This week: The First Steps to Building Your Website in WordPress
Next week: Installing WordPress on a Web Server
The week after: Installing WordPress on a Local Server (MAMP)
In three weeks: Moving a Locally Installed WordPress (MAMP) on a Live Server
WordPress is a great blogging platform that allows both advanced users and users with no web experience to create gorgeous websites or blogs. It’s perfect for independent musicians who want complete control over their websites’ appearance and content. Besides, thousands of themes and plugins mean you don’t need any technical knowledge to get started.
WordPress.org or WordPress.com?
WordPress.com is a simple blogging platform that utilizes the same software but doesn’t quite give you the flexibility that WordPress.org offers. While WordPress.com requires no technical knowledge and gets you started in minutes, it lacks the complete control over code and the ability to upload custom themes/plugins.
Here are some of the most important differences between the two of them:
WordPress.com:
-you needn’t worry about finding a web host
-allows users to use only the themes/plugins that are built into wordpress.com
-no installation/setup required
-for users with little or no technical knowledge
-free, with paid advanced features such as using your own domain name
-doesn’t allow ads on your website
-backups, spam and security are taken care of
WordPress.org:
-you need to find a good web host
-ability to upload custom themes/plugins
-for more advanced bloggers/users with at least basic knowledge of HTML/CSS
-great community
-complete control over code
-you’re responsible for stopping spam and handling backups
WordPress.org is a free software that anyone can download, but it must be installed on a web or local server before it will work. Therefore, you’ll need to find a good web host (generally, good hosting service starts around 5 Euro per month). WordPress.com, on the other hand, is different. When you sign up for a wordpress.com blog, you are given an URL of yourname.wordpress.com and you can start blogging immediately. It is a great choice for blogging beginners, but if you’re looking for a long-term blogging experience, I’d strongly recommend you went the WordPress.org route.