Can ChatGPT Construct a Helpful WordPress Plugin That Truly Works?

Can AI flip non-coders into professional WordPress plugin builders? To seek out out, we requested ChatGPT to construct a customized WordPress plugin from scratch after which had our crack staff of builders study the code…

AI is the world’s hottest two-letter phrase proper now. With all of the current information headlines about whether or not AI will take our jobs away, we wished to know… can ChatGPT truly develop a practical and helpful WordPress plugin with out having to put in writing code from scratch? And does the plugin meet finest coding practices?

Luckily, WPMU DEV builds a number of the most strong WordPress plugins on the earth, so we have now loads of knowledgeable WordPress plugin builders who can put ChatGPT to the take a look at.

In reality, for those who take a stroll round our firm’s digital corridors, you may’t assist however stumble upon WordPress coders and builders. It appears everybody round right here can have a look at a WordPress plugin and see PHP the best way Neo sees the Matrix’s digital rain code.

What PHP code appears wish to skilled WordPress plugin builders. Supply: Giphy.com

Everybody, that’s …besides me!

I’m only a weblog author with no coding expertise and a burning want so as to add “immediate engineer” to my CV.

So, on this put up, we’ll discover tips on how to leverage the facility of ChatGPT to construct a easy customized WordPress plugin shortly and securely, even for those who lack intensive coding expertise.

We’ll do that by:

1) Asking ChatGPT to generate the code for a helpful plugin that we are able to take a look at, and

2) Working the code generated by ChatGPT previous our staff {of professional} plugin builders to allow them to overview it and supply their sincere suggestions.

We’ll cowl the next:

Step 1 – Outline the Plugin’s Performance
Step 2 – Generate Code Snippets with ChatGPT
Step 3 – Take a look at the Customized Plugin
Suggestions from Our Skilled Plugin Builders
Can ChatGPT Flip You Right into a WordPress Plugin Developer?

Step 1 – Outline the Plugin’s Performance

Earlier than utilizing ChatGPT to generate code, we have to have a transparent understanding of the performance we would like our plugin to supply.

This begins by outlining the particular options, actions, or modifications we’ll need to obtain with our plugin. It will then assist us generate correct prompts for ChatGPT and be certain that our AI-generated code aligns with our desired outcomes.

Step 2 – Generate Code Snippets with ChatGPT

To generate our code snippets utilizing ChatGPT, we’ll preserve issues easy (and free) and use the freely out there interface supplied by OpenAI.

Take #1…

Observe: My first try at utilizing ChatGPT to create a WordPress plugin from scratch was manner too bold. I requested ChatGPT to construct me a easy WordPress time-travel dummy textual content producing plugin, utilizing the immediate beneath…

This immediate will certainly kick ChatGPT’s WordPress plugin growth tyres.

As somebody who spends plenty of time writing WordPress tutorials, I typically want dummy content material to check plugins, create screenshots, and so forth.

So, I believed it will be nice to mannequin my AI-generated dummy content material plugin on a plugin I typically use referred to as FakerPress.

ChatGPT pushed again on my request and let me know that creating a totally practical WordPress plugin with all of the options I requested was past the scope of a single response.

Nonetheless, it did provide to supply me with a primary template, information me on tips on how to implement a number of the options I discussed, and even gave me directions on tips on how to create a plugin listing and file…

Mmm…possibly my first try at making a WordPress plugin was too bold!

At first, ChatGPT output code that seemed fairly spectacular…

To somebody who is aware of ‘zip’ about coding, the above code snippet positive appears spectacular!

ChatGPT additionally output all the extra code required to finish the subsequent steps.

Missing coding expertise, I relied on ChatGPT to information me by every step of the plugin growth course of.

With the plugin code output, the subsequent step was to add the plugin to my take a look at web site and take a look at it to ensure it really works.

Step 3 – Take a look at The Customized Plugin

After importing the folder containing the plugin code to the wp-content > plugins listing of my take a look at web site and activating it contained in the Plugins display…

And now for the second we’ve all been ready for [drumroll]…I acquired a deadly error!

What an anticlimax…the bottom level of my WordPress plugin growth profession!

Assuming that possibly I didn’t add the extra snippets that ChatGPT supplied accurately, I went again and requested for all of the code to be supplied as a single file that I might merely copy and paste to overwrite and replace the uploaded plugin file…

Why couldn’t it simply have given me your complete copy and paste code the primary time?

