By now most WordPress users know about WordPress 3.0 and the new features that have turned it into an even better content management system.
For anyone who is not familiar with WordPress this software, which started out as a blogging platform, can now be used to set up a network of blogs or websites which can run on just one WordPress installation. One ‘superadmin’ controls the whole system, while each separate blog/site on the network is managed within it’s own admin panel. Each individual administrator can choose from any themes that have been installed by the ‘super’ on the network ‘superadmin’ panel.
3.0 has a much more flexible menu system too. There is the option of creating custom menus and linking to pages outside of the wordpress installation, even to a page on another site in any menu including the main one. Best of all though, WordPress is an open source project so the software is free.
That’s 3.0 in a nutshell. If you have a website and you are not familiar with WordPress check out ‘wordpress.org’ to find out more.
What WordPress has done for me though is create a never ending learning curve. There are so many plugins to try out, so many design features to tweek. Every time I change something it leads to another change and then I want more.
This system can be dead easy to work with if you let it, or it can get incredibly difficult if you get compulsive about it like me and have to try out every new idea or feature that comes along.
This time I really wanted to set up the network out of one wordpress installation to save some administration time but my hosting provider doesn’t support it. That was a disappointment, but what I realized afterwards is that I don’t need every new toy that comes out just so I can have it.
There had always been another way to move my site in the direction I want it to go and all this trying out new things is only holding me up. That’s when I realized that I’ve been a little stuck and haven’t been nearly as creative with this very useful tool as I could be.
Now I can let go of a few other things I’ve been clinging to as well. And one of them is being way too serious all the time. That’s not me. Not just WordPress, but this whole digital world is constantly changing and in a kind of weird way, because of it, so have I.
Look out. There’s more to come.
P.S. – Thanks to all you kind, generous and hard working software developers out there. You sure have been keeping me busy! :)
