Uniting WordPress YouTubers: Going deep on WordPress Playground on December 4, 2024

Per usual, more notes around the next Uniting WordPress YouTuber call. Thank you to everyone who joined! I used Quill to power most of these high level notes (another continual quest to find the perfect AI notetaker).

Recording

AI summary powered by Quill

Resources:

• Try it out: https://w.org/playground
• Read through the docs to get familiarized.
• Use guides to get started faster.
• Open Issues to share feedback and bugs.
• Explore the step library to speed up making blueprints.
• Read about the overlap with data liberation.

WordPress Playground Features Demonstration

• Playground runs WordPress locally in the browser, eliminating the need for hosting.
• Supports multiple WordPress versions (e.g., 6.5) and PHP versions (e.g., 7.3).
• Allows for easy plugin installation (e.g., Gutenberg, WooCommerce, Hello Dolly).
• Enables testing of WordPress experiments (e.g., block comments).
• Uses “Blueprints” (JSON instructions) to define specific configurations; a visual tool is coming.
• Blueprint gallery on GitHub offers community-contributed setups.
• Features a “Save” function for persistent site storage.
• Supports multisite installations.
• Includes a code editor for developers.
• Allows importing/exporting sites as zip files.
• Enables importing directly from GitHub and exporting as pull requests.
• Can be used to create slide decks (using a suitable theme).
• A plugin embeds Playground on websites as a Gutenberg block.

In Short: Demonstrated extensive functionality including version control, plugin management, content import/export, and various integrations.

Community Use Cases & Feedback

• Used in Swiss and Geneva meetups to teach WordPress testing.
• Used by GatherPress project for demo data.
• Employs Playground for PR previews, recording videos, and testing different languages/content (e.g., Japanese).
• Used to create test environments for video production.
• Users reported issues with stability and memory limitations, especially when installing WooCommerce or with complex tasks.
• Feedback on the tool is actively being sought and implemented.

In Short: Diverse use cases highlighted the tool’s versatility, while also pinpointing areas requiring improvement (stability and memory).

Blueprints & Step Library Discussion

• Blueprints are JSON files defining Playground configurations.
• Step Library provides a drag-and-drop interface for blueprint creation.
• Offers a simplified way to install plugins, themes, and manage site settings.
• Includes pre-packaged steps for common tasks (e.g., deleting posts).
• Blueprints can be used to easily share a site configuration with others.
• Limitations discussed on sharing zip files (requires uploading to a host).
• Potential future improvements involving WordPress.org hosting integration for easier sharing.

In Short: The introduction of the Step Library is a significant step towards simplifying the creation and sharing of Playground configurations.

Future Development & Improvements

• Addressing Playground’s stability issues (database, memory management).
• Development of a browser extension (“Try WordPress”) for site migration.
• Development of importers/exporters for various data formats.
• Improved handling of import failures when incorporating external content.
• Improvements to the user experience with a cleaner UI.
• Exploring better methods for handling large datasets and complex installations.

In Short: Focus on stability improvements, site migration capabilities, and enhanced data handling features.

Conclusions & Next Steps

• WordPress Playground is a powerful tool with wide-ranging applications for content creators and developers.
• User feedback is crucial for further development.
• Stability issues will be addressed within the next 2-3 months.
• Future development includes site migration features and improved data handling.
• Anne will take a sabbatical in February and might run another session in January; Jamie Marsland will take over the “Uniting WordPress YouTubers” series.

In Summary: The meeting successfully showcased the capabilities of WordPress Playground and highlighted its potential for improving workflow for content creators, gathering valuable feedback for future development priorities. The identified stability issues will be addressed soon.