WordPress 5.6, the final major release planned for 2020, comes out today, on December 8, 2020. It includes a few major features and updates, as well as a huge number of minor enhancements and bug fixes. A few changes have immediate implications for security and compatibility which Ram Gall of Wordfencehas highlighted in this post.
The post is focused on the items that are most likely to cause security issues: application passwords, jQuery library update, automatic version updates, and some others.
This security and maintenance release features 14 bug fixes in addition to 10 security fixes.
WordPress.org already started automatic background updates that do not require you to do anything, but it may take some time for them to get to your website. If it does not update automatically, either do it yourself (and don’t forget to make a full backup first!) or contact Dusk Owl for help.
When you decide on a WordPress theme to use for your website, SEO may not be one of your concerns, but there are a few ways in which the theme can interfere with your SEO efforts:
it can obstruct search engines from fully index your content if links in it were not created with SEO in mind
it can create a messy site structure with badly rewritten URLs; search engines may not be able to figure it out easily and will miss your important content
it can create multiple URLs for the same page that will lead to a duplicate content problem; search engines will randomly split ranks between all indexed URLs, and as a result your your pages will stay buried in search results
Google will not penalize you for any of the above. But those issues could still make your pages less visible and more difficult for customers to find.
Another danger of an unknown theme is a messy site structure. To check if this is an issue, use the “Coverage” report in Google Search Console (Google Search Console >> Index >> Coverage). It will show errors, warnings, and other details about the index status of your website.
Once you chose a SEO-friendly WordPress theme, keep your website in a good shape with a SEO plugin that helps to prepare content for thorough indexing and spot potential issues. All in One SEO Pack and WordPress SEO by Yoast are both good choices and are both free. Their premium versions have more features and offer even more help.
This security and maintenance release features 17 bug fixes in addition to 7 security fixes. Because this is a security release, it is recommended that you update your sites immediately. All versions since WordPress 3.7 have also been updated.
WordPress 5.4.1 is a short-cycle maintenance release. The next major release will be version 5.5.
While WordPress.org already started automatic background updates that do not require you to do anything, it may take some time for them to get to your website. If it does not update automatically today, either do it yourself (and don’t forget to make a full backup first!) or contact Dusk Owl for help.
When you focus on loyalty and treat your customers well, you have a better chance of keeping them with you through thick and thin. This is especially important at the moment, as the world deals with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Once things get back to normal, you’ll want your customers to think of your business as one that looked after them, even though your company was facing challenging times itself.
Over the past few weeks, there was no shortage of creative ways to keep communication open despite the pandemics. So far, I’ve tried Skype, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, almost everything that came pre-installed with my smartphone, and Zoom. And I wish I would give Zoom a try sooner.
The biggest advantage of Zoom is that it only the host of the meeting needs an account. All other participants just click the link for the meeting, download the free Zoom app on prompt from their browser, and they are in.
In case you would like to host your own meetings, Zoom allows up to 100 participants and up to 40 minutes meetings for free. That includes meeting recording, chat, and screen sharing.
For video meetings, Zoom offers several images or your own photo as a backdrop if your place is less presentable than you would like it to be.
So this is how we are going to hold meetings for now, via Zoom. It’s easy to use, but if you would like a little help, here are short and clear instructions for you.
Get in touch with me, lets set the day and time, and I will send you the link for a Zoom meeting!
This update will not happen automatically. You either need to do it yourself (and don’t forget to make a full backup first!) or contact Dusk Owl for help.
This security and maintenance release features 46 fixes and enhancements. Plus, it adds a number of security fixes—see the list below.
WordPress 5.3.1 is a short-cycle maintenance release. The next major release will be version 5.4.
While WordPress.org already started automatic background updates that do not require you to do anything, it may take some time for them to get to your website. If it does not update automatically today, either do it yourself (and don’t forget to make a full backup first!) or contact Dusk Owl for help.
Google Webmasters started a new animated series for anyone who is interested in learning the basics of creating an online presence and the right Google Search tools to help customers find their website.
New episodes will be released every two weeks. Look forward to videos covering topics such as: Do I need a website? How to set goals for your website? Tips for hiring a web developer Tips for hiring an SEO specialist Is my website showing on Google Search? Top 5 things to consider for your website And many more!
