WordPress for Web Developers: An Introduction for Web Professionals

WordPress for Web Developers: An Introduction for Web Professionals

by Stephanie Leary
Released June 2013
Publisher(s): Apress
ISBN: 9781430258667

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Book description

WordPress for Web Developers is a complete guide for web designers and developers who want to begin building and administering sites with WordPress. This book is an update of Beginning WordPress 3, freshened and clarified for web developers who want to make the most of WordPress. You'll start by learning WordPress basics, including how to publish content, add media, and manage users.

Then you'll dig deeper into your WordPress server administration, including domain mapping, security, and importing and migrating. The book then steps up a gear with an introduction to developing for WordPress, perfect for developers and designers with some PHP experience, who want to learn to create custom themes and plugins.

WordPress is the most popular open source blogging and content management system in the world. Its flexible, user-friendly system can be extended with thousands of freely available themes and plugins. This book will teach you how to make the most of WordPress's built-in features, how to find the right themes and plugins for your projects, and how to build your own custom features. You'll learn to:

What you'll learn

  • How to install WordPress and configure its settings

  • How to create, organize, and display content and multimedia files

  • How to find themes and plugins – or create your own with PHP

  • How to maintain and secure your WordPress sites

  • How to set up a network of sites and manage them in a single interface

    • Who this book is for

    This book is for professional web designers and developers, with some working knowledge of PHP, who want to learn to administer and build sites with WordPress using advanced topics such as themes and plugins.

    Table of contents

    1. Title Page
    2. Contents at a Glance
    3. Contents
    4. About the Author
    5. About the Technical Reviewer
    6. Acknowledgments
    7. Introduction
    8. CHAPTER 1: Getting Started
      1. Why WordPress?
      2. wordpress.com vs. wordpress.org
      3. Sites Built with WordPress
      4. WordPress Tour
      5. Summary
    9. CHAPTER 2: Installing and Upgrading WordPress
      1. System Requirements
      2. Installation Using the Web Interface
      3. Initial Settings
      4. Troubleshooting the Blank White Page
      5. Installing Themes
      6. Installing Plugins
      7. Upgrading WordPress, Themes, and Plugins
      8. Summary
    10. CHAPTER 3: Dashboard and Settings
      1. The Dashboard
      2. The Administration Menu and the Admin Bar
      3. Settings
      4. Summary
    11. CHAPTER 4: Working with Content
      1. Posts
      2. Pages
      3. Posts vs. Pages: Same, but Different
      4. Media Files
      5. Feeds
      6. Summary
    12. CHAPTER 5: Working with Themes
      1. Using the Customizer
      2. Using Widgets
      3. Using Menus
      4. Using Header and Background Images
      5. Making Other Changes to Themes
      6. Starter Themes and Theme Frameworks
      7. Summary
    13. CHAPTER 6: Working with Plugins
      1. How Plugins Work
      2. Evaluating Plugins
      3. Troubleshooting Plugins
      4. Summary
    14. CHAPTER 7: Working with Users
      1. Users
      2. Roles
      3. Roles in Action: Notifications, Moderation, and Workflow
      4. Summary
    15. CHAPTER 8: Setting Up Multisite Networks
      1. Multisite Requirements
      2. Activating the Network
      3. Configuring the Network
      4. Creating Additional Network Sites
      5. Network Users
      6. Network Plugins and Themes
      7. Updating the Network
      8. Mapping Domains
      9. Reverting to a Single Site
      10. Summary
    16. CHAPTER 9: Performance and Security
      1. Backing Up the Database and Files
      2. Changing the Database Table Prefix
      3. Caching
      4. Securing Logins
      5. Removing The Meta Generator Tag
      6. File Permissions
      7. Changing File Locations
      8. Monitoring Security Problems
      9. Summary
    17. CHAPTER 10: Importing Content and Migrating Sites
      1. Before Importing
      2. Installing Import Tools
      3. Importing Other Database-Driven Sites
      4. Importing HTML Files
      5. Migrating Sites between Servers
      6. After Importing or Migrating: Fixing What’s Broken
      7. Summary
    18. CHAPTER 11: Beginning Theme and Plugin Development
      1. PHP You’ll Need to Know
      2. Theme and Plugin Files
      3. Never Edit Core Files
      4. Working with Hooks
      5. Using the Options and Settings APIs
      6. Writing Secure Themes and Plugins
      7. Translations: Localization and Internationalization
      8. Other APIs
      9. Developing in Debug Mode
      10. Summary
    19. CHAPTER 12: Creating a Theme
      1. Before You Begin
      2. Building the First Theme Files
      3. Template Files
      4. Template Hierarchy
      5. Conditional Tags
      6. Theme Functions
      7. Modifying Themes the Right Way: Child Themes
      8. Modifying the Loop: An Introduction to the Query
      9. Multiple Loops
      10. Accessing Post Information Outside the Loop
      11. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
      12. Adding Scripts and Stylesheets
      13. Creating Theme Options
      14. Creating Theme Frameworks for Large Sites
      15. Outside the Theme Hierarchy: Database Errors and Maintenance Messages
      16. Responsive Design and WordPress
      17. Distributing Themes
      18. Further Reading
      19. Summary
    20. CHAPTER 13: Creating Plugins
      1. Getting Started
      2. Extending User Profiles
      3. Creating Template Tags
      4. Creating Shortcodes
      5. Creating Settings Screens
      6. The Complete Settings Screen
      7. Variations on Settings Screens
      8. Creating Widgets
      9. Dashboard Widgets
      10. Publishing a Plugin
      11. The Final Result
      12. Plugin Possibilities
      13. Further Reading
      14. Summary
    21. CHAPTER 14: Custom Post Types, Taxonomies, and Fields
      1. Custom Taxonomies
      2. Custom Post Types
      3. Custom Fields in Custom Content Types
      4. Further Reading
      5. Summary
    22. APPENDIX A: Recommended Plugins
      1. Editing: Inline, Rich Text, Reusable Content, and Attachments
      2. Revisions
      3. Excerpts
      4. Custom Post Types, Taxonomies, and Fields
      5. Page Order
      6. Post/Page Lists and Navigation
      7. Permalinks and Short URLs
      8. Workflow and E-mail Notifications
      9. Forms
      10. Users, Permissions, and Login Screens
      11. Visitor Statistics
      12. Media and Podcasting
      13. Social Media
      14. Social Networks
      15. Events and Calendars
      16. Caching
      17. Performance, Security, Maintenance, and Diagnostics
      18. Mobile
      19. Widgets
      20. Search Engine Optimization
      21. Importing Content
      22. Network Sites
    23. APPENDIX B: Community Resources
      1. Development Philosophy
      2. Documentation, Discussion, and Help
      3. News and Events
      4. Developer Blogs
    24. Index

    Product information

    • Title: WordPress for Web Developers: An Introduction for Web Professionals
    • Author(s): Stephanie Leary
    • Release date: June 2013
    • Publisher(s): Apress
    • ISBN: 9781430258667