Getting Started with WordPress To the uninitiated, WordPress can look intimidating.
For those without any technical knowledge, it can look very intimidating.
This article will break down the steps to creating your own WordPress website.
WordPress comes in two flavors - WordPress.
com and WordPress.
org.
WordPress.
org provides nearly plug-and-play software that can enable you to build your own website using pre-made plugins and themes that provide functionality and nice design.
In other words, you can put together modules that other people have done the tedious design and programming work on to create your own unique site.
This is the power of WordPress.
Six Steps to Launching Your WordPress Site There are six essential steps to creating your WordPress website.
They are: 1.
Web domain registration 2.
Getting Hosted 3.
Installing WordPress 4.
Install a Theme 5.
Change Settings 6.
Install Plugins If you are a beginner and you try to understand everything at once it will seem overwhelming, so take it in bite-sized pieces and focus on one task at a time.
Web Domain Registration Your domain is simple the name that people type into the top of their web browsers to find you.
"WordPress.
org" is a domain name.
You need to have one for your site.
A good domain name is relevant to your site's topic and is not too long to type.
To register a domain name, you can go to any website hosting service or name registration site, of which there are many.
Getting Hosted Once you have purchased a domain name, you need somebody to host your site.
There is a huge array of choices out there with a ton of different hosting plans.
Many hosts with tout their support of WordPress and these are the ones you should gravitate to.
Your install will be easier, and if you run into a problem they may already have an answer for you in a FAQ.
Do not expect them to troubleshoot your website for you however, as that is not part of the services they offer.
24/7 up-time and tech support is also a must if your site will have any commercial aspect.
If you did not register your domain at the same site where you purchased your hosting, be sure to change your name servers or else even you will have problems doing anything with your site! Installing WordPress Installing WordPress is a snap at many hosts.
Some hosts have what they call a "one click install" for WordPress, which works just as you would imagine given the name.
Others use a control panel interface called cPanel, along with a piece of installation software called Fantastico De Luxe.
Both make for simple follow-the-instructions installs.
If you are more technically minded, or are with a host that does not offer one of these options, you may end up having to upload files via ftp and installing manually.
There is really no reason to go through this, so long as you selected your host wisely.
Installing a Theme A theme is a software package that governs the look and feel of your site.
It sets the sizes, fonts, colors and locations of everything on your site.
You can of course create all of this yourself but if you are like me, pretty inept in the graphics design department, then find a theme you like and install it.
I like to install my themes before I adjust any settings or install any plugins.
I feel that in doing things in this order I am maximizing the chances of any changes I make down the road to be applied properly.
Others tell me that my concerns are overblown but it makes me feel better this way.
There are two kinds of themes that you can use - free and premium.
Premium themes are themes that you have to purchase.
The advantage is that the creator generally stands behind his work and if you have a problem you can get tech support.
They will generally be updated when new versions of WordPress come out insuring their continued compatibility.
Free themes can be of just as high quality with authors that support them just as well but you never know.
Change WordPress Settings The strength of WordPress is its flexibility, and flexibility means options.
Through the settings menu you can control who can post to your site, whether you home page is static or a blog page, how long people can comment on your blog entries, whether you will moderate comments, and many other options.
The best part is that you can change these settings whenever you want, so if your original ideas on how your site is to be managed do not pan out you can always change it later.
Install Plugins Plugins are the strength of WordPress.
If there is some specific thing that you want to do on your site, there is probably a plugin to do it.
Plugins vary in functionality from spam blockers and site security (at a minimum please install these), to calendars and social media tie-ins.
There are roughly 18,000 listed at the WordPress.
org site and many more around the internet.
Many are free, some are not.
With these six technical steps complete you can now focus on creating your content, otherwise known as the fun part.
There is a huge community of enthusiasts out there, so do not be bashful about getting on a forum and asking for help if you need it.
The water is warm, jump on in!
For those without any technical knowledge, it can look very intimidating.
This article will break down the steps to creating your own WordPress website.
WordPress comes in two flavors - WordPress.
com and WordPress.
org.
WordPress.
org provides nearly plug-and-play software that can enable you to build your own website using pre-made plugins and themes that provide functionality and nice design.
In other words, you can put together modules that other people have done the tedious design and programming work on to create your own unique site.
This is the power of WordPress.
Six Steps to Launching Your WordPress Site There are six essential steps to creating your WordPress website.
They are: 1.
Web domain registration 2.
Getting Hosted 3.
Installing WordPress 4.
Install a Theme 5.
Change Settings 6.
Install Plugins If you are a beginner and you try to understand everything at once it will seem overwhelming, so take it in bite-sized pieces and focus on one task at a time.
Web Domain Registration Your domain is simple the name that people type into the top of their web browsers to find you.
"WordPress.
org" is a domain name.
You need to have one for your site.
A good domain name is relevant to your site's topic and is not too long to type.
To register a domain name, you can go to any website hosting service or name registration site, of which there are many.
Getting Hosted Once you have purchased a domain name, you need somebody to host your site.
There is a huge array of choices out there with a ton of different hosting plans.
Many hosts with tout their support of WordPress and these are the ones you should gravitate to.
Your install will be easier, and if you run into a problem they may already have an answer for you in a FAQ.
Do not expect them to troubleshoot your website for you however, as that is not part of the services they offer.
24/7 up-time and tech support is also a must if your site will have any commercial aspect.
If you did not register your domain at the same site where you purchased your hosting, be sure to change your name servers or else even you will have problems doing anything with your site! Installing WordPress Installing WordPress is a snap at many hosts.
Some hosts have what they call a "one click install" for WordPress, which works just as you would imagine given the name.
Others use a control panel interface called cPanel, along with a piece of installation software called Fantastico De Luxe.
Both make for simple follow-the-instructions installs.
If you are more technically minded, or are with a host that does not offer one of these options, you may end up having to upload files via ftp and installing manually.
There is really no reason to go through this, so long as you selected your host wisely.
Installing a Theme A theme is a software package that governs the look and feel of your site.
It sets the sizes, fonts, colors and locations of everything on your site.
You can of course create all of this yourself but if you are like me, pretty inept in the graphics design department, then find a theme you like and install it.
I like to install my themes before I adjust any settings or install any plugins.
I feel that in doing things in this order I am maximizing the chances of any changes I make down the road to be applied properly.
Others tell me that my concerns are overblown but it makes me feel better this way.
There are two kinds of themes that you can use - free and premium.
Premium themes are themes that you have to purchase.
The advantage is that the creator generally stands behind his work and if you have a problem you can get tech support.
They will generally be updated when new versions of WordPress come out insuring their continued compatibility.
Free themes can be of just as high quality with authors that support them just as well but you never know.
Change WordPress Settings The strength of WordPress is its flexibility, and flexibility means options.
Through the settings menu you can control who can post to your site, whether you home page is static or a blog page, how long people can comment on your blog entries, whether you will moderate comments, and many other options.
The best part is that you can change these settings whenever you want, so if your original ideas on how your site is to be managed do not pan out you can always change it later.
Install Plugins Plugins are the strength of WordPress.
If there is some specific thing that you want to do on your site, there is probably a plugin to do it.
Plugins vary in functionality from spam blockers and site security (at a minimum please install these), to calendars and social media tie-ins.
There are roughly 18,000 listed at the WordPress.
org site and many more around the internet.
Many are free, some are not.
With these six technical steps complete you can now focus on creating your content, otherwise known as the fun part.
There is a huge community of enthusiasts out there, so do not be bashful about getting on a forum and asking for help if you need it.
The water is warm, jump on in!
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