Rich Collier

What Is WordPress?

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Several people have asked me recently, “What is WordPress“? Those words are searched over 30 million times per month on Google. I have been working with WordPress for years now so I figured I would take a few moments to explain what is WordPress, what it does, and how you can use it.

So what is WordPress?

WordPress is the software that powers most of the blogs on the Internet, and a great majority of websites that aren’t blogs. It is open-source, highly adaptive, and fully scalable. WordPress is written with PHP technology and utilizes a database to store it’s content, data and settings. So what does that mean to you? The website you’re looking at right now, and statistically many of the other websites that you have viewed in the past, are run on the WordPress framework.

Here is where I might confuse you a bit. There are actually two potentially different things someone could be talking about when they say WordPress. There is WordPress.com and self-hosted WordPress. Let’s talk a bit about each.

What is WordPress.com?

WordPress was first released in 2003 by a couple of open-source gurus who eventually founded a company by the name of Automattic, who now manages WordPress.com. WordPress.com is where you can go to register a free blog and publish your content without the hassle of setting up your own servers and software. It’s easy and anyone can do it.

What is WordPress Self-Hosted?

The down side to WordPress.com is that it doesn’t allow for very much customization. If you need custom functionality, specific design options or your own domain name, you’ll need to register at WordPress VIP ( starting at $3750/month ) or install the free WordPress software on your own servers. Having a self-hosted install gives you the opportunity to modify the system to your liking, install community or self-authored plugins, choose from one of thousands of design themes, and so much more. You name it, and it can probably be done with WordPress.

So now you know what is WordPress, here’s what it looks like!

Obviously, you’re looking at it right now. This website is powered by WordPress. But be open minded – the web-facing side of WordPress can look like anything you can dream up. Here are a few screenshots of the back-end of WordPress.

What is WordPress login screen
Here is where you enter a username and password, just like you would for email or Facebook
What is WordPress - WordPress Dashboard
Once you are successfully logged in, here is what you see. A summary of things you can do or see on the management side of your website.
What is WordPress Post Page
To create a new page or post on your website, this is where you are taken. It’s a WYSIWYG editor like Microsoft Word or a similar program. It’s quick and easy to insert text, images, videos, and anything else you want.

If you need a website that’s easy to manage, secure, and fully-scalable, WordPress is one of the best options. Whether you would like to blog, sell your products, or simply advertise you business, WordPress will do it quickly and easily.

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