There was plenty of code to output, so each time the method got here to a standstill, I instructed ChatGPT to proceed…

ChatGPT typically simply wants slightly mild encouragement to maintain going.

After repeating this course of a number of occasions, ChatGPT output your complete code and even supplied some useful info.

After ready an entire 2 minutes…ChatGPT lastly output the entire plugin code!

I uploaded the plugin file with the brand new code to my take a look at web site, then jumped into the location’s admin space and activated the plugin.

It labored! Or, so it appeared.

ChatGPT gave the plugin its personal menu merchandise…

ChatGPT created all this!

And a settings display with a lot of fancy bins and fields…

Seems to be spectacular…however will it work?

However I couldn’t see a area to specify what number of posts or pages to create, so I merely ticked some bins, entered some values, and clicked on the “Save Adjustments” button to see what occurs.

And now, for the second of fact…

And…completely nothing occurred!

The latest lowest level of my WordPress plugin growth profession…a plugin that does nothing!

My fancy-ass plugin was all make-believe, identical to a kind of youngsters’s playground spaceships that’s stuffed with ineffective knobs you may flip and buttons you may press whereas pretending to be flying in outer area.

So, I reached out to considered one of our builders by way of Slack and requested them to have a look at the plugin file.

A few of the feedback that got here again included the next:

“The plugin tries to generate random content material on every admin web page load”
“It calls a operate dummy_content_generator_generate_content_paragraphs which, in flip, makes an attempt to name dummy_content_generator_get_random_paragraph for each paragraph it tries to generate. The issue is that there isn’t any dummy_content_generator_get_random_paragraph operate.
“The web page hundreds to a degree, then it errors out as a result of there’s extra lacking stuff”
“Apart from all of the talked about points, there’s no validation in any respect, and no escaping of the output, which is horrible”
“By way of having one thing as place to begin, it is a very, very poor one. By way of having a working plugin, that is nowhere close to that”

After some forwards and backwards discussions , it was deemed that there was rather a lot improper with the plugin, that it will take plenty of work to repair it, and so they prompt I scrap the mission.

At this level, nonetheless, I used to be too invested in my mission to easily abandon all the pieces and quit. Recalling Sir Winston Churchill’s well-known phrases (“Fetch me one other brandy” “By no means give in, by no means give in, by no means, by no means, by no means…”), I made a decision it was time for…

Take #2…

Okay, so my first try to get ChatGPT to construct a WordPress plugin from scratch was a dismal failure. This in itself supplied some worthwhile insights into ChatGPT’s capacity to carry out complicated coding duties (or, as somebody within the staff put it, “you may’t code utilizing ChatGPT with out having intensive coding information.”)

So, for “Take #2,” I made a decision to attempt once more with a less complicated plugin request.

Going again to the drafting board, a genius lightbulb second lit up in my thoughts…why not ask ChatGPT to recommend concepts for easy WordPress plugins it might then generate the code for?

So, that’s what I did. Right here’s the immediate I promptly engineered…

My genius immediate.

And right here’s the checklist of prompt plugins ChatGPT replied with…

The blueprint of my WordPress plugin empire.

I appreciated the final suggestion, so I requested ChatGPT to generate the code for a practical content material duplicator plugin, and it instantly went to work.

That is what a license to print cash appears like!

ChatGPT generated the next code for the plugin within the blink of an eye fixed:

<?php
/*
Plugin Identify: Content material Duplicator
Description: Permits customers to duplicate posts, pages, or customized put up sorts with one click on.
Model: 1.0.0
Writer: Your Identify
Writer URI: https://yourwebsite.com
*/

// Add duplicate motion hyperlinks to put up row actions
operate content_duplicator_add_duplicate_link( $actions, $put up ) {
if ( current_user_can( ‘edit_posts’ ) ) {
$actions[‘duplicate’] = ‘<a href=”‘ . wp_nonce_url( admin_url( ‘admin-post.php?motion=content_duplicator_duplicate_post&post_id=’ . $post->ID ), ‘content_duplicator_duplicate_post’ ) . ‘” title=”Duplicate this merchandise” rel=”permalink”>Duplicate</a>’;
}
return $actions;
}
add_filter( ‘post_row_actions’, ‘content_duplicator_add_duplicate_link’, 10, 2 );

