How I got started with WordPress – A Beginer’s Compendium

So ever since I’ve started this site I’ve gotten several requests from friends and others to share knowledge in regards to how to make a kewl WordPress site. Below are some links to sites with how too’s, software, and guides for beginners. This is by no means an end all be all guide to everything WordPress but it’s a good place for the novice to get started on having a visually dynamic, and fast WP page in a relative short amount of time. It’s also what I used to get myself going. Enjoy!

Themes-

My current theme is from Graph Paper Press and is called Modularity. It is an extremely flexible template that has many possible applications. Graph Paper Press uses a subscription based format that gives you access to all of their themes for the duration of your subscription. After that I’m under the impression that you can continue using the themes but no longer have access to support or updates to the theme. Pretty good deal if you ask me. Speaking of support Graph Paper also has an extensive support forum although I have noticed that they can sometimes take a while to get back to you. Theme Forrest is also an excellent source of many exciting WP themes.

Plug-Ins-

There’s a shit load of ‘em and are one of the most powerful features of WP. They can turn a relatively simple site into a more refined, professional looking and performing one. And all to taste as well Here’s what I actively use as of this post: Add to Any: Share/Bookmark/Email Button, Akismet, All in One SEO Pack, Bad Behavior, Cleaner Gallery, Enhanced WP-ContactForm, Google XML Sitemaps, One Click Plugin Updater, Shadowbox JS, Twitter Widget Pro, wp-cache, WP-Cumulus & WP Widget Cache.

Administration-

In order to host your own site you need to register a domain name and you need someone to host your data. I registered my site with GoDaddy.com. Depending on the deals they have going on when you register you can get ultra cheep registration. I think I registered my domain for like $17. Great deal. For hosting I use LaughingSquid.com. These guys kick ass. Their new cloud server offers plans that offer a substantial bang for your buck and their support is top notch. Laughing Squid also touts themselves as the go to hosting service for WP blogs and for good reason. Their extensive how-too guides are a boon for any beginner looking to create they’re own site and I highly recommend them.

Software-

The three main pieces of software that I use that do not come with WP as it were are FileZilla, PSPad & Pazera Free Video to Flash Converter. FileZilla is for FTP, PSPad is a text editor used for editing .css and .php files and Pazera converts video to flash video (flv or swf). All are extremely robust, are fully supported and free.

How Too’s & Guides-

As with anything worth having WP sites require work to get right and too really make shine. The road to a good site is often fraught with banging-head-against-wall moments but the payoff is pretty sweet. Below are some links to various guides that I used to manifest my site: Installing WordPress, OneClick Installer for WordPress, How to install a WordPress plugin, How to insert video from local server in WordPress post, Three tips to protect your WordPress installation, Giving WordPress Its Own Directory, Ultimate Guide To Using WordPress For A Portfolio, PHP: Description of core php.ini directives – Manual, Comprehensive guide to .htaccess- intro & How to display your web site logo on the address bar and in the favorites list.

Whew! Again the above info is by no means a complete, comprehensive and authoritative guide on the subject of WordPress. However for a beginner looking to get something going it may help a lot. Cheers——–r