I worked for a $4 hourly rate as a Web Developer. Now, my freelancing brings me 5-figures per month. Here are some of the lessons I learned along the way.

Using AI more and more, especially when I want to research an idea.

RT @igorbenic: I really like extending WooCommerce. So many businesses, so many custom solutions.

Quick solution if you need to use DOMDocument is to replace " with something else such as QUOTE_PLACEHOLDER. Once you get the HTML back, you replace them back.

The attributes change the quotes so they use single one. Example: data-attribute='{"something":. }'. In many cases, it'll be fine and you won't notice an issue. BUT, if a value has a single quote inside of it, it'll close the attribute too soon and JSON will be invalid.

So, DOMDocument decodes all entities, and you can't do anything about it. HTML before loading into it, has ". After has ". Problem: attributes that need " inside because they contain encoded JSON strings.

I really like extending WooCommerce. So many businesses, so many custom solutions.

Should I listen to @aarondfrancis and "just do things" and finally launch this?. It still works 😅. This is the best onboarding I've ever done. To-do: optimize rendering, support more block types and refactor the import of content. Learned InertiaJs with this one.

Time to spin up and finish some of my Laravel hobby projects? :D.

I know that having the Plugin File Edit option in WordPress can be a security issue, but it's so helpful when you need to read the code of some plugins you don't have access to otherwise :).

Doing dumb things with a group of friends, as long as it's not too dangerous or hurtful to others, is a great way to make memories. Teenage years were so great, and even days felt longer :D.

If you're a WordPress developer, you don't need to build a SaaS. A plugin, as an MVP, can be enough to validate your idea pretty quickly. (If it's suitable to be used as one).

I really enjoy coding. I had built an array with data for a calendar. But I had to fill in dates that have no data as well if they're in the same week (Mon-Sun). Just built a simple algo to fill in such dates in the array for easier rendering. No AI, to train grey cells :D.

Let's see how @jameswlepage will achieve that with his team. It might even be a win for other editors as well. Especially in PHP community.

WordPresa Block Editor was a big jump in content editing. Now, integrating AI into WordPress might be another big jump. Due to how big the WordPress ecosystem is, making it work and be extensible will be a big feat. But if done correctly, it might be a huge win for WP.

Not a great handyman, but going into such stores with tools and various resources, brings a similar feeling as when going to computer stores when I was younger.

Just got closure notices about my two plugins regarding EDD for Trademark violations. I guess they might get into tabs and courses for EDD?😅.

RT @Hesamation: "I use AI in a separate window. I don't enjoy Cursor or Windsurf, I can literally feel competence draining out of my finger….

Started noticing something: people try to use AI to code some custom changes on their WordPress site. It fails, and then they come back asking for an expert to do it for them. Accidental positive: They now understand that our job is not as simple as it may seem to some.

XAMPP was peak dev environment.

Coming up with a smart CSS solution can be a rewarding experience. Saves dev time as well.