WordPress Wednesday: Import HTML Pages

Published on Aug 5, 2009   //  WordPress
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So, you’ve got a beautiful website all coded up in regular HTML, but you want to transport these static HTML pages into a WordPress installation. The process can seem daunting to some, but it’s made a lot easier with a clever plug-in from Stephanie Leary of Sillybean.net. The plugin, appropriately enough, is called Import HTML pages.

Using the configurable settings in the plugin, you can import a directory of files as either WordPress pages or WordPress posts. With the content that is being imported, you can define the HTML tag that will contain this content (like <body> or <div id=”content”>) or you can base the imported content on the Dreamwaver template region. For the importation of pages, the directory hierarchy is preserved.

But what about visitors who arrive at the old URLs? The Import HTML Pages plug-in will also provide a list of Apache redirects that can be inserted into your .htaccess file. This will transfer visitors from the old file locations to their new WordPress locations. Other options include the ability to remove a common phrase from imported titles, to specify directories to exclude, to choose the author and timestamp, and to use meta descriptions as excerpts.

Check out Sillybean.net for the download link and more information on the Import HTML Pages WordPress plugin.

WordPress Wednesday: WP Change Template

Published on Jul 29, 2009   //  WordPress
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They say that it is important to have a unique theme or template for your blog, because this will give it a spark of personality and help it stick out from the crowd. That’s why there are so many WordPress designers out there who are developing new templates all the time, catering to different niches and preferences. What if you want to have a special theme for special times of the year?

Normally, you would have to go into your WordPress dashboard and switch the theme manually on the dates that you want to use a different template. Rather than take the manual route, you may want to consider a solution like WP Change Template. This free WordPress plug-in will automatically change the theme on your blog for the dates that you define in the options panel.

For instance, if you want to have a special theme for Thanksgiving or Christmas, you can go into the WP Change Template administration area in your WordPress dashboard and tell it to change to your Thanksgiving theme for a certain date range. At the end of this range, your blog will automatically revert back to the theme that you have set as its default. This can bring up all sorts of marketing, branding, and holiday-themed possibilities.

Check out the WordPress repository for more information and to download WP Change Template.

WordPress Wednesday: A Broken Upgrade

Published on Jul 22, 2009   //  WordPress
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A few days ago, we were told that we should upgrade to WordPress 2.8.2. It came with a series of security updates that address an important XSS vulnerability. If you went with the Fantastico route or opted for Bluefur’s Managed Blog Hosting, the upgrade process should be very straightforward. Even if you didn’t, WordPress now comes with an automatic upgrade tool. However, not everything works the way it should all the time.

When I decided to update my own blog to WordPress 2.8.2., I figured that I’d be able to hit the automatic update button from within the WordPress dashboard and be done with it. In doing so, however, an error message popped up saying that it could not do it. As such, I embarked on the mission to do the manual update and in doing so, ran into a few snags.

The problems may have arisen because I forgot to disable my plugins before proceeding with the manual update. I downloaded the official files from WordPress, fired up my FTP application, and let the upload process begin. Most of the files overwrote the existing files properly, but many of them came back with a “critical transfer error.” I thought that it may have been a permission issue, so I proceeded to chmod some of the directories. That didn’t work and my blog was effectively broken. It would only display the background image and I could not gain access to the admin area.

In the end, I turned to the advice of Gary and Matt and they were able to provide the simplest solution. First, I temporarily renamed my plugins directory to something else. Second, I deleted the existing wp-admin and wp-includes subdirectories. Third, I manually uploaded the new wp-admin and wp-includes folders. Fourth, I gave the plugins directory its original name. With these four steps, everything got back to normal and I am now proud to say that I’m running WP 2.8.2 on Beyond the Rhetoric.

If you ever run into a similar situation, try the four-step process outlined above. Hopefully the automatic upgrade works perfectly for you, so you won’t have to cross that bridge.

Update WordPress 2.8.2

Published on Jul 20, 2009   //  Security, WordPress
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Attention bloggers if you have manually installed WordPress then you should upgrade to 2.8.2. This upgrade fixes an XSS vulnerability. Full details on what has been updated are here.

For those who installed WordPress with Fantastico, Netenberg usually has the upgrade released a week or two later. We do post Fantastico updates on the blog so keep an eye open for that.

Please also note we will post when it is time for Managed Blog hosting customers to upgrade in this blog.

WordPress Wednesday: WordPress Toolbar Plugin

Published on Jul 15, 2009   //  WordPress
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Whenever you write a blog post that involves outbound links, you run the risk of having your reader leave to visit the other site and not return back to your blog. Some people choose to overcome this obstacle by having all outbound links open in a new window, but many readers find that kind of configuration to be rather frustrating. What can you do?

A new WordPress plugin has been developed that makes the process simple and effective. The WordPress Toolbar Plugin automatically creates a toolbar within the browser each time a visitor clicks on an outgoing link on your blog. Near the top of the browser will be a small toolbar that contains a series of useful links, sending the reader back to content that is relevant on your blog. This way, they are still reminded of where they started.

If after clicking on an outbound link, the visitor chooses to click on one of the links on the new webpage, your toolbar will then disappear and they can continue on with their web surfing experience. What is contained in this toolbar? The two biggest buttons are along the right edge. One sends the reader back to your blog to post a comment on the associated post. The other is a link to download the WordPress Toolbar plugin. There are also a series of icons in the toolbar for social media and social bookmarking services, allowing your reader to easily submit your blog post to StumbleUpon, Digg, Facebook, Mixx, Reddit, Twitter, and more.

To get a better idea of what the WordPress Toolbar plugin is all about, check out the original developer’s page at abhinavsingh.com. You can also see a live demo of the plugin there. Alternatively, head over to the WordPress repository to download and install the plugin on your own blog.

Update WordPress 2.8.1

Published on Jul 9, 2009   //  Security, WordPress
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Attention bloggers if you have manually installed WordPress then you should upgrade to 2.8.1. This upgrade fixes many bugs and tightens security for plugin administration pages. Full details on what has been updated are here.

For those who installed WordPress with Fantastico, Netenberg usually has the upgrade released a week or two later. We do post Fantastico updates on the blog so keep an eye open for that.

Please also note we will post when it is time for Managed Blog hosting customers to upgrade in this blog.

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