Joseph Dickson

I’m a Web Developer.

I have over ten years of experience designing WordPress themes and plugins for multisite deployments in higher education. View my About Me page for my resume.

KEEP IN TOUCH

Joseph Dickson portrait

Recent Posts

  • Creating a Block Child Theme

    Creating a WordPress Child Theme based on a Block Theme like Twenty Twenty Three only requires two files style.css and theme.json

  • Backup WordPress Using The Linux Terminal

    This process requires a remote webhost running on a Linux distribution such as Ubuntu. Before you begin you’ll need the following information about your server. mysql username, password and database table name Log into your website via SSH Open a new terminal window and run the ssh command above. Server Side Backup storage Once logged […]

  • Creating A Portfolio Website in WordPress Using Custom Post Types

    Presentation begins today at 3 PM PT Download sample plugins referenced during the presentation.

Web Development Projects

  • Block Child Theme

    The Challenge WordPress 6.1 included the new Twenty Twenty Three theme which features new Full Site Editor Block Theme methodology. However, it doesn’t include Open Graph support, Post Types and remove taxonomy labels from archive pages. The Solution Added practical features to a Child Theme improving user experience.

  • Open Graph Protocol

    A simple function running conditional checks delivering relevant information to social media platforms using the Open Graph Protocol.

  • Homepage Redesign

    The Challenge The College wanted to use the full-width capabilities of the WordPress Block Editor. The Solution I created a custom Child Theme breaking the rigid grid of the college’s other landing pages.

  • Pathway Forward

    The Challenge As the COVID-19 pandemic began to normalize the community updates section needed to be replaced with an evergreen landing page leading to news updates and policies in advance of return to campus. The Solution Using the WordPress Block Editor a simple landing page was created featuring call to action cards and buttons for […]

  • COVID-19 Community Updates

    The Challenge With the move to remote learning the campus community needed an at a glance archive to contain all public messages posted during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Solution Using WP_Query I created an accordion system organized by date. This simplified email notifications by providing a common URL for all updates where […]

  • Staff Directory

    The Challenge Human Resources required a simple workflow for adding and removing staff from a public directory. Previously this was accomplished by pasting a shared document into a WordPress page. The Solution I created a no code solution for human resources by creating a Staff Directory Plugin using Custom Post Types and Custom Fields. Each […]