If you are just learning how to code, or are a seasoned developer, there are some important habits that will serve you well during your WordPress development career. Beyond the high-level approach of Stephen Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, this presentation will walk you through 7 practical things you can do to become a better and more effective WordPress developer. The concepts presented will be accompanied with action steps and follow up resources so you can start becoming a better developer right away. Presentation given at WordCamp Atlanta 2014: http://2014.atlanta.wordcamp.org/session/7-habits-of-highly-effective-wordpress-developers/

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2. 7 Habits of Highly Effective7 Habits of Highly Effective
WordPress DevelopersWordPress Developers
Micah Wood - @wpscholar - http://micahwood.me

3. Habit 1: Constantly LearningHabit 1: Constantly Learning
Learn – to gain or acquire knowledge of
or skill in (something) by:
1) study,
2) experience, or
3) being taught

4. Make a Plan
● Determine your specialty
● Identify your shortcomings
● Consider your options
● Prioritize your approach
● Schedule your studies

5. Habit 2: Being ConsistentHabit 2: Being Consistent
The average developer spends 90%
of their time reading code. If your
code isn't readable, you are just
wasting your own time.

6. Writing Readable CodeWriting Readable Code
● WordPress Coding Standards
● Naming
● Code Organization
● Single Responsibility Principle

7. Habit 3: Using Debugging ToolsHabit 3: Using Debugging Tools
“Everyone knows that debugging is
twice as hard as writing a program in
the first place. So if you are as clever
as you can be when you write it, how
will you ever debug it?”
– Brian Kernighan

8. Debugging in PHPDebugging in PHP
● var_dump();
● WP_DEBUG – enables reporting of all errors
● WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY – display errors on
screen
● WP_DEBUG_LOG – log errors to file
● Xdebug

9. Debugging in JavaScriptDebugging in JavaScript
● console.log();
● SCRIPT_DEBUG
● JS Hint
● Chrome Developer Tools, Firebug
● JetBrains Chrome Extension
(for PHPStorm)

10. Habit 4: Creating and Running TestsHabit 4: Creating and Running Tests
A programmer’s wife tells him: “Go to
the store. Pick up a loaf of bread. If
they have eggs, get a dozen.” The
programmer returns with 12 loaves of
bread.

11. Types of TestingTypes of Testing
● Unit Testing
● Integration Testing
● Regression Testing
● Usability Testing

12. Habit 5: Reusing CodeHabit 5: Reusing Code
● Reusability Principles
– Simple
– Modular
– Extensible
● Documentation
● Referencing vs Forking

13. Habit 6: Automating TasksHabit 6: Automating Tasks
“The first rule of any technology used in
a business is that automation applied to
an efficient operation will magnify the
efficiency. The second is that
automation applied to an inefficient
operation will magnify the inefficiency.”
– Bill Gates

14. Automation ToolsAutomation Tools
● Vagrant
● WP-CLI
● Grunt / Gulp
● GitHub / BitBucket Webhooks
● Ansible
● Capistrano
● Third Party: Deploy HQ, Beanstalk

15. Habit 7: CollaboratingHabit 7: Collaborating
● Ask questions
● Share your code
● Contribute to a project
● Pair programming

16. Any Questions?Any Questions?