WordCamp Cape Town

“A change is as good as a holiday.”

Or something like that. Either way – we’re changing things up a bit this year and hosting WordCamp Cape Town at a new venue! We’ve used the same venue for the past three years, so it’s about time for something new and different.

So where is WordCamp?

WordCamp Cape Town 2018 will be held at the White Space venue at Red & Yellow.

The address for the venue is:
97 Durham Avenue
Salt River
Cape Town
7925

What does the venue offer?

The White Space offers two great rooms for our Day 1 Workshop tracks (with the larger of two being available for the Day 2 Sessions) as well as an open and comfortable rooftop area, that will be great for breaks. There is also a bar area adjacent which is where we’re having the After Party.

In addition to that, moving venues has helped us to significantly cut down on many of the superfluous costs that came with our previous venue – this has allowed us to use our budget more responsibly and even have a bit of a surplus that we can donate back to WordCamp Central where it can be used to fund other WordCamps that are unable to cover their costs.

Where can we park?

If you know the area around Durham Road, you will know that there is very little street parking around the building. In order to remedy that issue, the venue has opened up the field down the road for us to use as parking.

Here’s a handy map to show you where the parking is in relation to the venue:

Park in the field and you can walk across the playground to the venue.

What time should we arrive?

You mean you have haven’t checked out the schedule yet? Registration is from 8am each day and we’ll kick things off at 9am.

See you there!

Don’t forget to get your tickets for WordCamp Cape Town 2018.

This year, we’re hosting our first ever Contributor Day at WordCamp Cape Town on Saturday, 3 November – the day after WordCamp.

A Contributor Day is a single day, usually connected with a WordCamp, where members of the local WordPress community come together to contribute back to the WordPress project. These contributions range across broad spectrum of areas, all encapsulated in the 18 different contribution teams in the project.

This is not just for developers! At this year’s Contributor Day we’ll work together as a community to help grow WordPress in as many ways as we can – including translating WordPress, writing documentation, writing patches for Core, testing new features, patching WordPress.org itself, helping in the support forums, and many other ways.

Does this sound like something you’d like to do? Sign up here – it’s free and open to all WordCamp attendees.

How do I prepare for Contributor Day?

The preparation you need to do depends on what type of contributions you want to work on, so we’ll include some tailored instructions below. No matter what you plan on doing, however, you will need to join the Making WordPress Slack group.

Join WordPress.org & Slack

All WordPress contributors need to have a WordPress.org profile. If you do not already have one, then you can create one here.

The WordPress project uses Slack as its main real-time communication platform. Everyone involved in contributing to the project is on the Slack group and uses it as the central platform to discuss their work. You can join the Making WordPress Slack group (for free of course) by going to this page and following the quick guide. 

As a bonus, you can also join the local South Africa WordPress community Slack group from the link on this page. This is not required for Contributor Day, but it is a great place to connect with the rest of the WordPress community around the country.

Catch up on Contribution Team News

Each contribution team in the WordPress project, uses their team blog to post updates and keep everyone informed. You can find links to each team’s blog from the central Making WordPress page. Head over there and follow the blogs for the teams that you’re interested in.

Familiarise Yourself with Translations

If you want to help translate WordPress, head over to the Translating WordPress portal and find the locale(s) you would like to contributions translations towards. If you do not see your preferred locale there then follow this guide to request that it be added. You will need to do this at least a few days before the event to make sure that the locale is available for you on the day.

Catch up on the Support Guidelines

If you plan on assisting in the WordPress support forums then it would useful to read up on the Support team’s guide to giving good support.

Read the Documentation

All areas of the WordPress project need good documentation, so if you would like to get involved in improving the documentation for any particular team, then you can review each team’s ‘handbook’ from their site on the Make network. This is also a great way to see what kind of work each team needs done, so that you can get involved in areas where your work will really make a difference.

The Documentation team also has some useful information about how to get involved. Most areas of documentation require you to be given the correct access permission to edit – you can request these permissions in the relevant team’s channel in the Making WordPress Slack group once you have joined there.

Set up a Local Development Environment

For those who plan on contributing with code – whether you will be contributing to WordPress core or WordPress.org (also known as “Meta”) – then you will need a local WordPress development environment. There are a few ways of getting this working depending on your preferred method of local development:

Given how long these installations can take, you will need to get this setup before you arrive for Contributor Day.

• Use the official Vagrant configuration for WordPress core development, Varying Vagrant Vagrants (or “VVV”), by installing the required software and then installing the Vagrant box itself.
• Install the official Docker container, TestPress, by following the instructions on the GitHub repo.
• Setup a local PHP development environment in any way that works for you (e.g XAMPP) and check out the WordPress Core SVN repo.

