Frequently Asked Questions

 

1. How do I add an entry to my blog?

You can add an entry to your blog by clicking on the “New” link in the administration menu at the top of the WordPress web page.  You can also add an entry by selecting “Add New” from the “Posts” item in the Dashboard of your site.  You can get to the dashboard by selecting from the administration menu under your site name, or by clicking on the “Site Admin” link, if your blog has this link in one of the side columns.

2. How do I change the theme?

You can change the theme from the Dashboard.  Under Appearance, there is a Theme item that will show you a preview of all the themes that are currently installed.  If you find another free WordPress theme on the Internet that you’d like to try, let me (Steve Tonnesen) know and I’ll download it and add it to the list of available themes.  Note that most themes have options that you can use to customize the theme to your liking by changing colours, header images, location and size of columns, etc.

3. How do I manage comments?

By default, comments on your blog will need your approval before they are visible to other visitors.  You will find a comments section on the Dashboard where you can review pending comments and reject or approve them.  Be wary of comments that seem to be only vaguely referencing the content of your post, especially if they include a web link to another website.  In most cases these are people who are paid to place links to websites, and they have no interest in contributing to the discussion on your blog.  It is best to just delete these comments.

4. Who can read my blog?

These blogs are completely open to the Internet.  Anybody with the address of your website can view your posts.  WordPress does have a feature where you can put a password on a post that readers will have to type in before they can read it, but in general, you should consider these blogs to be fully public and post accordingly.

5. Who can create a blog?

Any Sooke School District staff member can create a blog.

6. Can I create more than one blog?

Yes.  You could, for example, create a blog for each course that you teach.

7. What are plugins?

I have created a page of information about plugins in WordPress.

8. What is a widget?

A widget is typically a box that can be placed in a sidebar on your blog to show specific information.  You can place a widget in the sidebar that will show recent posts on your blog, recent comments on your blog, a list of website links, a tag cloud, a twitter link, among other things.  You can add widgets to your side bar from the dashboard by clicking on the Widgets item under Appearance.  You’ll see a box containing all the available widgets and you can drag the one you want over the to sidebar where you want it to appear on the right.  Most widgets also allow you to add some customization as well.

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