// Duplicate the put up
operate content_duplicator_duplicate_post() {
if ( isset( $_GET[‘post_id’] ) ) {
$post_id = absint( $_GET[‘post_id’] );

if ( current_user_can( ‘edit_posts’ ) && wp_verify_nonce( $_GET[‘_wpnonce’], ‘content_duplicator_duplicate_post’ ) ) {
$put up = get_post( $post_id );

$args = array(
‘post_title’ => $post->post_title . ‘ (Duplicate)’,
‘post_content’ => $post->post_content,
‘post_type’ => $post->post_type,
‘post_status’ => $post->post_status,
‘post_parent’ => $post->post_parent,
‘post_author’ => get_current_user_id(),
);

$new_post_id = wp_insert_post( $args );

if ( $new_post_id ) {
// Duplicate meta fields
$meta_fields = get_post_custom( $post_id );
foreach ( $meta_fields as $key => $values ) {
foreach ( $values as $worth ) {
add_post_meta( $new_post_id, $key, $worth );
}
}

// Redirect to the duplicated put up
wp_redirect( admin_url( ‘put up.php?motion=edit&put up=’ . $new_post_id ) );
exit;
}
}
}
}
add_action( ‘admin_post_content_duplicator_duplicate_post’, ‘content_duplicator_duplicate_post’ );

It even supplied a set of directions after producing the code.

The code not solely comes with directions, however ChatGPT even says “Please”!

I then uploaded the brand new plugin file to the wp-content > plugins listing of my take a look at web site utilizing The Hub’s file supervisor.

There’s plenty of motion to unpack on this screenshot.

And created a dummy put up to check the plugin with…

Did the plugin duplicate this tacky put up? Let’s discover out!

Listed here are the put up’s menu choices earlier than activating the plugin…

A default put up with default choices.

After activating the plugin…

“Activate Content material Duplicator” – Seems like a line from a Star Trek film.

Success!

A gratuitous screenshot proving that the plugin efficiently activated.

The plugin activated. However did it truly work?

Right here’s my take a look at put up once more (notice that the plugin added a brand new “Duplicate” merchandise to the menu after activation). I then clicked on “Duplicate” to see what occurs…

ChatGPT even added a “Duplicate” menu merchandise tooltip to the code!

And a reproduction put up was created!

A reproduction of the unique put up.

Right here’s the desk of posts exhibiting entries for the unique and duplicated put up.

The unique put up and its cloned model.

I’m positive that with higher immediate engineering and a few code tweaking, the plugin might have been considerably improved. For instance, I would like if the plugin set the put up standing of the newly-duplicated put up to ‘draft’ as a substitute of publishing it, however ChatGPT delivered a easy WordPress plugin that labored. It was primary, however it did the job.

The final step was to ask somebody who codes WordPress plugins for a residing to scrutinize the code and get their opinion about utilizing a device like ChatGPT to code plugins.

Suggestions from Our Skilled Plugin Builders

Shortly after importing the plugin to considered one of our testing channels, I acquired a ping from considered one of our builders. Listed here are a number of the key factors supplied of their suggestions:

“ChatGPT et al are respectable at answering questions you already know the reply to.”
“I additionally used it previously to construct a easy plugin for me, however so long as I used to be giving extra complicated prompts, it began to mess issues round, so ultimately I manually debug the given code to work, trigger else it’d take ages for it to really debug it line by line.”
“Principally, it does what it says. Nonetheless, it does what it says very actually. As in, it can duplicate a put up and its corresponding postmeta (customized) fields. Nonetheless, it doesn’t seem to be it can propagate any taxonomies to the duplicated put up (the plugin ought to copy and assign the identical taxonomy phrases, akin to classes or tags, from the unique put up to the duplicated put up).”
If I used to be to be super-nitpicky about this, I’d additionally point out that it’s not L10n-ready – there gained’t be an choice to translate this plugin. However, that’s simply being very nitpicky – I don’t actually assume, nor would I anticipate, a prompt-generated plugin to be generic sufficient to be needing one thing like that in any respect. To me, it’s extra of a “very particular drawback area” sort of a factor, together with the language used. On the finish of the day, it does do what it says it can, which may be very good.”

