PHP 8.2 End of Life (31 December 2026): How to Upgrade Your WordPress Site Safely
PHP 8.2 stops getting security fixes on 31 December 2026. Which version to move to, what can break, and a step-by-step plan to upgrade WordPress safely.
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Tutorials, pillar guides and build logs on web design, performance and front-end coding. Practical notes from building client sites, written so you can use them on your own. Newest posts first.
Guide
Security
PHP2Shell: The Critical PHP Security Update, Explained in Plain English
PHP2Shell (CVE-2026-109618 and CVE-2026-109619) explained in plain English: what happened, how to check your PHP version, and what to ask your host.
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Build log
Build Log: How I Built the Website QA Tool on This Site
How my free Website QA tool works: a PHP fetcher with SSRF protection, browser-side checks, Lighthouse via PageSpeed Insights, and the bugs I hit.
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Tutorial
A Practical Guide to the PageSpeed Insights API
How to call the PageSpeed Insights API, read the Lighthouse JSON, understand the scores, and avoid the quota, API key and Lighthouse 13 traps.
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Guide
Core Web Vitals Explained for Non-Developers (and What to Fix First)
What LCP, INP and CLS measure, what good looks like, lab vs field data, and the fixes that matter most, explained in plain English with a real example.
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Guide
How I QA a Website Before Handover (My Actual Checklist)
The pre-launch QA checklist I run on every website before handover, from content and forms to SEO, speed and go-live, and the order I run it in.
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Tutorial
Setting Up ads.txt and AdSense on a Static Site
How to add ads.txt and a manual AdSense ad unit to a hand-coded static site, hide empty ad slots, set up consent, and pass the AdSense review.
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Review
Elementor Review: Is Elementor Pro Actually Worth It?
An honest look at the most-installed page builder on the internet — free vs Pro, what the licence really costs, how much of the speed criticism holds up, and exactly who should use something else.
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Review
Breakdance Review: The Elementor Alternative That Doesn't Bloat
Leaner output, forms and popups included instead of paywalled, and a lifetime licence instead of a rental. The catch is the ecosystem — and that matters more than most reviews admit.
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Tutorial
10 Animated CSS Buttons You Can Copy & Paste
Ten interactive, hover-animated buttons — preview each one live, then copy the HTML and CSS with a click. Pure code, no libraries. A hands-on intro to front-end animation.
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