Bringing together the art and the science of web design, Les James’ session Responsive Design with the Breakpoint Framework will will give you an alternative perspective on responsive design that you won’t get anywhere else. “My approach may not be the best for everyone but can serve as inspiration on how creative problem solving can be used to make responsive web design easier.”

Having begun his career in photography and print design, Les takes a visual perspective to web design. When asked why he thinks about WordPress as a web design platform, Les reponded “WordPress is great for a certain type of site but not everything. If the project is simple I like using a static site generator like Jekyll. If the site requires any kind of user authentication then I’m turning to Django. WordPress does fill a nice middle ground though because it’s easy to get up and running and is quick to add custom post types and fields. Templating isn’t as elegant as Django but WordPress’ documentation and community support is excellent.”

If you plan to attend Les’ session you can check out the framework early by downloading it from Github  https://github.com/lesjames/Breakpoint.

Attend this session and get even more WordPress awesomeness at WordCamp Raleigh 2012 on Nov 3-4. Tickets are only $40 and you can register online now!

Amy Hendrix has become a WordPress core contributor and developer specializing in custom theme and plugin development. In her free time, she enjoys “fencing and searching for the perfect beer/cheese pairing”. She believes that if she can do WordPress, then so can you. Her presentation at the WordCamp Raleigh event is for anyone who loves WordPress, but who does not realize how much they can contribute and how involved they can be in building the community of WordPress – no matter their background or interest.

“The WP community isn’t just about developers; designers, writers, event organizers, support volunteers, and testers are every bit important to making WP as good as it is,” says Amy. She says that WordPress has a ton of resources for those who want to learn more or build other skills, unlike closed platforms. At the same time, the tools are easy to use and distraction-free for others who do not wish to get involved in the functionality.

During her session, you can ask Amy more about her favorite plugin, which she says has made her look at what she could do with sites differently than she did before. She explains that this plugin “makes it incredibly easy to build any kind of relationships you want between different kinds of data.”

Amy wants to empower everyone to take a more active role in the WordPress world. Anyone who comes to WordCamp is already taking the first step in becoming a community member exclaims Amy. “A lot of people are afraid to even get started because they think they aren’t good enough to try, including some people who are way, way better at this stuff than I am! But just by taking the very first step, whether it’s helping someone in the support forums, learning to improve on some sample code instead of just copying it – and then sharing that as your own first plugin, or learning to fix something as small as a typo in core, can improve your own skills just as much as it improves WordPress.”

Attend this session and get even more WordPress awesomeness at WordCamp Raleigh 2012 on Nov 3-4. Tickets are only $40 and you can register online now!

A better way to managing and track software over the lifetime of the development process is at the top of list in this WordCamp Raleigh 2012 session Using Git with WordPress by Glenn Ansley. This session will cover the purpose, benefits, basic usage, and common workflows particular to using Git in a variety of WordPress environments.

Glenn, a plugin developer with iThemes, has spent the better part of the last decade creating custom solutions for WordPress. “I think the WordPress hook API is the key to its success and a WordPress developer’s greatest asset. The hook API makes plugins and themes possible.”, Glenn states. “WordPress stands out when compared to other CMS software because of the extendibility of its core features, the easy installation / upgrade process, and the awesome community that supports it. I am convinced that WordPress would not be as popular as it is without the actions and filters found in its hook API.”

Attendees at Glenn’s session gain an introductory knowledge of Git, examples of how to use Git with WordPress development, and a ton of resources to reference once they get back to their computers.

Attend this session and get even more WordPress awesomeness at WordCamp Raleigh 2012 on Nov 3-4. Tickets are only $40 and you can register online now!

Is your WordPress site secure?  Learn about the ins and outs of WordPress security when you attend Michael McNeill’s session WordPress Security: No Nonsense Edition. “The focus will be on web security and WordPress and how they work with and against each other on the internet. WordPress security is a growing problem and this information can’t get into the hands of users fast enough.”, Michael said.

Michael is the owner of Connected Site Solutions, works for Digital Strategy Solutions, and is a student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “My favorite WordPress features are the tiny things that make WordPress so user friendly, from both the developer and user standpoint.” he recently explained. “As a developer if I build a plugin, I don’t have to worry about validation, since WordPress takes care of it for you. And as a user, if I want to write a blog post from the WYSIWYG editor, I can select the distraction free editor and write away, with much less clutter than the normal edit post page.”

Michael feels that WordPress Security is an extremely important topic that many developers and users pass over in their normal routines. “My session will detail the best practices for securing WordPress and the risks of not doing so.”

Attend this session and get even more WordPress awesomeness at WordCamp Raleigh 2012 on Nov 3-4. Tickets are only $40 and you can register online now!

As a recent graduate of North Carolina State College of Design, Jonathan Stephens takes typography on a serious level in life and in his session Typography:Internet::Butter:Southern Cooking. He has worked on projects for a variety of clients ranging from National Geographic to the African Leaders Malaria Alliance. Using his education and personal experiences, he fills an important roll at Smashing Boxes; an agency providing mobile and web solutions for businesses.

Jonathan acknowledges WordPress as one of the best platforms for websites. He states how “clients typically have an easier time understanding and maneuvering through admin…easing the designers/developers worrying minds about messing up the website.”

Jonathan’s experience as a designer has helped him expose a vital element in communications that a majority of people overlook. Web design is 95% typography. This session will interpret, analyze, and find solutions to frequent typographic errors. Become part of a movement and understand the importance of effective communication through typography.

Attend this session and get even more WordPress awesomeness at WordCamp Raleigh 2012 on Nov 3-4. Tickets are only $40 and you can register online now!