Blogger vs WordPress Blog

Hot Off the Press WordPressers Making a Splash

Ben Huberman

Jul 29, 2015 @ 4:00 pm

Community, WordPress.com

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Source: WordPressers Making a Splash

If you know exactly what you're doing, you can build a blog that gets over 100,000 visitors per month in less than year—from scratch.

Chances are, however, you don't know exactly what you need to do to achieve that, but that's okay.

The fact that you're here and ready to learn means that one day, you will know what you need to do to create a fully sustainable business from your blog.

Another factor is the time it takes. Some of you may be able to build a thriving blog in a year, while others may take two, three, or even five years.

During this journey, your blog will progress through five distinct stages:

Blog creation

Initial growth: finding your 100 "true fans"

Scaling up your traffic

Reaping the rewards

Maintaining your success

In this article, I'll outline the five stages of blog growth to help you understand where you're today and how far you have left to go.

Stage 1: Your Blog is Born

Expected time to complete: Less than two weeks.

When you read most blogs on creating an online business and online marketing, the sexy parts involve hundreds of thousands of visitors and profit.

But traffic and profit are the result; your foundation is the cause of those results. Figuring out the important details of your blog isn't always easy, but without a solid foundation, you can't build a skyscraper.

There are four things you need to do in this preparatory phase.

Even if you already have a blog, you may benefit from going over these things again and improving them if you skipped them before.

1. Define Your Niche

This is the first step—the step where most blog owners fail. It is crucial to know who is going to benefit from your content.

In other words: who do you want to serve?

You don't need to know how you're going to do it yet. The products you will make, the content you will create, and your traffic generating methods don't matter yet. The audience you want to help comes first.

You need to be able to state what type of people you're trying to serve and be as specific as possible. It's better to be too specific than too general as you can always expand later.

For example, you may want to serve office workers who want to learn how to eat healthy at work.

Here are 124 niche case studies, both good and bad.

2. Create a Reader Persona

Now that you know the people you want to serve, you need to learn more about them.

In order to create content that actually helps them, you must understand who they are, how they act, and what they struggle with.

You can learn about your target audience in many ways, for example:

in-person conversations

demographic sites like Alexa and SEMrush

By the end of your research, you should know your target audience's:

age

gender

job

hobbies

beliefs

values

You can even give your reader persona a name. Note that all of these have to be as specific as possible. For instance, 25-35 years old isn't an age, it's a range. Pick one age that accurately describes your ideal reader.

In the end, you want to have one specific person in mind you can write for. This will help you create content that resonates with your readers.

3. Create Your Blog

If you're going to build a blog-based business, you will at some point need a functional blog.

Unless you need some really unique features, I recommend sticking with WordPress for now. It's the simplest option to get you up and running, and you can always redesign the blog in the future. Here's how to install WordPress—it's pretty simple.

Alternatively, if you're already running your site on a platform like HubSpot, it might be even easier for you to create a blog.

What I don't advise you do is go out and spend thousands of dollars on a custom CMS or design. The first version of any blog isn't going to be perfect, and it's going to change a lot down the line.

Focus on getting a simple, functional, and not completely ugly blog up and running as fast as possible. Don't waste weeks or months trying to make everything look perfect.

4. Discover Where Your Readers Hang Out

Before you can even attempt to draw your target audience to your blog, you have to figure out where they spend their time.

Note that in some niches, you may have to get offline and go to conventions or local meetings to connect with your target audience and get them on your site.

To start with, find the most popular blogs in your niche. The easiest ways to do this is by Googling "top [your general niche] blogs."

Create a spreadsheet to keep track of these sites. In one column, indicate if the blog allows comments, and in another, if it allows guest posts. To check for guest posts, Google "[domain name] guest post."

Go through any big lists of blogs, and visit each one individually. Look for signs of high traffic such as several comments on each blog post or a lot of social shares.

Add the best ones to your list. You want to identify blogs your reader persona visits so you can eventually get them over to your site. Ideally, you want to identify as many as you can, but at least 50. If you're having trouble getting that many, think broader, e.g., "best health sites" instead of "best nutrition sites".

After blogs, it's time to check out forums in your niche. Again, search for "[your general niche]+ forum," and go through the results on the first few pages.

If you find forums you believe your target audience visits regularly, record them in a separate section of your spreadsheet. Note the number of members, or active members, to indicate activity and popularity.

Forums typically aren't big enough to use as a main traffic strategy at any point, but they can help you refine your reader persona and can be used for certain promotion tactics.

Stage 2: Finding Your 100 True Fans

Expected time to complete: Less than four months.

Back in 2008, Kevin Kelly coined a concept called 1,000 true fans. It really took off when Seth Godin started referencing it in his advice.

In short, he described how anyone could make a great living if they interacted with and had support from 1,000 true fans.

This article was written in the context of being a musician or an artist, but the same applies to most small businesses. A relatively small group of loyal readers can make your business a big enough success to allow you to become a full-time blogger (if you aren't already).

If you have a new blog, going from zero to 1,000 is a big leap. Too big, in my opinion, and unnecessary.

A better goal is to gather 100 true fans.

When you first begin a blog, you're starting at zero. No matter how well you research your target audience, you're going to make mistakes. The problem here is that no one will tell you what mistakes you're making—at least not yet.

As long as you define your target audience well enough, you will have the ability to attract your first 100 fans (although it could take a while). These fans will play an instrumental role in the growth of your blog.

Source: The 5 Stages of Blog Growth: How Your Traffic Tactics Should Change as You Grow

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today urged the blog publishing platform WordPress to remove ISIS propaganda from its website, after the League's research found a repository of ISIS videos, statements and publications on the platform.

WordPress has not responded to ADL's flagging of the content, which included beheading and execution clips and articles encouraging individuals to travel, join and carry out attacks. ADL is also asking internet consumers to help persuade WordPress to remove the content.

"We applaud open source tools like WordPress that have given many tools to individuals and organizations to express themselves. However, if WordPress is aware of violent ISIS propaganda hosted on their servers, content that glorifies and promotes terrorism, then it is incumbent upon them to swiftly take some kind of action," said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL National Director. "Other social media companies have recently taken significant steps in the battle against online hate, and we hope that WordPress will make efforts to address terror propaganda on their service."

According to ADL's Center on Extremism, one particular website on WordPress includes ISIS materials as well as materials from other terror organizations in French, Turkish, Dutch, Arabic and other languages and includes a section for Dabiq, ISIS' English-language magazine.

"ISIS and its supporters continue to maneuver through various channels to promote their message to as wide of audience as possible, so it is not surprising that they have found another virtual home on WordPress," said Oren Segal, Director of ADL's Center on Extremism. "Just last year, we witnessed ISIS attempting to move its social media presence away from Twitter, which regularly removed and shut down their profiles. WordPress can set an example by not only removing the content, but also by making clear that terrorist materials have no place on its platform."

ADL's "Best Practices for Responding to Cyberhate" establishes guideposts for the industry and the Internet community to help prevent the spread of online hate speech. The initiative is a result of discussions and deliberations by an industry working group convened by the League.

In an attempt to help Internet uses better navigate the various mechanisms available for reporting online hate speech, ADL launched The ADL Cyber-Safety Action Guide, a platform where consumers can learn how and where to report bigoted, bullying or hateful speech to the major social media platforms and other Internet providers.

A variety of other resources on cyberhate, including a special curriculum, Addressing Hate Online, designed specifically for high school students, are available on ADL's web site.

Source: Jewish Group Calls for Blog Platform WordPress to Remove ISIS

Automattic, the company behind the popular WordPress blogging platform, has seen a steady increase in DMCA takedown notices in recent years.

Some of these are legitimate, aimed at disabling access to copyright-infringing material. However, there are also many overbroad and abusive takedown notices which take up a lot of the company's time and resources.

To give the public insight into the effort it takes to process the requests WordPress regularly publishes a transparency report. In the report WordPress outlines the number of DMCA takedown notices, but also how many were rejected due to inaccuracies or abuse.

"We work hard to make our DMCA process as fair, transparent, and balanced as possible, so we stringently review all notices we receive to quickly process valid infringement claims and push back on those that we see as abusive," WordPress explains.

The latest update covering the past half year shows that 4,679 piracy takedown requests were received during this period. What stands out is that content was removed in barely half of the cases reported.

In total, 43% of all notices were rejected, either because they were incomplete or due to abuse. February and April were particularly bad months, as more than half of all notices were rejected.

According to WordPress' figures more than 10% of the notices were abusive, and the company highlights some examples in its "Hall of Shame."

WordPress' most recent takedown statistics

For the first time WordPress has also released information on the organizations that submit the most complaints. Web Sheriff is listed on top here, followed by Audiolock and InternetSecurities.

Commenting on the new data Stephen Blythe, Community Guardian at Automattic, informs TF that they have seen a significant bump in rejections over the past months. This increase has two main causes.

"The first is that we rejected a large number of abusive takedown notifications from Web Sheriff that related to a single site. The second is that we are constantly refining our processes to ensure that we catch and push back on as many of these misuses as possible," Blythe says.

WordPress currently doesn't publish the takedown notices in full, but the company plans to highlight more abuse cases on its website in the coming months.

"We see numerous instances of abuse of the DMCA takedown process, on a regular basis. We plan to publish these via our transparency blog in future," Blythe notes.

