So it looks like there is a major bug in Wordpress 2.9. Anyone who utilizes the scheduling a post option is well aware of this.

A quick search via Google pulls up the wordpress.org support forum where users, and I think a developer or two, are discussion the problem. It looks like the problem was isolated to the http.php file. The resolution appears to be the following:

Replace

$timeout_ms = (int) ceil( 1000 * $r['timeout'] );

with

$timeout_ms = (int) ceil( 1000 * max($r['timeout'], 1) );

That said, I make no promises as to what this will do to your site/system. If you do opt to attempt to fix your system using this mod you do so at your own risk. It is also important to note this appears to be addressed in Wordpress 2.9.1 RC 1, so you may want to use that version to fix the problem.

I’m having a Wordpress issue… or I think it may be an issue triggered by wordpress.

When Wordpress started to provide new releases I started to notice, well, rather weird behaviors with the performance with my site.  My archives stopped showing up when I attempted to access them.

As of August 27th of this year I will have been blogging for a year.  So, one should have the ability going to the following URL and see all the posts from August of last year:

http://vansantos.com/2008/08/

Again, in theory, this would show all posts from the month of August, 2008.  That is not the case.  The reader/surfer is redirected to the main page of the blog.  It it a huge issue?  No, but it is very – VERY – annoying because I want to be able to access the back information  I also want readers to have access to the information.

Interestingly, this only happens for my archives.  If one goes to the root tag URL, a 404 note is displayed.  The same applies to the root category URL.  I cannot figure it out.

Part of me wonders if this is a .htaccess issue, better known as an Apache configuration file issue, but I cannot find a way to validate my question. I’ve changed the configuration file a number of times this evening but cannot get my desired outcome.

As a recap, this error started once I began to upgrade Wordpress a few months back but I cannot find an indicator that the issue is caused by Wordpress OR by the .htaccess file on my server.

UPDATE

I figured out the issue – it was a config setting with a plugin that I use.   When I updated the plugin a few months back, they added a new field that eliminated the archives (for some reason) and set this “feature” as a default without telling users.  Nice job on their part.

The archives should be working now.

I very well may have missed the news in the last few days, but I was surprised to see that Wordpress 2.8 was released by Wordpress.org. I knew the next version was on the way, I just didn’t know it was this soon.

So, why upgrade?

Having not yet moved through the upgrade process, wordpress 2.8 is said to:

• be faster due to scripting changes
• have theme installation process improvement
• include a widget interface redesign (good, as I felt the last version was subpar)

There are also a number (by number, I mean 180) new features included. Ones that really seem of interest to me are:

• Separate Comments into a separate postbox, from Discussion postbox, on the Edit Post screen
• Allow the dashboard widgets to be arranged in up to four columns
• Allow editing of all plugin files (Woo hoo!)
• Autosave post/page when pressing Control/Command+S
• Give login screen proper iPhone viewport

I’m interested to do the upgrade as the potential increase in speed/usability could be very beneficial, especially if the scripting cut down on processing power. More notes to come…

One thing bloggers and developers want to know is how traffic flows through their site and there could be for a number of reasons for wanting such information.  Is a  new design is working as intended?  Are headlines written in such a way that they illicit interest for your readers?  Why do people “bounce” away from the site?  These are all potential things a blogger would want to know about their site.

Some web stats programs have the ability to provide this information on a limited basis, but very view options are available to bloggers that show the exact path – especially for Wordpress users – so here is one for the Wordpress Community to investigate:  clickstats

clikStats is a plugin that automatically detects the current links within each post and compiles the who,what and when data (of each click) and provides an overview to the publish through his or her dashboard.

A sweet tool for anyone who wants to understand what is/isn’t working on their blog.

Time for another batch of potentially useful Wordpress plugins that are new to the community.  I am currently testing the following items, and have had no major issues thus far, but I cannot yet fully state they are 100% stable.