You’ll also need to review the general guide to contributing to Core, in particular the Introduction to Trac, the WordPress Core bug tracker.

Test the New Core Editor

Gutenberg, the upcoming editor for WordPress Core, is in rapid development. You can help out by installing the plugin and logging issues on the GitHub repo. You can install this plugin on any WordPress website  – whether it’s a local installation or on a server hosted elsewhere. This editor will be officially launched in WordPress Core in v5.0, which is scheduled for release in November. 

Test the Latest Core Features

If you would like to help build WordPress Core, but don’t know how to contribute code (or would rather not do so), then you can help out by testing the upcoming and in development features of WordPress. The Beta Testing guide will show you how to install the Beta Testing plugin. You can do this on any WordPress site – whether it’s a local installation or on a server hosted elsewhere.

Help Build WordPress.org

‘Meta’ is the name given to the WordPress.org website itself, along with its related sites (such as WordCamp.org where you’re reading this). If you have set your WordPress development environment up using the Vagrant method mentioned above, then you can install the complete WordPress.org Meta environment (including SVN repos) from this GitHub repo.

Organise Local Events

We already have an active WordPress community in Cape Town (this event is evidence of that), but we’re always looking for more people to help make our community more exciting and tailored the unique needs of those who attend. If you would like to assist with organising local meetups, hackathons, or even the next WordCamp, then this is a great day to put your hand up and get started with helping to build our local WordPress community.

When & Where is Contributor Day Happening?

Our Contributor Day will be taking place on Saturday, 3 November 2018 – the day after WordCamp. It will not be at the WordCamp venue, but will be held at the offices of NONA, a digital agency who have graciously sponsored their space to us for the day.

The address for the venue is:

Office G3A
The Old Castle Brewery
6 Beach Road
Woodstock

Here it is on Google Maps. Secure parking is available in the complex.

The planned schedule for the day is as follows:

We will kick off at 10am and work on contributions for the day through to 4pm, generally keeping things pretty flexible while we’re working. If you can only make it for part of the day, then that’s not a problem – any time you can give to help improve WordPress is always appreciated.

Over the course of the day you can work on any of the areas of contribution that you like – you do not have to stick with one area and you are welcome to switch to different teams throughout the day. We will have people to help guide you in contributing, so if this is your first time doing so then come along and we’ll help you get started!

Some Useful Links

Related to the above information, here are a few handy links (some already mentioned) that are useful for everyone involved in contributing to WordPress:

• Making WordPress network
• Slack registration
• Core Trac
• Meta Trac
• WordPress Coding Standards
• WordPress Support Forums
• Documentation guide
• Varying Vagrant Vagrants (VVV)
• TestPress
• WordPress Meta Environment for VVV
• Translating WordPress 
• Gutenberg plugin and GitHub repo
  
• Core beta testing guide
  
• WordPress Cape Town meetup group
• WP South Africa site
• Map to Contributor Day venue

Food!

On Monday the 29th of October we will be finalising our catering requirements with our caterer. This includes any special meals for attendees with specific dietary requirements.

This means that if you need a specific meal prepared (eg Halaal, Kosher, Vegetarian, Vegan) you need to book your ticket before the 29th.

If you don’t we can’t guarantee that we will be able to provide for your dietary needs.

A note on food: while we will do our utmost to cater for our attendees needs, please understand that with the wide range of eating habits currently out there (eg wheat free, gluten free, keto) it can make catering for everyone quite a difficult task. We will therefore do our best to cater for your food requirements, focusing on those who can’t eat specific foods for religious or health reasons first, and will do our best to cater for everyone else.

If you are a first time attendee of WordCamp Cape Town, you will  probably want to know what else you can do in and around Cape Town. Well, I hope you have booked an extended stay, because the Mother City really has some amazing gems in her jewel box.

Fortunately the folks over at UNILAD Adventure have compiled a list of the things you can do in and around Cape Town. Take a look at the video below and start planning your trip.

It gives me great pleasure to officially announce the schedule for WordCamp Cape Town 2018.

We had some amazing workshop and talk submissions this year and, like previous years, it was hard to decide who to choose. This process was made even harder due to the fact that we’ve reverted back to 2 workshop tracks instead of 3,  due to the availability of rooms at the White Space venue.

This year our two goals for WordCamp have been diversity and inclusivity.

We’ve tried to maintain a balance of workshops and talks that a wider variety of attendees can benefit from. We’ve also steered clear of specifically ‘non developer’ and/or ‘developer tracks’, mixing the workshops up across the two workshop venues.

