Tag: Boston MA Wordpress

3 things I’d like to see WordPress implementSeptember 17th, 2013

Those of you who are regular readers of my blog know how big a fan I am of WordPress. That being said, I have a few things I’d like WordPress to implement.
 

1. Revisions: The ability to see and revert to previous revisions for posts and pages is spectacular. It allows you to fix errors and go back. This happens quite often, as WordPress is so user friendly, non-technical users can make their own changes and add content. But people make mistakes and you need to be able to fix them. But under Appearance > Editor you can make changes that can do irreparable harm to your site. This forces you to either revert to a full backup (if you have one), and that is not always ideal. So if WordPress could make it so you can see revisions of all files, that would make life easier.
2. Plugins: Another thing I would love to see is a little bit more testing of plugins. Part of the problem is that some plugins have updates that can really screw up your site. For instance, one of my very favorite plugins has always been the NexGEN gallery. However, lately it has had severe problems and people have been left with broken galleries and/or missing functionality such as lightbox effects. It would be great to be able to roll this back to a previous working version. Perhaps even a reporting system for WordPress so when a bad plugin update is is out there, people can report it and WordPress can temporarily disable the update until the bugs are addressed.
3. Security:  As WordPress is so popular, people are constantly trying to hack your site. WordPress should take steps to harden the software. First off, forbid the username “admin”. Some of the software installation programs install with the default username of admin.  (I will go into client sites and change this in the database, but non technical users can’t do that). WordPress should just ban the username admin and make secure passwords mandatory. I also think some of the security plugins are excellent. I think WordPress should consider purchasing one of the excellent ones like Wordfence and make it part of the core offering.

 
I would love to know what you would like to see WordPress implement. Please leave me your opinions below.

 

WordPress: Custom Theme or Purchase?September 3rd, 2013

With WordPress one of the key questions you have to ask yourself is should I have a custom theme built for my website or should I use a premium theme that I can purchase?

My answer depends on a few things:

• What type of business are you in?
• What is your time-to-market?
• Budget

 
Depending on your answers, I can come up with an option for you.
 
Type of Business
I always think people in creative fields should lean towards more custom themes. For instance, I look at some website designer’s website and I see a purchased theme, to me that doesn’t seem quite right. I mean if your selling your creativity, you should at least show you are creative, right? However, for many professions, or small businesses, a premium theme is fine. There are thousands, and with some customizations, you can make it your own.

Time to Market
If you are in a rush to get a site done, then your answer is simple, go with a nice premium theme which will cut the time down by 60-70%. If you have months, then you can consider a custom design. As the design process takes a couple of weeks on average, and building a custom theme can add a few weeks, you can see where time to market is considerably longer.

Budget
If you have a small budget, then go with a premium theme. If you have $2000 and up you can consider the custom design route. The reason is that having designs created takes time and money. And coding a custom theme can take weeks, which is where the cost adds up.

So, I know you are going to ask, what do I prefer? Well, in a perfect world, a custom, unique theme is what I prefer. But in reality, the things we spoke about come into play. Budget and time to market are so important. Whichever way you go, you can have a great site. If you aren’t sure, then ask me. I am happy to help you decide.