While the number of takedown requests WordPress receives pales in comparison to larger Internet services, it's good to see that the company carefully reviews all notices to prevent unwarranted censorship. It will be interesting to see how the volume of request changes over time and whether copyright holders will improve their accuracy.

Source: WordPress Rejects 43% Of All 'Piracy' Takedown Notices

The following blog post, unless otherwise noted, was written by a member of Gamasutra's community.The thoughts and opinions expressed are those of the writer and not Gamasutra or its parent company.

This is my first blog post on Gamasutra. Everything I post here will be on my own blog, too: https://warrenspector.wordpress.com/. But, my own blog will feature additional items that interest me but aren't necessarily Gamasutra-worthy. (I promise all my posts won't be about the Denius-Sams Gaming Academy, my current and nearly all-consuming gig.) So, if you're interested, keep an eye on this and my personal blog, okay?

Enough prologue, let's get to blogging.

I wanted to start my Gamasutra blogging career with something that's been on my mind for a while (since GDC, for sure, and long before that, truth be told). What prompted me to write this, in particular, was an email I got the other day from an Australian journalist -- Patrick Stafford -- about something that happened at GDC 2015. Here's the portion of his email that led me to this post:

"At GDC, I was at a panel about Telltale's games – a bunch of their writers were speaking. At one point, Kevin Bruner asked the audience something along the lines of, 'does anyone here think that what we make shouldn't be called games?'  I looked around, and I believe I saw you raise your hand."

Truth be told, the guy was right. I did raise my hand in answer to Kevin's question, and I have to own up to the fact that I was expressing a sincerely held belief. I've often said Telltale makes things that are game-like, but not exactly games. I think of them as some sort of interactive experience (obviously), but does that mean "game?" I don't think so.

Now, before people get their shorts in a knot about this, let me say a couple of things:

First, the definition of "game" is so broad (and ill-defined... and debated...), Telltale's work can clearly be said to fall under that umbrella, if you want to put it there. And if you do want to put The Walking Dead, The Wolf Among Us, Tales from the Borderlands, Game of Thrones and others in the "game" category (or, to cite a non-Telltale example, David Cage's Heavy Rain), go ahead. I'm not religious about this. Labels, at the end of the day, aren't all that important, you know? Understanding how something works is important, but labels, not so much.

Second, I love Telltale's work. The fact that I think of The Walking Dead et al as wonderful experiences but not wonderful games may seem like a subtle distinction, but it's an important one for me.

So, circling back to Patrick's email, I figured I owed him a response and, at the same time, thought this was a good opportunity to think through - for myself - my feelings about Telltale's work. So let's tiptoe through the minefield...

When I think of games – narrative games -- I think of several things: plot (of course), but also challenges, goals and solutions. I think of character progression. Unlike, say, David Cage, I think of systems and mechanics - I think a lot about that. I think of players having some impact on the narrative or, at least, how that narrative plays out minute-to-minute (given each player's unique skills and the choices each makes in overcoming developer-created problems).

That last one is the most important to me, personally, something to bear in mind here. Nothing else (literally nothing) is more important to me. Your mileage may vary.

I'm absolutely not saying that all games should or must empower players, giving them ownership of the narrative at the minute-to-minute level. However, if you accept that idea, even simple choices can make a difference. You don't have to go full-on Mass Effect or, if you'll indulge me, Deus Ex. It's fine to empower players in small and/or conventional ways:

Which weapon do I use to defeat an enemy? A perfectly reasonable, if minor experience differentiator.

Do I go up here before going down there? Again, giving players even this amount of freedom is a small win.

Do I wait for a long straight piece to fill in a narrow gap or do I drop the L-shaped piece that's already on the screen? Even Tetris tells a player-recounted story, of a sort.

You can probably think of dozens, hundreds, thousands more of these small differentiating elements, from games that most people wouldn't think are particularly player-empowering. The ones I've listed, and the others you can think of, may be the lamest choices imaginable (though I'm not saying they are). Lame or not, each of these player-driven decisions significantly differentiates one player's experience from another.

(As a note, the test of whether a choice has made a meaningful difference is whether two players, discussing their experience, describe a unique moment, even if the outcome of a choice is the same for both of them.)

For me, differentiated experience is a defining characteristic of games - maybe the defining characteristic.

By contrast, Telltale's work, though incorporating a kind of player-empowerment, limits player options in significant ways.

Let's go back to the list of things I think of when I think about game narrative - challenges, goals, solutions, mechanics/systems and character progression.

If you've experienced any of Telltale's work you're probably way ahead of me, but here's my take:

Games like The Walking Dead certainly offer story, challenges, goals and solutions. Isn't that enough to call them games and put all this seemingly nit-picky labeling behind us? Obviously, I don't think so or I'd just stop right here and say "Oops. Never mind." So what is it about Telltale's work that makes it hard for me to say they're games?

For starters, they basically have no mechanics (or when they do introduce simple mechanics — shooting while backing up stairs and such -- they seem out of place and unnecessary). There's no character progression to speak of. And there's no real player control of the minute-to-minute. That last point is key.

Everything Telltale offers is pre-planned -- even the game-like qualities they do incorporate. The challenges, the goals the solutions, everything is determined and constrained by the designers through a script that I'm pretty certain utilizes a traditional branching tree structure.  (True confession time: I don't have any inside information about how things work under the hood at Telltale -- I'd love it if someone who did know would chime in and tell me!)

If my experience of Telltale's work has led me to the correct conclusion, you can't really go where you want to go when you want to go there and I don't think there's ever the possibility of a player discovering a freeform, player-driven solution to a problem.

What that tells me is that Telltale is less interested in empowering players and, like a novelist or film-maker, more interested in the story they want to tell.  It tells me they're not much interested in the player's impact on the minute-to-minute unfolding of the experience. Nothing wrong with that, though it's not a choice I'd likely make as a developer. What Telltale clearly does care about is character interaction and dialogue choices that give the illusion that players have a role in directing the narrative. And they clearly value choices that feel meaningful (even when they're really not). Man, does Telltale get choices.

Paradoxically, these player-limiting characteristics and the focus on linear story elements are, I think, where the Telltale magic happens.

Magic? You bet. The magic is that the choices Telltale offers say little or nothing about the characters' feelings about a situation… and they're not about allowing players to min-max or optimize or save-and-reload until they find the "best" solution to the puzzle or problem. Do you know how rare these characteristics are in games?

Pretty damn rare. The magic of Telltale's choices - the magic of their work, overall, is that I, at least, and I suspect many of you reading this, forget the character you're playing. The choices Telltale asks you to make as you wend your way through their artfully crafted stories reveal something about the player's feelings about right and wrong. Telltale forces you to, within script constraints, think about what would be the best thing to do in a given situation if you encountered that situation in the real world (or a zombie-infested one...). "Game space" is subordinate to "real space" and character development is subordinate to players' realizations about themselves.

Despite featuring strong, well-developed characters, Telltale's scripts force players to think for themselves and about themselves. That's awesome and, if I may say, what I've always tried to do in the games I've worked on. I'll let others decide how successful I've been. Clearly, Telltale's approach is working.

Telltale succeeds at this not because their mechanics are great or their puzzles are challenging or their worlds are open-ended. They succeed because their scripts are flat-out better than other people's, and even more important, those scripts pose ethical dilemmas that are more subtle and problematic than anything anyone else in the game business has on offer.

Is there more to the magic than talented writers and an interest in ethics? I think there is. Again, I have no inside information, but I think there's a structural thing going on that's pretty old-school but still very effective: I've already mentioned the branching tree structure. Telltale's work takes that to a whole new level. Without meaning to disparage anything or anyone in any way, I often describe the Telltale (or David Cage) approach as jamming several movie scripts together and, then, refining those scripts so they intertwine with one another to give the illusion of player choice, rather than the reality of it.

That has some interesting side effects that make it hard for me to apply the word "game":

No matter how convincing the illusion is, I'm pretty sure no one at Telltale has ever been or will ever be surprised by any choice any player makes. Millions of players can play, but because writers and designers carefully craft every choice ahead of time, the possible outcomes all exist, in some metaphysical sense, in "script-space," regardless of which choices you select.

And no player will ever surprise themselves as they play because they really have very little freedom, if any, to leave the tracks laid by the intertwined scripts. Players will be surprised by the choices and consequences afforded them by the talented, creative people whose scripts they're experiencing, but nothing can happen unless a writer/designer implemented it in the first place. Being surprised by something - largely a result of interactions between tools/interactions with in-gameworld elements - requires giving players control at a level Telltale simply won't allow.

That means that the only difference between my experience and yours in a Telltale game is that I chose one script and you chose another. You saw a slightly different scene than I did but, ultimately, your script and my script will converge again, maybe even in the very next scene. In reality, we're both experiencing a single story, just a well-disguised one. We can compare our choices with other people's choices - something Telltale exploits in an exceptionally elegant and compelling manner -- and the results seem player-driven because branching done in a sophisticated manner works that way. But that comparison of my pre-planned choices versus your preplanned choices is all players can do. They can't really make a difference. It's cool that you made the same choices as 42% of players, but that doesn't add up to a game-defining, player-driven narrative in my book.

