WordPress: The Missing Manual

Book excerpt: Whether you’re a budding blogger or seasoned web designer, WordPress is a brilliant tool for creating websites—once you know how to tap into its impressive features. The latest edition of this jargon-free Missing Manual shows you how to use WordPress’s themes, widgets, and plug-ins to build just about any kind of site. The important stuff you need to know: Set up WordPress. Configure WordPress on your web host or get it running on your home computer. Create your site. Get hands-on instructions for building all types of websites, from blogs to business sites with ecommerce features. Jazz it up. Add picture galleries, slideshows, video clips, music players, and podcasts. Add features. Select from thousands of plug-ins to enhance your site’s capabilities, from contact forms to a basic shopping cart. Build a truly unique site. Customize a WordPress theme to create a site that looks exactly the way you want. Attract an audience. Use SEO, site statistics, and social sharing to reach more people. Stay safe. Use backup and staging tools to protect your content and avoid catastrophe.