Questions before using WordPress

  • elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)


    15 years, 5 months ago

    Hi,

    I have been struggling for weeks trying to decide between hosts, site builders, photo gallery software, etc. and reading all the wildly opposing reviews of every option. My old site was originally built with Trellix online, then updated through the cpanel from then on (meaning I never used the builder the last 4 years or so, just went to each page of my site through my html folder and easily made basic updates). I finally chose to try ‘SiteSpinner’ on my computer to test build some pages for my new site. Got a couple almost done. Then, my host says he does not recommend site builders (didn’t explain why)and suggested I go ahead and install WordPress and play around with it.

    I was about to do that tonight (I did make a generic page on the WordPress site a couple weeks ago but haven’t tried it within my cpanel yet) but came on here first to answer some questions I’ve had. For instance I wondered how you’d go about putting your own backgrounds and such within the templates- having assumed there would be some that allow this without going through multiple steps and knowing code well? But several of the previous postings people placed on here asking that question were closed to replies without ever getting a reply, which isn’t instilling a lot of confidence off the bat.

    Also I see posts with people saying they can’t get into their blog, or all sorts of other issues. I realize this is a very popular program but I want to make sure I’m not going to have a bunch of issues or lose my site again unnecessarily. My host said it’s run through my site and not relying on a ‘third party’ but that doesn’t seem to be the case exactly.

    I guess my questions are- once I have built and loaded my site are the pages ‘safe’ and not dependent on anything (besides the server). What happens in the event that I’m having issues in WP and want to switch to something else (hopefully wouldn’t happen but gotta ask)- would I have to rebuild completely or can I transfer the bulk of the html into a different template/software/cms/whatever? How easy is it to customize within the framework of a template? And what is the main difference between using WP and a plain builder? Sorry if some of these are novice questions but I only have a small bit of experience making a site and none with WP.

    Thanks in advance for any advice!

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 18 total)
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  • govpatel

    (@govpatel)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    I have been using content management systems for along time and have worked with different ones and I have never looked back and go back to template system or site builder.

    Good part about using CMS is that all my data is saved in database and as long as I keep a backup of my database then I can put my wordpress back in less then a hour.

    I can change the look of my website anytime I want with same data using a theme that are widely available.

    Once you have learned how to use wordpress you should not have any problem.

    I have set up my website with wordpress child theme based on default twentyten theme as frame work and I do not have any problems as I know that twenty ten theme is tested and works.

    Some of the posts you see are having problems as they do not follow the instructions on how to and most common is theme is not compatible or plugin is not compatible.

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    Thanks for the info, I am going to give it a try. :o)

    CSD-Images

    (@csd-images)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    WordPress is very modular in that it takes a wide range of extensions to do what you want and need, and if you can’t find anything then you can get your hands dirty by going under the hood.

    All the data lives in a database; things like posts, pages, setttings and so on. This makes it platform agnostic.

    To back up WordPress is very easy to manage and use with most complications coming from server side issues. Most of these I’ve seen with WordPress comes down to Permissions on the server and/or how the server is set up.

    It’s also very hard to ‘lose’ a WP site as long as you keep a back up of the database and also your wp-content folder. This makes it very easy to transfer hosts, restore the site and so on.

    The key aspect I’ll stress is lock down your server. Since WP is dynamic you’ll need to be aware of the security and permissions you need to be running under. WP is fairly secure in itself but there a number of plug-ins that make it even more secure.

    One it’s up and running just keep it up to date and it’s smooth sailing most of the time. Themes can be changed on the fly with minimal to no issues, and adding content is a snap compared to traditional web design.

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    Thanks so much. It’s not that I need anything super fancy. Just want it artistic and a bit unique. Once I get the main thing built it will only need occasional adding of text and photos. Not a blog but just a regular site mostly. I appreciate you both taking the time to explain. I enjoy figuring things out on my own but it’s also nice to hear others experience to help you make a decision sometimes.

    Root

    (@root)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    Apropos people with problems here in the forum……..WP is an amazing platform for styling, designing and upgrading various themes. Its a big part of the functionality and fun. But like any web site if u reach way beyond yr skill level it can break till you roll back or fix it……….
    the number of posters as a per cent of the user base is tiny……..

