U Give Good Web

A permalink is the url of a specific post on your blog, or a specific page on a static website.  Visitors to your site might want to use a permalink to link to a part of your site that they’re referencing in their blog or in an email.

Types of Permalinks

The default permalink structure in WordPress shows the main website name plus a number, like http://www.ugivegoodweb.com/?p=1.  These are often referred to as “ugly” permalinks because no one has any idea of the subject of the link or what it goes to.  Numeric permalinks, one of the custom styles that you can select on the Permalink Structure page, are also “ugly” for the same reason.

Permalinks that show the website name and the title of the individual article, post, or category being referenced are called “pretty” permalinks.  They’re much more desirable from a search engine optimization (SEO) viewpoint, because they give search engines more information to work with when calculating rankings for your site. For example, the permalink for this post is http://www.ugivegoodweb.com/2008/11/02/using-permalinks.  Search engines will see the keyword “permalink” in the title, and mark this article as more relevant to someone searching for information about permalinks than a default permalink of http://www.ugivegoodweb.com/?p=1.

To Set Up Permalinks

1. Click on the Settings link 3rd from the right on the Dashboard.
2. Click on the Permalinks link on the submenu.
3. Select one of the common structure options.
4. Click the Save Changes button.

After changing the permalink structure, you will probably need to update your .htaccess file.  You can do this automatically through WordPress, if it’s configured to do this, or  update it yourself using a text editor. The code to be added will appear in a text box below the update message. You can find instructions on how to update your .htaccess file here.

Once you have established your permalink structure, you should not change it, especially if you have a significant number of posts/pages/other links on your site. Updating permalinks to a new structure may involve placing a lot of redirect commands to your old content.

For more information, see the WordPress Codex page on Permalinks

Writing for the web doesn’t have to be a long, difficult process. Because people read differently online than they do when reading print, it’s actually easier to get your point across online. Readers on the web tend to scan a page rather than read every word in every paragraph.  Eye tracking studies show that they’re looking for keywords pointing to the information they need, and that they tend to read in an “F pattern” — they look for key words and phrases across the top of the page, another horizontal row under that, and the vertical column on the side.

Here are some hints to make your content easier to read on the web:

Put key words near the top of the page. Readers scan the first sentences on the page to see if the article contains information they’re looking for.  Also, search engine crawlers determine what an article is about partly by counting the number of relevant keywords and how close they are to the top.

Write using the “inverted pyramid” style. Begin with the conclusion and then add important supporting information.

Use lists to enable readers to pick out important points right away.

Highlight key concepts using bulleted lists, bold or italic text, or a change in color.

Use links to other sites to support your content. That way, readers can see that you’re not just making facts up off the top of your head, and you’re giving them an incentive to visit again when they need more information.

I often speak with people who need a website and know that they will need to update it on a regular basis, but either don’t know html/css or don’t have the right web development program to edit the site themselves. My recommendation to them is to set the site up using WordPress so that they can have control of site management tasks like writing new posts, making new pages, managing links, and uploading pictures all through the WordPress dashboard interface.

picture of dashboard

The dashboard may appear complicated at first glance, but it allows you to perform basic tasks with the  click of a button. The tabs at the top left that describe basic functions:
Write- Controls options having to do with creating new blog entries, static pages, or links.

Manage - Controls content that has already been uploaded, as well as links to other sites, and allows you to set up categories and tags that you might want to use to sort your content.

Design - This tab allows you to select which WordPress theme you want to display on your blog. You can also manage your site’s widgets — a portable chunk of code that can be embedded on your blog’s pages.  Widgets are used for many tasks including placing a search bar or calendar on a page, controling flickr photos, or allowing you to put a login/password box on your sidebar.

Comments - Options related to who can leave comments on your blog.

Clicking on any of these tabs will bring up a submenu of choices specific to that tab.  For example, the options for the Manage tab are Posts, Pages, Links, Categories, Tags, etc.

