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GDI WP 101 - Week 3 - Themes

GDI WP 101 - Week 3 - Themes

WP Themes, Class #3, for GDI.

Karen McCamy

March 02, 2015
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  1. Why “Themes” ???  Aesthetics…  “Look & Feel” 

    For Example… Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  2. What IS a Theme? In a word… “stylesheets” CSS =

    Cascading Style Sheet Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  3. What is a theme…continued  CSS BASICS:  Used to

    style elements: ◦ Colors ◦ Images ◦ Fonts ◦ Layouts  Columns  Sidebars  WHY CSS?  For efficiency!  Sets “Global” formats  Typography ◦ H1, H2, H3… ◦ Captions ◦ Paragraph styles  Defines MENU Styles  Styles POSTS/PAGES  Defines default formats… Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  4. Theme Basics  WordPress MUST have 1 theme to function…

     WP includes 2-3 FREE themes, produced by Automattic (the company behind WordPress) Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review “2014” “2013” “2012”
  5. WordPress & “Widgets”  Widgets: little “applets” that provide added

    function to your site…  Twitter feed  Facebook feed  Calendar  Map  Menus  Widget content may be impacted by changing to a new theme Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  6. Theme “Best Practices” Paid vs. Free  “Why should I

    pay for a theme when there are FREE themes out there???”  Good Question!  Know what makes a GOOD theme! ◦ Proper Coding ◦ Consistent & Continuing Support ◦ Continuously Upgraded with WordPress ◦ Theme Quality… A Very Hot Topic! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  7. Best Practices continued … 1. ALWAYS go for a PAID

    theme! 2. Use themes for aesthetics 3. Leave “functionality” to plugins a. Prevent “bloat” b. Simplify theme changes (remember Widgets?) c. Guard against “abandonment” by theme developers Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  8. How to Find Themes  Theme “Houses”  My term

    for theme developers/authors  Don’t confuse with “Marketplaces”  It’s BIG Bu$ine$$  There are tons of them! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  9. Google Results Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review How to

    Find Themes …in the Millions! Notice #’s of PAID Listings!
  10. Evaluating Themes  Critical Step!  For WordPress Beginners &

    “Start-Ups”  Iterative Process ◦ Take Your Time ◦ Don’t Rush this Step  Explore What’s Possible ◦ Take Notes on What You Like ◦ Document Possibilities Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  11. Evaluating Themes  Resources  Wordpress.org  Theme Houses 

    My Site My Way (www.mysitemyway.com)  Woo Themes (www.woothemes.com)  ThemeShaper (www.themeshaper.com)  Elegant Themes (www.elegantthemes.com/Wordpress)  Rocket Themes (www.rockettheme.com/wordpress)  Theme Marketplaces (such as ThemeForest)  Independent developers  Buy at your own risk (code compliance issues!) Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  12. Evaluating Themes If this is your business… …it doesn’t start

    with WordPress! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review You need a Plan!
  13. Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Evaluating Themes For WordPress

    Startups…continued  WHY Plan??? ◦ It will shorten your search ◦ It will keep you sane ◦ You will stay focused
  14.  Remember: the Iterative Process!  I recommend 3 search

    phases!  1st: Look for inspiration, ideas  2nd: Refine your search  3rd: Make a decision! Invest your time…This is not a race! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Evaluating Themes
  15. Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review What to Include in

    Your “Plan”  Site Purpose  Your Audience  Site Contents • Articles • Galleries • Videos • Products (Cart?)  Aesthetics  Site Structure  Branding/Message  Site Navigation Evaluating Themes
  16.  Critical Elements in Every Theme  Dedicated Custom CSS

    Location  Responsive Design – Is it truly “responsive” on all device sizes?  DEMO? Always try it out!  Custom Theme Menus? Always evaluate!  # of Included Site Menus  Support & licensing policies Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Evaluating Themes (still for Startups)
  17.  Rating/ranking Themes  Features you’re looking for  Ease

    of Customizing!  Support/licensing  Update History  User Reviews / Support Tickets ◦ Especially still open problems… ◦ How long to fix? ◦ Any unresolved??? Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Evaluating Themes
  18.  Changing a Theme…For established sites  Planning & Assessment

    Essential ◦ Why are you changing themes? ◦ Consider “migration” issues  Widget Content might not play well with new theme  Compatibility with existing plugins ◦ Existing “Framework” ???  Genesis  Thesis Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Evaluating Themes
  19.  For everyone  Filtering & categorizing ◦ Specifying theme

    styles cuts search time  Magazine Themes (content heavy)  Galleries/Portfolios  Freelance/Services Sites  Retail/Product Heavy (“catalog”)  E-Commerce Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Evaluating Themes TIPS
  20. Installing a Theme Themes Menu Page This is the easy

    part!  In WP Dashboard:  AppearanceThemes  Click the “Add New” Button Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  21. Installing a Theme  Install Themes Page  Click “Upload”

    (Note: you can also search for themes from this screen) Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  22. Installing a Theme  Locate saved theme  Click “Install

    Now” Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  23. Installing the Theme  Theme will install  WP will

    give you progress reports  Install completed! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  24. Activating a Theme  On same page, you have 2

    options:  Activate ◦ Turns theme “on”  Preview ◦ If you’re just experimenting Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  25. Using a Theme  Custom Theme Menu  In your

    Dashboard  Every theme developer is different! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review Theme Menu
  26. Using a Theme  Customizing “Best Practices”:  Explore your

    Theme Options  Look for Theme Doc’s & Read!  Link to the Docs & Support!  Decide on changes (make a list!)  Prioritize those changes  Try out 1 change at a time! Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review
  27. Summary…  Themes are for aesthetics  All themes are

    different…  In style and format  In support and licensing  There is no shortcut…  invest your time to do the requisite research  Find something you like  Make sure you can work with it yourself  I’m happy to help: email me… Karen McCamy - Freelance Technology Review