WordPress 3.8, code named “Parker” in honor of Charlie Parker (bebop innovator) is now available in Windows Azure Website. If you haven’t upgraded to 3.8 yet, I recommend that you do. Here is my review on WordPress 3.8 which has had a major facelift compared to previous versions on WordPress.  Let’s walk through the key highlights of the new version.

Fresh and Modern design

The most visible change is the sleek modern design that gives a fresh new look-and-feel to WordPress. Here’s why I love it:

• Modern flat design throughout
• Uncluttered design
• Clean typography using Open Sans typeface as the default font
• Easy to read and Navigate

 

Colorful Admin Dashboard

In this version, the drab admin dashboard gets a makeover bringing color to admin dashboard to match your personality.

WordPress on your Tablet, PC and mobile

We all access the internet in different ways. Smartphone, tablet, notebook, desktop — no matter what you use, WordPress will adapt and you’ll feel right at home. WordPress is sharper than ever with new vector-based icons that scale to your screen. The interface is outstandingly faster than previous versions.

Improved theme management experience

The new themes screen lets you survey your themes at a glance and makes it easy to discover and explore them easily, irrespective of the device you are using.

Improved Widget management experience

Widget management can be complicated, but with the new design, adding and managing widgets is more streamlined. Multiple widget areas can stack side-by-side to use the available screen space well.

New WordPress Theme – Twenty Fourteen

Twenty Fourteen was updated to provide a more mobile friendly, responsive design that works well for magazine-style sites. You can choose a grid or slider to display featured content on your homepage. It includes three widget areas and two page templates:

In addition, version 3.8 offers several other changes and bug fixes. A full list of all updates can be viewed here. If you’ve never updated WordPress before, don’t worry. There’s no need for complex installations or re-building of anything. Simply log in to your site’s WordPress dashboard, and you’ll see a tab at the top suggesting the new version. Click on “Please update now” to start the process. It takes only a few minutes, and it’s really easy: