WordPress has been releasing major versions much more regularly lately – and this December saw the release of WP 3.8 “Parker”. This update was a cosmetic one and didn’t include any function updates or deprecate any functions so it’s a relatively safe update for everyone.
Here’s some of the updates in this version:
MP6 Dashboard UI
The whole dashboard has been overhauled with a new look and a responsive look. Here’s an image straight from WordPress.
Dashboard Color Schemes
You can now update the look of your dashboard and admin backend with a simple click in your user profile. You can change the color scheme completely from black and white to red or blue or yellow.
Refined Theme Panel
Most of you don’t have to worry about this as we build a single, custom theme just for you. But, for blog owners who use paid themes instead of a custom-built site, this is a huge improvement.
Normally we recommend that our clients hold off on updates until we can do backups and testing as they are likely to break custom functionality on your website – however since this is an aesthetic upgrade, it’s completely safe for all of you to update your site today.
The next WordPress release is slated for April 15th and should be much more robust with function updates and improvements. We’re crossing our fingers for an improvement to the widgets section. You can find out more about the WP release schedule for 2014 here: https://wordpress.org/about/roadmap/.
If you do need assistance with the update, feel free to call or email Stephen at stephen@meetotm.com and he will get you setup with an update package.