A Novice’s Tale of Crafting a WordPress Gem with Chat GPT

Greetings, tech aficionados! Today, I’m stoked to share the wild ride of transforming a mere idea into my very own WordPress plugin, all thanks to the enchanting assistance of Chat GPT.

Now, I’m no coding virtuoso – just your average Joe with a sprinkling of HTML, CSS, JS, and PHP knowledge. But with the wizardry of AI tools like Google Bard and Chat GPT, I plunged headfirst into the world of coding dreams.

The Quest Begins: Finding a Needle in the Plugin Haystack

Picture this: a WordPress dashboard craving a dash of innovation – a quick note section for the daily hustle. Alas, existing plugins fell short of the mark. Undeterred, I donned the creator’s hat, fueled by the brilliance of Chat GPT.

Step 1: Blueprinting Dreams

Armed with ambition, I spilled my grand vision onto a Word doc. What were the tasks? How should it flow? Breaking it into bite-sized bits, I was ready for the magic.

Step 2: Summoning the AI Wizards

“Chat GPT, be my PHP sage and WordPress sorcerer.” And so, the AI donned the robes, and we embarked on the journey of breaking down my vision into coding poetry.

Step 3: The Dance of Trial and Error

Reality check: not every code snippet danced gracefully. When stumbles occurred, I fed the AI error messages, a collaborative dance of trial, error, and learning. Sometimes Chat GPT aced it, sometimes it was a joint venture with Google.

Step 4: Crafting Elegance through Iteration

Expectations not met? Cue the prompt tweaking, refining the code until it harmonized with my vision. The collaboration with Chat GPT became a symphony of iteration and refinement.

Step 5: Birth of a Plugin

With a code that sang the right tunes, the creation of the plugin awaited. A PHP file, a dash of code, a fitting folder, a zip – and there it was, my newborn plugin, ready for the WordPress world.

How to Craft Your WordPress Symphony:

• Conceptualize: Envision your plugin. What’s its purpose? What magic should it perform?
• Invoke Chat GPT: Throw your prompts, make the AI your coding ally. Be the maestro of your digital orchestra.
• Trial, Error, Learn: Expect hiccups. When the code falters, share the error tales with Chat GPT, learn, and grow.
• Refine and Iterate: If the code doesn’t dance to your tune, tweak the prompts, refine, and iterate. It’s a dance of creativity.
• Plugin Birth: As your code hums a sweet melody, create an empty PHP file, insert the code, save in a matching folder, zip it up – behold, your plugin is born!

A Few Crescendos of Wisdom:

• Basic Coding Ballet: A bit of coding knowledge is your starting position.
• AI, but Not Dependency: AI tools are allies, not crutches. Lean on them but also dance on your coding feet.
• Chop Your Dream into Bits: Break down your grand project into manageable snippets for a harmonious collaboration with Chat GPT.
• Test and Execute: After each coding flourish, test your creation. Make sure it dances as envisioned.
• Security Dance: For security-centric projects, AI tools might not be your partners. Hire a programmer  instead.

Feel the rhythm, fellow creators! Dive into the comments with your questions or tales of coding endeavors. Happy plugin crafting!

You can download the plugin by clicking here. Feel free to modify the code and use this plugin in your websites.

Code of the plugin:

<?php
/*
Plugin Name: Quick Notes by NKM Digital
Description: Display a welcome message, current date and time, and allow users to add and display quick notes on the dashboard page.
Version: 1.0
Author: NKM Digital
*/

// Function to display welcome message, current date and time, and quick notes
function display_welcome_and_notes() {
    $current_user = wp_get_current_user();
    $welcome_message = 'Welcome, ' . $current_user->user_login . '!';

    echo '<div class="dashboard-widget">';
    echo '<h2>' . esc_html($welcome_message) . '</h2>';
    echo '<p>' . date('F j, Y - g:i a') . '</p>';

    // Handle form submission
    handle_notes_submission();

    // Display existing notes
    $existing_notes = get_user_meta($current_user->ID, 'quick_notes', true);
    if (!empty($existing_notes)) {
        echo '<h3>Quick Notes:</h3>';
        echo '<ol>';
        foreach ($existing_notes as $index => $note) {
            echo '<li>' . esc_html($note) . '</li>';
        }
        echo '</ol>';
    }

    // Display the form for adding new notes
    echo '<form method="post">';
    echo '<label for="note">Add a Quick Note:</label><br>';
    echo '<input type="text" id="note" name="note" required>';
    echo '<br><br>';
    echo '<input type="submit" value="Add Note">';
    echo '</form>';

    echo '</div>';
}

// Hook to add the widget to the dashboard
function add_dashboard_widget() {
    wp_add_dashboard_widget(
        'welcome_and_notes_widget',
        'Welcome, Date Time, and Quick Notes',
        'display_welcome_and_notes'
    );
}

// Action to add the dashboard widget
add_action('wp_dashboard_setup', 'add_dashboard_widget');

// Handle form submission
function handle_notes_submission() {
    if ($_SERVER["REQUEST_METHOD"] == "POST" && isset($_POST['note'])) {
        $current_user = wp_get_current_user();
        $note = sanitize_text_field($_POST['note']);

        // Get existing notes and add the new note
        $existing_notes = get_user_meta($current_user->ID, 'quick_notes', true);

        // Ensure $existing_notes is an array
        if (!is_array($existing_notes)) {
            $existing_notes = array();
        }

        $existing_notes[] = $note;

        // Update user meta with the new set of notes
        update_user_meta($current_user->ID, 'quick_notes', $existing_notes);
    }
}

// Action to handle form submission
add_action('admin_post_handle_notes_submission', 'handle_notes_submission');