WordPress Theme Editor Additions
For those of us, myself included, who are always tweaking WordPress themes from within the WordPress dashboard, there have been a few changes/additions to the WordPress dashboard theme editor.
For those who are not familiar with the theme editor, it shows the themes files which can be directly edited from within the WordPress dashboard. Keep in mind that the proper file permissions may need to be set on the themes folders and files on your sites hosting account for editing within the WP dashboard.
The syntax highlighter is one of the new additions to the theme editor. Enabled by default the syntax highlighting will add line numbers and color highlights to the themes code. For some that are not real familiar or comfortable tweaking code this might be a welcome addition. For the advanced coders this can be an annoyance that can be disabled using the Screen Options tab on the top right of the screen.
Above - Theme editor with syntax highlighting enabled
Above - Enable or disable syntax highlighter
The other useful addition to the theme editor is the php function documentation lookup. I see no way of turning this option off and no real reason anyone would want to. It sits below the theme editor and only appears when a file has certain template tag code in it. Clicking the drop-down arrow next to Documentation will show only the template tags that are within the current file. Choosing a particular tag and clicking the Lookup button will open a new browser window or tab with an explanation of the template tag from the official WordPress.org site. This is a nice addition and a way to learn more about WordPress theme coding.
Above - The php tag documentation lookup
As you can see the guys at WordPress continue to add value to what has become probably the best free CMS available to date.
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Comments
That php tag documentation lookup should be good, i will try it
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Will there will be any problem if i edit word press themes? I just want to try it.
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Jeff Replied:
June 22nd, 2009 at 10:06 am
The whole reason to have a theme editor in the WordPress dashboard is to edit the themes… If you need to ask then… well yes there can be all kinds of problems if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Make a backup of the file before you edit it.
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Cool Gifts Replied:
June 22nd, 2009 at 11:45 pm
Yes. Always important to back up your files before editing. I’ve made that mistake before. It’s not fun.
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Great! That will simplify things for people that love to customize their code or design. Thanks for the update.
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Enabling syntax is very convenient because it eliminates the possibility of a mistake!
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This is a great addition, especially with managing and manipulating Wordpress themes.
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There can be problems if you try to edit files in word press. So it is very advice able to try and make an back up and then carry on with editing and all.
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thank you for showing the code
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The editor seems quite useful. But I think I should be quite efficient in CSS and PHP before jumping into it.
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This is a cool feature. now the editing work would be more convenient
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Thx, i’ve used WP 2.8 for a while but i didn’t know about this feature.
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I think that syntax highlighting is a useful addition, even to advnaced coders. Why would this not be? It simply makes it easier to spot where you should be editing.
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Hey man thanks!! i am using 2.8 WP version sine many days and its quite good… i had no idea about this plug in. If we could edit WP themes is great, i had never heard of such a thing.
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Finaly! I hated having to decipher syntax myself. I was always so pissed that it wasn’t a native function – after all people are used to it!
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Thanks this looks like a nice feature, syntax checking is a really useful tool. Reminds me of my VBA days in Excel!
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Hi Jeff,
I love the new changes on WP 2.8. I can definitely appreciate the php function documentation lookup. So sweet. Thanks for sharing these great highlights.
I appreciate you.
Dali Burgado
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Syntax highlighting has to be my favorite feature of WP 2.8.
Now, if somebody could create a full featured PHP IDE implemented in pure javascript I would bow down in awe!
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Due to some of the plug-ins we use on our blog we’ve been a bit reluctant to upgrade to 2.8. However, I do like the look of the Editor mods the people at Wordpress have been making. We’re pretty new to Wordpress, but from what we’ve seen so far is is a very powerful platform and only seems to be getting better and better.
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It simply makes it easier to spot where you should be editing.
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I do like the look of the Editor mods the people at Word-press have been making. Nice Thanks…
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The only thing that I hate from this new layout feature is the heavy load, since my internet connection not too good these days. But overall, this feature helped us
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This is a great addition. thank you
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The screenshots helped immensely – a lot better than just plain text.
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I’m glad that these theme editor additons can be done from the WordPress dashboard itself. Do other blogging hosts have this kind of feature?
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I suggest to try also follow new free PHP IDE – Codelobster PHP Edition with special WordPress plug-in for autocomplete and context help.
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