Google the subject first…
This site is primarily about first time self-hosting WordPress.
I didn’t intend to add content about the coding of WordPress content, but a bit has crept in.
Online forums are a tremendous resource. But a frequent complaint in response posts is: “Did you google the subject before asking here?” Yogi Berra was right – we really can see a lot by looking.
Unfortunately the variety of helpful content available makes internet searches less than a panacea.
The information here was gathered because I needed it to confidently host self-host a WordPress site. My 20 years of I.T. experience is 20 years old – so I am rusty and under-informed.
My reasons for disseminating it are:
- So I don’t have to look this information up again.
- To make sense of the confusing and conflicting information.
- To help others, in case their search lands them here.
- As a WordPress training exercise.
- It seemed like a good thing to do at the time.
The wicked secret about WordPress is that it can be both incredibly simple and incredibly complex. Ironically, much of the complexity comes from it’s design aimed at making it simple.
When beginning a WordPress project a developer has two choices:
- Begin development using the easy and user-friendly features, and then dig down to some of the complex capabilities to add needed functionality. You might call this a “dig down” approach.
- Start developing by writing nitty-gritty code and then reach up to the easy and user-friendly features to keep things tidy and organized. You might call this a “reach up” approach.
Anyone wishing to host a web site could use any other tool – including writing code from scratch.
If you can accept the limitations imposed by a content management system, choosing one may be a great choice.
Be aware using any tool forces compromises. It reminds me of something a building contractor said to me: “fast, cheap and good – pick any two.”
It may take a few google searches to make the right choice.
jgstroup – Atlanta – 2020