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Right now
The Right Now window retains the majority of the elements used in WordPress 2.6, but in fitting with the new look has been given a makeover. Right Now gives an instant overview of posts, pages, tags and categories along with attached information such as comments. All are linked directly to their full-scale counterpart for a closer inspection if needed. The current theme and number of widgets are both on display, again linked to their full-scale counterpart. This not only informs the user of what theme is in action but gives a direct link to change to an alternative option. Sitting neatly below Right Now is the new-look Recent Comments window which, apart from its obvious upgrade, is essentially the same.

New post
There is no doubt that posting is the lifeblood of any blog and improved productivity in the posting process is a feature that deserves much closer inspection. This is exactly what WordPress 2.7 brings to the table. Hitting Posts reveals the two perennial favourites Add New and Edit. Both are very closely related, but both offer something a little bit different. The Edit option now reveals a selection of post options including the addition of Quick Edit. This is integrated directly into the post and gives users the option to quickly change elements such as the Title, Date, Categories, Tags and Status. Selecting Edit diverts the users back to the standard Edit window. The layout is very much standard fare with all the basic elements such as Add an image, Format text and so on. Where the Edit window does get a makeover is in the Publish options. Status, Visibility and Published on are now all expandable and collapsable. But the big addition here is the Sticky post option, another simple but very effective addition. In fact, we liked this so much, we think that it’s almost worth the upgrade all on its own. Tags has also been tweaked slightly to include ‘Choose from the most popular tags’. This link instantly reveals all previously added tags in a tag cloud, presenting the option to pick and choose at will. This means and end to typing in the same tags over and over again.

Honourable mentions
WordPress 2.7 is a host of tweaks and tune-ups, in fact too many to list every single new addition. However, there are a number of newly included features that we do need to mention. Bulk editing is one feature we must draw attention to. This allows users to mass edit posts. Paginated comments is theme-specific, but if available the user can choose how many comments are displayed on a page. The ability to reply to comments directly from the Dashboard is a definite bonus. Finally, we’ll leave you with the option to add new media without creating a post. Simple, functional, effective, just like the latest version of our favourite blogging tool.

What’s new in WordPress 2.8
AS MUCH AS WE LOVE the new features of WordPress 2.7, it is still obvious that certain aspects of the tool are open to improvement. This is something that has been recognised by the development team. As the WordPress website states “There were dozens of things that got tabled during 2.7 due to time constraints.” The site goes on to mention that “The roadmap for 2.8 hasn’t yet been discussed and released publicly, however you can take a look at the tickets that have been assigned to the 2.8 milestone.” This gives an insight to what users can expect, or might appear in the latest version. These include default shortcodes, Embed support, better UI for post revisions, Widget UI overhaul, GeoData for posts, comments, attachments, duplicate posts and a menu editor to mention but a few. Other personal favourites of Web Designer include CodePress code highlighting for template editing, sitemaps by default, versioning of template edits, simple page ordering and a method for uploading and installing themes directly in the WordPress UI.

On a rather more generic note, WordPress.org has stated that it is “really tackling media handling including audio and video, better tools for plug-in and theme developers, widgets, theme updates, more integrated and contextual help, and easier integration with projects such as BuddyPress and bbPress.” Finally, WordPress 2.8 is set to be released in March 2009 and finalisation of features has already been made. But version 2.9 will be the next milestone, so if you have any suggestions or ideas for the next upgrade then head over to http://wordpress.org/extend/ideas/ and help make it happen.

UPDATE: The beta version of WordPress 2.8 is now available here

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