“WordPress would work so much better if it just had this one plugin…”

We have built several WordPress plugins either by scratch, modifying another plugin or with the help of other designers. As we have a large community of WordPress users on this blog I thought it might be interesting to create a weekly call out for WordPress Plugin Requests.

Do you have any WordPress plugin requests?

Last weeks plugin requests were…

• The ability to have a recurring post option.
• A single sign on between WordPress and laconica.
• A plugin that can turn WordPress into a Pligg-style voting site.
• A plugin to change the background of each post based on the author.

I am currently working on the background for each post based on the author. If you would like to build one then leave a comment so we know you are working on it.

While most tourists in Beijing make an effort to see the Great Wall of China, they’re probably not as happy to be stuck behind the Great Firewall of China. As you know, the Chinese government has a habit of blocking out certain websites and certain online content, so when you visit their country, you may not be able to access some of your favorite websites. There is a way around this, however.

Seemingly available only during the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games is this device called the Freedom Stick. It is basically a USB dongle that you can plug into any computer and if you run the software housed within, it will allow you to surf the web to your heart’s delight without restriction. This dongle has been preloaded with all the traffic routing software you’ll need to get around (or through) the Great Firewall of China.

The Freedom Stick retails for about $30. For more information, check out the official website. Interestingly, the developer of the product is apparently based out out of Germany. I guess he knows a thing or two about breaking down a wall.

Congratulations to this weeks geek Matt. This weeks audio questions are…

1.  What Star Trek character is this?

2. What Star Trek character is this?

3. What Star Trek character is this?

4. What Star Trek character is this?

5. What Star Trek character is this?

Last week we worked on optimizing our HTML to increase the speed of downloads. This week we will be discussing techniques to do split testing. If you are doing advertising or a new site design then doing split testing can increase your conversions by finding the best solution for your own site visitors.

These are a few of the methods you can use to do split testing…

JavaScript Split Testing

<script type=”text/javascript”>
    var randomnumber = Math.random();
    if (randomnumber < .5){
        //version 1 of your code goes here
    } else {
        //version 2 of your code goes here
    }
</script>

PHP Split Testing

<?php $randomnumber = rand( 1, 100 ); ?>
<?php if( $randomnumber > 50 ){ ?>
<!– version 1 of your code goes here –>
<?php } else { ?>
<!– version 2 of your code goes here –>
<?php } ?>

You can also do split testing with ads on your WordPress blog using a plugin.

If you plan on doing a new site design or want to improve your conversion of your ads then some simple split testing will help you create the best choice for your site and visitors.

If you get stuck let me know in the comments.

A cartoon created by artist Randy Glasbergen.

If you have an idea for a future comic or would like to submit your own BlueFur cartoon let us know in a comment.

Darren Barefoot has a very interesting discussion on the nature of making money in the new economy. This relates not only to music labels, but also to the growing video game market and other ways to make money as well. It used to be unfathomable to get 100,000 people to watch your indie film. Now, YouTube makes that (relatively) easy.

Carl Nelson finds himself reliving his childhood in Japan. While he hasn’t really gotten into Street Fighter since 1997, he couldn’t help but play Street Fighter IV in a Tokyo arcade. He fares fine against the computer opponents, but let’s just say that’s not so lucky against a human opponent.

InvestorBlogger poses a very interesting question when it comes to finance blogs. Should I blog about my own finances? It’s one thing to give advice and insight into how to handle your money, but how much do you need to reveal of yourself to gain credibility and an audience?

Bob Buskirk grew tired of the aging MistyLook theme, so he went out and got himself a new blog layout courtesy of Nate Whitehill and Unique Blog Designs. The new look certainly is easy on the eyes, but I personally think that he is overdoing the white space. The Bob caricature is pretty cool though.

Derek Semmler found himself in the middle of a very uncomfortable conversation involving his wife, his son, and certain kinds of “adult” websites on his computer. Yup, it’s Kitty Cannon and the great porn fiasco. How do you deal with your kids and pornography?