Version 9.8 of WordPress for iOS rolls out this week, and includes some great enhancements to publishing: background media and post uploading.

Adding images to a post or page? Now, you can publish — and accomplish other tasks — while your media uploads. No more waiting inside the editor while images gradually upload! Tap the Publish button and the app takes care of uploading and publishing, leaving you free to leave the post editor and get on with other things.

You can do the same thing while saving drafts. And yes, you can have multiple posts uploading media in the background concurrently.

We've also spruced up the interface, and added notifications so that you always know the status of your posts and uploads. Visit your post list at any time for a progress report on all your uploads.

You can even leave the app and the upload will continue in the background while you check other things on your device.

Here is a video of the new functionality:

Give feedback and get involved

Download WordPress for iOS on the App Store. We'll be rolling out the update over the course of the week, so it may be a couple of days before you see the update on your device. You can always manually check for an update by searching "WordPress" in the App Store if you just can't wait

Do you have feedback on the app? Please share it!  If you're a developer and would like to contribute to the project, here's more information on how you can get involved.