WordPress 2.7 released – What now?
Last night WordPress released version 2.7. They faked me out as on the beta they had a new release candidate so it looked like they would not make the 10th. Wake up this morning and log in and it says WordPress 2.7 is available. Please upgrade now.
The question is should you?
The answer is a rousing absolute DEPENDS.
I know not the answer you were looking for. Here is why.
1. It is NOT a security update so it is not a must do. You should be running 2.6.5 and if you are not then that is a must upgrade.
2. Lots of new features but as previously discussed you may need to make changes to plugins and need to check your theme compatibility.
Because of this you need to check those things before you can make the decision. There is no rush and you can find that information on this post – Are you ready for WordPress 2.7?
Why you should
The new features in 2.7 are the reason that this has been one of the most awaited releases. Just being able to do what I did this am on the beta blog would be worth the effort. Yes I logged in and sew the upgrade message, clicked it, clicked upgrade and a few minutes later it was on the latest version.
Caveat: You should back up first and on my normal blogs I do but did not on that one because it is just there to test and there is nothing on that of value there if it got lost.. It is used just to test alpha and beta version. You should also be doing regular backups anyhow 
There are tons of other new features some of which have been previously covered but to list a few.
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Customizable dashboard
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Automatic plugin installation (not just upgrading)
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Automatic upgrading
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and much more
So now you know why the answer was a great big depends.
Yes you want to upgrade because of the features but….
Not until you have done a bit of homework and allowed time for your favorite theme and plugin authors to make what you like compatible. I will be upgrading my various blogs in the next few days. Today is already spoken for and will let you know what has worked and what has not.
Here is the official WordPress Video walk through.Check out.
As always your questions and comments are welcomed.
Mike Paetzold
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14 comments
Alex on December 11, 2008 at 10:34 am
Hey Mike, great post and I just wrote this morning similar things. Considering that this is Not A Security fix release – planing will be crucial for many!
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Mike on December 11, 2008 at 10:39 am
@Alex -
Oh I agree 110% Alex. Always on the versions but especially on this one as it is the biggest change since 2.3 launched and that raised havoc with a loy of people me included.
Lonnie Minton on December 11, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Mike,
Thanks for the info.
Just found out that my theme is not listed for 2.7.
Don’t know about all my plugins yet. Looks like I will have to do a little research and waiting before I update.
Does the automatic upgrading feature work great or is it still better to do a manual backup?
Lonnie
Lonnie Minton´s last blog post..NewbieChecklist PLR
Chuck Bartok on December 11, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Mike, Is there a better place to watch Video. This one starts and stops a lot.
Also, I never updated to 2.6 Can I still do that?
Fred Lotgering on December 11, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Mike,
With all your comments and exccllent video I think everyone can make an educated decision.
As I run several blogs including some in other languages I need to check even more careful. If you run multiple blogs you better run them all on the same version (unless you like to work in a state of confusion). I have run in some additional issues with themes when running non-english versions, so ecen more to check.
Fred
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Mike on December 11, 2008 at 2:57 pm
@Lonnie Minton -
Always do a manual back up of any themes or stuff that you have changed and the data base backup.
Mike on December 11, 2008 at 2:57 pm
@Chuck Bartok -
Yes you can but do a backup first.
Earl Netwal on December 11, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Thanks for the update Mike, I sure like the idea of the easier plug ins.
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Andre Arnett on December 11, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Wow, Mike this is great. Glad to have you advising as to whether we need to upgrade or nit. Will be spending some time checking this out. Thanks.
Andre Arnett´s last blog post..Do You Know Liz Tomey?
Glenn Seymour on December 11, 2008 at 8:32 pm
Mike,
You have definitely established yourself as the wordpress expert.
Kind Regards
Glenn Seymour
Michelle on December 12, 2008 at 9:28 am
I’m so glad that I backed up everything before doing the upgrade. I have two blogs. One upgraded flawlessly. The other has given me errors. If I hadn’t backed up first, I’d be lost right now. So, backing up your blog is the most important step in the upgrade process. I used to skip that step, but I never will again.
Michelle´s last blog post..It Pays to Know Your Programs
Mike on December 12, 2008 at 10:11 am
@Michelle -
Glad you got the backup. I have upgraded 100’s if not 1000’s of times for clients and myself and only ever needed the backup twice but…
Those 2 times I had it was more than worth the effort of the times I didn’t need it.
Michelle on December 12, 2008 at 10:35 am
@Mike – I’m still trying to determine the trouble. It’s not the plugins. I think it’s the theme I’m using. I’m going to change themes and try again.
Mike on December 12, 2008 at 10:41 am
@Michelle -
switch to default theme first and see if it will run with your plugins, then if that works you will know it is the theme. Also can be the widgets you are using in your sidebar.
If you still have trouble with the default then shut off widgets one at a time and check each time to see if that was the problem to isolate it.