a web server is typically referred to as web hosting, and unless you know someone who knows someone, hosting generally isn’t free. That being said, web hosting doesn’t cost a whole lot, either. You can usually obtain a good web-hosting service for anywhere from $5 to $20/month, depending on your needs (Chapter 3 gives you the important details you need to know about obtaining a web host.)
You need to make sure, however, that any web host you choose to work with has the required software installed on the web server. Currently, the minimum software requirements for WordPress include
✔ PHP version 5.2.4 or greater
✔ MySQL version 5.0 or greater
After you have WordPress installed on your web server (see the installation instructions in Chapter 3), you can start using it to blog to your heart’s content. With the WordPress software, you can install several plugins that extend the functionality of the blogging system, as I describe in Chapter 7.
You also have full control of the core files and code that WordPress is built on. So if you have a knack for PHP and knowledge of MySQL, you can work within the code to create your own themes and plugins that you think would be good for you and your website. Find information about PHP and MySQL in Chapter 2.
You don’t need design ability to make your website look great. Members of the WordPress community have created more than 3,000 WordPress themes, and you can download them for free and install them on your WordPress blog. (See Chapter 8.) Additionally, if you’re creatively inclined, like to create designs on your own, and know CSS, you’ll be glad to know that you have full access to the template system within WordPress and can create your own custom themes. (See Part IV.)
Sites that use the Network options within WordPress include the following:
✔ Best Buy (http://stores.bestbuy.com/577): Blog networks can have more than 150 blogs. The popular electronics retail store, Best Buy, uses WordPress to power 1,050 local store blogs.
✔ The New York Times (www.nytimes.com/interactive/blogs/directory.html): Newspapers, magazines, and universities use WordPress to manage the blog sections of their websites. Another example is the Harvard Law School blog at http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/.
✔ Microsoft Windows (http://blogs.windows.com): Niche-specific blog networks use WordPress to manage the content they publish through various channels on their website about the Windows software – in multiple languages.
Chapter 2
WordPress Basics
In This Chapter
▶ Considering website types
▶ Finding out what WordPress technology can do for you
▶ Outlining your initial website plan
Alot happens behind the scenes to make your WordPress blog or website function. The beauty of it is that you don’t have to worry about what’s happening on the back end to manage and maintain a WordPress site – unless you really want to. In this chapter, I delve a little bit into the technology behind the WordPress platform, including a brief look at PHP and MySQL, two software components required to run WordPress.
This chapter also covers some of the various technologies that help you on your way to running a successful website, such as the use of comments and RSS feed technology, as well as information about combating spam.
Shining the Spotlight on WordPress
Publishing content and blogging is an evolutionary process, and blogs have evolved beyond personal diaries and journals. Undoubtedly, a blog is a fabulous tool for publishing your personal diary of thoughts and ideas; however, blogs also serve as excellent tools for business, editorial journalism, news, and entertainment. Sometimes, you will find standalone blogs where that is all the website has to offer; other times you will find a full website that contains a blog, but has other offerings as well (products for sale, memberships, newsletters, forums, and so on). Here are some ways that people use blogs and websites powered by WordPress:
✔ Personal: This type of blogger creates a blog as a personal journal or diary. You’re considered a personal blogger if you use your blog mainly to discuss topics that are personal to you or your life – your family, your cats, your children, or your interests (for example, technology, politics, sports, art, or photography). My blog, which you can find at http://lisasabin-wilson.com, is an example of a personal blog.
✔ Business: This type of blogger uses the power of blogs to promote a company’s business services, products on the Internet, or both. Blogs are very effective tools for promotion and marketing, and business blogs usually offer helpful information to readers and consumers, such as tips and product reviews. Business blogs also let readers provide feedback and ideas, which can help a company improve its services. ServerBeach is a good example of a business that keeps a blog on the hosted WordPress.com service at https://serverbeach.wordpress.com.
✔ Media/journalism: More and more popular news outlets, such as Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN, have added blogs to their websites to provide information on current events, politics, and news on regional, national, and international levels. These news organizations often have editorial bloggers as well. Reader’s Digest is an example of such a publication – its WordPress-powered site can be found at www.rd.com.
✔ Citizen journalism: The emergence of citizen journalism coincided with the swing from old media to new media. In old media, the journalists and news organizations direct the conversation about news topics.
With the popularity of blogs and the millions of bloggers who exploded onto the Internet, old media felt a change in the wind. Average citizens, using the power of their voices on blogs, changed the direction of the conversation. Citizen journalists often fact-check traditional media news stories and expose inconsistencies, with the intention of keeping the media or local politicians in check. An example of citizen journalism is the Power Line blog at www.powerlineblog.com.
✔ Professional: This category of blogger is growing every day. Professional bloggers
