4 Good Reasons for Spring cleaning your blog
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I know it’s been a while and I keep putting it off, but it’s time to spring clean that blog. And that’s exactly what I have done for The Photographer Blog as part of the changes, in fact it’s the first thing I did.
And here are 4 very good reasons why it’s a good thing to do:
1. Fix or remove broken links
Over time it’s easy for links to become broken, I even found one of my RSS links had broke and that’s obviously not good. So I checked through all my links to see if they still worked and if I wanted to still use them. The last thing I want to do is get my readers interested in my blog, only to run into a dead end or something off topic.
2. Tidy up sidebar
The same is true for the sidebar, again it’s easy for it to get cluttered with different elements that I am testing. So I did a de-clutter of the sidebar and looked at what was most useful. I think this is definitely a less is more scenario, because I want the sidebar to be clean and easy to search through for important information, like my RSS subscribe.
3. Update Plugins
I’ve noticed for a while little update messages appearing on some of my plugins in plugin management, obviously periodically authors will update their plugins and it’s important to update them when they are released. I kept putting it off and my Google Sitemap stopped working properly because of it. This caused all kinds of problems until I realised it was the missing upgrade that had caused it. Also if I am going to be upgrading Wordpress (which I was) I will upgrade all plugins first in case of compatibility issues.
4.Update Wordpress
I have now upgraded to Wordpress 2.5.1. I did wait until the first update after the major upgrade had happened, before I upgraded just so the major bugs were fixed. But it is the biggest upgrade for a while and the whole look of the backend has changed. So I had to have a look around to get used to it and find everything again. I have to say I like the new look and I think it’s easier to navigate around.
Again the Wordpress Automatic Upgrade plugin saved the day and I upgraded quickly with no problems (thank goodness). One thing I have noticed and I don’t see how there is any connection, but since upgrading Wordpress the traffic stats for the case study blog have increased. I’d imagine it’s just a coincidence.
This was quite a personal view of how I have given my blog a spring clean and the advantages I have seen because of it. I hope sharing it has been helpful.
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:Plugins, RSS, Wordpress, wordpress automatic upgrade pluginWordpress 2.5 is Here…
Major Update
Wordpress 2.5 has just been released for the Wordpress.org blogging platform. And it looks to be a major upgrade to version 2.3.3 with lots of new features. You can read about them here.
If you would like to watch a 4 minute screencast showing you more then here’s the link. I really like the sound of the new uploader and gallery features.
I’m definitely going to be upgrading to it. There’s been over 90 people contributing to this version and they have been working on it for 6 months. So I’m looking forward to using it, it may take a while to get used to though.
Obviously there may be some teething problems, but the last 2 upgrades for 2.3 have been for bugs and they have both come out quickly and seemed to solve any problems.
Here’s the link for the download. Or do what I do and use the Wordpress Automatic Upgrade plugin.
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:techiebuzz, wordpress development blogThe Best Way to Upgrade Wordpress
Have you upgraded to Wordpress 2.3 yet?
A couple of weeks ago I found a message in my Wordpress admin panel saying my Wordpress installation was out of date. And I should upgrade to version 2.3 as soon as possible, due to it having a lot of bug fixs in it.
Now that always sends a chill down my spine because I hate messing about with Wordpress in that way. I don’t now much about hosting or Wordpress for that fact, just what I have learned along the way. The blog is up and running fine, and I always think if it isn’t broke don’t fix it.
But this is an important upgrade with bug fixs in it so I have put it off long enough, I know I have to upgrade it. I have never upgraded Wordpress before and that’s the main reason I have been stalling.
Wordpress Automatic Upgrade Plugin
Until now, I have found a plugin which could save all my worrying. The Wordpress Automatic Upgrade Plugin by Techie Buzz. It does just what it says and automatically upgrade your Wordpress version to the latest one from wordpress.org.
I have just used it to upgrade this blog from Wordpress 2.1 to Wordpress 2.3 and it was fantastic, no problems it just did it! I thoroughly reccommend using this plugin, it makes a backup of the files and database (as well as cleaning it up), deactivates all plugins and then reactivates after the upgrade has been installed.
There are some amazing plugins out there that really make a bloggers life easier and the automatic upgrade plugin is certainly one of them.
