WP2.2 – Plugin installation & Configuration

WordPress plugins are small apps, almost always free

that add to the functionality and usability of your site.

Plugins are similar to applications for your iPhone. The vast majority are available for free from WordPress (last count over 11,000 are available) and easily uploaded to your site using the "Add New" option under the "Plugins" menu on the WordPress dashboard.

Widgets on the other hand are small applications that are designed to display data in your blogs sidebar(s) which are covered in the next lesson.

Please review the video on how to install WordPress plugins and then check out our recommendations below

This is our list of must have plugins for WordPress, specially selected based on what we have tried and tested: 

  1. Akismet – checks to see if comments are spam and block them
  2. Contact Form 7 – easily embed contact forms on a page or post
  3. SEO friendly images – adds tags to photos, improves traffic
  4. WordPress related posts – keep visitors with a list of similar articles
  5. WP database backup. On-demand backup of your WordPress database.
  6. Google XML sitemap. Will create a compliant XML sitemap for your blog
  7. Subscribe to comments – Visitors who comment will receive emails of future comments made on that post – keeps users engaged.
  8. Digg Digg Social Bookmarking Tool
  9. Thesis OpenHook – great tool for changing Thesis Theme options and adding functionality to your blog
     

add new plugin WP2.2 Plugin installation & ConfigurationGetting these plugins on your site

The easiest way is to go to Plugins-Installed and click on the Add New button


Then from this screen enter the name of the plugin that you would like to install -

install plugin WP2.2 Plugin installation & Configuration

… when you have found it click the install button on the right of your screen and WordPress will automatically install. Click the activate link when requested.

Do this for all these plugins listed below (except Akismet):

Akismet – this plugin is installed by default. Activate it and there will be a "nag" reminder at the top of the screen to get a key from Akismet to activate this spam stopper.

Contact form 7 – allows you to configure a form that you can embed in a blog page. We use it on this site, review it here.

WP database backup - configure to send you an with a copy of the database every day.

SEO friendly images – really no config required. Will add tags to images if you forget to.

WordPress related posts – standard config should be ok.

Google XML sitemap – our advice is to leave the basic config as it is. Automatically notifies Google, MSN, Ask. If you want to notify Yahoo (you should) click the link to apply for a free Yahoo ID key. We strongly recommend that you take this step, our rankings have been terrific with Yahoo since implementing this option.

Subscribe to comments - fill in the relevant info.

Thesis OpenHook – great tool for changing Thesis Theme options and adding functionality to your blog

Digg Digg – review the options available

Wordbook – link it up to your Facebook account

 

 

 

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