My Website Can Vote - The Challenges of Maintaining a 20-year-old Website
Report
Kristine HowardFollow
Sep. 24, 2016•0 likes•576 views
0 likes
Be the first to like this
Show More
views
Total views
0
On Slideshare
0
From embeds
0
Number of embeds
0
Check these out next
My Website Can Vote - The Challenges of Maintaining a 20-year-old Website
Sep. 24, 2016•0 likes•576 views
0 likes
Be the first to like this
Show More
views
Total views
0
On Slideshare
0
From embeds
0
Number of embeds
0
Download to read offline
Report
Internet
Talk given at WordCamp Sydney on September 24, 2016. The Web is an industry that thrives on the new… but what about building sites that last? In 1996, I used my newly acquired HTML skills to build a fan site for my favourite author. Twenty years later, the site – roalddahlfans.com – is still alive and kicking. I’ll trace the development of the site over the years, which mirrors both my own career journey as a developer and the trajectory of the web as a whole. I’ll also talk about the challenges I faced during my recent 6-month project to convert the whole site – nearly 1500 pages – to WordPress, dragging it into the 21st century at last.
Kristine HowardFollow
My Website Can Vote - The Challenges of Maintaining a 20-year-old Website
- My Website Can Vote The Challenges of Maintaining a 20-year-old Website
- 20
- 20 frickin’
- 20 frickin’ years
- December 1996
- December 1996
- 6 months
- 2 years
- 3 years
- 3 years
- 3 years
- 3 years
- 3 years
- 4 years
- 4.5 years
- Meanwhile…
- 5 years
- 5 years
- 5 years
- Fast forward 14 years…
- 19 years
- So what to do?
- Pros
- Pros • Security - better than what I had
- Pros • Security - better than what I had • PHP-based
- Pros • Security - better than what I had • PHP-based • Responsive themes
- Pros • Security - better than what I had • PHP-based • Responsive themes • Plugins!
- Pros • Security - better than what I had • PHP-based • Responsive themes • Plugins! • Better admin UX - including ACL & versioning
- Pros • Security - better than what I had • PHP-based • Responsive themes • Plugins! • Better admin UX - including ACL & versioning • Less friction to update
- Cons
- Cons • Security - WordPress is a big target
- Cons • Security - WordPress is a big target • Learning curve
- Cons • Security - WordPress is a big target • Learning curve • Migration effort
- Cons • Security - WordPress is a big target • Learning curve • Migration effort • Ego - would using WordPress make me look like a n00b?
- Concerns
- Concerns • How to organise the site? How much of the cross-referencing to automate?
- Concerns • How to organise the site? How much of the cross-referencing to automate? “This has to be a solved problem, right?”
- Concerns • How to organise the site? How much of the cross-referencing to automate? “This has to be a solved problem, right?” • 20 years of inbound links and PageRank to preserve
- Concerns • How to organise the site? How much of the cross-referencing to automate? “This has to be a solved problem, right?” • 20 years of inbound links and PageRank to preserve • Hard-coded HTML styles in the DB to clean up
- The Plan
- The Plan • Set up site on new host
- The Plan • Set up site on new host • Create basic site structure
- The Plan • Set up site on new host • Create basic site structure • Read up on security
- The Plan • Set up site on new host • Create basic site structure • Read up on security • VaultPress & Wordfence
- The Plan • Set up site on new host • Create basic site structure • Read up on security • VaultPress & Wordfence • Auto-updates
- The Plan • Set up site on new host • Create basic site structure • Read up on security • VaultPress & Wordfence • Auto-updates • Set up child theme and create nav menu
- The Plan • Set up site on new host • Create basic site structure • Read up on security • VaultPress & Wordfence • Auto-updates • Set up child theme and create nav menu • Start migrating content
- Migration
- Migration • Start with simplest pages and sections first
- Migration • Start with simplest pages and sections first • Write functions where needed
- Migration • Start with simplest pages and sections first • Write functions where needed • Required some plugins:
- Migration • Start with simplest pages and sections first • Write functions where needed • Required some plugins: • Advanced Custom Fields
- Migration • Start with simplest pages and sections first • Write functions where needed • Required some plugins: • Advanced Custom Fields • Add Categories to Pages
- Migration • Start with simplest pages and sections first • Write functions where needed • Required some plugins: • Advanced Custom Fields • Add Categories to Pages • WP Gallery Custom Links…
- More Plugins
- More Plugins • Breadcrumbs -> Breadcrumb NavXT plugin
- More Plugins • Breadcrumbs -> Breadcrumb NavXT plugin • Calendar -> My Calendar plugin
- More Plugins • Breadcrumbs -> Breadcrumb NavXT plugin • Calendar -> My Calendar plugin • Trivia Quizzes -> Riddle (+ plugin)
- More Plugins • Breadcrumbs -> Breadcrumb NavXT plugin • Calendar -> My Calendar plugin • Trivia Quizzes -> Riddle (+ plugin) • Polls -> WP-Polls plugin
- More Plugins • Breadcrumbs -> Breadcrumb NavXT plugin • Calendar -> My Calendar plugin • Trivia Quizzes -> Riddle (+ plugin) • Polls -> WP-Polls plugin • Search -> Relevanssi plugin
- More Plugins • Breadcrumbs -> Breadcrumb NavXT plugin • Calendar -> My Calendar plugin • Trivia Quizzes -> Riddle (+ plugin) • Polls -> WP-Polls plugin • Search -> Relevanssi plugin • Timeline -> ???
- Final Steps
- Final Steps • Migrate all old news/blog posts
- Final Steps • Migrate all old news/blog posts • Set up Adsense and Analytics
- Final Steps • Migrate all old news/blog posts • Set up Adsense and Analytics • Update the theme
- Final Steps • Migrate all old news/blog posts • Set up Adsense and Analytics • Update the theme • Set up .htaccess redirects
- Final Steps • Migrate all old news/blog posts • Set up Adsense and Analytics • Update the theme • Set up .htaccess redirects • Change DNS to point to the new site!
- Some numbers… • ~4500 page views/day • 28% US; 25% UK; 6% AU • 60% desktop; 27% mobile; 13% tablet • 84% via search; 11% direct; 4% referral; < 1% social • Most popular content: short stories; trivia quizzes; teacher materials
- What’s Next
- What’s Next • Set up SSL
- What’s Next • Set up SSL • Mop up broken links
- What’s Next • Set up SSL • Mop up broken links • Add new content
- What’s Next • Set up SSL • Mop up broken links • Add new content • Update design once illustrations are finished
- What’s Next • Set up SSL • Mop up broken links • Add new content • Update design once illustrations are finished • Keep an eye on stats & revenue
- Thanks! @web_goddess @RoaldDahlFans Kris Howard http://www.roalddahlfans.com