Working With WordPress Widgets

WordPress Widgets,[object Object],Kathy E Gill,[object Object],1 February 2011,[object Object]

What Are Widgets?,[object Object],A “configurable code snippet" that makes it possible to modify function and appearance,[object Object]

Widgets & WordPress Themes,[object Object],Not all themes are widget-capable,[object Object],Themes vary in widget options, location,[object Object]

Single Widget Area,[object Object]

Multiple Widget Areas,[object Object]

Where Are Widgets?,[object Object],Access the widgets page from the Appearance Menu in your Dashboard.,[object Object]

Default Appearance - Single,[object Object]

Default Appearance - Multi,[object Object]

Monotone: No Widgets Supported,[object Object]

Editing Appearance,[object Object],Note: once you edit a widget area, the default widgets disappear,[object Object],Recommendation: before editing, take a screenshot of your theme,[object Object],Tip: if you don’t want anything to show up in a widget area, try adding a blank text widget.,[object Object]

Adding Widgets,[object Object],To add a widget, drag from the Available or Inactive Widgets area on the left onto the Sidebar area on the right.,[object Object],When you see a dashed line appear, you can drop the widget into place.,[object Object],Single widget area; image from WP.com,[object Object]

Multiple Widget Locations,[object Object]

Configuring Widgets,[object Object],Each widget has configuration options.Click on the triangle on the right side of the widget to configure.,[object Object],You’ll need to save only if you edit.,[object Object]

Ordering, Deleting Widgets,[object Object],Change the order of the widgets by dragging and dropping them in the sidebar area.,[object Object],Delete by dragging to the left or clicking the “delete” link on the configuration box.,[object Object],Note: design change is immediate – no “save” required,[object Object]

Important Widgets (1/5),[object Object],ArchivesNavigation. Provides access to old posts; a key characteristic of blog as a genre,[object Object],CategoriesNavigation. Provides access to posts by topic; a key characteristic of blog as a genre,[object Object]

Important Widgets (2/5),[object Object],LinksAs Blogroll, Background. Provides insight into blog content, author; a key characteristic of blog as a genre,[object Object],Tag CloudNavigation, Background. Provides access to posts by keyword; requires reasonably large corpus to be useful.,[object Object]

Important Widgets (3/5),[object Object],PagesNavigation. Provides access to pages; essential if sidebar is primary navigation.,[object Object],Category CloudNavigation, Background. Provides alternative access to posts by category; requires reasonably large corpus to be useful.,[object Object]

Important Widgets (4/5),[object Object],Recent PostsBackground. Highlights most recent posts; useful when “more” tag not employed.,[object Object],Recent CommentsBackground. Highlights most recent comments; requires reasonably large corpus/frequent comments to be meaningful.,[object Object]

Important Widgets (5/5),[object Object],TextMay be the most important widget; can hold text or HTML but no javascript.,[object Object],RSS LinksProvides access to post and comment RSS feed using orange button. Essential if there is no other RSS subscription link in the design.,[object Object]

Interesting Widgets (1/3),[object Object],TwitterBackground. Displays tweets by handle.,[object Object],FlickrBackground. Displays photos from Flickr based on an RSS feed.,[object Object],DeliciousBackground. Display Delicious links by handle.,[object Object]

Interesting Widgets (2/3),[object Object],Box.netFunctionality. Share files with your readers.,[object Object],MeeboFunctionality. Enables private IM chat.,[object Object],SocialVibeFunctionality. Support a charity.,[object Object]

Interesting Widgets (3/3),[object Object],Blog SubscriptionFunctionality. Enables email alert when there are new posts.,[object Object],SocialVibeFunctionality. Support a charity.,[object Object]

Widgets That Require Content,[object Object],SearchUseless unless there is a large corpus.,[object Object],Top ClicksUseless unless there is a large corpus.,[object Object],Top Posts and PagesUseless unless there is a large corpus.,[object Object]

WordPress Widgets,[object Object],List and descriptions at WP.com: http://en.support.wordpress.com/topic/widgets-sidebars/,[object Object],Even more widgets available for self-hosted WP accounts: http://codex.wordpress.org/WordPress_Widgets,[object Object]

For Portfolio Sites,[object Object],Consider adding links to Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter,[object Object],You will use Text Box. We’ll do one of these on Thursday.,[object Object]

Widgets Are Not Plug-ins,[object Object],[object Object]

Widgets = content (more or less)

Working With WordPress Widgets

Working With WordPress Widgets

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