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    Excellent point. I’ve definitely read some great reviews which is why I started considering it even though I had already begun working with the other program. I’m sure with either it’s still going to take me some time with the learning curve but I’m willing to spend the time if I know I can get good results. Just wanted to make sure that once you figure out the basics it’s fairly easy and not constantly causing more work.

    Root

    (@root)

    15 years, 5 months ago

    There is a kind of more general answer to these “can I do this?” type of questions. WP is written in PHP. Thus it gives layered entry levels and routes to any functionality you may need. Beginners will feel comfortable at the style.css level. Then the can add plugins. Then maybe work on a theme functions.php. But at any time they can change anything. Its a fine line between saying something is “complicated” and saying its “sophisticated”. True there is a learning curve but there is a learning curve in writing web sites / cms from scratch. A much higher steeper one.

    Generally in WP whatever the end user wants to do is built in somewhere, or it has been done before and can be located online. Or he can learn php.

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    Good to know. I just loaded it to my site and am trying to choose a theme. But it still seems like all the ones I preview are set up to look like blogs. My site is not a blog. Is there a way to search for themes that are for ‘normal’ sites? Not sure what the search term should be.

    Furthermore I just now realized it immediately started showing up under my url when I have done nothing to build it yet- wasn’t really looking to have it online while I’m trying to make the site, right now it has absolutely no info related to my business. That would be fine if I knew I could get the whole site built in a few hours but I doubt that’s going to happen. I thought the page I made on WordPress.com would be residing there if I chose to use it as a blog, and what I was loading onto my hosting account was a separate thing yet to be built. Sigh…

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    Oh, my apologies- I already realized I was wrong. Just that the new install had the identical initial page that I had seen weeks ago when I first did my page at WP- I see now that the two are different. so now I just need to figure out how to make it not be a blog-type setup.

    esmi

    (@esmi)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    You might want to start by Creating_a_Static_Front_Page.

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    Thank you, I will work on that. I assume I can create more than one static page? My site will probably be about 5 normal pages and then maybe I will leave one as a blog page to post current events or write some articles from time to time.

    Real stupid question- I am on there now putting up a comment that lets people know I’m working on the site- I see all the different options for text such as font, bold, italics, color, etc. but for the life of me I do not see where to change the size of the font. Am I blind, or is it maybe missing from the theme I chose? (Can’t imagine that would be the case as it is one of the supposedly more customizable ones).

    esmi

    (@esmi)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    I assume I can create more than one static page?

    You can create as many as you like but making your front page static will get rid of that “blog look”. You can simultaneously set up a Blog page and all of your posts will be shown on that page as opposed to the front page of your site.

    The font size of your text is controlled by your theme. You would need to edit your theme’s stylesheet. Or, if you are using Twenty Ten, create a child theme for your changes.

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    Thank you so much. I will definitely have to work on all of that.

    Another question- I had added a background to one theme I had activated- then I switched to a different theme and of course it was blank (I forgot to check but I’d assume my background image is in the folder if I want to add it) but when I switched back to first theme the background was still there. So I am just trying to figure out, what all automatically transfers into new themes when you switch and what does not? I understand the background maybe not being there as it might be assumed if you are switching themes you might want the new color scheme that comes with it, but what about any other customizations you’ve done? And when you do switch back to a previously-used theme, does it always in fact go to the version you created as it appeared to have done? Meaning, if I try out a new theme and decide I don’t like it and re-select any ones I have previously customized, all my work is saved as-is in that theme?

    esmi

    (@esmi)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    what all automatically transfers into new themes when you switch and what does not

    Other than your actual site content, very little is transferred between themes. Custom header & backgrounds have to be set on a “per theme” basis – as do widgets.

    The good news, however, is that, if you set Theme A up, then switch to Theme B and back to A again, all of Theme A’s customisations should still be there. You should only lose some customisations if you delete a theme (and even then, many remain in your database).

    Thread Starter elvizapelvis

    (@elvizapelvis)

    15 years, 4 months ago

    Thanks again. Hadn’t been able to work on it the past couple days- let’s see if I can start making some headway… :o)

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