I'm using the WordPress platform to blog, and I'm encountering one limitation after another. Anyone else have this issue? I look at others' blogs and I'm green with envy at all the bells and whistles they have. I chose WordPress because it's supported by my institution, but now I'm wondering if I should migrate to a platform that offers more capabilities. Any thoughts?
It depends on what you want to do. WordPress has a lot of plugins, but at the end of the day it's still "just" a blogging platform. While CMS functionality can be bolted onto it, that's really not what it was designed for. If you need something more expansive, try something like Joomla, Drupal, or one of the PHP-Nuke flavors. Rather than go into all the details here, I did a post about this on my own blog a while back: Link. I always point people to it when they are trying to decide on a CMS/blogging platform.
Thank you, Robert Maxwell --- this is all excellent advice! I'm definitely going to bookmark your blog; it looks extremely useful and informative. I might end up migrating to Joomia, Drupal, etc, after I do more research. Thanks again.
Anytime! Let me know if you find another good one, too. I'm always interested in trying out different CMS software.
You can get a domain for less than $10 a year. Then, you need someone to host it. You can get a shared hosting account (meaning there are multiple websites hosted on the same server) for under $20 a year. If you end up with a high-traffic site, you'll have to spend more for better hosting, but you can start out with something light.
^Thanks, Robert and Mr. B. I'll consider this option. If either of you have any suggestions for improving my blog, please do feel free to offer them. Also let me know if you think I should convert my blog into its own website.
The problem isn't WordPress, per se. It's Richmond's implementation of WordPress which is limiting you. The bells-and-whistles you see on other blogs, even WordPress blogs, aren't available to you because you can't go and install a plugin or a new theme. (I mean, seriously. K2? There are better themes that UR could install...) So don't harsh on WordPress, the problems you're having aren't entirely WordPress' fault. The MU version of WordPress is designed to create a kind of blogging-with-training-wheels environment, hence the limitations you're running into. The standalone WordPress is actually a good, if also bloated, product, and I've been using it for over five years now. I love getting down into the code, modifying my theme files, even modifying some of WordPress' functions to work the way I want them to work. I've learned how to write in PHP thanks to WordPress; I'm not great at it, but I can put something together than runs. Or, closer to you, The Collegian uses WordPress, and they actually do some decent things with it to make it a useful magazine-styled website, because that's the standalone installations. Compare your blog to The Collegian, and even though the underlying software is the same, the end result is vastly different. They're on the self-hosted version of the software instead of the multi-user version, and they're using a custom theme (one of Brian Gardner's designs, it looks like). If you're curious about WordPress and have questions, let me know and I may be able to answer them. I like WordPress a lot, though I do occasionally find it frustating. I've also used GreyMatter and Habari. I like WordPress because it's familiar. And this post has made me nostalgic for my own college days. I was a Spider a decade ago.
Thanks, Allyn Gibson. Did you ever take a psych class? If so, we may have met. I will definitely show your post to our tech people here. Maybe they can upgrade. All I really want, truly, is to have a bunch of sharing options at the end of each of my blog posts (e.g., buttons to share at facebook, twitter, etc) along with Digg, Delicious, etc. I hope this isn't asking too much. Again, thanks!
I was in the History department, Scottydog; I basically lived in Ryland Hall. I was a Psych major for one semester, but only took one class in the department, a Personality class taught by a statuesque blond. I think we may have met, though, because your name is ringing a bell. Did you do any work with CAPS? Your tech guys should be able to install plugins for the WordPress-MU installation. The easiest solution for sharing buttons on posts would be Share This. I personally use Bookmarkify, but it needs a lot of configuration (modified theme files, modified style sheet) to work properly. Share This is much easier to configure, and there's no messy modding of files. I have used both, and have no problems recommending either. You may even want to try the Share This website; it looks like you can configure a text widget for WordPress from there that wouldn't require a plug-in. Good luck!
Wordpress is a great platform, there's a big community behind it. But if you find it too much limiting (plugins are not always the solution) try Drupal (CMS-CMF). http://drupal.org/ It's not easy to learn, but it has some great capabilities. And if WP is not good enough, i doubt that Joomla will do the job for you.
Arghh. My school is filthy rich yet has just informed me that it won't upgrade it's primitive version of WordPress. All I can say is #%*#$&@.
Is there any reason you have to stick with your school's site? For a little money you can get your own WP site and customize it to your heart's content. I do web hosting myself, and would be happy to discuss it with you, and even get it set up.
Thank you, Robert. You are very kind to offer. I'm considering migrating away from my school's site. I'd rather not do it because I'm invested in it and loyal to my school. I'll have to think on it a bit. All I want, really, is to have some sharing options at the end of each blog post -- e.g., an opportunity for readers to post to twitter, facebook, etc, or to digg, delicious, etc. Seems like every blog has this capability but mine! Arghh. But really, thanks. I'll chew on it.
I don't think your school is going to throw a fit because you migrated to another host. They don't seem to care enough about their WP implementation to actually upgrade it with useful features, so it must not matter much to them!
Wow, wrote a long post but hit the back button by mistake. Summary: Wordpress is the standard of blogging and can't be beat. Drupal and Joomla are CMS but they are severely lacking when it comes to their blogging capabilities. It's also overly complex and powerful to learn for somebody just wanting to blog. Many complex sites these days are done completely in Wordpress. To truly see how functional WP can be, start out with a free host and install the latest copy yourself. http://www.000webhost.com/ is a good one. Once you have a good feel and have a decent amount of traffic, migrate to paid hosting. Definitely play around with the different add ons and themes. How much technical background do you have??