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:10 Essential Wordpress Plugins
This is a list of the plugins (in no particular order) I use on my blogs and what I think are essential plugins for any Wordpress blog. All the plugins come with installation and configuration instructions once downloaded and the file unzipped:
1. SEO Title Tag
This plugin allows you to edit the post title that appears at the top of the internet browser when the blog is visited, which helps with on page SEO. And it integrates with Wordpress 2.3.
2. Dagon Design Sitemap Generator
This plugin generates a physical sitemap for the blog which can be fully customised. Making searching the blog for a specific section easy, and updates itself every time the blog is modified or posted to. It will also help with on page SEO.
3. Google (XML) sitemap
This plugin works with Google Webmaster Tools and creates a sitemap for your blog by crawling it (it will then do it regularly) and is more for the search engine ‘bots’ than humans!
4. Google Analytic
This plugin lets you easily add the Google Analytic’s statistic package tracking code to your blog. You need to sign up with Google Analytic’s for an account and then you can get the script and paste it into the plugin. A great statistic’s package.
5. Wordpress Database Backup
This plugin lets you schedule backup’s for your blog and save them to your computer. If your blog has a problem, then all will not be lost!
6. Akismet
This plugin is a great time saver. I only started using it a couple of months ago and already it has stopped over 450 spam comments. You just need an API key to activate it, and to do this just sign up for a wordpress.com account and that will give you an API key.
7. Related posts
Great for increasing page views, and offering your readers even more useful content by listing related articles at the bottom of posts. It also lets archived articles be seen again easily.
8. Subscribe to comments
Helps foster a community by encouraging comments on your blog. By giving the option to have future comments emailed to the commentator, enticing them to return.
9. Share this
Puts a single icon at the bottom of posts giving the readers a list (once clicked), of social media sites to add your content to. This is great for uncluttering a blog, and getting rid of the mess of icons that can be at the end of posts.
10. Wordpress Automatic Upgrade
Do you know how to upgrade wordpress through your host? I didn’t, but this plugin automatically upgrades wordpress to the latest version from wordpress.org, now that’s handy.
There are 100’s of plugins out there and this is just my opinion of the plugins I have tried, used and heard about. It’s my pick of the bunch.
If you would like to learn more about uploading plugins then you may like to read this article: How to Install Wordpress Themes and Plugins.
Thanks
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:Aksimet, Dagon Design, ilfilosofo, Net Concepts, Semiologic, share this, techie buzz, txfx.net, wasabi, XML sitemapsHow To Change A Wordpress Theme
Do you like my new theme for Build a Blog, it is very different to my last one, but I really like it and think it suits the blog very well. What do you think?
Why Did I Want To Change?
The main reason I wanted to change my theme was presentation. The above the fold area, the part of the blog that you immediately see when it loads was not presented well. Beforehand you could hardly see any of the blog itself, you could only just see the latest post, it was all header. Now it looks a lot better with more information to view before having to scroll, and it’s not so cluttered, making it look cleaner and easier to read.
Here are some before and after shots so you can see what I mean. 
You can see how much difference the new theme has made! There will no doubt be a few more tweaks I make along the way, but I don’t want to concentrate any more time on the overall design it will just be updating the information. I am very happy with it, though it may take a little while for me to get used to it looking like this, and recognise it as my blog! Read more
Site Search Tags:Brian Gardner, silhouette themeTo Upgrade Or Not To Upgrade?
This is part of a series of posts about Wordpress, you may like to take a look at the others, here they are:
Blogging Platforms - Which one to choose!
Who else has trouble choosing a host?
How to Install Wordpress Themes and Plugins?
What are the best features of Wordpress?
You may have heard that Wordpress has released an upgrade, Wordpress 2.3. I am using Wordpress 2.2 for my blog at the moment, so I have to decide whether I am going to upgrade now or not. Wordpress 2.3 was brought out back in September and has lots of new features including internal tagging. So there is no need anymore for the Ultimate Tag Warrior plugin or similar, which a lot of bloggers will find a relief as it can be a bit temperamental.
