Jay LeonardLearning WordPress: Which Versions Of WordPress Is Right For You?
Didn’t know that there was more than one WordPress out there?
If you are just learning WordPress, it’s important to know that there are two options: WordPress.com and WordPress.org. Which one you use depends on your needs: personal blog, simple website, business website or total website control.
With this WordPress tutorial, you can save yourself a lot of time and heartache. Armed with the knowledge here, you can get your blog or website up and running in no time at all.
What is WordPress?
For those new to publishing on the Internet and learning WordPress, it is an open source content management system and also a blogging tool. This means that you can publish posts and articles through a system that allows you to control how and when your readers see new information.
And, it’s all FREE.
While there is a very special relationship between wp.com and wp.org, when you are first learning WordPress, the most important factors lie in the differences.
So, what’s the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org?
WordPress.com
WordPress.com is primarily a blogging/simple website platform and a good place to begin for people learning WordPress. Blogs are set up in minutes. Simply visit the site’s sign up page at www.WordPress.com/signup to get started.
The entire process is easy to follow. Choose your domain name. Because this is free, all names are followed by “dot WordPress dot com.” You can upgrade and remove the last part from your domain name for a yearly fee.
You can also change your theme. This governs how your pages are laid out and styled. With WordPress.com, choose from a list of pre-selected themes. Again, for a fee, you can upgrade to customize these themes even more. Plugins are not included in the wp.com system.
Best of all, hosting is supplied by WordPress. While upgrade and maintenance of the hosting server is taken care of by WordPress.com, there is no access to full data backups or other protections that would allow you to move a site if you were ever terminated for any of the many rules in their terms of service.
So, if you have the vision, the content and the time, you can publish your blog or simple website as soon as you are ready.
WordPress.org
So, what about the other option? If you’re learning WordPress and you decide you want more control over your website, then you might want to consider a self-hosted blog or website using the WordPress.org software.
In fact, if you plan to do ANY list building, monetizing, or marketing, WordPress.org is your only available solution courtesy of the non-promotional rules in the terms of service at WordPress.com
You will need separate web hosting. Once you find a good web host that supports WordPress, visit the website to download the free software. Even if you are not “technically minded” don’t worry, setup is straightforward. Don’t want to tackle it alone, contact me for information on my setup services.
WordPress.org has many benefits. You can download custom themes. For the pre-selected themes, you can customize the code to suit your needs. Also upload popular plugins that will enhance your website.
WordPress.org gives you control of your data, control over how your site is run, access to many tools (such as plugins) that are not available on WordPress.org as well as the flexibility to develop a site that can make make money!
Learning WordPress
Ready to learn WordPress? You’ll find a variety of free WordPress tutorials throughout this site!
Want to take it further? Be sure to check out the WordPress Tutorial Library to help you not only get started but also assist you in developing the skills to maintain your site!
If you are trying to learn if WordPress is right for you, here are some reasons you might consider WordPress for your site!
Still uncertain? Take a WordPress.com site for a test drive! Try out the content creation tools and kick the tires then move to WordPress.org when you’re ready to get going!
Do you use WordPress.org or WordPress.com for your website? What made you pick one or the other when you was learning about WordPress?
This article was written for Business 2 Community by Jay Leonard.
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This is informative.