Brent Shepherd –

Brent will be presenting Develop Very Mild Superpowers with Git on Saturday in the Development track

WordPress is my hobby and my profession.

I currently work day-and-night on WooCommerce Subscriptions – the most popular 3rd party extension in the official WooCommerce marketplace. Prior to falling in love with WooCommerce, I worked as a WordPress freelancer developer for clients like Stanford University, Designer Fund and the Australian Government.

I’ve spoken at WordCamp’s in Phoenix, Orlando, Sydney (Australia) and helped co-organise WordCamps in Melbourne and Gold Coast (Australia).

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
I started because of the simplicity & good documentation, I stayed because of the community and ideals.

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
You only live once.

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
WooCommerce!

Do you have any advice for someone looking to start or grow a WordPress based business?
Go to a WordCamp in your area.

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
WordCamps! Are they a resource? If not, the Codex.

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
WordPress is my hobby and profession. There is nothing else.

Josh Leuze –

Josh will be presenting Building Your First Widget on Saturday in the Development track

Josh Leuze is a WordPress developer from Minnesota who loves making themes. He is the author of the popular Meteor Slides plugin.

When not building themes and plugins in his basement, Josh can be found doodling with his kids at the kitchen table, digging in the garden, or pedaling his bike around town.

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
Because of the great community that WordPress has, and the low barrier to entry. The best part about WordPress is that anyone can come in with any level of knowledge, learn as much or as little as they want to, and be able to publish their ideas to the world.

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
I would tell them that WordCamps are open to everyone and that they will get something out of it; whether their goal is to meet some cool new people, start a blog, be motivated to blog more, or build their first theme or plugin.

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
Most of the sites that I work on are nebulous, intangible things that only exist online or for a faraway brick and mortar locations that I’ll never really set foot in.

So it was fun to work on a site with 9seeds for Downtown Container Park, a crazy industrial sculpture / shopping center in Las Vegas, and then actually visit the location during WordCamp Vegas last year. It was surreal to walk though the park and feel the heat off the flame-throwing praying mantis, rather than just experiencing it as a slideshow on my screen!

Do you have any advice for someone looking to start or grow a WordPress based business?
Specialize. Figure out what your strengths are, what you like to do best, and focus on that. Seek out other people who can compliment your skills with their own specializations in other areas.

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
Whenever I want to learn how to do something new with WordPress, the first place I go is WordPress.tv. I love being able to take a mini-WordCamp lunch break and watch a good video from someone who knows what they’re talking about!

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
I’m the webmaster for StarShipSofa, a Hugo award winning podcast that plays lots of awesome science fiction stories.

Joe Casabona –

Joe will be presenting Responsive Design with WordPress on Saturday
in the Development track

Joe Casabona is a web developer, author, and teacher who focuses primarily on WordPress and mobile development. His latest book, Responsive Design with WordPress is out now.

He is also a Yankee fan, plays the drums, and enjoys a fine cigar from time to time. You can find him over at casabona.org .

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
Because it’s generally the best tool for the job!

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
It’s cheap, the talks are great, and the networking is invaluable.

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
I’m currently working on a mobile app for The University of Scranton using AppPresser. Pretty cool!

Do you have any advice for someone looking to start or grow a WordPress based business?
Find your niche and talk to people! The great thing about the WP community is that even though we are all technically competing, we are ready and willing to help each other out!

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
Can I say my book? 🙂

I find myself going to the Codex more than any other resource.

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
I play the drums! Not in a band or anything…but in my apartment!

Joe Dolson –

Joe will be presenting Accessibility Ready: Theming for a larger audience on Saturday in the Development track

Joe Dolson is a WordPress plug-in developer and accessibility consultant. He’s the author of several popular WordPress plug-ins, including WP to Twitter and My Calendar, and works to promote accessible development with WordPress.

He teaches a course at the University of Colorado at Boulder on developing accessibly with WordPress, and works with the WordPress Accessibility task force on the accessibility of WordPress itself.

Joe has been working in marketing and web development since 2001, providing web consulting and development services to clients in the US and in Europe. Joe writes and speaks regularly on important topics in accessible web development and web standards. Keep up with Joe at Joe Dolson Accessible Web Design.

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
WordPress is powerful, flexible, and stable. It’s well documented, has a friendly community, and makes a killer sandwich.

What’s not to like?

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
For $20 you’ll hear a full day of speakers who’ll help you learn everything you need to know about WordPress. Add in some great networking opportunities and lunch, and you should be pretty completely convinced already.

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
In the last few months I’ve significantly increased my time committed to working on WordPress core. What could be better than that?

