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Courtney Robertson

Courtney Robertson

Developer Relations in Open Source and WordPress

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Who pays when WordPress /random/ becomes the default?

You can want a random post button and question its default. Follow the WordPress record, the community replies and the work a merge gives other people.

drupalMerge Conflicts

How do open source licenses work, and what do they leave out?

An open source license is permission from the people who hold the copyright. Here is what that permission covers, how permissive and copyleft licenses differ, who can change a license, and what no license decides.

free softwareGPL

From GNU to GitHub: what does the history of open source say about who decides?

Seven dated records, from a 1983 Usenet post to the GitHub mirror WordPress keeps today. For each one: what happened, who made the call, and where you can still read it.

free softwareGitHub

Which free does open source promise?

Downloaded WordPress for free and billed a client for the build? You've lived both meanings of free. Here's which one open source promises.

Free as in freedom or free as in beer: which free does open source promise?

Free has two meanings in English, and software licenses care about only one of them. Here is what free as in freedom promises, what it leaves to the price tag, and where WordPress lands.

free as in freedomfree software

What are the four freedoms of open source?

Built a child theme or put WordPress on your fortieth client site? You've used the four freedoms of open source. Here are all four, and what the license doesn't grant.

What are the four freedoms of open source, and where does WordPress use them?

In 2006 I opened a theme folder and could read how the thing worked. That was one of the four freedoms of open source. Here are all four, where WordPress uses each one, and what the license leaves undecided.

four freedomsfree software

Merge Conflicts: what happens when open source governance procedures aren’t written down?

In 2024 I asked who decides, into a microphone. In 2015 I was walked out of a room. Merge Conflicts is my long answer: twelve projects, dated documents, labeled evidence, and my disclosures up front.

communityMerge Conflicts

PHP Security Updates: Node.js, WordPress & Drupal | October 2026

🔥 This is fine. Everything is fine. ☕🐘 October 21, 2026: It's a big day for security patches across open source. Here's what you need to know, straight from the projects: 🐘 PHP: Two critical unauthenticated remote code execution vulnerabilities (CVSS 9.2). Update immediately to PHP 8.5.12, 8.4.27, 8.3.36, or 8.2.35. Official advisory 🟢 Node.js:...

WordPress accessibility remediation: Claude and Checker Pro

WordPress accessibility remediation went faster on my 2008 site once Claude grouped 557 open findings into 16 root causes and fixed each one at its source. It went wrong whenever Claude assumed instead of measuring. On the morning of my talk, the live site showed 779 open findings again. Here's the method, the mistakes, and...

WordPressarticle

Day one at Pantheon: good docs, good company

Today is my first day as a Technical Writer at Pantheon. On August 17, I published a list of the roles I wanted next. Technical writing and documentation were right there. I wanted work that helps people understand software, solve problems, and get back to building. Four weeks later, here we are. Apparently, sometimes the...

documentationNext.js

Even if your voice shakes

Leave safety behind. Put your body on the line. Stand before the people you fear and speak your mind--even if your voice shakes. When you least expect it, someone may actually listen to what you have to say. Well-aimed slingshots can topple giants. Maggie Kuhn