WordPress

I love using WordPress, I have been using it for the past few years and it has managed to do everything I have ever needed.

Couple its flexibility with the amount of themes and plugins that are available mean that this really is the “complete” solution for a huge number of web projects.

What is WordPress?

WordPress is a Content Management System, CMS for short. Essentially, it provides experienced, and inexperienced users with a nice interface to manage a website. Originally WordPress was a blogging platform but it has since evolved into a Website solution and runs around 20% of ALL websites.

WordPress runs my website, no matter whether you are setting up a blog or a complex E-Commerce site, WordPress can handle it.

One of the reasons that WordPress is so popular is because it is an Open Source project. This means that it is free to use and developers (like me) can manipulate and change it to fit the needs of any project.

For more information on WordPress, please click here.

WordPress Community

You will find a never ended source of support, advice and code from the WordPress community. No matter what you problem, you will be able to find a plugin or a solution for it.

Google is your best friend, if you have a problem simply search for it but if you can’t find the answer, feel free to email me at dan@danwardweb.com and I’ll do my best to help.

The WordPress support forums can be found here.

What is a “Theme”?

A WordPress theme is a package provided by a developer that makes your site look beautiful. A theme simply modifies the way in which a website is displayed. You don’t have to have any complicated knowledge in order to install a theme and make your website look great.

I will be providing you with step by step instructions to install a theme later in this course.

What is a “Plugin”?

A plugin is something that you can install to extend the functionality of your website. For example, you can install a Plugin called “Contact Form 7”. This will enable you to place a contact form on any page.

Some other plugin examples are:

• Social Media Share Buttons
• Newsletter Signup Forms
• Search Engine Optimisation

By installing a plugin, it enables you to simply add functionality without having any coding experience. I’ll explain how to install a plugin later in this course.

How Can I Use WordPress For My Website?

Once WordPress is installed, you can start writing content and setting up your website. WordPress can be used for anything, whether you are setting up a blog or a fully functional E-Commerce system, WordPress can handle it.

By following this course, you will have a website to meet your needs, no matter what they are, by spending no more than $100!

Conclusion

After you have read this article:

• I know what WordPress is
• I know what a WordPress Theme is
• I know what a WordPress Plugin is
• I know where to find support for WordPress issues
• I am ready to start building a website

Thanks to WordPress, adding an image, a gallery or a video to a post or a page couldn’t be easier. Once you have done it once, you’ll be amazed at how simple it is. I think that the process is very similar to how you insert an image into a Microsoft Word document.

Adding Media Content

To add an image saved on your PC to your post or page, when editing or creating a page or a post simply:

• Click on the “Add Media” button above the text editor.

• Click on Upload Files.

• Click on Select Files in the middle of the screen.
• Find the image you’d like to put on your website.

• Click on the file and click “Open”.
• Complete the image title, description, caption and alt text to the right hand side of the image.

• You can also add a link to any image, below the Attachment Display Settings, change the “Link To” setting and enter the link you’d like to assign to the image.

• If you don’t want this particular image to link to anything, simply select “None”.
• Click on Insert Into Page.

There you go, you now have an image that either links or doesn’t link to something on your post / page. Why not try to add a few other images and get them displaying on your site?

Adding Previously Used Media Content

This is very easy, in the previous section where you chose “Upload Files”, simply select “Media Library” and follow the same steps as above.

Removing Media Content

This is as simple as deleting text on a post or a page. When editing or creating content:

• Click on the media item.
• Hit backspace or delete on your keyboard.

That’s it, the image or other item of media will be deleted from your page.

Conclusion

You should now be able to:

• Add Media to a post or a page
• Remove Media from a post or a page

As always, if you’d like more information or have any questions, feel free to contact me.

Almost every site on the World Wide Web uses a navigation menu. WordPress has the same functionality that is built in to make it simple! After this lesson you will have a Menu for your site and should be able to move forward and build a site from what you have been taught!

Adding A Menu in WordPress

To add a menu to your WordPress site, simply follow these steps:

• Navigate to Appearance -> Menus from the Side Navigation Bar

• Click on “create a new menu”

• Enter a Menu Name
• Click on Create Menu

• Select the location the Menu will be displayed. This may look different but should always say which area the menu will be displayed (for example, Header / Main Menu).

• Click on Save Menu

You now have a menu ready to be displayed on your site.

Adding An Item To A Menu

It couldn’t be simple to add an item to a menu:

• Select the item from the left hand side of the screen
• Click on Add To Menu

• On the Right hand side, drag the item into position.

• Click on Save Menu

That’s it, it is that simply to add any item, including custom links to your website!

Removing An Item From A Menu

Another task that WordPress has made quick and painless. Just follow these steps to delete an item from a menu:

• Click on the down arrow next to the menu item (right hand side of item)
• Click on Remove

• Click on Save Menu

Conclusion

After this post you now know:

• How to create a menu
• How to add items to a menu
• How to remove items from a menu
• How to position items within a menu

As always, if you have any questions, please contact me.