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18 articles

Development

Building on WordPress: custom blocks, headless front ends with Next.js, and automation.

Headless front ends, plugins and integrations, with the tests and release habits that keep them maintainable. The custom development and plugin pages describe the same work as an engagement.

Not covered yet: plugin dependency design, custom admin settings pages, and block editor accessibility.

  • Brass balance scale weighing a gear-driven server block against a glowing cloud with a chain of subscription coinsDevelopment

    8 min read

    Custom WordPress plugin vs SaaS: how to choose

    Custom WordPress plugin vs SaaS is a procurement choice between maintaining a codebase for your WordPress workflow and depending on a hosted product that already supplies much of it. Choose custom when the workflow is specific enough to justify ongoing engineering.

    • Plugins
    • WordPress
    • Architecture
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  • Miniature desk city where small machines feed glowing tokens into a calculator tower beside an open blank ledgerDevelopment

    8 min read

    AI automation cost for small business: a workflow worksheet

    To estimate AI automation cost for a small business, price one workflow in four layers: setup, recurring cash charges, usage and retries, and staff time for review and maintenance. Then divide the full monthly operating cost by accepted results and compare it with the manual cost of the same volume.

    • AI
    • Automation
    • Small Business
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  • Plugin-shaped blueprint pinned on a drafting table beside sorted blocks and a brass scale weighing a block against coinsDevelopment

    11 min read

    Custom WordPress plugin cost: what to include in the brief

    A useful custom WordPress plugin cost estimate starts with a brief that turns workflows, users, integrations, failure paths, acceptance checks, and ownership into scope.

    • Plugins
    • WordPress
    • Architecture
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  • Steel coin sorter with fixed slots beside a glowing glass brain sorter pausing over an odd-shaped tokenDevelopment

    8 min read

    AI vs rule based automation: when a small business needs AI

    For AI vs rule based automation, use rules when the correct action follows fixed inputs, use AI when the task depends on meaning in messy text, and keep a person involved when a wrong action is costly or hard to reverse. Do not decide from a product label.

    • AI
    • Automation
    • Small Business
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  • Two workbenches building the same content card: on the left custom-cut wooden pieces laid over a field sketch, on the right standard snap-together bricks in purple, yellow and white.Development

    8 min read

    ACF blocks vs native Gutenberg blocks: what to build for a client site

    For most client sites, the ACF blocks vs Gutenberg blocks choice comes down to editor needs, team skills and how much JavaScript you want to own. ACF Blocks reduce custom editor code when ACF fields fit the UI, and v3 can provide inline editing for simple fields.

    • ACF
    • Gutenberg Blocks
    • WordPress
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  • A hand weighing two storage units: a tall cabinet of identical card drawers and a custom shelf with fitted, colour-coded compartments.Development

    8 min read

    WordPress custom tables vs custom post types for plugin data

    For a WordPress custom table vs custom post type decision, use a custom post type when your data behaves like editable WordPress content. Use a custom table when the data is high-volume, query-heavy, or needs typed columns and indexes that match your plugin's access patterns.

    • WordPress
    • Plugins
    • Database
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  • A payment card module slides into a glowing socket on a modular checkout counter, with a matching socket lit on a second counter behind.Development

    8 min read

    WooCommerce payment gateways for the Checkout block: a working integration

    A WooCommerce payment gateway Checkout block integration needs a PHP payment method type and a JavaScript payment method registration. Your existing WC_Payment_Gateway can still process the payment, but the block will not list it until both sides are registered with the same gateway ID.

    • WooCommerce
    • Plugins
    • Payment Gateway
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