Upgrading from older versions of WordPress is designed to go without a hitch, but depending on the setup and the two versions involved, you may encounter some hangups along the way. For example, if you are upgrading from a version of WordPress older than 3.0, eventually you may encounter the dreaded “Warning! WordPress Encrypts User Cookies” error. This quick DigWP tutorial explains what it is, why it happens, and how to fix the problem asap.

After rocking our site’s previous design for nearly four years, it was time for a refresh. Actually complete overhaul is more like it, a top-to-bottom restructuring and streamlining of DigWP.com.

Going into the redesign, the goal was twofold: 1) visually keep things as focused and clean as possible, and 2) under the hood, unify everything and simplify down to an absolute minimum. As with any eight-year-old website with over 400 posts and integrated e-commerce system, there was an enormous amount of work required to get the job done.

Quick post to announce updates for all DigWP themes, free and exclusive. All of our themes are current with the latest version of WordPress, and include lots of new features, bug fixes, and enhancements. 100% ready for action :)

The free themes are all free and open-source for everyone, and the exclusive themes are included with purchase of Digging Into WordPress. If you own the book, you can log in and download the updated themes in the DigWP Members Area, at your convenience. Now let’s check ’em out..

Theme update! The H5 Starter Theme is all updated and afresh for your theme-building adventures. The previous version of H5 still works great, but there was a lot of room for improvement, especially with all of the new features and functionality made available in recent versions of WordPress. So now the H5 starter theme is better than ever and as always 100% free download for everyone.

Digging Into WordPress update! The book is now current with the latest version of WordPress, 3.8 “Parker”. The Parker update is focused primarily on improving the appearance of the Admin Area, along with the usual blend of bug fixes and enhancements. As with all DigWP updates, the new version is a FREE download for everyone who owns the book.

The new background updates feature in WordPress 3.7 is great for security and productivity, but it can be tricky getting it to work. This post explains how the same technique posted here also worked for enabling background updates.

To celebrate the new design and book update, we’re giving away 5 free PDF copies of Digging Into WordPress and having a Fall Book Sale!

Digging Into WordPress update! Version 3.7 of the book is updated for WordPress 3.6 and 3.7 (beta). As with the previous 10 updates, everyone who owns the book gets the new version for FREE.

Well sort of.. more like a design “refresh” really. DigWP.com launched in May 2009 with its first (brown) design. Then later that year the site was redesigned for the launch of the book. The second (blue/grey) design was well-suited for the site and a natural progression from the first design, and the new design continues along the same path.

Printed books in the house! The new version-3.4 printed books are now available and better than ever, updated for WordPress 3.4 with new content, refreshed graphics, and new features galore. Each book is printed in full-color, with new extra-thick covers and slick spiral binding for laying it flat while reading. These features make the print edition feel solid and durable, like you know you’re reading a well-crafted, quality book. Here are some photos of the new v3.4 books:

Digging Into WordPress version 3.4 is here! The DigWP v3.4 update covers WordPress 3.4 (Green), with new and revised content throughout the book. This is the book’s 10th Edition, making version 3.4 more fluid, focused and current than ever. It’s also a free update to everyone who owns either print or digital versions of the book. Read on for a sneak peek and summary of the book’s features..

Just a heads up! Chris’ awesome All AJAX theme is now updated to version 2.0, featuring a whole slew of great improvements, tweaks, and bug fixes..

Just a quick note: we’re currently updating the book to version 3.4, and will be ordering a fresh batch of printed books soon. In the meantime, we’re setting up a notification list for people who want to know when the new books are back in stock.

Good news! The new version-3.3 printed books are now available. The new books are better than ever, updated for WordPress 3.3 with new content, refreshed graphics, and new features galore. Each book is printed in full-color, with new extra-thick covers and slick spiral binding for laying it flat while reading. These features make the print edition feel really solid and durable, like you know you’re reading a well-crafted, quality book. Here’s a recent photo of the printed version showing how the chapters are color-coded and easy to recognize: