December 10, 2015 — We talk a lot about all the things you can do with WordPress. But what about what you should do? Let’s talk about making better software design decisions that communicate intent and enable better user and developer experiences.

November 18, 2015 — A common refrain when building software is “think of the user first!” Let’s take a look at how we define our users, how that shapes what we build for them, and what that might mean for the holy grail of a core fields API.

Presentation Slides »

July 11, 2015 — As web developers, there are many considerations we have to make as we develop: for mobile, for responsive, for accessibility. I believe we can approach this in a more robust, positive, and future-proof manner by looking at capabilities rather than concessions. This talk is about shifting and inspiring perceptions, rather than any sort of tutorial.

May 30, 2015 — Questions for WordPress’ core developers, what it’s like to develop WordPress, what’s happening in WordPress’ future, and how you can help out. The panel will consist of:
Helen Hou-Sandi (WordPress Lead Developer)
Mark Jaquith (WordPress Lead Developer)
John Blackbourn (4.1 Release Lead)

May 30, 2015 — A common refrain when building software is “think of the user first!” Let’s take a look at how we define our users, how that shapes what we build for them, and what that might mean for the holy grail of a core API.

November 15, 2014 — In the recent past, the WordPress developer community has been enlightened as to the dangers of query_posts() and embraced new WP_Query(). Now, let’s take a deeper dive into WP_Query and its helpers, WP_Tax_Query, WP_Meta_Query, and WP_Date_Query. From arguments to SQL to hooks, we take a look at how to get just the posts you want.

November 3, 2014 — During a decade spent as a professional musician, Helen discovered web development and then WordPress, and made a primary career switch. While on the surface they sound incongruous, Helen believes that skills she learned and honed as a classical pianist have translated directly to becoming a leader in open source software development. Join Helen as she takes a look at those skills and celebrate alternative paths into WordPress.

October 20, 2014 — Get curious. WordPress 4.0 release lead Helen Hou-Sandí talks about how digging into core and following along in some capacity with what core is doing can help you get things done in more efficient ways, start thinking about how to learn more, as well as write continuously better code.

July 20, 2014 — Keynote from WordCamp Philly 2014.

June 8, 2014 — Helen Hou-Sandi gives a great presentation on the benefits of being an active WordPress contributor, and how even small companies benefit from giving back.