This document summarizes a WordPress conference presentation about building applications with WordPress. The presenter discussed how to build powerful websites and applications by disabling the front-end, customizing the admin menu, replacing core settings pages, creating custom roles and capabilities, validating and sanitizing fields, understanding and saving data, adding tooltip help, and using dashboard widgets. Examples of applications that can be built include e-commerce, membership, invoicing, and contact managers. The Piklist plugin was highlighted as a tool that can help with many application development tasks in WordPress.

1. Building Applications with
WordPress
Steve Bruner
WordCamp NYC
July 17, 2016

2. Me…Steve Bruner
WordPress Developer 10+ years
Active community member
WordPress NYC Meetup: since August 2008
WordCamp NYC: 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014
Co-Developer of: Piklist [plugin]
Rapid Development Framework
Build powerful websites and applications with WordPress

3. WordCamp NYC 2009
Presented a Contact Manager Theme:
RoloPress

4. Piklist.com

6. Examples
WooCommerce
Easy Digital Downloads
CiviCRM
BuddyPress
Invoicing
Contact Manager
Internal Workflow

8. ....As WP Engine continues its torrid growth amidst strong customer demand, it has to
keep finding ways to deliver world-class support to every customer every day. That
means continually improving existing tools and building new ones – quickly.
“I have a laundry list of about 40
WordPress dev projects just for this quarter,”
Hoanshelt said. “So whenever my team is gearing up for the next one, my Project
Manager jokes, ‘Just Piklist it.’”
Piklist Customer Success: WP Engine
https://piklist.com/case-study/piklist-customer-success-wp-engine/

9. Process
1. Build a minimal viable product (MVP)
2. Measure for user behavior
3. Learn for the next iteration

10. Disable Front-end
Why?
Do you need a theme for your application?
wp-admin is:
Secure
Responsive
Controlled environment

11. Disable Front-end
How?
function my_no_front_end() {
if( !is_admin() ) {
wp_redirect( admin_url() );
exit;
}
}
add_action( 'wp', 'my_no_front_end' );

12. Change Admin Menu
Why?
Does your application need the default WordPress items?
A cleaner admin is easier to navigate.
Don’t make your users work around WordPress.
How?
Plugin: https://wordpress.org/plugins/admin-menu-editor/
Manipulate: global $menu, $submenu;

13. Replace Core Settings Pages
Why?
Do the default settings pages make sense for your application?
A cleaner admin is easier to navigate.

14. Replace Core Settings Pages
How?
Plugin: https://wordpress.org/plugins/admin-menu-editor/
Remove page: remove_submenu_page()
Just hides it. Redirect to your new page.
Add new page: add_submenu_page()
Do not use settings api… saves as a serialized array.
Use update_option()

15. Create Roles and Capabilities
Why?
Usually different than standard blog roles.
How?
Plugin: Members
Members

16. Disable Author Pages
Why?
Employees are now authors.
Don’t need their own pages.
How?
Plugin: Disable Author Pages

17. Custom Post Statuses
Why?
Default statuses may not be appropriate for your application.
e.g. “Publish”, “Draft”, etc.
Examples: “New Order”, “Received”, “Shipped”, etc.
How?
register_post_status()
Registers new post status, but doesn’t change admin UI

18. Validate and Sanitize Fields
Why?
Garbage in… garbage out.
Trust no one.
How?
sanitize_* functions
wp_kses functions
esc_ * functions
Validate with conditionals.
Javascript not as secure as server-side validation

19. Save Empty Fields
Why?
Empty fields are a value.
Makes it easy to loop over data.
Consistency in your object.

20. “If you choose not to
decide, you still have
made a choice”
Rush - Freewill

21. Understand your data
Why?
Make sure it is in a useable format.
You may want to query it.
How?
Save data normally:
One row per field.
Maybe a serialized array is not the best choice?
Name your meta keys something meaningful.
Look in your database…make sure you understand the data.

22. Tooltip Help
Why?
Explain expected field input.
Give users independence.
Fewer support calls.
How?
jQuery UI
CSS

23. Dashboard Widgets
Why?
Provide application overview: Sales, Open Orders, etc.
Tailor to logged in user.
How?
https://codex.wordpress.org/Dashboard_Widgets_API

24. Piklist
piklist.com
Custom post statuses
Field validation and sanitization
Tooltip help
Dashboard widgets
Replace core settings pages
Display fields based on post status/user role
Infinite repeater fields.
Object relationships
Multiple user roles
Widgets and shortcodes
And much more...

25. Twitter: @sbruner
Website: piklist.com