I just read a book on converting the Theme of an HTML-based web site to a WordPress Theme, so there is obviously material out there. Perhaps it was just a matter of Googling the wrong words.
I would recommend “convert theme WordPress” as a good place to start Googling. You might be wiser to start your search on wordpress.org using the Search box at the top of this page. First interesting “hit” I found was http://wordpress.org/support/topic/up-to-date-tutorial-to-convert-html-to-wordpress-theme?replies=2
Although I am not completely clear on what you are being asked to do, but I suspect you will want to convert the entire site to WordPress to get the greatest level of consistency in “look and feel” across the site.
Thread Starter
H0BB5
(@h0bb5)
Hey Jonradio,
Thanks for the response!
I’ll check out the link above.
I want to install wordpress to the site without changing anything about it cosmetically.
I just want the user to be able to log into the back-end of the site and modify the data easily, can this be done? Is it hard to do?
Thanks!
“modify the data easily” has got me confused. If you mean all the data on all the existing pages, then you pretty much have to convert the entire site to WordPress. The only other way is to use Frames to insert WordPress Pages into the existing HTML pages, which I have done by building my own WordPress Theme that has not headers, footers or sidebars (no such Theme can be put in the WordPress Theme Directory because a requirement for the Directory is headers, footers, etc., but that is another story).
I think you are looking at a fair amount of work, no matter how you do it. I’m not an expert on Themes, but my own experience, in a failed attempt to build a custom Theme early on in my WordPress experience, was that Cross Browser Testing is the biggest amount of time you will spend. Adobe BrowserLabs avoids having to install every version of every browser on the planet, but it is still a lot of work.
If it were me, I’d be trying to find an existing WordPress Theme that my customer would accept as a Redesign of the site.
Thread Starter
H0BB5
(@h0bb5)
If you go to the site
http://skilonglake.hobbsforhire.com
I’d just like the user to be able to change the text on the home page, or on the news section.
That’s really it. That’s what I meant by modify data easily.
I can’t believe the amount of work it takes to do something that you would think would be a pretty simple idea.
Every tutorial i’ve found has me doing a different thing.
one of them is to use a child themes and starkers(blank wordpress theme)
then another one is saying to use custom fields
It’s crazy, so confused haha.
I’m afraid that I’m out of ideas. Hopefully someone else can help.
Since you have your website in html and you want your client be able to change content then the best way is to install wordpress in folder and get set up with a theme you like or create one and since you do not have that many pages copy paste content on each page.
Once satisfied you can move the existing site to a folder and move wordpress to root
http://codex.wordpress.org/Moving_WordPress#On_Your_Existing_Server
or
Use from directory
http://codex.wordpress.org/Giving_WordPress_Its_Own_Directory
Thread Starter
H0BB5
(@h0bb5)
Hey govpatel,
Thanks for the response.
But doing it the way you said would result in me having a new theme.
which would change the way the website looks aesthetically.
I am looking for a way to only have the wordpress visible through back-end of the site.
I do not want any changes to occur to the website.
I am looking for a way to just apply wordpress to the site so that the client will be able to login and change the information on the pages without the website changing.
Thanks!
I think an explanation of WordPress might be in order. WordPress stores the HTML for each web page in its database, not in a .html file like you are used to. And it dynamically generates each page for each visitor to your web site.
You can’t just use WordPress as an .html file editor for an existing web site. If that is what you want, try FileZilla and NotePad++. FileZilla can be set up to download, fire up NotePad++ for editing, and prompt the user when they are done for uploading.
Of course, you risk the user messing up your HTML.
Then I am sorry there no other way then to teach your client html
govpatel brings up a good point. Rather than teaching your customer HTML, you could simply use a web-based Visual Editor that directly edits the .html files but displays formatted text, not HTML. cPanel’s File Manager has a decent one, for example, that may be part of your web hosting.
I’m sure there are others.
There a is program Nvu you can install that on your computer edit the page and upload the page
Thread Starter
H0BB5
(@h0bb5)
Govpatel I do not have to teach my client HTML.
I know it is possible to incorporate wordpress into an already existing site without changing the appearance of the site.
There are different ways to do this and I am just trying to find the most efficient/effective.
I am trying to keep my current design as the theme I will be using in wordpress. I know I can get a blank theme such as starkers and use my design as a child/parent theme, but I am in the process of figuring out how that works.
Jonradio, I appreciate your help but I know what WordPress is and how it works. I understand wordpress uses PHP and how dynamic content/web pages work. I have a degree in Web Development I am just not too familiar with wordpress. The only reason I am doing this is because it as my clients request.
It’s ridiculous to say it’s not possible to add wordpress as a back-end component to an existing site without changing the appearance of the site. I know it can be done.
I believe if the members of the forum can help comment on the most effective solution it will help out many people in the future.
http://codex.wordpress.org/Theme_Development
If you want to have wordpress functionality and keep your site the same on the front end, then you are going to have to build your own theme. Learn about themes, and template files.
Only thing I’d add is that, as I said earlier, Cross-Browser Testing is a Must when you build your own theme.
“It’s ridiculous to say it’s not possible to add wordpress as a back-end component to an existing site without changing the appearance of the site. I know it can be done.” – I never meant to imply that it was impossible, but you didn’t seem to like the amount of work involved, so I was offering less time-consuming alternatives.
Thread Starter
H0BB5
(@h0bb5)
Wouldn’t the cross browser testing already been done if the site works currently cross browser?
Isn’t it just dependent on the browser and HTML/CSS?
I don’t think any PHP would affect the outcome of the site when it comes to front-end.
That comment wasn’t directed to you jonradio, it was directed at govpatel.
Your suggestion was using a web based visual editor?
Can you go into more detail about that? My client might be fine with that since I don’t see them wanting to change very much besides the text.
I am also having server problems with their web host. It’s a small town so their host is a small company, talking to them so far is a headache. They have a bunch of problems on their end when it comes to missing MySQL extensions.
This whole thing is such a mess, this is definitely the downside to freelancing when its not on your own server/hosting provider.
