The first version of WordPress was released in May 27, 2003. Since that time the platform has been through a series of changes and additions that made it more users friendly that offer more and more options for bloggers to use. New versions are released from time to time, but bloggers sometimes forget to update their blogs, which could remain stuck at previous versions. Let’s see what benefits and additions WordPress 3.8.1 brings with.
New Features for Windows and Android
WordPress 3.8.1 is an update that experts recommend to be performed immediately, because it is also a security update. The security team from the company has fixed a few important issues that are security related. The following fixes and additions can be noticed for Windows and Android:
Windows
- The situation in which there is not enough input validation and results in taking the visitors to another website have been solved.
- In a few situations or setups, unsafe PHP unserialization can occur and lead to remote execution of code. The situation is solved by blocking the unserialization.
- Security restrictions that involve uploads of files have been changed to mitigate cross-site scripting.
- Users with author roles who want to make posts like they would be written by somebody else will not be able to do this anymore.
Android
- The statistics load and work faster than before.
- For protecting content, an option called hold PIN lock has been added.
- Users can now activate their teams for their blogs with the new team browser.
- Users can now have access to their media library from Android devices, which can provide better control of content and the creation of awesome galleries.
- The performance of WordPress has been enhanced for Android and various bugs have been fixed.
A Major Release to Fix Urgent Issues
WordPress 3.8.1 is a major release with automatic background updates that is are meant to solve over thirty tickets. Some of the fixes address the changes that twitter made to its API. The modification is responsible for breaking twitter embed links in all installations of WordPress. The most benefits can be enjoyed by users who have much content that involves embedded tweets.
Another issue that has been solved is the one of taxonomy queries in WP_Query. The new admin area that has been designed from version 3.8 had some bugs and now they are fixed. Also, there was a strange bug involving submit buttons that were not working.
Despite the fact that 3.8.1 is a major release, WordPress developers have been able to have very successful results with automatic updates. The latest security patch is meant to help users to avoid security breaches and hacking incidents like the one that happen just a while ago. The only condition for the automatic security patch to work is to have version 3.8 already installed.
A Quick Overview of the Newest Additions
For the dashboard the only four widgets exist now instead of four. The advantage is having a simple, clear, uncluttered and fresh design. The new version looks awesome on the admin side, but people may have to test the new platform with their sites and plugins. It is impossible for a version not to encounter problems with using themes and plugins.
Themes look better and have larger thumbnails, making the browsing and selection experience quicker. Widgets have a better drag and drop interface. A new addition is a click-to-add interface, meant for adding new widgets. The new look of the admin area is elegant, without compromising easiness of reading and navigating.
Another change made to the widgets area is the mixing of different news widgets to make one widget meant only for news. The admin area has a higher contrast than before and gives an impression of more comfort. The change of the interface is similar to the modifications made by Microsoft in Windows 8 compared to Windows 7 and Office 2010 compared to the 2007 version.
WordPress 3.8.1 is a maintenance update for version 3.8 released on 12 December 2013. Fixes have also been performed for the Dashboard design and for the themes admin screen. The update actually comes as a result of more than thirty reports made by different users for specific issues. Just like in any update, users have to make sure they have a backup plan for recovery, in case problems occur after they click the update button.
Roman Sahakov incorporates with Acuity Training Company as an expert of software and technology! Roman tries to reveal the effectiveness of wordpress training for the beginners and show the necessity of having updated knowledge for experienced programmers as well!
