DACS General Meeting
May, 2010

Meeting Review:
WordPress—Bruce Preston

by Annette van Ommeren

WordPress, the self-publishing software platform is easily the most popular blogging software package on the web at this time. Launched in 2003, it has grown from being used primarily for blogs, to evolving into a fully functional Content Management System, which can be used as the basis for any kind of website. The open-source application uses the PHP scripting language and connects to a MySQL database that contains all the blog data. When installed on one's own host, it is highly customizable with numerous design templates, plugins and applications, both free and fee-based, all available for download on the web.

Bruce PrestonDACS’ own board member and intrepid software explorer Bruce Preston took on the task of explaining the initial choices and options available to a rookie blog author.

Which should we choose: www.wordpress.com or www.wordpress.org? Two similar web addresses with 2 rather different purposes. Wordpress.org is the official site of the open-source software application, whereas wordpress.com offers WordPress blog space as sub-domains on their servers. Bruce started by defining the differences between these 2 sites and the methods of setting up a WordPress blog. Choosing which of these options to use will depend on the blog's requirements—the pros and cons of each system should to be weighed carefully before making a choice.

The "easy" and free route, requiring the least technical knowledge, is to register with wordpress.com. A few clicks is all it takes for the newbie author to enter the blogosphere. A web address such as "http://myname.wordpress.com" is obtained, which denotes one's presence under the wordpress.com umbrella. As with all "free" services, there are advantages and disadvantages. Advantages include ease of set up, access to over 70 pre-made templates, photo gallery integration with sidebar widgets for Flickr, del.icio.us, Twitter, etc, up-to-the-minute stats, automatic upgrades, spam blocking and backups. However, disadvantages include limited template customization, no access to the PHP code, inability to install custom plug-ins, no ftp or shell access, and a web address that is encased within the "wordpress.com" URL. There is also a remote possibility Google ads may appear, and “free” wordpress.com hosted sites may not be used for commercial enterprises at this time.

If you already have web space on a commercial host, or run your own server, installing the WordPress application in that location may be the better option allowing full control over the way the pages will look and function. The host needs to run the Apache web server, support a MySQL database and the PHP scripting language. (A Windows platform with IIS also works.) The WordPress application is free and open-source, so head over to the wordpress.org web site to explore the options, and download the latest stable version of WordPress. This site gives also offers comprehensive documentation and detailed installation instructions. Advantages include full control and access to the PHP code, ftp and shell access, no limit to the amount of themes available, plug-ins, modules, and one's own URL—such as www.yourname.com. However, disadvantages include costs involved with a fee based host (unless you maintain your own server); having the confidence to edit a few lines of PHP code, as well as making sure to stay on top of updates, anti-spam and backups for your blog.

After discussing these options, Bruce proceeded to show us a live demo of the installation process onto his own available web space.

The step-by-step installation process described by Bruce is as follows:

First a MySQL database needs to be set up, most hosts will do that with a few clicks. (Bruce used the host 1and1, which is adequate—although the admin pages are not very intuitive or user-friendly.) Define a name for the database—remember that name and the MySQL generated username & password, as that information will be needed shortly. Once the database is established, the latest stable version of WordPress is downloaded from www.wordpress.org. Uncompress the folder, locate the "wp-config-sample.php" file, and rename it to "wp-config.php". Open this file in a plain text editor, or any HTML editor. (Bruce reminded us not to use MS Word as this can corrupt the file with hidden formatting characters.) Near the top of the config file, find the lines where you will enter your database connection information:

/** The name of the database for WordPress */
define('DB_NAME', 'putyourdbnamehere');

/** MySQL database username */
define('DB_USER', 'usernamehere');

/** MySQL database password */
define('DB_PASSWORD', 'yourpasswordhere');

/** MySQL hostname */
define('DB_HOST', 'localhost');

Check with your host whether the 4th item (MySQL hostname) is indeed "localhost" as this can vary with different hosting companies. Once the credentials are in place, the file is saved. Now the entire folder contents can be uploaded to the server, either within the root of the site—if the blog will be the default for the domain name—or to a previously created folder within the root. That completes the preparation process. Bruce mentioned we now have arrived at the same stage we would have been, if an account on www.wordpress.com had been created.

The newly minted blog is now ready for the administrative set up and customization. In a browser, navigate to.. /wp-admin/install.php. (Full URL depends on where WordPress was installed—the root of the site, or in a specific folder.) Once the page opens, follow the instructions to change the password, set email address, etc. Finally the default page opens, and the blog is ready for action.

At this point Bruce showed us how easy it is to switch from the barebones default interface, to a more attractive theme—he chose to install "Mouse IT", a free download from Templatelite.

Next some important preferences need to be checked on the administrative Dashboard. Look for the "Settings" tab, and find the "Discussion Settings" page. Read through all the options and choose those appropriate for your blog. Bruce recommended making sure the site administrator needs to approve comments before they go live, even though this means regularly checking the “Comments/Edit Comments" page to process any new entries. Another preference worth adjusting is found under "Privacy". The choice is whether the blog will be visible to search engines—or not—depending on the actual purpose of the blog.

With a self-installed set-up, there are many things one can do to customize the site, if it's an account within the wordpress.com site, the choices are somewhat limited, although there are still plenty of templates and tweaks one can make. The admin Dashboard is almost identical in both wordpress.com and self-installed installations, but there are minor changes reflecting the limitations of a wordpress.com site. Both sites offer comprehensive support pages.

Bruce also mentioned some worthwhile plugins. One is Akismet, a spam filter that checks the content of comments. (It is installed but not activated by default in WordPress 2.0 or later. Check the preferences to turn it on. ) He also mentioned "All-in-One-SEO-Pack" a plug-in with several features, including improved search engine optimization and automatically generated META tags. This plug-in is ready to use "out of the box", or fully customizable. Another plug-in mentioned was the Keyword-Statistics-Plug-in. Visit the wordpress.org website for a wide range of plugins.

Now that Bruce had covered the technical installation issues, the question of how to use the blog came up. Traditionally a blog is an “online public diary" where the author can make their literary ramblings available to the public and possibly encourage interactive discussions. However, the WordPress application is also increasingly being used as the framework for regular website development for both personal and commercial use. WordPress is constantly being improved and upgraded, and Bruce's presentation helped the audience realize how easy it is to get started with this powerful application.


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