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
Maybe I’m old fashioned, but 95% of my time is spent either browsing the documentation in the WordPress Codex or browsing source. I don’t think there’s a better resource out there for getting your hands dirty on WordPress.

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
My education is in music. I got my degree in violin performance and composition, and although it’s not how I make my living now, I’m still active as the concertmaster of a community orchestra in Saint Paul.

Brennen Byrne –

Brennen will be presenting Passwords: The Weakest Link in WordPress Security on  Saturday in the Development track

Brennen is the cofounder and CEO of Clef (getclef.com), a replacement for usernames and passwords online. His focus is on making advanced technology accessible to anyone and applying it to everyday use cases. Clef relies on public key cryptography, a standard which developers and security experts have used for years, but is wrapped in a mobile app that makes logging in faster and easier than ever.

Brennen and his team launched Clef in June of 2013, and has grown to power logins on more than 2,500 sites around the web. The New York times described logging in with Clef as “magical” and has been recommended by security experts around the web. After leading the Petition Against Passwords in 2013, Clef has been at the center of the global conversation about the next generation of online security.

Active in the WordPress community, Brennen has spoken about security at WordCamps across the country from Phoenix to Buffalo.

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
I use WordPress because of the community behind it. There is a lot of software that can be used to build sites on the web, but WordPress has become the strongest offering by being inclusive. The result is a platform that is flexible and well supported.

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
You can’t really evaluate WordPress without understanding the community, and WordCamps are the best place to come face to face with a big cross-section of the community. In so many ways, WordPress is the WordCamps.

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
I spend all of my time working on Clef, so I really don’t have an option on this one.

Do you have any advice for someone looking to start or grow a WordPress based business?
Ask for help! There are so many wonderful people who would love to talk to you about the ins and outs of working with WordPress and all you have to do is ask. In many parts of life, people are guarded and secretive, but in WordPress, everyone is willing to help.

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
The WordCamps.

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
I used to be a developer and write a blog called post-technical about the lessons I’ve learned moving from a technical to a business role. There are a lot of exciting opportunities for developers in the world right now, but the technology industry needs people of all different backgrounds to power the next generation of innovation.

Dre Armeda –

Dre will be presenting WordPress End User Security – Kill the Noise on Saturday in the Development track

Dre is US Navy veteran, and the CEO, Co-Founder of Sucuri Inc.

Dre is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu player, Harley enthusiast, and a Chargers fan. He wears many hats, and love tacos. He is infatuated with WordPress, web design, and web security. Dre hopes to make the internet a safer place!

Dre presents at various WordCamps and other events every year. Dre is a proud WordPress contributor and was the lead organizer that brought WordCamp to San Diego.

Dre is the Co-Host of the worlds favorite WordPress podcast,  which airs on Wednesday nights. Pressing all the words!

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
Same reason people breath air. 🙂

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
I would tell them it’s a conference of community, not just software. Build websites, and friendships.

Do you want to learn how to democratize publishing? Do you want to learn how to make the most amazing websites with free software? DO IT!

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
Our Sucuri plugin is my favorite 🙂

Do you have any advice for someone looking to start or grow a WordPress based business?
Partner with people that compliment your weaknesses. Don’t go at it alone. WordPress is more then software, it’s a community. Leverage that community!

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
DradCast!

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
I practice Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Carlson Gracie Team. I started a blog to catalog my journey

George Stephanis –

George will be presenting Moving your Plugin to GitHub: Trials, Tribulations, and Testing on Saturday in the Development track

George Stephanis works for Automattic (makers of WordPress.com) as Team Lead for the Jetpack Pit Crew, helping self-hosted WordPress sites take advantage of the WordPress.com cloud.

He is also a frequent core contributor to the WordPress open-source project, a community organizer, regularly presents at WordCamps, and guests on podcasts like the WPWatercooler and the WP Girlie Show.

Interview:

Why do you use WordPress?
It’s free, both in speech and in beer. The ability of anyone to use WordPress as a fulcrum to launch their content into the world is a tremendous win for the open web and democratizing content across the world.

What would you say to convince someone to attend a WordCamp?
If you use WordPress, it’ll be one of your best weekends all year long. If you don’t use WordPress, come. You’ll be one of us soon enough. 🙂

What is your favorite WordPress project you have worked on recently?
Jetpack or Core. Either one will do.

What is your favorite WordPress-related resource?
I hear Google’s pretty awesome.

Tell us something awesome about yourself that is not WordPress related
When not on the computer, I’m a bit of a luddite. I enjoy letterpress printing, carpentry, and pipes.