Fixing “Edit with Elementor” and Autoptimize

A regularly reported issue for Autoptimize + Elementor users is that JavaScript optimization breaks the “Edit with Elementor” button in the front-end admin bar. The easiest workaround is to disable the “also optimize for logged in administrators/ editors” option, but below code snippet is more surgical as it will only disable JS optimization, leaving e.g. CSS & Image, which do not impact “Edit with Elementor”, active;

if ( defined( 'ELEMENTOR_VERSION' ) && is_user_logged_in() && current_user_can( 'edit_posts' ) ) {
    add_filter( 'autoptimize_filter_js_noptimize', '__return_true' );
}

When in doubt, you can use the code snippets plugin to safely add this.

Of bugs and workarounds vs. root cause

My father, a retired mechanical engineer and a who’s technical skills, knowledge and passion are a big inspiration for me, always told his colleagues never to quick-fix the problem, but to look for the root cause instead.

Photo by Luis Villasmil on Unsplash

This obviously is true for software as well and remembering this good advice while walking the dogs yesterday evening stopped me from committing a finished workaround for a small bug (notices in the PHP error-log) and got me frantically error-logging left and right to try to identify the root of the problem this morning.

That root cause, as it turned out, was just a misplaced closing round bracket resulting in a combined conditional not executing correctly (I admit something silly like that should have been spotted during testing). Once identified, the fix was easily applied, improving the code and preventing extra workaround code from making things more complex.

So again: thanks dad!

Music from Our Tube: Naima Joris – Bloom (Radiohead)

Bloom (Thom Yorke) - Cover

This is how I “Bloom”…in mourning mode. Again. And again. And again. And again. And again. And again. Guess what keeps me alive…

Naima Joris, Facebook

This is not just a cover of a beautiful song (which I consider one of the best ever by Radiohead), this is so full of emotion, so real, so painful. Naima Joris is a great artist!

The Healing Force from Our Tube: Emanative

Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe (feat. Earl Zinger, Valerie Etienne)

When I heard this on PBB (I think, but it might have been WorldWide FM as well) I thought it was a nice hat tip to spiritual jazz of the sixties & seventies, but it turns out it’s a cover/ remake of a tune that was originally performed by saxophonist Albert Ayler (mostly known as free-jazz saxophonist and protégé of John Coltrane) and written (and sung) by his partner Mary Maria Parks back in 1969.

Albert Ayler - Music is the Healing Force of the Universe

Music from Our Tube: Joan As Police Woman & Tony Allen & Dave Okumu’s Geometry of You

Just when I was starting to get a good old-fashioned cold I heard this on the radio while in the car. It didn’t stop me from going into hibernation for a couple of days, but man what a great tune!

Joan As Police Woman x Tony Allen x Dave Okumu - Geometry Of You