LinkedIn Learning Celebrates WordCamp Europe with Three Unlocked Courses

This week thousands of WordPress users, administrators, designers, developers, and contributors are gathering in Paris, France for the annual WordCamp Europe conference (if you don't have a ticket or can't make it to Paris this week, sign up for the livestream and watch all the talks from wherever you happen to be). To celebrate #WCEU and the amazing work the WordPress community does, LinkedIn Learning has unlocked three courses from now until the 24th of June. All you have to do is click the links below and start watching! Here are the courses we've unlocked:

WordPress Essential Training

This was the very first course I created for Lynda.com back in 2011, and it has gone through six full and countless minor revisions since then. WordPress Essential Training has consistently been one of the most popular courses at Lynda.com and continues to be so at LinkedIn Learning.

Watch WordPress Essential Training on LinkedIn Learning now!

Course Description:

"WordPress powers millions of blogs and websites. Learn how to create your own with this powerful publishing platform. Staff author Morten Rand-Hendriksen will help you get the most out of the self-hosted version of WordPress and create feature-rich blogs and websites. Morten explains how to create and publish posts and pages; customize your site with themes, widgets, and custom menus; and extend WordPress even further with plugins. Plus, learn how to get more readers with social media sharing and comments, and how to adjust the settings that keep your site safe and secure."

JavaScript Essential Training

JavaScript is one of the three pillars of front-end web development (the other two being HTML and CSS), and this year I had the privilege of completely rethinking our cornerstone JavaScript Essential Training course. Whether you are just starting to dip your toes into the vast ocean of potential JavaScript offers or just want a better handle on why this scripting language does what it does, this course is for you.

Watch JavaScript Essential Training on LinkedIn Learning now!

Course Description

JavaScript is a scripting language of the web. As the web evolves from a static to a dynamic environment, technology focus is shifting from static markup and styling—frequently handled by content management systems or automated scripts—to dynamic interfaces and advanced interaction. Once seen as optional, JavaScript is now becoming an integral part of the web, infusing every layer with its script. 

Through practical examples and mini-projects, this course helps you build your understanding of JavaScript piece by piece, from core principles like variables, data types, conditionals, and functions through advanced topics including loops, closures, and DOM scripting. Along the way, you will also be introduced to some ES6 and the basics of JavaScript libraries.

WordPress: REST API

In December 2016 WordPress changed in a fundamental way that will have a lasting impact on how we consume content on the web: Every WordPress site in the world got a REST API enabled by default. That means developers are no longer restricted to working within the confines of themes and plugins, and opens the door for WordPress to become a true headless CMS. If all of this sounds like word salad to you, my course WordPress: REST API is just the ticket.

Course Description

Developers can interact remotely with a WordPress site from a client-side or external application by using the WordPress REST API. Using JSON objects, this API allows you to create and send content to a site, request information from a site, update existing content, and even create single page applications on top of WordPress. This course takes a detailed look at putting the WordPress REST API to use, demonstrating the use of routes, endpoints, arguments, requests, responses, and more. Technologies covered include RESTful APIs, JSON, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and AJAX.

Watch WordPress: REST API on LinkedIn Learning now!

Make WordPress Your Next Play!

We chose to unlock WordPress Essential Training, JavaScript Essential Training, and WordPress: REST API because these three courses are all highly relevant to the conference attendees and anyone else interested in WordPress or front-end development. The course unlock applies to everyone whether they are at the conference or not, so take this opportunity to learn something new and see a sampling of the great content we have available at LinkedIn Learning! Also, if you're at WordCamp Europe, make sure to find me on the conference floor. I'm always up for a chat about WordPress, front-end development, information philosophy, dancing, or whatever else is on your mind, and I may even have something cool to give away!

Note: If you don't have a ticket to WordCamp Europe or can't make it to Paris this week, sign up for the livestream and watch all the talks from wherever you happen to be. I'll be talking about CSS Grid Saturday morning, and there are a ton of other talks worth watching. Full schedule and talk descriptions can be found at the WordCamp Europe website.