How to Learn WordPress
Visit WordPress.com., Visit the WordPress Codex., Consult the WordPress support forums., Visit third-party websites., Watch instructional videos on YouTube., Take an online WordPress course., Join a WordPress support group., Learn a markup...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Visit WordPress.com.
The WordPress organization maintains its own site (created in WordPress) to help new and experienced users navigate through the CMS’ features and learn how to do what they want to do with it.
Its learning site, http://learn.wordpress.com/, includes a number of features, including the following:
Get Going Fast:
A quick-start guide/checklist to refer to when creating a website or blog to make sure you’ve covered all your bases.
Get a Home Page:
Explains how to use WordPress to create a home page and customize navigation, among other features, in more detail than Get Going Fast.
Get Lingo:
A glossary of WordPress-related terminology.
Menus at the top of each page with links to each section so you can link directly to the information you need.
Generous use of screenshots to illustrate how Word Press’ features work.
Links to WordPress.com Support, a knowledge database. -
Step 2: Visit the WordPress Codex.
WordPress actually has two websites, wordpress.com and wordpress.org; the WordPress Codex is part of the latter site.
The Codex is the online manual for WordPress, with links to instruction in downloading WordPress, designing blogs, using themes, and creating and using plug-ins., WordPress offers several support forums, accessible by hyperlink from the WordPress Codex.
In these forums, you can post questions about a particular WordPress feature and receive answers from any of a number of volunteers.
You may find the forums more useful as you get more familiar with WordPress, while initially you may find the answers as complicated to understand as the questions., In addition to the written resources on the WordPress websites, there are also a number of third-party blogs by WordPress users, as well as by webhosting companies.There are also online magazines with articles about or devoted solely to WordPress.Good places to learn WordPress include the SpoonGraphics website and WPTuts+., Although thought of chiefly as an entertainment venue, YouTube also has thousands of instructional videos on many different topics, including WordPress.You can type the specific aspect of WordPress you want to learn more about into the YouTube search engine, or type the general term “WordPress” and select from one of the suggested search terms., Online courses offer the convenience of Internet classroom access with the structured approach of a physical classroom.
Most classes take you through the process of building a website in WordPress from start to finish; some, such as Lynda.com, cover some of the skills outside of WordPress itself that can enhance your experience. .Some online classes are offered only live at certain times, while others offer recorded modules you can review if you can’t tune in at the scheduled class time. , Some of these are offered in conjunction with online classes, while others are independent of classes.
Some support groups offer face-to-face meetings, while others meet through social media sites such as Facebook or LinkedIn., Although WordPress automates a lot of the creation process, knowing a markup language such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), XML (Extensible Markup Language), or XHTML (Extensible HyperText Markup Language) lets you create your own themes and modify existing ones to better suit your needs. , A cascading style sheet (CSS) is a way to specify how a document written in a markup language appears.
It allows the markup language to address the document’s content, while it governs the document’s appearance.WordPress uses it in conjunction with HTML and XHTML to create themes., WordPress uses the scripting language PHP (standing for “Personal Home Page”).
Scripts are used in creating WordPress plugins, which add functionality ranging from displaying weather reports to spellcheck., Most websites use images to one degree or another to illustrate the message contained in the website’s text or to carry the message itself.
You should be comfortable using an image editor program to resize, crop, and adjust the pixel density of images you plan to use on your website or blog. , Each person has his or her own best way of learning something.
Knowing how you learn best and choosing a method for learning WordPress that fits your learning style can help you master it more easily.
A list of learning styles is given below, along with available methods for learning WordPress for you to consider:
Aural:
You enjoy learning through sound and music.
You might like to learn WordPress through classroom lectures or podcasts.
Logical:
You enjoy learning opportunities that require you to think things through.
You might want to attend WordPress classes that focus on figuring out how to do things in WordPress.
Physical:
You enjoy “hands-on” learning.
You’ll want a class with ample time to practice what you’ve just learned or else pause the video frequently to try out the concept you see displayed.
Social:
You enjoy learning with other people, working in groups when possible.
You’ll want to be part of a WordPress group that meets in person.
Solitary:
You enjoy learning things on your own.
You may learn best from the WordPress sites, a third-party blog, a YouTube video, or some combination of these.
Visual/spatial:
You like to learn from pictures.
You’ll want to refer to the screenshots in the WordPress pages and in YouTube videos frequently to help you learn. -
Step 3: Consult the WordPress support forums.
-
Step 4: Visit third-party websites.
-
Step 5: Watch instructional videos on YouTube.
