Module 19
Creating a WordPress Blog
Introduction
WordPress is one of the most versatile content management systems (CMS) or blogging platforms online today. WordPress is an open-source project available at wordpress.org and as a hosted package at wordpress.com.
WordPress is a top choice for blogging platforms. And when you use it you will understand why. The extensibility of WordPress through plugins and themes makes WordPress completely customizable, and very easy to use. One of the best things about WordPress is that it can be used by anyone, even non-techie people like me. After set up and a little information about the how to’s you will be able to create, write, post photos, and more without much help at all. It is really that easy and is a joy to use.
Installing WordPress
There are a lot of different ways to go about installing WordPress. Usually, this is a process that only takes about five minutes to complete. A lot of Web hosts now offer very easy to use WordPress installation tools that come with the hosting service (Fantastico is an example of this), but you can also install WordPress manually.
Before you begin the installation, it is important that you have a few things in place. For one thing, you need access to your Web server. Second, you need to have a text editor at your disposal. And finally, you need an FTP client if you plan on installing WordPress on a server that is remote.
Once you have these things, it is time to download the program. The latest version available is version 3.0, and it is available at http://wordpress.org/download/. Once you download the package, you need to unzip it and create a database for it on your web server. You will also need to create a MySQL user… this person will be able to access and modify it completely. If you want WordPress integrated into the root of your domain, then you will need to upload or move the unzipped contents into the root directory in question.
Installing WordPress themes – what you need to know
Once you get WordPress installed, you will probably want to download and use a WordPress theme. To do this, you simply need to find the theme that you want, and download it. It should download in the form of a zip file. Make sure that you read the “read me” document after downloading, in case there is a license that you should know about.
Next, you will want to upload the folder containing your template to your WordPress installation. It should go into the folder named yourwebsite.com/wp-content/themes/. If your Web hosting service supports FTP file uploading, then it is best to go that route. Using a file upload manager can tend to take a long time, and it is easy to get it wrong. Once you have the files uploaded, it is time to activate your new template.
To do this, login to your installation (usually this is accomplished by going to yourwebsite.com/wp-login.php), and go to the design section. Then, you will want to click on themes. Once you are here, select the theme you want and click on the activate button. Once you back out and view your site after refreshing it, your new WordPress theme should be up and running. The whole process is about a five minute ordeal… you will find it much easier than it sounds.
3 Necessary WordPress plug-ins
Here are three plug-ins that you really need to have to successfully launch a WordPress Website or blog. You may be able to get by without them at first, but you will definitely want to install them at least later on. They will save you trouble and help you with your new site in several ways.
Akismet. This plug-in uses the Akismet Web service to check your site for spam. For example, if you have a comments section on your WordPress site, this plug-in would help to separate the spam from the real comments. It will also allow you to see how much spam has been filtered out.
HeadSpace2. This plug-in can help you to really crank up the SEO of your site, which will help you to get more traffic. Basically, this plug-in is a meta-data manager on steroids, allowing you an all in one sort of approach that is not only helpful, but extremely easy to use. It will help you configure posts, categories, pages, your home page, author pages, your 404 page, and even your search pages. It will allow you to define things like tags, keywords, descriptions, and page titles… and it will let you add things like Google Analytics, a stat counter, and even Google Webmaster. All in all, this plug-in will help you so much that there is no reason not to download it.
WP-DBManager. This Plug-in is basically a data-base manager for your WordPress site. It allows you to optimize your database, back it up, repair it, restore it, delete backups, and run queries. You can also use it to support the automatic back-up of your database, which is essential to any serious WP site. The ReadMe that comes with the package will give you detailed instructions as to the usage, but it is very important that you download this plug-in to help you in managing your database.
All of these plug-ins are available at the official WordPress.org site for download.
General WordPress tips
1. Don’t forget to customize the sidebar on your WordPress site. A generic sidebar is a dead giveaway that you are using a generic WordPress theme.
2. Disable the comments section if you want your WordPress site to look more like a Website. This might take away from the blogging feel of the site, but it will help you to customize it more.
3. If you want to market your WP site effectively, call it a “community” or a “resource” as opposed to a blog, this helps users relate to your site better and makes them feel like a part of it.
Why not take the easy route and hire a professional to set your blog? This is a great option. It’s affordable and easy. Just contact Henry Sy at Hi-Visibility Web Consulting & Design Services. Henry is a true perfectionist and it shows in everything he does. Besides that, he’s a very nice person!
Let Henry help you with all your design needs. Visit Hi-Visibility Web Consulting & Design Services to learn more.
This Lesson’s Action Steps
- Having a home for your content is critical for your online success. But not everyone is a skilled webmaster. For that reason many people opt to use the blog platform – which is easy and well liked by Google.
- If you go this route be sure you learn how to properly set up your WordPress blog so that it is search engine optimized. You will also want a nicely designed theme.
- You can save yourself a lot of work and time if you contact Henry Sy at Hi-Visibility Web Consulting & Design Services. He can take care of all of your WP design needs at an affordable cost.
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