I have been reading some posts on Wordpress 2.3 while deciding what to do, and I think my major consideration is that Wordpress 2.3 is a large upgrade, the smaller ones being 2.2.1 etc. This seems to be something to consider. When there is a larger upgrade you can bet there will inevitably be some problems or bugs to solve, especially with new features. That’s an argument for not upgrading just yet and to wait for the bugs to be fixed and an update released.
That’s what I have decided to do, I don’t want to complicate things as (touch wood) the blog is running fine at the moment with Wordpress 2.2. So I am going to wait a bit until an update with some bug fix’s is released and then upgrade. I am going to start another blog soon and my host (Bluehost) will install the latest version of Wordpress for that blog, so that will start off with Wordpress 2.3 and I’ll get a chance then to see what it’s like.
I was worried about upgrading partly because I had no idea how to do it, but I have found a plugin that could help, Wordpress Automatic Upgrade plugin:
Wordpress Automatic Upgrade is a plugin that automatically upgrades your wordpress version to the latest files provided by wordpress.org using the 5 steps provided in the wordpress upgrade instructions. - Techie Buzz
Now that sounds like my sort of thing!
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:Bluehost, Plugins, Ultimate Tag Warrior, Upgrade, Wordpress, Wordpress Automatic UpgradeWhat Are The Best Features Of Wordpress?
My Top 3 Features of Wordpress?
I have been using Wordpress (.org) since July this year and I thought I would share my 3 favourite features of Wordpress with you. I have found Wordpress very easy to use, although I have had some experience of using a blogging platform before over at Blogger, and was therefore familiar with that type of interface, so that may have helped. My favourite features are all to do with the write tab.
1. More Tag
If I feel my post is really long and therefore taking up too much space on the front page, I can insert the more tag by placing the cursor where I want the break to be, and then clicking the more tag in the posting tools (it’s the one that looks like a cut piece of paper). It’s great because I can have the first couple of teaser paragraphs on the first page, to draw the reader in and want to read more, then hopefully click through to read the rest which will help my page views. When clicked it takes you to a single post page where you can read the whole post and comment if you like. Saving that valuable space on the front page to fit even more posts on, and put off the time when the post is relegated to the archives. There’s a difference in opinions about the use of more tags, I tend to only use them when I have a really long post. Because if all the posts on a blog are tagged then it can be annoying to read, and there is no real content on display on the front page so I can’t get a feel for the blog itself. A really useful feature as long as it’s used well.
2. Timestamp
The edit timestamp tool is probably my favourite. It gives you the ability to edit when the post will be published which is great for holidays or a weekend off. I would like to be organised enough to write a batch of posts and then timestamp them to publish while I was away making sure that my ranking isn’t effected by the holiday or time off. Also sometimes I get a mad mood on and sit down to write several posts say, if I know I won’t have time with the kids being on school holidays, then I can timestamp them to publish when I want them to. It’s great for keeping continuity to my postings and helpful if I get ahead of myself. But as you may have noticed the best laid plans sometimes go astray and I don’t always get organised to do it, but everything comes with practice!
3. Pages
Next to the write post tab is the write pages tab, so I can add pages to the navigation across the top of the blog like my about page, articles page and recommended resources page (so far). This is great for information that I want to stay visible and highlighted on the blog, and easily accessible without having links everywhere on the front page or having to delve into the archives to find it. It gives me more scope for extending that information, updating it and breaking it down into relevant sections making it an easier read and information source. A great way to personalise my blog and make it a nicer place to visit!
Conclusion
These features were all new to me when I started with Wordpress because I hadn’t had them available for my blogger blog (or as far as I know I didn’t). They have added and enhanced my blogging experience and simply made it easier. I am writing this to share my enthusiasm for them and why I like them. These are the 3 features I feel have changed my blog and blogging the most, so tell me…
What are your favourite features of Wordpress?
This post is part of a series about Wordpress, if you are interested in reading the rest here they are:
Blogging Platforms Which One to Choose?
Who Else has Trouble Choosing a Host?
How to Install Wordpress Themes and Plugins.
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:Blogger, WordpressHow to Install Wordpress Themes and Plugins
Choosing a Theme and Installing
One of the things that appealed to me about Wordpress is it’s customising abilities, with the Wordpress installation you get a default theme, but there are 1,000’s of free themes for Wordpress that you can download and customise to make your own. Or if you have the money, you could have your own designed for you, I would have to be earning a fair bit more before I did that so it’s good that there are so many free themes.
