.1, and 8.2 is rated as “very good” and nearly 26% of WordPress users are already using PHP 8.0+ sites.

At our agency, we are always on the lookout for the latest updates and are ready to help you upgrade your site to the latest versions of WordPress and PHP to maximize performance and security.

Regular update of WordPress plugins: protection from vulnerabilities

Wanted Magazine - Articles by: dima

3.2.23

A process whose importance cannot be underestimated

0 min.

3.2.23

In the world of web development, especially when working with a popular CMS like WordPress, the importance of timely updating plugins to the latest version cannot be overemphasized. Two recent cases involving the MonsterInsights and WPCode plugins underscore this importance.

MonsterInsights, a Google Analytics plugin for WordPress installed on over 3 million sites, was found to have an XSS (Cross-Site Scripting) vulnerability. This vulnerability allows attackers to inject malicious scripts that could lead to the theft of user data or complete site takeover. This vulnerability has been fixed in version 8.14.1.

The second case concerns the WPCode – Insert Headers and Footers plugin installed on more than a million websites. It contained a CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery) vulnerability that allows attackers to delete files on the server. This vulnerability was fixed in version 2.0.9.

Both of these cases emphasize the importance of timely plugin updates. Vulnerabilities can lead to serious consequences, including data loss, site disruption, and even complete takeover. Updating plugins to the latest version is one of the easiest and most effective ways to protect your site from such threats.

At our agency, we always emphasize the importance of this aspect of security and encourage our clients to regularly check and update their plugins, and in specific cases, we set up within CI/CD Flow to automate this process. This not only helps to ensure the security and stability of the site, but also provides access to new features and improvements that are often included in updates.