-
Step 6: Take an online WordPress course.
-
Step 7: Join a WordPress support group.
-
Step 8: Learn a markup language.
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Step 9: Get comfortable with cascading style sheets.
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Step 10: Learn a scripting language.
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Step 11: Know how to resize images.
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Step 12: Consider the way you learn best.
Detailed Guide
The WordPress organization maintains its own site (created in WordPress) to help new and experienced users navigate through the CMS’ features and learn how to do what they want to do with it.
Its learning site, http://learn.wordpress.com/, includes a number of features, including the following:
Get Going Fast:
A quick-start guide/checklist to refer to when creating a website or blog to make sure you’ve covered all your bases.
Get a Home Page:
Explains how to use WordPress to create a home page and customize navigation, among other features, in more detail than Get Going Fast.
Get Lingo:
A glossary of WordPress-related terminology.
Menus at the top of each page with links to each section so you can link directly to the information you need.
Generous use of screenshots to illustrate how Word Press’ features work.
Links to WordPress.com Support, a knowledge database.
WordPress actually has two websites, wordpress.com and wordpress.org; the WordPress Codex is part of the latter site.
The Codex is the online manual for WordPress, with links to instruction in downloading WordPress, designing blogs, using themes, and creating and using plug-ins., WordPress offers several support forums, accessible by hyperlink from the WordPress Codex.
In these forums, you can post questions about a particular WordPress feature and receive answers from any of a number of volunteers.
You may find the forums more useful as you get more familiar with WordPress, while initially you may find the answers as complicated to understand as the questions., In addition to the written resources on the WordPress websites, there are also a number of third-party blogs by WordPress users, as well as by webhosting companies.There are also online magazines with articles about or devoted solely to WordPress.Good places to learn WordPress include the SpoonGraphics website and WPTuts+., Although thought of chiefly as an entertainment venue, YouTube also has thousands of instructional videos on many different topics, including WordPress.You can type the specific aspect of WordPress you want to learn more about into the YouTube search engine, or type the general term “WordPress” and select from one of the suggested search terms., Online courses offer the convenience of Internet classroom access with the structured approach of a physical classroom.
Most classes take you through the process of building a website in WordPress from start to finish; some, such as Lynda.com, cover some of the skills outside of WordPress itself that can enhance your experience. .Some online classes are offered only live at certain times, while others offer recorded modules you can review if you can’t tune in at the scheduled class time. , Some of these are offered in conjunction with online classes, while others are independent of classes.
Some support groups offer face-to-face meetings, while others meet through social media sites such as Facebook or LinkedIn., Although WordPress automates a lot of the creation process, knowing a markup language such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), XML (Extensible Markup Language), or XHTML (Extensible HyperText Markup Language) lets you create your own themes and modify existing ones to better suit your needs. , A cascading style sheet (CSS) is a way to specify how a document written in a markup language appears.
It allows the markup language to address the document’s content, while it governs the document’s appearance.WordPress uses it in conjunction with HTML and XHTML to create themes., WordPress uses the scripting language PHP (standing for “Personal Home Page”).
Scripts are used in creating WordPress plugins, which add functionality ranging from displaying weather reports to spellcheck., Most websites use images to one degree or another to illustrate the message contained in the website’s text or to carry the message itself.
You should be comfortable using an image editor program to resize, crop, and adjust the pixel density of images you plan to use on your website or blog. , Each person has his or her own best way of learning something.
Knowing how you learn best and choosing a method for learning WordPress that fits your learning style can help you master it more easily.
A list of learning styles is given below, along with available methods for learning WordPress for you to consider:
Aural:
You enjoy learning through sound and music.
You might like to learn WordPress through classroom lectures or podcasts.
Logical:
You enjoy learning opportunities that require you to think things through.
You might want to attend WordPress classes that focus on figuring out how to do things in WordPress.
Physical:
You enjoy “hands-on” learning.
You’ll want a class with ample time to practice what you’ve just learned or else pause the video frequently to try out the concept you see displayed.
Social:
You enjoy learning with other people, working in groups when possible.
You’ll want to be part of a WordPress group that meets in person.
Solitary:
You enjoy learning things on your own.
You may learn best from the WordPress sites, a third-party blog, a YouTube video, or some combination of these.
Visual/spatial:
You like to learn from pictures.
You’ll want to refer to the screenshots in the WordPress pages and in YouTube videos frequently to help you learn.
About the Author
Zachary Ramirez
Dedicated to helping readers learn new skills in DIY projects and beyond.
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