The WordPress community in Cape Town supports underrepresented groups in our technology space, and I’m proud to say that this year a larger number of our workshops and talks will be presented by these speakers from these groups. 

So what are you waiting for, get your WordCamp Cape Town Ticket today.

If you’re still on the fence, deciding whether to come to WordCamp this year, I thought I’d share some of the things you can look foward to.

1. We’re holding it in a different venue

For the past three years WordCamp Cape Town has enjoyed the facilities of the River Club, but this year we decided to mix it up a little. This year we have chosen the White Space Venue in Woodstock. We like the fact that it’s closer to the CBD as well as being much more easily accessible via local public transport. It might not have a driving range, but it does have some amazing, close of views of the city, mountain and harbour from the Space Bar.

2. Custom WordPress swag

Because we’re saving on venue and catering costs this year, we can spend a little more on our attendees. This year we’re really thinking out of the box, and each attendee can expect to receive a WordPress branded beach towel and travel mug as WordCamp Swag. Perfect for representing your WordPress love at your local beach hangout or enjoying your favourite hot beverage.

3. Great coffee

We all know Cape Town runs on coffee. One of the big hits last year was the Hetzner sponsored coffee and they’ll be back this year, bigger and better. Make sure you get there early because the queues last year were intense.

4. Youth Camp

WordCamp is about sharing knowledge and celebrating our shared WordPress experiences, but it’s also about introducing new people to WordPress. This year we are holding our first Youth Camp track, that will be running adjacent to the day 2 WordCamp talks. The Youth Camp track aims to teach high schoolers how to use WordPress and is an exciting addition to our programme this year.

5. Contributor day

Every year, WordCamps around the world hold contributor days, where those who are interested in giving back to the WordPress project can do so. So far Cape Town has not had a contributor day, but this year we are excited to add it to our official schedule. Contributor day happens on the Saturday after WordCamp, and is open to all attendees of WordCamp Cape Town.

So there you have it, 5 great reasons to get your WordCamp ticket for this years event. 

We’ve already announced the first half of speakers for this year’s WordCamp Cape Town, and we’re excited to let you know who will be joining them.

So, without further ado, here are the rest of the speakers that you’ll be learning from this year:

Claire Nieuwoudt

Hates writing bios. Loves cats, picnics and her husband. Is happiest when all three loves coincide. Been entrepreneuring since 2012. Delights customers for a living through the making and selling of ties, bow ties and suspenders online. Website: bowtiesandbraces.co.za

Oduor Ken Jagero

Oduor Jagero is the founder and Lead at CMS Africa and CMS Africa Summit. He is the CEO of Koamedia, a company that specializes in web development, domains, and web consultancies. When he is not in tech, he writes. He has written two novels, True Citizen and Ghosts of 1894.

Pascal Birchler

Pascal is a software engineer and WordPress core developer based in Zurich, Switzerland. He’s been working with WordPress for half of his life and is an avid member of the community. Living in a multilingual country, Pascal is passionate about internationalisation and improving this area in WordPress to make the web a better place.

Matt Bush

CTO and Co-founder of Trust My Travel.
Freelance web developer living in Cape Town for the last 13 years and working almost entirely with WordPress.

Jonathan Bossenger

I’m an open source advocate who believes in sustainable business building by equipping my clients with tools that work for their business goals. As a lifelong learner, I’m always finding new projects and skills to refine. I have spoken about several topics at WordCamps, Meetups, and in podcasting including how to contribute to open source and understanding the GPL. I’m also one of co-organisers of the WordPress Cape Town Meetup, work on the Seriously Simple Podcasting plugin, and am an expert at Codeable. When I’m not performing code reviews, you can find me spending time with my children, training Gracie Jiu Jitsu, and mentoring others in the WordPress community.

Chido Warambwa

I am a software developer based in Cape Town passionate about the I.T industry and it’s potential to bring about a positive impact on the world.

I also really enjoy making developer’s lives easier by thinking through current software development standards, and how to best utilize them to allow developers to focus on what they really want to do.

I am a bit of a programming nerd:)

Trisha Cornelius

Trisha Cornelius has been playing with WordPress since she ran away to Costa Rica with her husband at the end of 2009. She has an interest in HTML and CSS, and has written a WordPress plugin, “The Turtle Moves” for her own amusement. Trisha loves the WordPress community and thinks that WordPress is a wonderful way to help people find their voice and share it with the world.

We’ll let this news sink in for a few days and announce the complete WordCamp schedule soon!

Don’t forget to get your tickets for WordCamp Cape Town 2018.