The document outlines best practices for WordPress development, including using child themes to modify existing themes, leveraging WordPress hooks to extend functionality, removing warnings and notices, using core WordPress functions instead of external libraries, and following naming conventions to avoid conflicts. The presentation covers these topics and is intended to help developers work more efficiently and avoid common issues when building with WordPress.

1. Best Practices in
WordPress Development
Presented By:
Maruti Prasad Mohanty
Team CMS
Date: 4th September 2014

2. About Me:
Certifications:
● Microsoft Specialist certification in HTML5 with JavaScript and CSS3
● Vskills WordPress Developer
Stay in touch:
https://www.facebook.com/maruti.mohanty
https://twitter.com/maruti_mohanty
mfsi_marutim
marutim@mindfiresolutions.com

3. Today's Agenda
● About WordPress
● Child theme
● WordPress Hooks
● Removing all warning and notices
● Use WordPress functons and libraries
● Function Naming and declaration

4. Today's Agenda
● About WordPress
● Child theme
● WordPress Hooks
● Removing all warning and notices
● Use WordPress functons and libraries
● Function Naming and declaration

5. About WordPress
WordPress is web software you can use to create a beautiful website or blog.
We like to say that WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.
Says “WordPress.org”
WordPress is the most popular CMS consisting of 23% of the total websites
and 60.7% of the total CMS available.
Says “w3techs.com”

6. About WordPress
List of some popular people, companies using Wordpress:
● Google Ventures
● Sony Music
● The New York Times
● Time
● BBC America
● Tech Crunch
● VanHeusen
● Ebay (Blog)
● Mozilla (Blog)
● Rackspace (Blog)
● Ford
● Justin Timberlake
● Justin Bieber
● Usain Bolt

7. Child Theme
A child theme is a theme that inherits the functionality of another theme, called
the parent theme.
Child themes allow you to modify, or add to the functionality of that parent theme.
A child theme is the best, safest, and easiest way to modify an existing theme,
whether you want to make a few tiny changes or extensive changes.
Instead of modifying the theme files directly, you can create a child theme and
override within.

8. Child Theme
How to Create a Child Theme:
In the child theme directory, create a file called style.css. This is the only file
required to make a child theme. The style sheet must start with the following lines:
/**
* Theme Name: Twenty Fourteen Child
* Description: Twenty Fourteen Child Theme
* Template: twentyfourteen
*/
@import url("../twentyfourteen/style.css");
/**
* Theme Name: Twenty Fourteen Child
* Description: Twenty Fourteen Child Theme
* Template: twentyfourteen
*/
@import url("../twentyfourteen/style.css");

9. Child Theme
Template Files:
functions.php
Unlike style.css, the functions.php of a child theme does not override its
counterpart from the parent. Instead, it is loaded in addition to the
parent’s functions.php. (Specifically, it is loaded right before the parent’s file.)
You can directly override other template files like header.php, footer.php,
single.php, or page.php etc.

10. WordPress Hooks
WordPress hooks are, essentially, triggers of sorts that allow users to, with
short snippets of code, modify areas a WordPress theme or plugin, or add their
own code to various parts of WordPress without modifying the original files.
Hooks can be divided into “Action” and “Filter” hooks, the former allowing for
insertion of custom code at various points and the latter allowing for the
manipulation of various bits of content.

11. WordPress Hooks
Action:
do_action( 'before_signup_form' );
add_action( 'before_signup_form', 'my_function' );
function my_function() {
do_action( 'before_signup_form' );
add_action( 'before_signup_form', 'my_function' );
function my_function() {
// // Codes Codes goes goes here
here
}
}
Filter:
apply_filters( 'excerpt_length', 55 );
add_filter( 'excerpt_length', 'my_function' );
Function my_function() {
apply_filters( 'excerpt_length', 55 );
add_filter( 'excerpt_length', 'my_function' );
Function my_function() {
// Codes goes here
}
// Codes goes here
}

12. Remove All Warning
and Notices
One of the most important files in your WordPress installation is the
wp-config.php file. This file is located in the root of your WordPress file
directory and contains your website's base configuration details, such as
database connection information
define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );
define( 'WP_DEBUG_LOG', false );
define( 'WP_DEBUG', true );
define( 'WP_DEBUG_LOG', false );
WP_DEBUG to true also raises the error reporting level to E_ALL and
activates warnings when deprecated functions or files are used;

13. Use WordPress Functions
and Libraries
Always check if whatever you're trying to do is possible to do it with WordPress core
functions and libraries. That way, your scripts will be less prone to vulnerabilities and
if some appears, they will be fixed by the WordPress core contributors and you won't
have to worry to contact all of your clients.
add_add_image_image_size() size() instead instead of of Tim Tim Thumb Thumb library
library
wp_wp_remote_remote_get() get() and and wp_wp_remote_remote_post() post() instead instead of of cURL
cURL
get_get_template_template_part() part() instead instead of of require() require() or or include()
include()

14. Function Naming
and Declaration
Name collisions occur when a function has the same name as a function that's
already been defined. For example, if in your theme you have a function called
get_the_post_terms() and you install a plugin that have a function with the same
name you will get something like:
Fatal error: Cannot redeclare get_the_post_terms() (previously Fatal error: Cannot redeclare get_the_post_terms() (previously d deecclalarreedd i nin........
So it is advisable to add unique prefixes to your function name inspired from
your theme or project
fufunncctitoionn m mfsfs__ggeet_t_ththee__ppoosst_t_teterrmmss(())

15. Function Naming
and Declaration
Use function_exists()
function_exists approach allows for a child theme to override the function definition
by simply defining the function themselves. Since child theme's functions.php files
load first, then they will define the function first and the parent's definition will not
get loaded.
If ( ! function_exists( 'my_function' ) ) {
If ( ! function_exists( 'my_function' ) ) {
function my__function( ) {
function my__function( ) {
// Code goes here;
}
}
// Code goes here;
}
}

16. References
● http://code.tutsplus.com
● http://code.tutsplus.com/articles/tips-for-best-practices-in-wordpress-development--
cms-20649
● https://wordpress.org

17. Any Question(s)