That it works at all is part magic trick and part something else (which I'll get to in a moment - remember the words "familiarity" and "comfort"). And, just to restate in a slightly different way something I said earlier: I don't believe Telltale's magic tricks make their work "less than" or "worse than" other interactive narratives or works more irrefutably classified as games - far from it. Magic is cool - cool enough that The Walking Dead was my favorite interactive experience of 2012 and Telltale's more recent work is compelling as well.

Going one step further, I'm so inspired by Telltale's work that I actually thought about trying to make a game in that style. I'm sure it's a lot harder than it looks, but I suspect it would be like writing a choose-your-own-adventure book (with pretty pictures). I wrote some pick-a-path stuff back in my tabletop days and had a lot of fun with it so, yeah, I've thought about exercising that muscle again...

Anyway, let me give you a sort of a bottom line ("sort of" because I'm not really done yet - this is just an illusion of closure...).

If you need to put a label on what Telltale does, here's my answer: No, they're not making games. They are, as I hinted earlier, making "experiences" (my preferred, if imprecise term). To be more concrete, and at risk of being mocked for resurrecting a term long thought dead, let's say Telltale is the place that finally cracked the "interactive movie" code. Terminology aside (and my embarrassment at using it), for those of you who've been sleeping under a rock for the last 25 years, the true interactive movie has been the holy grail for a lot of developers and, now we know, the experience of choice for a lot of players. And Telltale's better at it than anyone else.

I know there's no great insight in trotting out the hoary old chestnut: "interactive movie." (I fully expect a fair amount of grief about even typing those words from the deeper thinkers among you.) But I think an accurate hoary old chestnut is better than lumping Telltale's work in with clearly categorizable narrative games that function in fundamentally different ways and offer players fundamentally different kinds of experiences.

One final semi-relevant thought (and now I really am wrapping up): A large part of Telltale's success probably stems from the familiarity normal people - i.e., non-gamers - have with existing media like movies and television. People get movies and TV and, therefore, have a high level of comfort with a work that looks like a movie or TV show and feels like a movie or TV show - but one that can be redirected in simple, safe yet still compelling ways by the viewer. A lot of developers - I'll include myself here - would be well-served by focusing a little more on familiarity and the comfort of our audience. Going to them rather than insisting they come to us makes a lot of sense, something Telltale gets (and I do not...).

So does Telltale make "games" or "experiences" or "interactive movies?" Honestly, despite having just spent pages making some sort of case, I really don't much care what you call them. Call them poodles for all I care. As long as Telltale keeps doing what they do as well as they do it, I'll be a happy guy.

BTW, I was going to end this post with something along the lines of "If you want to comment on this, I'm eager to engage in a dialogue about Telltale, games and narrative. However, I beg you to refrain from using the terms 'narratology' or 'ludology.' Those words make my skin crawl. I'll probably ignore any comments that go there." I was going to do that, but thought it might be too obnoxious, so I didn't. Well, now that I think about it, I just did end my post with that comment (foolishly, no doubt). First mine, triggered, I guess. Have at me.

I'm done now. Got to go play some Game of Thrones... 

Source: Telltale May Not Make Games, But They Do Make Magic

WordPress has rolled out a new version dubbed 4.2.3 of its content management system (CMS) to patch a critical cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability affecting all the existing versions. The blogging platform, which powers more than 60 million websites, urges all webmasters to update their sites. The XSS vulnerability in question could have been exploited by any user marked "author" or "contributor" to fully compromise the site's security. The company didn't reveal the specifics around the vulnerability. The WordPress update also fixes a recently discovered bug that allowed any subscriber to create blog posts on the site using management system's Quick Draft mechanism. The company says that the new update squashes 20 bugs. Earlier this month, the company fixed several vulnerabilities in its plugins that could have been exploited to execute arbitrary code to steal sensitive information. This is the second major vulnerability discovered in WordPress this year. In May, a major vulnera bility was found in ThirtyFifteeen theme and the JetPack plugin, which affected about a million users. The good thing about these updates is that they don't take much effort to implement. The blogging platform lets webmasters update to the latest version by simply clicking on the Update Now button.
Source: WordPress 4.2.3 Update Released to Patch a Major XSS Vulnerability

Ubiquitous blogging service WordPress has issued a critical security release to fix a vulnerability that could've compromised the security of millions of websites.

"WordPress versions 4.2.2 and earlier are affected by a critical cross-site scripting vulnerability, which could allow anonymous users to compromise a site," explained WordPresser Gary Pendergast in a blog post.

Cross-site scripting, or XSS, is a vulnerability in the code of Web applications that opens up the target (i.e. website) to attacks, and it's one of the most common conduits used by hackers.

With these vulnerabilities in the code, hackers are able to embed malicious HTML, Flash, JavaScript, and other code to "fool" the user into executing a script on their computer. This can lead to the collection of user data, including cookies stored on the machine.

The good news is, a WordPress user reported the vulnerability privately, allowing the community to fix the issue without it becoming public knowledge. However, the fix does require users to upgrade to version 4.2.3, which is easy enough to do from within the main WordPress dashboard.

WordPress has also taken this opportunity to introduce a handful of other bug fixes.

WordPress is a free and open source blogging tool and a content management system (CMS) based on PHP and MySQL. It has many features including a plug-in architecture and a template system. WordPress is used by over 16.7% of Alexa Inter... read more »

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Source: WordPress issues critical security release to fix vulnerability that could've exposed websites to hackers

By Kaya Ismail July 22, 2015 Articles and Editorials

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Be you a blogger, an entrepreneur or a web developer, you have probably thought about a possible perfect platform for your website. But what if there is a one single solution, versatile enough to power all types of websites on all possible topics?

Today we'll draw your attention to the new player in the team of all-purpose WordPress themes – Monstroid by TemplateMonster. With its roots in Cherry Framework 4.0, the number of its functions is immense.

The framework itself is pretty impressive, and all the additions and tweaks of Monstroid make it even more diverse. Let's take a closer look at its features.

Evergrowing Selection of Subtopics

Monstroid's starting package includes five child themes – the core theme and 4 themes dedicated to the most popular topics – Finance, Education, Portfolio, Interior & Furniture. The core theme is highly versatile: it has neutral layout and can be used for any type of website. Additionally it has three color schemes and is ready to be used as a WooCommerce-based online store.

Every new child theme (it's over 15 themes monthly) will be available to Monstroid users for free. They will just have to download and activate them in the dashboard via Monstroid Wizard.

Monstroid Skin Switcher

This feature appeared in some of the recent TemplateMonster templates, now they decided to implement it in Monstroid. It allows switching between premade style schemes from the frontend of the site. You can choose between dark, minimal or flat styles.

Cherry Grid

Cherry Grid defines how your post list will look like.

You can choose from rows, columns or extremely popular masonry grid.

MotoPress Content Editor

MotoPress is a popular premium drag'n'drop content editor for WordPress which is available in Monstroid for free. MotoPress allows you to adjust the size, position and properties of the your website elements without touching any shortcodes.

Unique Features of Monstroid

Shortcode Template Editor

Dozens of shortcodes, available for Monstroid users, can be additionally customized via the Shortcode template editor. It is capable of changing shortcode attributes, element loading order etc.

CSS Compile / Minify

This trick is a lifesaver for coders. With this function compiling of multiple CSS files into one is just a matter of two clicks. How it works: you work with several style sheets and then compile them to get one optimized file at the output. This helps to decrease page loading time and contributes to website's performance.

Dynamic CSS

It allows changing CSS dynamically. You don't overwrite the existing file, but create new files each time you make changes.

Static Area Builder

You can completely redesign your header and footer by changing the positions of their elements – logos, widgets, banners, menus, etc. You can drag and drop these elements and adjust their position with Bootstrap grid classes.

Monstroid Wizard

This plugin is a combination of an installation tool and a showcase of available child themes. You can switch between them in any moment. Additionally it is used for installation of sample data.

Theme Settings

Backup All the changes made in theme settings can be rolled back with the help of this plugin. Simply set the checkpoint and continue experimenting safely.

Independent Module Structure

The Monstroid package includes 23 plugins; most of them have been developed specially for the theme. All of them can be used either with the theme, or separately. This feature gives unlimited possibilities to advanced web developers.

Powerful Plugins Coming with Monstroid

Cherry Mega Menu

This plugin is made to effectively manage sophisticated menus with complex structure and lots of assorted elements – links, banners and embedded YouTube videos. These menus have proven themselves in large multitopic websites and online stores.

Cherry Social

Cherry Social plugin incorporates social interactions on all levels. It includes social sharing, login and widgets of the most popular social networks.

Cherry Custom Sidebars

Sidebars are important for focusing the attention of your audience. For example, simply moving your sidebar to the left you can boost email subscription. Cherry Custom Sidebars gives you full control over this element of user interface.

Cherry Testimonials

The Testimonials editor will help you show the love of your customers to your potential customers. This is a powerful factor for acquiring trust, which is so important for every business.

Cherry Portfolio

If you want to present your works in a stylish way, this plugin is for you. Your portfolio will look awesome with Ajax-powered visual effects and customization options.

Cherry Services

The plugin is used to set up landing pages with your business information. Among the available functions are, for example, customizable price tables and blocks with address and phone information for better conversion.

Cherry Team

Cherry Team is probably the best way of presenting your team members. Profiles are created independently and can be later merged into one page. Then you can edit them and rearrange their order.

Cherry Charts

Now there is no need in external (often paid) services for creating compelling visualizations of your statistical data. Cherry Charts is created specifically for this purpose.

Cherry Blog Layouts

If you are going to build a blog, this plugin will be your main tool. Adjust elements of your blog until you find the layout that is perfect for you.

C herry Ranking

With the help of "like" and "star" ranking systems you can insensibly call your visitors for expressing their opinion. Product rating is a very important factor when it comes to trust, so why not let your customers do a part of your job for you?

Cherry Data Manager

This tool serves as a "briefcase", allowing you to export and import your website data to back-up it or transfer to another domain. It is particularly useful for developers, who need to test their work on different servers.

MotoPress Slider

MotoPress slider is a premium plugin that can be used to add visual appeal to your layout. It is able to compose versatile complex slides of text, images and even videos, accompanied with transition effects.

Full WooCommerce Compatibility

For merchants who have chosen WooCommerce as their online store platform (they account for 22% of the total number of online sellers), TemplateMonster have prepared several useful tweaks.

Firstly, all child themes of Monstroid are ready to use with WooCommerce.

Secondly, the core Monstroid theme is supplied with all possible ecommerce page types: product lists, product pages, checkout pages, etc., and is able to become a live store in a few minutes after installation. It also includes premade product templates, so you just need to change images and descriptions to start selling.

YITH WooCommerce Compare & YITH WooCommerce Wishlist

Two plugins from YiThemes are included by default to enhance the selling possibilities of WooCommerce – they add functions of product comparison and adding to wishlist with an option of social sharing of wishlisted items.

Support of Major WordPress plugins

If you've been with WordPress for a long time, you probably know these titles: BuddyPress, and BBpress. If not, it's high time to squeeze the most out of your website. The plugins above are complex solutions for turning a WordPress website into a social network (BuddyPress) or a forum board (BBpress). Monstroid supports them, so you can try them out right after the installation.

Other features

Lifetime SupportTemplateMonster is well known for its lifetime 24/7 support for every product. Monstroid is no exception. Moreover, you will get access to their support live chat from your WordPress dashboard. Another option is sending a support email, but "live chat with average response time of 2-4 hours" sounds very attractive.

Library of 500+ fonts

Monstroid supports the whole collection of Google web fonts. You may choose any of 500 for your titles, body text or interface elements, combining them as you wish.

RTL and WPML ready

This necessary function is, of course, present in Monstroid. RTL stands for "right-to-left" and grants correct display of such languages as Arabic and Hebrew. "WPML" means "WordPress Multilingual" and it allows hosting different language versions of your website on one domain.

Goo gle-oriented

Despite the variety of native and external options, Monstroid is crafted with Google requirements in mind. It is not only fast, but is also SEO-optimized, including the support of Yoast SEO Plugin.

With Monstroid You Also Get:

Source PSD FilesOver 100 PSD files come with Monstroid as a separate downloadable option. This package includes pages for the main Monstroid theme and all the child themes, furthermore, new sources will be delivered with every new child theme every month.

50+ Licensed Images

More than 50 licensed royalty-free images are included in the Monstroid package. Whatever is the topic of your site, you will find pictures to your liking.

What's now?

Now you are probably going to see Monstroid for yourself. Seriously, if you are looking for a theme with possibilities of a framework, look no further: Monstroid has everything you may ever want from a WordPress theme, it has much more.

Tags: wordpress 110 themes 13

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Source: Monstroid: A Multipurpose WordPress Theme from TemplateMonster

Jetpack is a popular WordPress plugin created by Automattic, the people behind WordPress.com. The plugin brings many of the most powerful features available on WordPress.com to self-hosted WordPress sites, and thereby contributing greatly to the improvement of WordPress powered blogs and websites.

In this article, I'm going to share five great features of the Jetpack plugin that you may not know about, including how to enable, configure, and use them on your WordPress site.

Custom CSS

Editing the core CSS files of a WordPress theme is rarely the best approach to modifying, or customizing a WordPress theme. Mistakes can be made which damage the theme, and customizations can be lost if the theme is updated.

With the Jetpack Custom CSS feature, editing, modifying, and customizing can be done without laying a single finger on the theme's core CSS files. If mistakes are made, they can be corrected easily. Revisions can be done faster, and restoring the CSS back to default will not be a problem either!

How the Custom CSS Feature Works

By default, and on activating Jetpack, the Custom CSS module is automatically activated and can be found in the admin under, Dashboard → Appearance → Edit CSS.

Here you can use standard CSS syntax to specify the selectors and properties to create your custom styles. For example, if you wish to change the body background color of all pages, and perhaps the color of all links, you could enter in the style editor the CSS code below and click Save Stylesheet.

body { background-color: #ccc;} a { color: #aaa;}

The revisions are located beside the CSS editor on a Desktop view. Each revision is labelled with the revision date. On opening a revision, the red highlights specify what has been removed, while the green highlights specify what has been added.

To restore a previous version of your custom CSS, click Restore This Revision for that date and the custom CSS will be reverted back. Just in case you need to activate the module manually: Dashboard → Jetpack → Custom CSS and Activate.

Publicize

Do you find social media sharing a challenge or too time consuming? With Jetpack, you can instantly share your update across six popular platforms.

After connecting to the various social networks you'll be broadcasting to, the Publicize module handles the automatic sharing of your posts on the networks you have selected.

How to Configure the Publicize Feature

After activating the feature Dashboard → Jetpack → Settings → Publicize and Activate, you can configure the feature by navigating to the sharing settings page Dashboard → Settings → Sharing and connect your blog to the social networks you prefer.

Related Posts

There are many related posts plugins for WordPress, many of which work well, but if you want one that will perform an accurate calculation to determine if a post is related without bogging down your database or adding extra load on your server, or you're interested in reducing the bounce rate on your blog, then you should consider activating the Jetpack Related Posts module.

The Related Posts module does all the necessary calculations and analysis before concluding that posts are related. All the processes are carried out on the WordPress.com servers, so there's no extra load on your server.

Activating the Related Posts Module

You can activate the module by visiting the admin and selecting Dashboard → Jetpack → Settings → Related Posts and Activate. After activating, the module takes it from there, and shows the related posts below each published posts.

Sharing

After publishing great content, it's a good idea to give readers the opportunity to share your content with their networks to give you added exposure.

The sharing module makes this easy. Content can be shared on different social networks with just a single click.

How the Sharing Feature Works

The settings page for the sharing feature can be found at Dashboard → Settings → Sharing. At the time of writing, there are eleven share buttons you can drag and drop to the positions you want.

You can select how you want the buttons to be displayed: either in a text-only form, or as icons instead. The buttons can also be displayed before the content or after it, depending on which you prefer.

Photon

According to the official documentation of Jetpack plugin features: "Photon is an image acceleration and editing service for sites hosted on WordPress.com or on Jetpack-connected WordPress sites. That means less load on your host and faster images for your readers."

This feature can be very beneficial. I've seen some sites where it's possible to read the whole blog post before the images have even finished loading. This is where the Photon feature of Jetpack comes in handy.

How the Photon Feature Works

The feature loads your post's images through the WordPress.com CDN. It relieves your server of the extra load, and does it all through the WordPress.com servers.

You can activate the feature by visiting your WordPress admin, Dashboard → Jetpack → Settings → Photon and then Activate. You should also check this article by Jacco Blankenspoor to learn more about CDNs and why you should consider setting one up for your WordPress site.

Conclusion

I've only given you a small taste of what Jetpack can do for your site, at the time of writing there are over 30 more great features like the ones highlighted above that come with the plugin, and only the VideoPress and VaultPress modules are premium (paid for) features.

Once you've got it installed, I'm sure you'll agree with me that Jetpack is a feature rich plugin that will save you a lot of time. You can visit the official Jetpack plugin page here.

Source: 5 Things You May Not Know about Jetpack for WordPress

WordApp is the new wordpress plugin from Mobile-Rockstar that will convert any WordPress site into a mobile app.

London, UK — (SBWIRE) — 07/21/2015 — WordApp is the new WordPress plugin by the team at Mobile Rockstar that will help any WordPress site or blog owner to convert their website into a fully functioning native mobile application. WordApp was designed to integrate with most of the 30,000 plugins that WordPress provides on its directory. The plugin is very straight forward and absolutely no programming skills are needed to utilize the app builder. The WordPress site owner can build a fully functioning mobile app within minutes and create an app that could be as simple as a five page mobile business card to a complex social network using BuddyPress.

"Everyone is going mobile these days, but building a mobile app can be expensive. Thanks to the power of WordPress and WordApp you can now build an app for FREE."

– Dave Mobile-Rockstar

About Mobile Rockstar Mobile Rockstar is a European based company that provides technological design and development services, spearheaded by founder Dave Anthony. The goals of Mobile Rockstar is to bring small to mid sized businesses the type of mobile equalizer that will enable them to compete at the same level as large, public corporations. With around 50 million websites, that's about 28% of the web powered by WordPress finding ways to utilize this technology to the benefit of smaller businesses can be a breakout move for many burgeoning small businesses.

Those interested in building an app for their WordPress site. The plugin can download on WordPress's plugin directory by searching on "WordApp". Once the app is created the team of geeks at Mobile Rockstar will submit the app to Apple's App Store and Google Play.

Dave Anthony Co-Founder WordApp London, UK http://www.mobile-rockstar.com – info@mobile-rockstar.com – +33 6.50.35.78.87

For more information on this press release visit: http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/mobile-rockstar-launches-wordapp-the-new-wordpress-plugin-611313.htm

Media Relations Contact

Dave Anthony Email: Click to Email Dave Anthony Web: http://mobile-rockstar.com/

Source: Mobile Rockstar Launches "WordApp" the New WordPress Plugin

Zoella (AKA Zoe Sugg) an internet sensation who vlogs, blogs, tweets and instagrams. Photograph: REX

What is the best way to publicise a blog?

It's important to tailor social media platforms to your audience. "You need to identify which platform your readers are most likely to be using (eg Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter or Instagram) and target it with updates three times a day," says Phoebe Montague, founder of Lady Melbourne and one of Australia's key fashion bloggers.

How can I monetise my blog?

A lifestyle blog will never earn a significant proportion of its revenue through advertising, says Glen Allsopp, founder of ViperChill. "Even if you're reaching 100,000 readers per day, there are far better ways to monetise your audience.

"I would focus on some kind of digital product, whether that's an eBook, a video series or anything similar. I would remove the ads and put something more important in that prominent space."

Brand partnerships and sponsored posts are also a good way to monetise your work.

What is the best blogging platform to use?

The best blogging platform is the one that suits your needs as a blogger, says Montague. "A lot of people favour Wordpress or Blogger, but Tumblr might work for you if what you do is photography based."

Jeanne Oliver, an online travel writer and author, says: "For a total newbie, I would go for the platform that's easiest for you to use. One of the reasons Wordpress is so popular is the innumerable themes and plugins that can get you up and running fast."

How do I grow my audience and readership?

"The best advice I can give is to be consistent with providing new content for your audience," says Montague. "It's fiercely competitive, so if you can update your blog a minimum of three times a week that will help."

Layout is also key. "The first thing in your sidebar shouldn't be your social pages," says Allsopp. "People will be coming to your site to improve their lives, not just learn about yours. Always use the top space of your right sidebar to offer some kind of lead magnet. This means some kind of giveaway that entices people to give you their email address."

Another tactic is to join in relevant conversations online. "Start engaging with your followers by leaving comments on blogs you personally admire," says Francesca Scambler, talent producer for Gleam Futures. "If you leave comments on others' sites, you'll likely receive more yourself."

Growing a readership isn't easy, but it can be rewarding. "You'll spend an awful lot of time updating social platforms and creating new content for the blog," adds Montague. "Expect to work long hours – the payoff is working for yourself doing something you love."

Is it better to have one general blog or multiple blogs for each interest?

"If your blog is a personal project or a hobby that you write just for enjoyment then you should write about whatever you like whenever you can," says Dr Lucy Williams, a historian and blogger. "If you want it to be a career though, you might want to focus on one topic at first and look for readers who are interested in that."

Dr Tom Crick, a computer science blogger, agrees. "There's value in having it all in one place if you can identify a common theme or a thread to pull it all together. This will engage a broad readership but, more importantly, it will prevent you having to spread your time over multiple blogs, with the danger of neglecting them."

Is becoming a blogger or vlogger a realistic career option?

"I'd advise people to start a blog initially as a hobby, as many bloggers don't earn a full-time living," says Karen Bryan, founding editor of the Europe a La Carte travel blog and the Help Me to Save personal finance website.

"You should start it as a hobby and see where it goes," agrees Steve Ward, founder of CloudNine. "You cannot guarantee that blogging will become your career. However, a blog is an excellent endorsement of so many skills that it could get you a job in digital communications, editorial, journalism – if backed up by the appropriate university course."

Looking for a job? Browse Guardian Jobs or sign up to Guardian Careers for the latest job vacancies and career advice

Source: Want to become a star blogger? Here's how to do it

This week, I posted my first short review and introduction on a co-blog with another aspiring journalist, Steven (durararaking).  He has a lot of inspired works of his own, and it's awesome to be a part of something.

https://journalismsteven.wordpress.com/2015/07/16/linadaeus-new-gaming-journalist-rocket-league-impressions/

Stop the Presses!! (Always wanted to say that)

I occasionally ask myself if I'm keeping up with this crazy world.  I will always make time for video games somehow, someway, but the hardest part is being something unique to the media world.  IGN might be about video games, but it covers a diverse array of all things in the entertainment universe, and so should I in that respect.  Though I can't stop the presses so I can catch up,  I need to create a list of priorities.  I thought I could use this blog to show my thoughts on how I started this and where I am now.

A Computer and a Dream

When I started this, I knew I needed a website.  However, I knew nothing about Html or website maintenance, so I found Wordpress.  The next issue I faced was filling the site with worthy/readable content.  A few logo ideas, tons of links and artificial popularity later (generated through a number of friends and family), I thought I had something great.  However, I kept changing my blog until it looked as professional as I wanted it to be.  It felt like a success just to have some likes and comments, but taking it to that next step was always a barrier. The hardest parts were keeping it on my budget, which was zero, and writing on a consistent basis.  A number of youtube videos can solve a lot of things, but I am still ways away from reaching a large reader base.

linkedingaming.wordpress.com

journalismsteven.wordpress.com

Youtube - A Rought Start

A while back, I put up a video with hopes of it being my "in" to an IGN career.  A few sessions of gameplay recording and video editing later, I made a video review of Broken Age.  I am extremely passionate with Double Fine's production and it was a game I chose because it reflected what I love about video games.  However, there are other barriers to Youtube popularity which start and end with how well you can video edit.  It was sort've ironic, using Youtube videos to learn how to become good at making Youtube videos.  Barriers exist to doing this, CS isn't free, but you gotta spend money to make viewer counts.  Video editing for reviews can take up a lot of time, so I've moved to editing simply commentary as apposed to composing commentary with video clips and transitions.  Th.ough videos can vary in popularity, quality as well as quantity in content produced makes for a reasonably sized portfolio which should be promptly labeled "#Dedicated"

Twitch - A True Test of Hardware Quality

I have such a love-hate relationship with twitch.  Talking in front of a camera isn't easy, and I'm still learning to be the personality of some of the live-streamers I idolize.  Streaming with OBS took quite a bit of tweaking due to my laptop quality, and yes I said laptop.  Being a gamer and a student isn't easy, so choosing mobility was difficult when it came to finances.  I strung together an astro gaming headset, an internal webcam, and a internet connection that has the stability of a bar stool.  One thing I truly learned from some of my favorite streamers is that in the world of video game media shouldn't be done for the money, but you shouldn't let your hard work be done for free.  Also, there is strong degree of dedication required to be successful in this field.  There are many barriers to streaming, mainly because of how much hardware is required to run a beautiful stream.  Thought I'm dedicated to making this work, I follow what many popular streamer's warn abo ut in that you shouldn't drop $1000+ on something that may not work.  Making my stream work based off what I have at my disposal is hard, but it's that most rewarding thing when i click the "stop streaming/broadcast" at the end of the day

Social Media

Social Media is an odd beast in that it offers those immediate, but perhaps artificial, connections that keep me in-tune with the people I follow.  Though there is a long list of IGN stars on my twitter, i try to make sure that my name is out there as Shawn Anderson as apposed to just Linadaeus or LinkedinGaming. #Urrghhhatemondays #bestsummerever #Ted2

@Linkedingaming

http://www.twitch.tv/linadaeus/profile

The Most Important Part

Thought I have plenty to learn, the most rewarding thing is connecting to other people who share my passion.  I love the friend requests and follows i get, expanding my friend-zone with the IGN/Twitch/Social Media.

Tags: Blogging, Linadaeus, LinkedinGaming, Twitch, Twitter, Vlogging, Youtube

Category: Gaming, General, Hobbies, IGN, Misc.

Source: My Road to Gaming Journalism - First Signs of Progress

Emma Palova is an author, a journalist, a photographer and a designer, born in former Czechoslovakia. She worked for the Ionia Sentinel-Standard from 1998 to 2003, for the Grand Rapids Press, Advance Newspapers, Kaechele Publications, Grand Rapids ...

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Source: BlogHer conference connects

Nearly 20 percent of websites worldwide are hosted by WordPress, and nearly 20,000 WordPress posts are published each day. These posts are not just from basement bloggers. In fact, business sites are five times as likely to use WordPress than news sites, and the top 48 percent of Technorati's former top-100 blog list use WordPress.

In fact, SAP, The New York Times, CNN, Mashable, eBay, and Search Engine Journal are powered by WordPress.

The sheer numbers indicate that it's a popular platform, but do the 75 million people who use it actually know how to harness its power? Unlikely. From time management plugins to advanced mobile hacks, here are some tips to better leverage this awesome content management system:

Time Management 1. Zero-Distraction Writing

You've got a blank page and you're on deadline to write a blog post. Where does your attention go? The icons, add-ons, and plugins? Or the blank space? When there are two concurrent goals, the brain divides in half, says INSERM neuroscientist Etienne Koechlin. While the right and left sides of the prefrontal cortex work together when focused on a single task — like writing the blog post — both sides work independently when people attempt to perform two tasks at once, such as writing a blog post and figuring out the WordPress system. Hence, brain confusion.

