I've been designing websites for over 14-years now and as a website designer I get asked all the time what it is I actually do?  Well, my answer usually is something like this:

"I try to accomplish what a client wants by putting my designing and programming skills to work.  I'm fluent in HTML, PHP, and CSS and I've moved my focus to creating Content Management Software (CMS) websites.  These CMS websites offer the client access to modify content via an internet browsers such as Firefox, IE, or Safari." 

Ok, so I know I might have lost a couple of you already. I know this because my good friend Jaime always tells– more like yells — at me "Betty why are speaking Greek to me!".  Especially when I start saying techy words like "client access", "widgets" and "plugins" all mixed in with a few acronyms.  Bear with me though I'm getting to the good stuff.  What I'm saying is:

"I create websites where the client– lets just say that's "you" –can open your website and edit your own website."

One of the easiest and rapidly becoming more and more popular way of doing this is through WordPress (WP).  WordPress is primarily known as blog software but with a few clicks it can be converted into a CMS website building tool, without having to learn or know too much programming.

The best feature of WordPress is it's content editing capabilities.  In order to modify the content on the website through WordPress, you don't need to know PHP, HTML and CSS.  Sidenote: To modify the back-end structure you do need to know PHP, HTML and CSS– but that's where I come in, my contact info is at the bottom of this article if you need a webmaster --to create anything such as, layout and design, that does not come stock.

WordPress

So, what is WordPress you say?  Well, WordPress is primarily divided into three areas that you need to worry about: Pages, Posts, and Plugins.

Posts
Posts are the entries that display in reverse chronological order on your home page. In contrast to pages, posts usually have comments fields beneath them and are included in your site's RSS feed.

That means posts can be used as the continuous updates area of your website.  Now, in WordPress these entries DO NOT necessarily have to be on your homepage.  It can be any Page you choose.

Pages
Pages, on the other hand, are for content such as "About Me," "Contact Me," etc. Pages live outside of the normal blog chronology, and are often used to present information about yourself or your site that is somehow timeless — information that is always applicable. You can use Pages to organize and manage any amount of content.

These Pages can go as far vertical or horizontal as you'd like.  If you have pages that are more than one layer deep, it's best to organize your pages ahead of time and stick with it.  This way your permalinks don't change and you won't get a ton of broken links.

Plugins
Plugins are synonymous with Widgets, these are the things that make your site interactive or just plain cool.  The Plugins section is your friend!  Anything you want your site to do you can find a plugin for that. A great resource is the WordPress Plugin Directory.

Here is a list of the plugins I use:

·         AddThis Social Bookmarking Widget
·         AmberPanther Favicon for WordPress
·         bookTuner
·         cbnet Really Simple CAPTCHA
·         CKEditor for WordPress
·         CMS Tree Page ViewCMS Tree Page View
·         Convert Post Types
·         Enable Media Replace          
·         Executable PHP widget
·         Faster Image Insert
·         Follow Me
·         List category posts
·         Nook Color Widget
·         Post to Twitter          
·         Reveal IDs
·         Rotating PostsRotating Posts
·         Sub Page Navigation WidgetSub Page Navigation Widget
·         th23 Media Library Extension
·         TS Custom Widgets  
·         WordPress Flash Uploader

Now that you have a handle on what WordPress can do for you, it's almost time to find a website designer who can help you accomplish this. It's almost time to start the hunt.  First things first though:  domain name and domain name server.

I know, I know, I'm speaking GREEK again!

Betty

betty (at) brownsonenterprises (dot) com