There are many WordPress tutorials online.  Some of my favorites include:

The WordPress Codex This site is full of information that a beginner needs to know about WordPress.  Start with Introduction to Blogging for a definition of commonly used terms and concepts and then move on to First Steps With WordPress.

Introduction to WordPress An excellent tutorial by Michael Pollock.

WordPress Training The training index page on this site is full of useful tutorials.

The people at iThemes have posted some very informative video tutorials that explain some basic WordPress operations such as writing a post, writing a page, changing themes, etc.

I’m planning to write some tutorials on my own since I learn better from reading step-by-step instructions, but why reinvent the wheel for everyone who prefers video instruction?  Be sure to check them out.

The first thing to remember about making a web page is that you should begin with the end in mind.  Here are some questions to think about before you even think about how you’re going to make it. In no particular order:

• Who is your audience? Who is likely to be interested in the information on your site?
• What is your site’s purpose? Are you trying to advertise your business? Maybe you have a hobby that you’d like to share with the world, or will it be a personal site where you’re going to tell people about yourself and post pictures of friends and family?
• How frequently do you think you’re going to need to update content on the site?
• Are there online examples of websites that you like? I’m not advocating outright stealing of other people’s web designs, but a list of sites that you like can help you to see the design elements that those sites have in common and help you to figure out your own look, color scheme, font choices, etc.

The second thing to remember is that you don’t have to do it all by yourself. There are many ways of getting a web page online other than taking the time to learn html/css and then coding it by hand.  Your options generally fall into three categories.

• Get someone else to do it for you
• Use a web design program to write the html/css code
• Use a content management system (CMS)

Get Someone Else to Do it For You: This can be a really efficient way to get a site up, but for the best results, you should be able to communicate to the designer an idea of what you want, or you run the risk of winding up with a site that’s not very satisfying. There are many  sites where you can hire a web designer to create a website for you.  Two that come to mind are eLance and Guru. What you do on these sites is describe your project (e.g. I’d like someone to make a website for my business) and then select a winning proposal from the designers that bid on the project.

Use a Web Design Program: Web design software helps you create a web page by translating the page that you make on your computer into code that your web browser can read.   I use Dreamweaver, which is a robust, professional strength program.  CoffeeCup is a great program for beginners. Try their free demo.

Use a Content Management System: A content management system (CMS) is a software program that allows you to write, edit, and publish web pages and manage many other tasks such as organizing articles and posts,  editing menu items, and designing the look of the site. I use WordPress for many websites that I make because once the site is up and running, my clients can add/edit content themselves without knowing a lot of coding techniques.  Other popular systems include MovableType, Drupal and Joomla

There are 4 basic things that you need to get a website online:

A Domain Name:
A domain name is the name of your site and its “address” on the internet. Try to keep the name short and easy to type — http://blogging.com is more desirable than http://really-long-website-that-takes-forever-to-type.com.  Domains come in several versions including .com, for commercial sites, .org for organizations and sometimes non-profit sites, and .net, which was originally designed for network websites, but now is used by all sorts of websites.   Other lesser used domain endings include .biz, and .info.  A couple of popular domain name registration companies are GoDaddy and Name.com.

A Webhosting Service:
A website host is a person or company that provides space on a server where you will enter your domain name and save your website files so that they will be available for public viewing.  Many hosting packages also provide email and database accounts assigned.  Popular webhosts include BlueHost.com, HostGator and Network Solutions.  Many companies offer both domain registration and webhosting services.

An FTP program:
Now that you have a domain name and a webhost, you need some way to be able to upload your files to the webhost.  Uploading simply means saving your files on the remote server space that you get from your webhost. There are many different FTP programs, and many are free like FileZilla and WS_FTP or are included in a web design software package like Dreamweaver or FrontPage.

A Webpage:
You’re going to need a web page or a template that is properly coded to be read by web browsers like Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari.