Let’s face it, WordPress is powerful and amazing!

Controlling your content and site design is relatively easy and straightforward.

WordPress is loaded with modern features and customizable in every way. This allows the first time WordPress user to look like a hero and offer all the modern features that were once reserved for web experts.

In this new tutorial series on WordPress, we’ll be delving into every aspect of this great blogging – CMS platform right from setup to completion.
We’ll take it one step at a time so even a total newbie can benefit.

The very first thing we need to do is lay the groundwork and gather all the data and tools we need for our installation.
While this may seem obvious at first glance, you’d be shocked how many people do not do this vital step.
If your thinking you’ll just setup WordPress through your Cpanel then toy around with a couple themes, you’ll be dooming yourself right from the start.

I always approach this a little different then the majority. Avoid all the potential pitfalls and headaches right up front, and your blog or website launch will go smoothly.

What About The Famous 5 Minute Install?

It’s great, if your an amateur, do not care about security, and really don’t want to make a real serious presence online. There are many modifications you really need to do and this cannot be done using the “5 minute install”. Maybe I should say it’s MUCH EASIER to make these changes right up front, not after-wards.

If your not computer savvy, don’t worry about the details as I’ll be walking you through this step by step and before you know it, you’ll be able to do this in your sleep.

STEP ONE:

The very first thing you should do is create an organized folder structure. This is vital to organization and a clean work flow. You can name these to whatever your comfortable with, or just copy these verbatim.

Put these folders somewhere on your computer. I like to create a master folder called “Website Projects” and put all my websites in this. You’ll notice I assign a number in the folder name. I do this so they are arranged in the order I want them, instead of the alphabetical default.

So here’s what you need to create:

Quick folder explanation:

• The “YourWebsite.com” folder will hold all relevant files for the site.
• The “WordPress Core” folder is for the latest WordPress version
• The “Themes” folder is for themes you like
• The “Plugins” folder is for your WordPress plugins
• The “Site Content” folder contains 4 folder inside that will hold content for your site.
• The “Codes & Snippets” folder is for some additional coding snippets I will be giving you to add to your files. Do not copy-n-paste these directly into your WordPress files. You will be pasting them into a plain text file in an organized fashion so you will have them later down the road when you install more WordPress websites! You can use these over and over again.
• The “PreLaunch Core Setup” is for future usage. Here you will have already modified files ready to install. This may seem a little redundent, but it’s such a great time saver, you’ll thank me later!

Now that we have a place to organize all our files, let’s grab what we need.

STEP TWO:

Download WordPress Core - Go to http://wordpress.org and download the latest version of wordpress.
This assumes you will be using your own domain and not using a hosted blogging service (not recommended at all). Download WordPress to the “WordPress Core” folder you created.

STEP THREE:

Download XAMPP or WAMP local server – Go to http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp.html for XAMPP or http://www.wampserver.com/en/download.php for WAMP. It is soooo much easier to create your website offline on your computer and test everything then to try and do it live.

If your completely unfamiliar with running a local server, no problem, I’ll be showing you how to install this in another lesson, and how to create your website online if you’d rather not do it local (on your computer). Download XAMPP or WAMP to your desktop.

STEP FOUR:

Download your theme(s) - In a more advanced series we’ll create a custom theme for your wordpress website, but for this series we’ll be using and modifying an existing theme. So, find a theme that’s really close to what you’d like, and download it to the “Themes” folder you created.

STEP FIVE:

Download plugins - WordPress plugins allow you to expand the functionality of your WordPress site with just a few clicks. But WARNING: Don’t go overboard and use every cool plugin you see.
Use only what you need. Too many plugins will slow down your site considerably. So, here are the bare minimum plugins you should be using regardless of the type of website you setup. Download these to your “Plugins” folder.

• All-in-One-SEO-Pack - Plugin URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/
  Search optimization is a must and this plugin has proven itself time and time again.
  Forget the Pro version, you get no extra benefits, just grab the free version.
• Google-Sitemap-Generator - Plugin URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/google-sitemap-generator/
  If you want you site listed faster, and you want to be taken seriously, you need to have sitemaps.
• Robots-Meta - Plugin URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/robots-meta/
  Not essential, but a super plugin for controlling your robots file as well as the ability to assign “nofollow, follow, noindex, index” and more to every page and post.
  You can even edit your robots file and htaccess file in the dashboard.
• WP-Super-Cache - Plugin URL: http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/wp-super-cache/
  This plugin is a fast caching engine that generates static html files and can dramatically speed up you site as your content grows. Not essential to start out, but why not start out the right way from the beginning.

There are tons more plugins to choose from. Exactly what you need will depend on the purpose and function of your website. This plugin list is just the essentials only to get you started.

STEP SIX:

Download an FTP software - To transfer files back and forth from your computer to the hosting server, you’ll need FTP software.

Filezilla is probably the most popular for Free FTP programs, but if you have a few bucks to spend, grab something better. Cute FTP, Smart FTP, Ace FTP, and Transmit (for Mac) are all great paid programs.

If you think we might just install wordpress via the hosting Cpanel, think again. This is a poor way to install WordPress and a security issue. You’ll understand more when we start setting up our files and uploading. Download your chosen FTP software to your desktop and install to your computer.

STEP SEVEN:

Download Text-Code Editor - There are hundreds if not thousands of options but let’s keep it simple.
Use a plain old text editor such as Notepad++ (my choice), PSpad (also free), UltraEdit ($49), TextMate ($59. for Mac) or TextWrangler (Free for Mac). You will not be using any Microsoft product such as Word, NEVER EVER.
Download your chosen text editor to your desktop and install on your computer.

Now We’re Organized and Ready To Roll

OK, so far we’ve setup your organized folder structure, downloaded the latest WordPress version, downloaded your chosen themes(s), downloaded a local server such as XAMPP or WAMP (if you want to do this the right way), downloaded the essential plugins, downloaded and installed FTP software, and downloaded and installed a text/code editor.

Doing all this will take a little time, so in the next lesson of this “Tactical WordPress Series”, we’ll setup a modified configuration and install wordpress both locally and to a live website.

In the mean time, download everything you need and decide on your theme. Put a little thought into your theme choice, don’t just grab the first one that catches your eye.

Don’t stress about the local server setup, I’ll show you exactly step by step how to set this up in the next lesson.

David V

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