Ergo, zero-distraction writing on WordPress. This nifty tool works as a light box to shade out all areas besides the text window so your brain does not divide attention and you are focused on one task at a time.

2. Screen Options

In a similar vein to zero-distraction writing "Screen Options", found in the upper-right corner of the WordPress dashboard, allows you to show or hide any plugin or extension.

3. Let WordPress Find the Links

Linking to the correct sources can take time, especially on a thousand-plus-word post. Little do most know, WordPress can do the dirty work. Simply click "CTRL + K" and the "Insert/Edit Link" window appears. Under the "URL" and "Title" boxes look for "Or link to existing content". Click on this and a dialogue box appears with posts and pages in your domain where you can search for keywords that lead to in-site linking opportunities. Click the post you want included and WordPress copies the post into the corresponding fields.

4. Em Dash

Any grammar guru shares the love of the em dash, or " —". But, often people spend time copying and pasting it from Microsoft Word. Did you know that WordPress automatically creates an em dash within its system? Simply type three dashes in a row. (The dash does not appear in your editor, but does appear on the front end.)

Content Creation 5. Custom Post Types

Useful for any post you repeat, WordPress's custom post feature allows you to define a new post type by its labels, supported features, availability, and other specifics. Event, product, review, long-form articles, and more can all is defined and templated to save you time down the road.

This hack allows you to predefine content types, format, and systemize the process so you are not reinventing the wheel when you create a new post.

6. Editorial Calendar Plugins

Whether you are a business or a news website, editorial calendars are a must-have. They maintain organization and help produce a steady stream of seasonally inspired and time-sensitive content. Thankfully, WordPress hosts a ton of editorial calendar options. Take a look here at some of your options.

Multimedia 7. Photo Plugins

Life is always easier when you work within one dashboard. It is the best use of your time to work under one hood in WordPress. Instead of going offsite to search for stock photos, download photo-plugins like the Flickr Gallery, FooBox, or MyStockPhoto.com so you can stay within WordPress.

8. Drag and Drop

If image attribution is not a concern of yours, WordPress' recent update now permits users to "drag and drop" images straight into the text window. With this tool you can find an image on the Internet and drag it straight into the text editor. (But, make sure to include proper attribution.)

9. Auto-Embeds

With auto-embeds, paste a URL from a supported site into your post editor on its own line and the video, image, or article will appear in rich media. Here are the sites that auto-embed, according to Boost Blog Traffic:

Animoto

Blip

CollegeHumor

DailyMotion

EmbedArticles

Flickr

FunnyOrDie.com

Hulu

Imgur

Instagram

iShare

ISSUU

Meetup.com

Mixcloud

Photobucket

PollDaddy

Rdio

Revision3

Scribd

SlideShare

SmugMug

Soundcloud

Spotify

TED

Twitter

Vimeo

WordPress.tv

YouTube

Advanced SEO and Mobile Hacks 10. All in One SEO Pack

Most content creators are not SEO experts; they have learned this complimentary practice along the way. The All-in-One SEO plugin for WordPress allows users to add the headlines, keywords, tags and other components to help Google read the content, thus boosting your site's ranking — all without not really having to have advanced knowledge of HTML or SEO.

Yoast also offers an excellent SEO Pack as well, shown here.

11. Comment Plugins

Due to the nature of comment spam and the way it can debilitate a page's value when left alone, comment plugins are essential. Yoast is one great example. It has the ability to set a desired comment length, which is likely to ensure a higher caliber comment than 'great post'. It also allows site owners to redirect first-time commenters to a thank you landing page to show additional content they may like.

12. Mobile Friendliness

With mobile traffic accounting for 60 percent of traffic, and Google's recent "Mobilegeddon" update, it's basically a necessity to make your content accessible on mobile devices. WP Touch, an awesome plugin will help will your blog look and feel better for mobile viewing. Whatever plugin you choose, make sure it offers help with mobile navigation, pagination, design, and content.

Final Thoughts

Though WordPress has the lions' share in the web content management world, there are other viable website builder options. Do your research and understand CMS options to know what website builder is right for you.

However, if you are fanatical over WordPress — like most content creators are — put these tips to practice today and save time, create more efficient, sharable, and SEO-friendly content!

Have I missed any plugins or WordPress tips? Share them in the comment box below!

Image Credits

Featured Image: 360b/ShutterstockAll screenshots via Allie Freeland. Taken July 2015.

Source: 12 WordPress Hacks to Power Content and Save Time

I've been blogging with Wordpress since March. That's a little over three months of writing new posts at least twice a week. (Go me!) In that time I've received 90+ comments from readers. Thank you!

For each of these comments I've replied with some thoughtful words and a thank you for taking the time to read my post. Replying to comments is super important to engage people who take the time to visit and read your blog. 

Send a Reply to Comment Notification

Unfortunately, I just discovered that many of these readers never knew that I replied to their comment. #bloggerfail All this time I assumed that Wordpress was sending an email notification to each new commenter. It wasn't. Womp womp! (I later discovered that it was because I deactivated the Jetpack subscribe system in favor of Mailchimp.) So when I discovered this last week I immediately set out to improve the comment system here at Mindful Memory Keeping.

First, I looked into more robust comment systems. I've heard lots of good things about Disqus and some of my favorite bloggers use this plugin. However, I wanted to stay with my current simple comment system since my readership is still small (but growing!) As my readership continues to grow I may consider upgrading.

What I like about my current comment system is the simple form info needed to leave a comment. Name, email, and website (optional). In my opinion, the social media login or creating an account options can be a turnoff. I don't want to have to connect a million things to my social media accounts or remember a new username and password to be able to leave a comment on a blog.

The easiest way to give your readers that warm, squishy feeling inside is letting them know that you appreciated their comment in a super simple, easy to access way. Improve the comment system on your blog by setting it up so that your readers will get an email letting them know you replied to their comment. This increases the likelihood they'll return to your site and maybe even comment again.

After looking at other options and determining what I liked about my own system, I went with a simple and easy-to-use plugin that added a simple reply notification email to my current comments setup.

Subscribe to Comments Reloaded

This nifty plugin, Subscribe to Comments Reloaded, ended up being my fix. Basically, a small drop-down appears right below the "Post Comment" button. It gives commenters the option of being notified for replies to their comment or for all new comments to that post. It even gives the option of subscribing to comments without actually leaving a comment.

This plugin also gives you the option to format the email notifications. I used HTML (be sure to select the HTML emails button in the Options menu of the plugin) so that the formatting and images match my website and my new posts email. I also added social media buttons to the notification email. This part took the longest but it is pretty easy if you're familiar with basic HTML.

I think this plugin was a simple way to improve the comment system for my blog. As a new blogger this one improvement should help me increase the number of comments and enhance the conversation with my readers.

If you're using Mailchimp or another email sign-up program (other than Jetpack) take a look at your current comment system. Make sure your readers are getting a notification when you reply to their comment. If not, take some time to explore your options to improve the comment system for your own blog.

If community engagement is one of your goals (and it probably is for most bloggers) this one simple improvement will go a long way in creating engaged and meaningful interaction with your readers and will probably help grow your blog too.

I am so grateful for you. Thank you for spending a moment with me today.

Is there a comment system out there that you use and recommend? Feel free to share in the comments.

Hi! I'm Marina and I'm a memory keeper. I believe in mindfully living in each moment and in documenting your one beautiful life. Learn more about me and follow my journey at Mindful Memory Keeping

Source: One Simple Way to Improve the Comment System on Your Wordpress Blog

By By JODIE BRUTON July 14, 2015, 2:01 p.m.

In limbo in the blogosphere

I HAVE just spent 12 weeks lost in the blogging wilderness.

You see I started my own blog. Even though every man and their dog has a blog, I only just set up camp in the crowded blogosphere during April.

Five years ago I got bogged down on a name for my blog; someone was already posting under "Overripe", which meant my foodie blog was off the boil before it even got to a simmer.

Fast forward to April when, coincidentally out walking my dog in East Albury, a new name came to me. Polly Wally Strudel: Polly is our 11-year-old labradoodle; Wally was my maternal grandfather who was a Riverina shearer's cook; and strudel appeals to my inner pastry chef. 

I was finally cooking with gas ... or at least preheating the oven! There are 1001 tutorials on Wordpress blogging; I skimmed two and started writing straight away. I'd spent five years in blogging no-man's land and I wasn't wasting another second on a widget!

I began: "I write for a living but I live to bake; I am a journalist by trade and a cook by nature ..." Wordpress piped up: "Your draft has been saved. Keep going!" But come time to push Publish, I hesitated. For about two hours; I knew I was committed to post regularly once I hit Publish. I packed the dishwasher, got the kids' clothes ready for the next day, packed school lunch boxes, replied to seven emails … then I hit Publish. Wordpress said: "Yay! You have just published a post to Polly Wally Strudel." My very own digital high-five. Much more rewarding than housework!

Soon after Wordpress told me: "Jenna thinks your post is pretty awesome. You should check out what she's blogging about." Turned out Jenna posts on science fiction short stories and was seeking funding to self-publish her book. Things looked up two days later when I picked up my first follower. Never mind he was called CC and charged bloggers to lift their online game. 

Before long Polly Wally Strudel got five likes and a digital gold star. I posted twice a week on my family's favourite dishes. Cleaning the bathroom would wait; there was bloggy business to do, followers to find and gold stars to accrue.

