Web Building at UMW
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Website Building at UMW

Getting Started

  • Creating a New Site
  • Domain of One’s Own Overview
  • Preparing to Sign Up for Domain of One’s Own
  • Signing up on Domain of One’s Own
  • I Set Up My Account, Now What?
  • Introduction to cPanel
  • Best Practices for Choosing a Domain Name
  • Accounts & Passwords
  • Getting to Know Your Web Space
  • Securing Your Site with SSL

Control Panel

  • Adding a Redirect
  • Adding a New Domain Name
  • Creating a Subdomain
  • Subdomains vs Subdirectories
  • Introduction to cPanel
  • Cleaning up Storage Space

Web Applications

  • Installing Applications with Installatron
  • What is a Web Application?

Wordpress

  • What is WordPress?
  • Changing Your Display Name
  • Uninstalling WordPress
  • Installing WordPress
  • WordPress Editor
  • Posts and Pages
  • Categories, Tags, and Menus
  • Basic Privacy
  • WordPress Settings
  • Plugins and Themes – Recommendations
  • Themes and Customizations
  • Best Practices for Handling Media
  • Cloning a WordPress Installation
  • Adding a New User to a WordPress Site
  • Feeds (RSS)
  • Resetting your WordPress Password

Additional Resources

  • Sites@UMW or Domain of One’s Own?
  • Technical Details: What is the server set-up like?
  • Accessibility
  • Troubleshooting

Web Security

  • Securing Your Site with SSL
  • Accounts & Passwords

Leaving UMW Domains

  • Leaving Domain of One’s Own: The Practical Steps
  • Leaving Domain of One’s Own: Overview

Creating Content

  • Categories, Tags, and Menus
  • Posts and Pages
  • WordPress Settings
  • WordPress Editor

Site Administration

  • Changing Your Display Name

Omeka

  • Troubleshooting Omeka
  • Omeka Guide

What is WordPress?

Table of Contents
  • Open-Source Content Management System (CMS)
  • What is WordPress Used for?
  • What do I Need to Know to Use it?
  • Common Misconceptions
    • Just for Blogging
    • Security Fears
    • UMW and WordPress
  • More Resources

When creating a site for a class, you will often be asked to use WordPress. You may also be considering WordPress for a personal project. But what exactly is WordPress?

Open-Source Content Management System (CMS) #

WordPress is described as an Open-Source Content Management System or CMS. Open-Source software permits users to use, study, change, and distribute it and its code to anyone. Content management systems are software that allows users to create and modify digital content. This means that WordPress is software that will let its users create and modify digital content and then share it with anyone.

What is WordPress Used for? #

WordPress is used to help users create and build their websites. (The website you currently are on is a great example of what you can do by using WordPress.)

What do I Need to Know to Use it? #

WordPress is a great tool for beginners and more advanced users alike.

After initially installing it, WordPress will offer to walk you through some of the main features, such as adding text. WordPress’s website is a good source for learning more about how to use the software, alongside Domain of One’s Own Guides. You may also book a consultation with a DKC consultant who would happily walk you through learning how to use WordPress. If you don’t have an appointment, you can come in during the hours the DKC is open as a walk-in and be assisted as long as one of our consultants is free.

There are also two different forms of WordPress. One is Sites@UMW, and the other is Domain of One’s Own. Sites@UMW comes with limited customization features, such as only allowing a few plugins and themes, whereas, with Domain of One’s Own, you can install any plugin or theme you desire.

Common Misconceptions #

There are a couple of common misconceptions when it comes to WordPress.

Just for Blogging #

One misconception about the site is that WordPress is just used for blogging. However, since its creation, it has become equipped to deal with various types of sites. These include e-commerce sites, business websites, online portfolios, and more. However, when using WordPress from UMW, you cannot use the website to make money.

Security Fears #

Some people believe that WordPress sites are not secure. While it is true that WordPress websites can suffer from security threats, usually this occurs only if users fail to maintain them properly. You will not have to worry about this if you use Sites@UMW.

UMW and WordPress #

UMW offers two ways to use WordPress. One is Sites@UMW, and the other is Domain of One’s Own. They function differently, but both will allow you to use WordPress to build a website.

More Resources #

To learn more about WordPress, you can visit WordPress’s website.

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Table of Contents
  • Open-Source Content Management System (CMS)
  • What is WordPress Used for?
  • What do I Need to Know to Use it?
  • Common Misconceptions
    • Just for Blogging
    • Security Fears
    • UMW and WordPress
  • More Resources
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