The fully hosted version of WordPress.com is getting one of the most extensive updates and announcements. Codenamed Calypso, Automattic, the company governing WordPress.com, rewrote the entire code of the interface in JavaScript and has open-sourced the platform.
WordPress.com is no longer part of the WordPress core, but an administrative interface that connects to it just like other third-party apps. The separated version of new WordPress interface uses REST API for fetching your posts, publishing new ones and uploading photos among its various other interactive functionalities.
Moreover, the WordPress.com now uses a new stack system. Instead of using PHP and MySQL, the developers have switched to futuristic programming languages platforms to ensure speed, convenience, and deliverance. Speaking of speed, what can deliver better performance than web-browsers’ favorite JavaScript and API Calling procedures.
Yes, PHP and SQL have been completely replaced and the new WordPress interface is fully built on JavaScript and infrastructure of API calls. In other words, when you now log on to WordPress.com, your web browser loads a fully working WordPress client that almost entirely runs from your favorite internet browser.
Elaborating this further, the WordPress interface, once it completely loaded from the server, becomes a single page application. So there will be fewer loading screens and faster response. More good news, it will also run flawlessly on your smartphones and tablets as well just like another responsive WordPress website themes. Not to mention, the backend is still accessible, with additional options for hosted and self-hosted blogs.
Finally, we arrive at what everybody is talking about… WordPress.com has gone open source, putting everything on GitHub for developers to access and improve. You can view the code, fork it and reuse, but you must comply with the General Public License (GNU) version 2. Do you feel excited? Well, keep it under control because there is more!
WordPress also offers you a new downloadable Mac app to access the platform, which essentially works like the Slack desktop app. It boosts web technologies and combines it with desktop’s convenience so that you get a highly organized WordPress interface right on your PC, with additional goodies like desktop notifications. If you are on Windows or Linux, don’t lose your heart because WordPress team is working on their apps too.
All said, one question remains… why would Automattic, the company behind WordPress, go through this painful re-coding process of WordPress.com? It is because the competition is getting fairly high and reputed companies are rolling over to JavaScript to power their web-based products. For example, Unity3D introduced a WebGL web player, after the Native Unity web player was opted out by Google.
As you already know, WordPress powers more 25% of the internet and provides you with the best web development feature that no one else has dared to achieve. With the new WordPress.com, bring all the comely feelings back to home. You will feel exactly the same, but with added awesomeness of JavaScript performance running in the background, but it is the core developers, who will get the most out of the new WordPress.com.
