10 Tips for Testing WordPress Themes
A diverse range of WordPress themes are on offer and they include both free and premium categories. Whatever be the type or class of the theme, it should be tested throughout to ensure that no bugs are present. The most popular and the most intelligent process to get a bug-free WordPress theme is to simulate a development environment that helps to nip most of the bugs in their buds. Other than that, there are several other ways in which one can achieve a bug-free WordPress theme. To better understand the procedures and their application areas, it is immensely important to classify the entire development of the WordPress theme into distinct phases. It will help in focussing upon the components more discreetly and also will help to avoid confusion. These phases are as follows
- Initial Setting up of the theme
- Core Development Phase
- Testing and monitoring the final product
Initial Set Up
The initial setting up can be devised and designed in such a way that it reduces the chances of error or bugs to the lowest possible level. Following are some of the things that can be done to ensure that this phase is compact
#1. Use a network (WordPress Multisite)
Developing a network installation might pose some methodological challenges but it is still useful to do so as to insure from the very beginning that the themes work well.
#2. Custom Table Prefix
Apart from equipping the WordPress theme with an extra level of security, what the custom table prefix also does well is that it makes sure that one is not required to hard code database queries. Every coder involved in this processes are so aware of default prefixes such as wp_ that these prefixes can also be looked upon or considered as a de-facto mini password for the database.
#3. Make the debugging information active
What this simply means is an instruction that ?don?t leave your variables undefined?. Keeping these types of undefined variables spread all around might not act as an immediate challenge but will definitely crop up ass problems for future development.
#4. Disable WordPress script concatenation
Handle this feature well and keep an eye on whether your scripts are pulled in separately or not.
#5. Advanced query analysis
The save queries command needs to be set constant so that WordPress saves all the queries performed in a variable and they can be further accessed by printing them whenever it is required.
The setting up phase will have a very less probability of being prone to bugs if the above instructions are followed carefully, and apart from the above one can also follow the following two features so that the phase is complete in terms of checking.
Core Development & Final Testing Phase
This is the phase that a coder enjoys the most and at the same time bears the highest possible risk for errors and bugs to creep in. But all that can be tackled efficiently, if one follows some basic operating principles from the very beginning of the phase, and these principles are as follows:
#6. Don?t keep things pending
Not only starters, but seasoned coders as well often concentrate more on the bigger picture and take a bird?s eye view to the content intricacies. For a WordPress theme coder, undoubtedly the development of the form is of prior importance, but that should not lead to overlooking staff that are vital for successful running of the theme. Therefore coders who are affected by the touch-up syndrome, which means doing the bigger things first and then covering up for the smaller components, should be more careful about doing things as per a well chalked out road map, that incorporates every milestone inside it in a chronology of time rather than ranking it in its relative importance.
#7. Follow a modular approach
It?s very important that an object oriented PHP or the generic philosophy of an object oriented language is used from the beginning. Following this approach will give birth to simple patterns that can act as a back-end for a widget which ensures that the data is saved properly and with the provision of front end code to be added that can work anywhere anytime.
The Modular approach can also be successfully used in writing codes. These code writing mechanisms make the codes clean, easy to trace and maintain in a systematic way.
#8. Using the appropriate tools
This is again a very important thing to consider as the proper choice of tools can always lead to a faster progress, these tools are like Less, Code kit, Snippets, Thumbnail Regeneration, Template hierarchy, Browser development tools and other WordPress knowledge tools.
#9. Testing and follow up
WordPress itself comes with an application called WordPress theme check that is an extremely useful tool to make it sure that the themes developed are as per specifications. It can be applied successfully for following up on parameters like legacy functions, incorrect text domains, hidden files and other required functions and attributes.
Apart from the above checking the following can be applied as and when required
#10. Using Cloud app and Fluffy app
These are so useful to comfortably upload files and to play around with the screenshots. To do the same preparation and playing around with screenshots fluffy app can be used if you are working on the windows.
Bonus Tip ? Keeping a Bug Management workflow in place
Preparing a bug management work flow might seem difficult but can be effectively used as tools of bug management are available all around. You just need to select the proper one.
Apart from all that has been said above it is also important that a version control methodology is put in place with proper documentation of processes followed. Generating the maximum possible viewership for testing and allocation of ample time always prove to be useful as far as testing the final theme is concerned.
Author Bio. :- Priya is a Technical SEO at Hopinfirst, a Real Estate app development company, having a team of best app developers who delivers best Real Estate app solutions mainly on Android and iOS platform. She regularly contributes his knowledge on the blogging sites.
