Of course if you have modified core files or plugins then upgrading WordPress is always going to be a nightmare, that is why you should never “hack” WordPress or plugin files.

WordPress has had 3 major updates this year with a plethora of new updates and new things to learn.

WordPress 3.1

This version of WordPress introduced the first version of the admin bar, which has essentially made redundant things like edit_post_link() by including a static bar at the top of the screen at all times (unless you have turned it off or it has been disabled!) which has useful links to edit the current post, page, category, custom post type, add new ones, or manage users. this can be added to or managed programmatically, which is great for plugin developers to enable easy links to plugin added functionality.

The other big update with this version was post formats which were an easy way to display different types of posts whether it is a quick Facebook like status update or an in depth article in slightly different ways.

WordPress 3.2

This version was all about optimizing and cleaning up what was already there. And with this fairly major rework of a lot of the core code, they also updated the admin UI.

WordPress Admin, uploads and general page load time now happen a lot faster with the update in requirements to PHP and MYSQL.

WordPress 3.3

The latest and greatest major version update was just released into the wild in December and includes a major revision to the uploading process to incorporate plupload to enable drag and drop uploading to the media uploader.

Wrap Up

All up, WordPress is a much leaner, meaner CMS machine than it was this time last year, with all these new updates and things to learn and adapt to it is no wonder that the many users have been overwhelmed this year.

Early talk for WordPress 3.4 is saying that the focus will be on making it easier for you to make your site look the way you want it to. We will be keeping you updated on the progress of the next version when updates become available.

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Overview

Many changes are in the works with around 150 tickets set to be resolved for WordPress 3.3 In the WordPress trac. Most of the tickets are maintenance / optimization and cleanup Tickets with a few little sweeteners thrown in for god measure.

Plupload

Plupload is pretty much the major ui sweetener in the works for WordPress 3.3 and will completely replace the current media uploader that WordPress uses.

It is a multi platform media uploader and basic management script which can use HTML5, Google gears, Silverlight, Flash, Browserplus or just normal forms! It will mean that the WordPress uploader that is currently in place will become a whole lot more flexible, ditching the flash based uploader currently used in WordPress for a much more robust script capable of pausing / resuming uploads if something fails and providing progress bar support for more than just flash users.

Welcome Screen

This is a generic “Welcome To WordPress” screen which will display only when a user has a) Installed wordpress for the first time, or b) A core upgrade has taken place.

This will be able to give users a little more information about the state of the server that WordPress is sitting on, Some information about what has changed and what WordPress can do for you. This ticket is far from finalised, so details are sketchy, but will not be trying to shove too much information back at the user, but simply to say “Here is what we have, Here is what you have, Now enjoy yourself.”

Behind The Scenes

Under the surface is where the most work will happen in WordPress 3.3, with improvements to the metadata and settings API’s will make writing advanced themes and plugins a little easier, IE7 will be deprecated meaning that the CSS will be able to be a bit leaner, permalinks that consist entirely of /%postname%/ will no longer be a performance hindrance on large sites, Menus may use fly-outs ( sideways Dropdowns ) instead of the click to open different options, these are just the beginning. With around 150 items addressed, features added and bugs squished, it is sure to be another solid release for wordpress.

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