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A WordPress plugin providing common utilities and functionality for Alpha Labs projects. This plugin is included in all websites we create and those we adopt from other developers, providing a consistent set of tools and features across our portfolio.

Contents

Frontend Features

• Automatic Button Tracking [Both] - GA4 tracking for phone, email, WhatsApp, and meeting links
• CookieYes Banner Delay [Both] - 3-second delay for cookie consent banners

Admin Features

• Comments Disabled [Both] - Complete removal of WordPress comments functionality
• Exception Notifications [Both] - Automatic email alerts for uncaught exceptions and fatal errors

Development Helpers

• Custom Post Type Helper [Both] - Rapid CPT registration with auto-generated labels
• Custom Post Type Fields Helper [Both] - Meta boxes with automatic save handling

Bedrock Integration

• Environment-Based Configuration [Bedrock Only] - Custom .env variables and IP-based debugging
• Digital Ocean Spaces Integration [Bedrock Only] - Auto-configuration for WP Offload Media

Theme Compatibility

• Astra Theme Compatibility [Both] - Reserved for theme-specific adjustments
• GeneratePress Theme Compatibility [Both] - Reserved for theme-specific adjustments

Overview

This plugin is designed to be lightweight and compatible with both traditional WordPress installations and modern Bedrock-based projects. It's intentionally kept simple to minimize compatibility issues while providing essential utilities that support our development workflow.

Features

🎯 Frontend Features

Automatic Button Tracking [Both]

Location: lib/FrontEnd/Buttons.php

Automatically tracks user interactions with common call-to-action buttons using Google Analytics 4 (GA4):

• Phone links (tel:) - Tracked as phone_click
• Email links (mailto:) - Tracked as email_click
• WhatsApp links - Tracked as whatsapp_click
• Meeting links (Calendly, Microsoft Meetings) - Tracked as meeting_click

No manual GA4 event setup required. Only fires if GA4 (gtag) is already loaded on the page.

CookieYes Banner Delay [Both]

Location: lib/FrontEnd/Cookies.php

Delays the appearance of CookieYes cookie consent banners by 3 seconds to improve user experience and reduce immediate popup fatigue. Only activates when CookieYes plugin is installed.

🔧 Admin Features

Comments Disabled [Both]

Location: lib/Admin/Customise.php

Completely disables WordPress comments functionality:

• Removes comment support from all post types
• Removes comments from admin menu
• Removes comments from admin bar

Exception Notifications [Both]

Location: lib/Admin/ExceptionHandler.php

Automatically sends email notifications when uncaught exceptions or fatal errors occur:

• Dual Notification: Sends to both WordPress admin email and admin@alphalabs.net
• Exception Handling: Catches uncaught exceptions with full stack traces
• Fatal Error Detection: Captures PHP fatal errors via shutdown handler
• Detailed Reports: HTML-formatted emails with error details, request context, and stack traces
• Debug Log Integration: Logs to WordPress debug log when WP_DEBUG_LOG is enabled

Helps ensure no critical errors go unnoticed across all Alpha Labs sites.

🏗️ Development Helpers

Custom Post Type Helper [Both]

Location: lib/Helpers/CustomPostType.php

Rapidly register custom post types with auto-generated labels. Eliminates boilerplate code.

Usage:

new \AlphaLabsUtilityPack\Helpers\CustomPostType(
    'project',           // Post type slug
    ['public' => true],  // register_post_type() args
    'Project',           // Singular label
    'Projects'           // Plural label
);

Custom Post Type Fields Helper [Both]

Location: lib/Helpers/CustomPostTypeFields.php

Add meta boxes with custom fields to post types with automatic save handling, nonce verification, and capability checks.

Supported field types: text, textarea, number, datetime

Usage:

new \AlphaLabsUtilityPack\Helpers\CustomPostTypeFields(
    'project',                    // Post type
    'project_details',            // Meta box ID
    'Project Details',            // Meta box title
    [                             // Fields array
        ['id' => 'project_url', 'label' => 'Project URL', 'type' => 'text'],
        ['id' => 'launch_date', 'label' => 'Launch Date', 'type' => 'datetime'],
        ['id' => 'description', 'label' => 'Description', 'type' => 'textarea']
    ]
);

🌱 Bedrock Integration

Environment-Based Configuration [Bedrock Only]

Location: lib/Bedrock/CustomConfig.php

Loads custom environment variables from .env files via Roots WPConfig.

Custom Environment Variables:

• AL4_DEBUG_IP_ADDRESS - IP-based remote debugging
• AL4_AS3CF_KEY - WP Offload Media (S3) access key for Digital Ocean Spaces
• AL4_AS3CF_SECRET - WP Offload Media (S3) secret key

Features:

• IP-Based Remote Debugging: Automatically enables WP_DEBUG_DISPLAY, WP_DEBUG_LOG, and SCRIPT_DEBUG when visitor IP matches AL4_DEBUG_IP_ADDRESS
• Digital Ocean Spaces Integration: Auto-configures WP Offload Media plugin for Digital Ocean when credentials are provided

🎨 Theme Compatibility

Astra Theme Compatibility [Both]

Location: lib/Compatability/Astra.php

Reserved for Astra theme-specific compatibility adjustments.

GeneratePress Theme Compatibility [Both]

Location: lib/Compatability/GeneratePress.php

Reserved for GeneratePress theme-specific compatibility adjustments.

Legend

• [Both] - Works with both WordPress Classic and Bedrock
• [Bedrock Only] - Requires Roots Bedrock environment
• [WP Classic] - Traditional WordPress only

Installation

This plugin is deployed via GitHub and supports automatic updates through GitHub Updater.

GitHub Repository: josephdsouza86/alphalabs-utility-pack

Version Management

Current Version: 1.0.2.12

Follows semantic versioning: MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH.BUILD

When updating, ensure both the plugin header and ALPHALABS_UTILITY_PACK_VERSION constant are updated in alphalabs-utility-pack.php.

Development Notes

• No build process required - PHP files deployed directly
• Uses PSR-4 autoloading for modern PHP classes
• Built on WordPress Plugin Boilerplate architecture
• See .github/copilot-instructions.md for detailed development guidelines