During April I cooked up a storm, photographing everything and scheduling posts for Mondays and Fridays. I made Anzac biscuits with my daughters, whose squashed versions made better photos than mine!  

However, come May I had two weekends away and our girls got colds and flus, which lasted three weeks. Baking ceased and I half-heartedly posted about muffins I hadn't made in months. Sleep-deprived one Friday night I said: "How good does muesli for dinner sound? Yay!" I was a walking-talking mama blogger now.

Back in blogging business in June, I posted about dishes I'd made in the past. I have always photographed dinner at least as much as I've photographed the kids. Our iPhoto is full of subject matter; I just had to add words and stir. The only hitch was the girls' school lunches were a little uninspiring late last term. Luckily mandarins were in season; perhaps they wouldn't notice their lunch boxes were lacking.

I didn't know anything was amiss until I arrived at my mother-in-law's place at Springdale Heights last month to pick up the girls from a sleepover. My daughters met me at the door, proudly bearing iced cupcakes. They had told my parents-in-law: "Mum hasn't made anything interesting for our lunchboxes for WEEKS!"

The blog is now on the backburner!

Don't believe me, see for yourself at pollywallystrudel.wordpress.com.

JODIE BRUTON: MATERIAL GIRL
Source: Opinion: Every man and their dog has a blog, July 2015, pollywallystrudel.wordpress.com

Everyone is aware that WordPress is hands down the best of the best blogging platforms that exist nowadays. No one knows the number 2 blogging platform because it is nowhere near WordPress. Therefore, you decide to start a WordPress blog for your business so you can enjoy the benefits it can provide. But, what is the point of your blog when most of your audience cannot even see it? This is a problem of hosting companies. Just because a hosting service is good for hosting a website doesn't make it appropriate for a WordPress blog. The good news is that there are specialized WordPress hosting companies that know the platform inside and out so they can make it perform at its peak.

Photograph: Kris Olin / Flickr

Some of the options that you have in the specialized WordPress hosting niche are listed here:

Synthesis

The creators of StudioPress themes and Copyblogger Media bring you this WordPress hosting service, which offers you step-by-step advice for page optimization, helps page ranking and content development guidance directly from the admin panel. A keyword research tool is also provided for helping you in composing posts. Their uptime monitoring tool is a plus along with Site Score technology for finding other blog contacts for cross-promotion. They provide backup, but don't give much support to most plugins.

WP Engines

In the WordPress hosting world, this is a very popular name as it has made security and speed its bedrock. With three data centers worldwide, they can give you greater speeds regardless of where you are. They don't offer email hosting, but you get daily backups, phone, email, ticketing and chat support. You get a staging area, integration with Git and one-click restore. Again, plugin limitations can be a deal breaker.

Flywheel

This WordPress hosting service has positioned itself for agencies and designers because their selling features can make workflow easier with multiple clients and projects. They offer a simpler sign up process to clients as opposed to others because you just need an email address. They have a free demo site, but it is only available for 14 days. However, they do allow for extensions when you request them via email.

Pressable

This WordPress hosting service allows collaborators on accounts similar to Flywheel, but the primary reason why it is popular is because of its price tag. You only have to pay $5 sites for every site on a monthly basis and this is absolutely rock bottom. They also offer a CDN service without cost, but some of their claims are false. They also don't allow backup and caching plugins.

WPCloud

This is a starter in the WordPress hosting space and even though there servers are located in Canada, they are available to other customers as well. They are considered an intriguing choice because they are compatible with corporate governance policies required for privacy regulations in Canada. They also support bitcoin as a mode of payment. A lack of an admin panel and limited daily backup can be a problem for some.

Pagely

Instead of promoting itself as a mega hosting service, Pagely defines itself as your 'neighbor'. They provide you with their own CDN at the extra cost of $9 a month. Another benefit of using their service is their support for all themes and plugins and they offer different plans for different budgets. They don't offer chat or phone support so you can be stuck with ticketing if there is a problem. But, they can offer you plenty of security and a 14-day archives backup, which is excellent. Plus, 1% of their profits go to charity so you will also be doing something good in this way. However, statistics and backup plugins aren't supported by the service and there are also issues in payments.

Kahuna Host

As compared to other WordPress hosts out there, this one is a bit different because their package provides what you usually expect from low cost services. For instance, they offer you email hosting, free domain for a year and access to control panel. Their plans work for multiple sites, but they aren't solely focused on WordPress as they allow other applications like Magento. However, customers and developers with specialized needs may find this useful. On the other hand, some may consider it only as a pretender as they aren't solely dedicated to WordPress. Also, they cannot offer you immediate backup access and a staging area has to be set manually.

Lighting Base

This is a one-man show, which is run by Chris Peipho. Multi-site is offered on all plans of the hosting service along with CDN and you don't have to pay anything extra for this perk. Plugins aren't disallowed by the service and cPanel is used, which is a plus because it is familiar and user friendly. Email hosting and domain registration is also provided, which is an added benefit. Their web hosting servers and email servers are separate so this gives you a layer of safety during downtime. The only downside is that email hosting is restricted to just five addresses and you have to pay extra to add more.

Source: Want to Start a WordPress Blog? Learn about the Best Hosting Companies

WordPress has often been seen as the unofficial scapegoat to blame various security breaches on. Like many other popular web applications, WordPress is an attractive target for attack. Obviously, the security in WordPress, as with any application, needs to be put into context. Luckily, WordPress benefits from a wide variety of security configuration options and third party plugins to help satisfy those who are looking to increase their overall security.

In this article, I'm going to add to Tim Carr's 10 Tips to Secure WordPress with even more ways you can help secure your site, starting prior to the WordPress installation.

Clean Your Computer

Before starting the WordPress installation, be sure that your computer is malware/virus free. It might sound obvious, but it's critical that your system is free of malware and in a trusted state.

If your computer is infected, every security related measure of yours could be futile. It is suggested to protect your systems with antivirus, to keep all the malware and viruses at bay.

Install WordPress in Another Directory

The WordPress core files can happily exist in another location, other than the root directory. This technique is often debated, so your mileage may vary. Scanners and attackers can still find out where WordPress lives, however we thought it's worth mentioning since the topic does come up often.

Even if this doesn't directly provide additional security, it will definitely help keep your server organized which is also very important.

For example, if your site has the domain www.example.com, it would be preferable to install WordPress in something like www.example.com/directory.

The next step is to copy the index.php and .htaccess files to the root directory. If the .htaccess file is invisible, you have to make hidden files visible in your FTP/SFTP/SCP software or in your cPanel File Manager.

Don't worry about the error you'll now get if you browse to your site. Go to index.php and modify following:

require('/wp-blog-header.php');torequire('/directory/wp-blog-header.php');

Now your login URL will be www.example.com/directoy/wp-admin.

After installation, you should go to your WordPress settings in the admin panel and change the WordPress URL, so that it points at www.example.com/directory and blog URL www.example.com.

Change the Database Prefix

By default, WordPress creates the database with tables prefixed in wp_. The thinking is that spammers and hackers that are using automated tools know your database structure. Having a default database prefix makes their life much easier. This is another topic of debate, however as with installing WordPress in another directory, it's a question that comes up frequently.

During wp-config.php configuration in the installation process, change the table prefix to something random and unique like wp_Df3R_.

To organize your tables in a more efficient way, start the prefix with wp_ and end it with _. You may use numbers, letters, and underscores.

Secure wp-config.php

As the most important file in WordPress, it stores valuable information like database, username, password and authentication keys, nobody should have direct access to wp-config.php.

As mentioned above, we can store wp-config.php outside of the root folder. Now we'll add an additional layer of security to it.

To deny access to this file, you should add the code below at the top of the .htaccess file:

<files wp-config.php> order allow,deny deny from all </files>

This file shouldn't be modifiable or writable by others. To prevent other users from reading it, the file permission should be 440 or 400, however you should consult your host to check this.

Remove the WordPress Version Number

Sometimes leaving the WordPress version number can be a security risk, especially if WordPress isn't updated regularly. Of course, we strongly recommend regular updates, as with performing other regular WordPress maintenance tasks.

The code that generates the WordPress version is in header.php:

<meta name="generator" content="WordPress <?php bloginfo('version'); ?>" />

To remove the WordPress version number, you should add the following line to your active theme's functions.php file:

<?php remove_action('wp_head', 'wp_generator'); ?> Use Secret Keys

Using Secret Keys plays a role in WordPress security. These security keys help encrypt the data stored in the cookies WordPress uses. Without knowing these keys, attackers will have a harder time entering your WordPress site.

WordPress creates these for you at the time of installation, however these values might not exist with older sites or if the wp-config.php file has been manually replaced.

By default Secret Keys are listed listed in wp-config.php, like the following:

define('AUTH_KEY', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('SECURE_AUTH_KEY', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('LOGGED_IN_KEY', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('NONCE_KEY', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('AUTH_SALT', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('SECURE_AUTH_SALT', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('LOGGED_IN_SALT', 'put your unique phrase here'); define('NONCE_SALT', 'put your unique phrase here');

If you ever need to regenerate these keys, you can visit the official generator provided by WordPress.org at https://api.wordpress.org/secret-key/1.1/salt/.

