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Do you want to know how to use WordPress to create a website? Typically only associated with blogs, Wordrpess can be tweaked and modified to fit any type of layout you desire, and best of all, it’s completely free and open source. However, knowing where to start can be confusing, as there are several steps one must take before launching a completely functional WordPress website. Lets go over the WordPress basics and what it takes to launch your very own WordPress site.
WordPress was originally launched back in 2003 as a self-blogging tool, but has now grown into one of the largest content management systems (CMS) in the world. While many other CMS charge license fees and other associated costs for using them, WordPress remains completely free for users to do as they please. Whether you want to blog about the on-goings in your daily life, or create a fully-optimized e-commerce store, WordPress can help you accomplish your goals at no cost to you.
Before going into how to use WordPress to create a website, you’ll have to decide whether you want to use the free or self-hosted version. Users can create free WordPress blogs with limited features and access at WordPress.com without having to worry about web hosting or a domain name. However, if you choose this option, your domain will actually be a sub-domain tied to WordPress.com. For example, yoursite.wordpress.com. Choosing to host your WordPress website on a web host of your own accord opens up more features and options, including your your own domain, which is why it’s almost always recommended.
The first step is to sign up for a website hosting service. Basically, these are advanced computers, known as servers, that host the files of your website. Once you upload the files of your WordPress site to them, they will display it to the world, essentially bringing your website life. There are literally thousands of website hosting services and you might feel a little lost when it comes to choosing one. HostGator.com remains as a leader in the hosting world and they can set you up with an unlimited hosting service for as little as $3.94/month. A few years ago, this type of deal would have been unheard of, but with the technological advances we’ve seen recently, web hosting has gotten dirt-cheap. Another great thing about HostGator.com is their 99.9% up-time guarantee. Some web hosts can be a nightmare to run your website on, as they constantly go down from errors, bugs or “system maintenance”. A reliable web host is a must if you’re serious about running a successful WordPress website.
The next step in setting up your WordPress site is to register a domain name. A domain name is the web address users will see in the search engines results and type into their browser to visit your website. When choosing one, try to make it something that’s both unique and related to what your WordPress site is going to be about. GoDaddy and NameCheap are both excellent registrars.
After you’ve registered your domain name, you’ll need to do a little tweaking to tell it where your websites files are located. Go back to your web host and find out what “name servers” they assigned you. These are server addresses which tell the domain names where the files to your website are. After signing up for a web hosting service, most companies will send you a welcome email that contains your account information, ip address, and name servers to use. If you can’t find them, open up a support ticket and ask their customer service for your name servers. Once you’ve discovered what your two name servers are, go back to your domain name account and assign them to your domain. If nothing happens immediately, don’t worry, it may take a few minutes.
WordPress websites operate through the use of a mySQL database. While this may be confusing to some, it’s actually beneficial, as it protects your content from being stolen or accidentally deleted. Go ahead and set up your database by logging into the control panel (cpanel) of your website. Typically, the cpanel can be accessed by typing yourwebsite.com/cpanel into your web browser. When prompted for username and password, enter in the information provided to you from your web host. Once inside the cpanel, look for the “mySQL Databases” icon and click on it. Here, you can should create a new database and assign a user to it with all privileges.
Now that you have your website and domain name set up properly, it’s time to upload the WordPress files. Visit WordPress.com and download the set of files required to install WordPress. Once you have them, upload them to your web host through a file sharing program (FTP). If you don’t have one, you can download and use FileZilla for free.
It’s important you don’t overlook this step – before you do anything else, look for file you just uploaded called “wp-config-sample.php” and open it. You need to edit this file and add your database name, user name and password. This will tell WordPress where the mySQL database is and how to access it. Once you’re done editing it, close it and save it as “wp-config.php”.
You’re almost there.. Visit your domain address by typing it into your internet browser. If everything works as it should, you’ll see a WordPress installation screen asking you what username and password you would like to use for your website. Once you’ve done this, your installation is complete! Whenever you want to log-in to your WordPress website to create new posts or make changes, visit yourwebsite.com/wp-admin and enter in your username and password.
This is just one of the ways to set up your WordPress website. There’s also a faster, “5-minute” installation process that some may prefer. In any case, you should seek WordPress training online to help you learn what goes into maintaining a WordPress site. WordPress training will teach you things like plug-ins, themes, and how to update your software to the latest version.