Along with inspecting the WordPress plugin code generated by ChatGPT and offering suggestions as proven above, our builders additionally agreed with the next key factors after assessing ChatGPT’s present capabilities to generate code:

1 – It’s necessary to train warning and never blindly settle for ChatGPT-generated code as appropriate.

ChatGPT can present solutions, however it’s as much as the consumer to evaluate whether or not the reply is appropriate or not.
There’s a threat of receiving incorrect or nonsensical solutions from ChatGPT, each apparent and refined.
It’s necessary to train warning and never blindly settle for the generated code as appropriate.
ChatGPT’s output needs to be handled as autocomplete, making life simpler however requiring warning and verification.

The flexibility to discern good code from dangerous or nonsensical code, nonetheless, implies that…

2 – Customers ought to have enough information and understanding of WordPress plugin growth to guage and modify the generated code as wanted.

ChatGPT might help simplify and expedite the method of constructing easy customized WordPress plugins, generate code snippets, and supply explanations. Something extra complicated, nonetheless, requires plugin growth expertise and coding expertise.
Utilizing ChatGPT with out enough information can result in unfavourable penalties or unreliable code.
Relying solely on ChatGPT with out essential considering is just like blindly copying the primary reply from Stack Overflow (Stack Overflow threads present extra context, a number of solutions, and suggestions from different customers, making it a extra dependable useful resource, however Stack Overflow threads are typically extra generic, whereas ChatGPT can present particular solutions to particular person queries).

3 – Using different assets, akin to WordPress documentation, tutorials, and group boards, alongside ChatGPT can present a extra complete understanding of WordPress plugin growth.

As you discover the chances of utilizing ChatGPT for WordPress plugin growth, it’s worthwhile to interact with the WordPress group. Share your experiences, ask for suggestions, and search steering from skilled builders. Taking part in boards, attending WordPress meetups, or becoming a member of on-line communities can present worthwhile insights and assist you to refine your plugin growth course of.
Moreover, think about following WordPress safety finest practices to safeguard your web site from potential vulnerabilities. ChatGPT can present suggestions on safety measures you may implement to guard your plugin.
It’s additionally important to keep up a transparent understanding of your required performance and totally overview and take a look at the generated code and safe your customized plugins earlier than deploying them to a manufacturing surroundings.

Can ChatGPT Flip You Right into a WordPress Plugin Developer?

On this article, we’ve explored how one can make the most of ChatGPT to construct easy customized WordPress plugins, even you probably have restricted coding expertise.

In different articles, we’ve seen that AI-powered instruments like ChatGP can streamline your workflow, increase productiveness, and unlock new prospects (try our current article on ways in which ChatGPT might help you as a WordPress developer).

Whereas there are over 60,000 free WordPress plugins out there overlaying each sort of performance you may think about, typically you could want a customized resolution to fulfill a shopper’s particular necessities.

Past the core performance of your plugin, you can too leverage ChatGPT to generate code for customized consumer interfaces. With its capacity to know prompts and generate HTML, CSS, and JavaScript snippets, you may create intuitive admin interfaces, front-end elements, and interactive components that can improve the consumer expertise and will let you ship a refined ultimate product.

By using the language mannequin’s capabilities, you may generate code snippets, optimize performance, and create user-friendly interfaces. Nonetheless, it’s essential to know the generated code, overview and refine it, and totally take a look at your customized plugins earlier than deploying them to your reside web site.

The generated code may require changes to align with coding requirements, naming conventions, or particular mission necessities. This requires a specific amount of coding information and expertise, as does optimizing the code and guaranteeing it follows WordPress coding tips for higher maintainability.

The underside line:

Listed here are my findings after making an attempt to get ChatGPT to code me a plugin from scratch:

I couldn’t have gotten this accomplished with out the assistance of our skilled builders.
Utilizing ChatGPT to generate code with out coding information is basically difficult – it helps to know what you’re doing 🙂
Whereas ChatGPT is a robust and worthwhile device, it doesn’t seem to be AI will change expert coders any time quickly.

Fascinated about Creating WordPress plugins?

Take a look at a few of our tutorials and articles on WordPress plugin growth:

Getting Began with WordPress Plugin Improvement
A Fast and In-Depth Information to WordPress Hooks
Creating WordPress Plugins in An Object Oriented Method