If an attacker has the security keys, they can regain access to the site even if the passwords have been changed. So if your site is compromised, don't forget to change your secret keys – not just your passwords!

Disable Directory Browsing

WordPress allows users to browse the web directories, if they know where to look. Obviously, this is something we want to avoid. Directory browsing can be used by attackers to find your most vulnerable files. It's not uncommon for developers or webmasters to leave backup files or archives in odd places.

Ensuring that no one can view the contents of directories can be done by adding a single line in .htaccess

Options –Indexes Secure Multiple Installations

If you have more than one instance of WordPress on the same host, you should use different user credentials for each database. The database username and password should be unique in the wp-config.php files for each of your websites. This will ensure the isolation of every single site, in case one of them gets hacked.

It's a simple tip, but reusing the same credentials is something people do all the time.

WordPress Security Plugins

If you don't feel comfortable making the above mentioned changes, there are several plugins that help you maintain the security of your WordPress installation, or even to help you recover quickly if you fall victim to a malicious attack.

Here's a list of the most popular security plugins:

Charles Costa has previously explored the topic of WordPress Security Plugins, that is well worth reading.

Conclusion

With a large percentage of websites being powered by WordPress it's no big surprise WordPress security is a popular topic. If you're serious about your website and your website security, you should definitely explore your options and take the extra time to lock your site down.

To recap, we've previously covered 10 Tips to Secure WordPress, in this article, we covered even more tips to help you better manage your website security. If you're keen about learning more, I'd also recommend reading the official WordPress.org documentation "Hardening WordPress".

Please let us know in the comments below if you have any of your own extra tips for increasing WordPress security.

Source: More Tips to Further Secure WordPress

Displaying a list of posts in a blog with the most number of shares is a good way to improve a site's user navigation. In the case of WordPress, a widget is the ideal place for this. Users who wouldn't otherwise know where to go after reading the current post might check out and hopefully participate in your blog's most shared posts. These are commonly also the ones which have the most page views, and are likely to be of interest to more readers.

In this tutorial we'll create a basic plugin to display the most shared posts in a widget. Although there are lots of plugins available for this purpose, many of them tend to be overwhelming and also don't support caching. In this article, the plugin we'll build will be lightweight and will cache the top ten most shared posts for the past six hours.

Plugin Directory and Files

To start with the plugin development, in your wp-content/plugins directory create a directory called most-shared-widget, and then create a file called most-shared-widget.php inside it.

In the most-shared-widget.php file, add the following text to make the plugin installable.

<?php /* Plugin Name: Most Shared Posts Widget Plugin URI: http://sitepoint.com Description: Displays most shared posts in an widget Author: Narayan Prusty */ How to Find Total Shares?

For the sake of this plugin we will only retrieve total shares of a post in Twitter and Facebook. Twitter and Facebook provide URLs which we can make a GET request to by passing a URL to find its total shares.

The URL to find total shares on Facebook is:https://api.facebook.com/method/links.getStats?format=json&urls=http://sitepoint.com

And the URL to find total shares on Twitter is:http://urls.api.twitter.com/1/urls/count.json?url=http://sitepoint.com

Both of these requests send back data in JSON format. Here is an example of the response to the Facebook request:

[{"url":"http:\/\/sitepoint.com","normalized_url":"http:\/\/www.sitepoint.com\/","share_count":1343,"like_count":1632,"comment_count":207,"total_count":3182,"click_count":138,"comments_fbid":"501562723433","commentsbox_count":0}]

Similarly, Twitter's response looks like this:

{"count":72,"url":"http:\/\/sitepoint.com\/"} Retrieving and Storing Total Shares

We can make HTTP requests to the Facebook and Twitter URLs using the WordPress HTTP API. And then store the retrieved post counts as post meta data.

To be friendly with the Facebook and Twitter API servers we won't be retrieving the total share count of all the posts at a time, rather we will retrieve them as individual posts are viewed by users. We will also make sure that we only retrieve total shares of a post once in a 6 hour period because it's unlikely that the share count will have changed much in this time.

Here is the code which is responsible for deciding when to retrieve and store total shares count of each post. Place this code in your most-shared-widget.php file.

function msp_is_post() { if(is_single() && !is_attachment()) { global $post; $last_update = get_post_meta($post->ID, "msp_last_update", true); if($last_update) { if(time() - 21600 > $last_update) { msp_update($post->ID); } } else { msp_update($post->ID); } } } add_action("wp", "msp_is_post");

This is how the above code works:

First we registered a callback for the wp action.

Then we check if a post is being viewed or not. If yes, then we proceed.

Next, we retrieve the total share count of that post. If it's not present then we simply call the msp_update function which is responsible for retrieving and storing total shares of each post. And if it is present then we check when it was last retrieved; if it was retrieved over 6 hours ago then we update it again, otherwise we simply retain the current value by returning the function.

Here is the implementation of the msp_update function which is responsible for retrieving the total shares count of posts and storing them as post meta data:

function msp_update($id) { $url = get_permalink($id); //facebook shares $response = wp_remote_get("https://api.facebook.com/method/links.getStats?format=json&urls=" . $url); $body = $response["body"]; $body = json_decode($body); if($body[0]->share_count) { $facebook_count = $body[0]->share_count; } else { $facebook_count = 0; } //twitter shares $response = wp_remote_get("http://urls.api.twitter.com/1/urls/count.json?url=" . $url); $body = $response["body"]; $body = json_decode($body); if($body->count) { $twitter_count = $body->count; } else { $twitter_count = 0; } $total = $facebook_count + $twitter_count; update_post_meta($id, "msp_share_count", $total); update_post_meta($id, "msp_last_update", time()); }

We first resolved the post ID to post URL using the get_permalink() function provided by WordPress.

We then retrieve and parse the total shares of a post using the WordPress HTTP API. Lastly, we add the total share count of Facebook and Twitter and store them as metadata, along with the current time which represents the last update time.

Creating a Widget

We will use a widget to display the top 10 shared posts. We'll find the data using the get_posts() function provided by WordPress and then cache the result for six hours using WordPress Transients API.

Here is the code to create a simple widget which just displays the widget title. Place this code in the most-shared-widget.php file.

class Most_Shared_Post_Widget extends WP_Widget { public function __construct() { parent::__construct("Most_Shared_Post_Widget", "Display Most Shared Posts", array("description" => __("This plugin displays ten most shared posts in an widget"))); } public function form($instance) { if($instance) { $title = esc_attr($instance["title"]); } else { $title = ""; } ?> <p> <label for="<?php echo $this->get_field_id('title'); ?>"><?php echo "Title"; ?></label> <input class="widefat" id="<?php echo $this->get_field_id('title'); ?>" name="<?php echo $this->get_field_name('title'); ?>" type="text" value="<?php echo $title; ?>" /> </p> <?php } public function update($new_instance, $old_instance) { $instance = $old_instance; $instance['title'] = strip_tags($new_instance['title']); return $instance; } public function widget($args, $instance) { extract($args); $title = apply_filters('widget_title', $instance['title']); echo $before_widget; if($title) { echo $before_title . $title . $after_title; } msp_display_widget(); echo $after_widget; } } function msp_register_most_shared_widget() { register_widget("Most_Shared_Post_Widget"); } add_action("widgets_init", "msp_register_most_shared_widget");

Here we created a widget by extending the class WP_Widget and registered it using the register_widget function.

After displaying the widget title we call the msp_display_widget function which is responsible for retrieving the top 10 posts and displaying them as a list.

Here is the implementation of the msp_display_widget function:

function msp_display_widget() { $posts = get_transient("msp"); if($posts === false) { $args = array("posts_per_page" => 10, "meta_key" => "msp_share_count", "orderby" => "meta_value"); $posts = get_posts($args); $json_posts = json_encode($posts); echo "<ul>"; foreach($posts as $post) { echo "<li><a href='" . get_permalink($post->ID) . "'>" . $post->post_title . "</a></li>"; } echo "</ul>"; if(count($posts) >= 10) { set_transient("msp", $json_posts, 21600); } } else { $posts = json_decode($posts); echo "<ul>"; foreach($posts as $post) { echo "<li><a href='" . get_permalink($post->ID) . "'>" . $post->post_title . "</a></li>"; } echo "</ul>"; } }

The msp_display_widget function first checks to see if the top ten posts are stored as a transient, i.e. it looks in the cache. If it finds the posts in the cache then it simply parses them and displays them as an unordered list. Otherwise it retrieves the top 10 posts using the get_posts function and displays it. After displaying it, it stores the result in the cache by setting an expiration time of 6 hours.

You may be wondering what's the point of caching the result? Well, get_posts is using the MySQL orderby parameter which sorts the total share count of posts and retrieves the top 10 which is an expensive MySQL operation, therefore for performance reasons it's better to not perform the operation every time the widget is displayed.

We are only caching the result if there are more than 10 posts with share count meta data. This is done to prevent the widget from displaying nothing for the first 6 hours after installing the plugin as at least 10 posts might not have been requested by users at the time the widget is first displayed.

Here is how the widget looks in the Twenty Fifteen Theme:

Conclusion

In this article I've shown you how to easily build your own Most Shared Posts plugin for WordPress. You can now go ahead and expand on this to display images and add more information.

You can get a complete copy of the plugin here.

Please share your experiences with your own plugins below.

Source: Create a Most Shared Posts Plugin for WordPress