WCKTM 2017 Stars: An interview with Harshad Mane

Harshad Mane at wcktm 2017

Harshad Mane is a WordPress devotee from Nashik, India. He is a WordPress developer who creates modern and impressive websites. He has been working in the web industry for over 12 years now. He first started as a PHP programmer and soon moved to WordPress development sector. However, he still loves doing both. We got to have a little one-on-one talk session with him at WordCamp Kathmandu 2017.

How did you first get involved with WordPress?

Basically, I came to know about WordPress in 2007, and started using it as a blogging platform. Then slowly I started working with WordPress. I am a PHP developer and seeing the ease of WordPress, like how easily you can create websites and understand codes, I moved my interest to WordPress development. And since 2009, I started working as a WordPress developer and started to do custom coding for overseas clients. So you can say since 2009 I fully started working on WordPress.

What do you like the most about WordCamps?

WordCamps are actually the best place to meet people from around the globe and to network with them. It is a place where you can meet many people who share the same work field as you and have the same passion and love for WordPress. All the like-minded people can meet each other and network together. This is what I like the most about WordCamps.

What do you hope attendees will take away from your talk/workshop?

My talk is mainly focused on developers and it is a technical talk. It’s about unit testing on WordPress. So I hope they will know how you can automate testing. I’ll also differentiate on manual and automatic testing and how automatic testing can ease your task and help you to build a software, plugin or theme.

Why do you think it is important to give back to the community?

I am here attending WordCamp Kathmandu, and only because of WordPress, I was able to come here. WordPress has given me a lot. And it’s my duty and responsibility to give back to the community. Not only me, everyone working with WordPress are blessed with something from WordPress and it’s very important that we all should give back to the community as well.

How do you stay updated on WordPress?

I follow the newsletters and I follow the community forums in wordpress.org. That is how I get notified and I stay updated on WordPress.

What can we find you doing when you’re not WordPressing?

Apart from computer, I don’t do much interesting things. But I love doing mimicry and I love hanging out with my family.

What advices would you give to a new WordPress user?

Attend local meetups and WordCamps to know about the community. Once you get into the community you will have so many opportunities in front of you. Just give it a try.

Could you tell us something about the WordPress community in India?

WordPress community in India is quite amazing but the problem is, WordCamps are not happening very frequently in India. The community is really big, but WordCamps are not that much happening as it should be. But now, slowly and gradually, there are more WordCamps happening in India. This year, we had three WordCamps in the past. There are four more WordCamps scheduled for the future this year: WordCamp Kaanpur, WordCamp Naagpur, WordCamp Ahemdabaad and WordCamp Nashik.

What are your thoughts on the WordPress community of Nepal?

It’s a very big community and I can see so many WordPress enthusiasts here. They have a lot of enthusiasm and passion for WordPress. I met few people from here and I found them very humble. I am loving my time here in Nepal.

WordPress 4.8 is releasing soon. Which feature are you most excited about?

I’ve heard that this new version of WordPress has many new features. I am excited about all of them and not just any particular one.

If you have any questions to ask, you can drop your comments below or you can also find Harshad Mane on his social media like Facebook and Twitter.

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