So I had installed Wordpress onto my host (Bluehost) which was really easy because it was a one click installation process using Fantastico, it had really simple instructions and automatically installed the latest version of Wordpress, and I had it done in five minutes. The next step was the theme, I decided I wanted a different theme to the default Kubrick theme and I found mine on the Wordpress theme viewer site. There are loads of sites that do free themes as well, just put a Google search in. But I went to Wordpress itself and used the theme viewer to choose one. It did take a while just because of all the choice, I was like a kid in a sweet shop. Finally I had my theme and after my experience with installing the application itself I was feeling confident that it would be just as easy… Read more
Site Search Tags:Bluehost, Plugins, Themes, Wordpress, Wordpress QuickstartWho Else Has Trouble Choosing A Host?
How do you choose what hosting company is best?
I knew nothing about hosting when moving this blog, and there are so many out there so how on earth do you choose?
You’re talking about hundreds of thousands of hosting companies, with some that are specific for blog hosting, specifications that can boggle the mind and a full range of price lists. This was all a little bit overwhelming for me, I had also heard that Wordpress had minimum requirements from a hosting company to be able to run properly, I got this from the Wordpress site:
PHP 4.3 or higher, MySQL 4.0 or higher, Apache or Litespeed recommended.
Which is fine if I had any idea what that meant. Now the nice thing was that the Wordpress site does give you good information and help, and in their wisdom have recommended a few hosting sites that comply and more with these minimum requirements (how handy). So I decided to use one of them and had a look through to see what I thought.
As I looked through their advertisements they had $6.95 per month or $7.95 per month, now before you get too excited, like I did, thinking that isn’t too much to pay out each month. Be aware that not all hosting companies charge you on a month by month basis, which from the adverts you would guess. It may be that much each month but they want you to pay upfront for the year or even two years to get that price. So fully research before you make your decision. It isn’t a problem if you have some money set aside you can use but not everybody has. Although there are some companies that let you pay on a monthly basis, I think one of them may be Gate.com but from what I have seen they do tend to be a little more expensive than the others.
I chose Bluehost from the recommendations, although I had to sign up for a year (at $7.95 per month) they did give you a choice of how long you could sign for. My reasons for this choice was their support has won awards 3 years on the run (I thought I would be needing the support). And amongst other things they had a one click installation of Wordpress’ latest version and a free domain name. While I am learning I am all for the easy life!
Realistically with so many companies out there with similar features it’s a case of sticking your toe in the water and see what happens. I have read really good reviews for Bluehost and at the same time I have heard some bloggers have had a really bad time and moved their blog. But I think this could be said for a lot of large hosting companies, one blogger can swear by a host while another wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot barge pole. So I went for the one that appealed the most to me and had good features that compared to the others. And so far I have to say (touch wood) I have had no problems with Bluehost and the support has been really helpful with my questions (I’ve put the kiss of death on that now haven’t I). What has your experiences of hosting been?
Hope to see you tomorrow, if my blog doesn’t appear you know what’s happened!
Mandy
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Site Search Tags:Bluehost, Hosting, WordpressBlogging Platforms - Which One To Choose?
I could give a normal review of blogging platforms, looking at each of the popular ones in turn with the pros and cons of each, but I’m not going to (whoa that was a short post)!
So what is the difference between, hosted and non hosted?
Instead I’m going to tell you about my experiences of blogging platforms, and I have had two, Blogger - hosted and Wordpress - non hosted. I’m hoping that this will be more helpful and personal than just a straight review that you can find anywhere.
There is always a hot debate and difference of opinion about blogging platforms and which are the best, and it’s generally between hosted and non hosted blogging platforms. You can change you’re mind and swap blogging platforms, but if you’re blog has grown well, you may find that search engine rankings are effected by the move, so make sure you are happy with the one you have chosen. At the end of the day though it’s whatever you are comfortable with, because it’s you that will be having to use it day in day out. Here are my two experiences: Read more
Site Search Tags:Blogger, Blogging Platforms, Wordpress