That out of the way, let’s get to it.

Phpinclude

If you are a PHP developer, I’m guessing you have had the urge to execute code in Wordpress at one point or another.  You can user an iFrame and call your PHP code but that can get a bit… well, it can be a pain to do so over and over.  While other plugins have attempted to execute PHP in the past, they never seemed to work properly – not that they were bad – they just never work right all of the time.  

Enter phpinclude.  

Thus far the plugin has performed flawlessly, and I may finally be able to successfully include PHP into the blog.

WP Post Styling 

This is a very interesting concept, one that I was interested in doing myself, but Joe Dolson got there before I did.  This plugin allows users to add custom styles to be applied to specific pages or posts.  Sweet idea and good execution.

Check them out, give them a try and thank the creators for their efforts.

Last week I wrote about a new service called Twitblogs – essentially a service for Microbloggers that allows posts longer than Twitters 140 character limit.

I had two issue with the service – 1) Why not simply blog, 2) The involvement a person who has what I would consider a questionable background.  

Roger, a member of the Twitblog team contacted me regarding my second point. Sam Sethi, the individual who I was concerned about, has no direct involvement in the technical aspects of the operation.  Furthemore, there is absolutely no password storage of any kind.

While I not sure I see the point of the service – if you want to write more than 140 characters, why don’t you simply blog – I do now feel better about giving TwitBlogs a try.  

I wanted to say thank you to Roger for reaching out to me to address my concerns.

Update: Blogherald wonders some of the same things I did as well…

Wikinvest, an investment website run by “everyday” investors, has created a plugin for blogs that focus on financial information – the Wikinvest Stock Quotes Plugin.  

The plugin will search your post for keywords and suggest potential stock quotes you may want to include in your posts.  For those worried that the plugin will have a mind of its own, fear not, as the plugin does not include any information without your confirmation before the post goes live.

The one thing I do not care for is how the plugin will link back to the Wikinvest site in order to be “a resource of good quality and free content for your readers”  What they are really saying is the Plugin is a way for Wikinvest to create new sources of traffic.

It should would be nice if they had an option to turn that “feature” off.

Unfortunately I have no way of testing the plugin at this point.  When I try to download the file from Wikinvest I obtain an error. Makes me wonder what to expect of the service moving forward…

Just when I gave up hope on finding a Wordpress template that would meet my needs, one came along that was interesting. I tried it but it sitll doesn’t work for me  (not that it’s bad, it actually looks very clean.  

Anyway, developer Arcsin, release a new theme that is worth looking at if you like basic two-column designs.

Here you go – it’s called Emplode.

Quick question for StatsPress Reloaded users – do you find the plugin slows down/chews up CPU power if your log file get’s too large?

As the site contiunes to grow it seems the StatPress Reloaded plugin slows down significantly…

Developers are always releasing new plugins for Wordpress.  As the blogging platform is “alive”, it’s always interesting to see what is hitting the community.  Here are some of the newest, most promising, plugins I’ve found in the last few days.

AutoSuggest Searches

You know how you go to Google and start typing in the search box and suggestions drop down, allowing you to pick from a list of potential results?  Bingo. That is exactly what you have here for your site.  

WordPress Video Solution Framework

Developed by Automattic, the group behind Wordpress, this is a solid release.  This plugin provides a video framework, including a transcoder and  and administration screen.  Note that a significant amount of configuration is required, so if you are not a “technical” person you may want to stay way

Google Custom Search Plugin for Wordpress

Now this is promising (and MUCH needed).  One reason I do not have a search function on the site is due to the poor performance of the built-in search feature.  Wordpress is a blog platform, not a search platform, so why would the development team spend huge amounts of time developing search functionality? Well, this plugin removes the old search and utilizes Google to provide search results to your readers!

I haven’t tested any of these extensions as of yet, so be warned, you may be getting a product that is less than perfect.  From what I’ve see and read, however, they really look to have promise.