A new WordPress update is right around the corner. The new WordPress version 4.0 will be out next month. This is a good time to take a look at your WordPress website. Modern websites require regular updates and improvements. If your site is still stuck back at an early version of WordPress 3.x, maybe now is the time to see about updating.
One of the new updates is with the media manager. Your media is placed in a grid with key information. It will be easier to search and filter your files with this improvement. It’s designed to make it easier and faster to find and select media. Online stores with a bunch of product images will wonder how they ever got along without it.
For the first time in a long time the plugin area will get an update. WordPress wants to make it even easier to find and install plugins. There is a filter at the top for popular or even newest if you want see what developers are creating.
A new feature will be the ability to add media simply by pasting a URL on its own line. We have been able to do this with Youtube, but now other websites like tedTalk and SoundCloud will have the same functionality.
Sites have to be whitelisted by WordPress, so it will be interesting to see all the sites that are listed for this functionality on the release late August.
If you want to install a development site and test it out, download the WordPress 4 beta. If you think you’ve found a bug, make a comment on the WordPress support forums.