This April the WordPress core developers have been preparing for the release of WordPress 6.0, the second major update of 2022.
The team released 2 beta builds for WordPress 6.0 in April. Before that, WordPress 5.9.3 was released which focused on bug-fixing and maintenance. New releases are not the only thing happening in April. The plugin directory now limits ownership and committer changes on official features and beta plugins.
What’s new in the WordPress community:
1. WordPress 6.0 beta releases and new features
2. WordPress 6.0 walkthrough video by contributors
3. Plugin directory limits ownership and committer changes
4. WordCamp US trial program to facilitate underrepresented speakers
WordPress 6.0: The next major WordPress update
WordPress 6.0 is set to release on the 24th of May. This major update will include approximately 400 updates and 500 bug fixes.
Version 6.0 will come with many enhancements and new features to the theme editor. It will be a lot easier to work with themes. Users will be able to quickly switch theme styles with one click. Moving forward, it will be more simple to export themes along with all the changes users make and apply them to another WordPress site. Next to that, version 6.0 will introduce several new blocks to use in themes and templates. Some of the new blocks include: a comment block, read more block, avatar, post author’s biography and more.
Developers and contributors are still working on the release of WordPress 6.0. There were two beta builds released for testing in April. The first release candidate is expected in early May. For detailed information on WordPress 6.0 beta releases, check out:
WordPress 5.9.3 maintenance release
This release was rolled out on the 5th of April before the 2 beta builds for WordPress 6.0. It is a short-cycle maintenance release, featuring 9 bug fixes in WordPress core and 10 bug fixes in the block editor. For more detail about this release, check out:
A walkthrough of WordPress 6.0 by WordPress contributors
In the second week of April, WordPress hosted this “first-of-its-kind event” via Zoom. Members of the 6.0 release squad and core contributors introduced the major features coming in the next release through a live walkthrough.
More than 120 people joined the broadcast for an interactive Q&A throughout the event. The walkthrough gave viewers a glimpse of the direction of the WordPress project and what contributors have in mind for future iterations and improvements. It was such a success that WordPress will consider making these types of live product demonstrations more frequent.
You can check out the recording of the event on WordPress.tv.
Plugin directory limits ownership and committer changes
On April 15th, plugin review team representative Mika Epstein announced changes for officially recognized featured and beta plugins. With the new rule in place, plugin owners can no longer add or remove committers as well as change ownership.
This change was made to prevent potential exploits in case someone decides to push malicious code. Next to that, the team hopes that this will prevent issues such as a featured plugin being turned into a premium-upsell tool. Of course, plugin owners can still change ownership or commit access, but they must email the plugin review team to do so.
WordCamp US’s trial program to improve diversity and inclusion
WordCamp US (WCUS) is trialing a new program that would connect speakers from underrepresented groups with companies that agree to sponsor their travel and stay costs. This is the organizer’s effort in improving the diverse representation of speakers at WordCamp US.
The organizers recognized that the cost of hotel and travel is the largest barrier that holds underrepresented groups back. While WCUS can’t cover all these costs, the organizers can help by connecting speakers with companies that would like to support them. WordCamp US is calling for interested companies to get in touch so they can sponsor speakers who need financial support.
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