WordPress Training Videos
1/6/2008
It’s been awfully quite around this site lately. That’s mostly because I’ve been busy working on a never-ending stream of client projects. An increasing number of those projects involve using WordPress in some context.
After coaching numerous clients on the intricacies of WordPress, I started to wonder if there might not be a better way to approach training. Eventually, I decided that training videos might be be the solution. As a result, I’ve spent a fair amount of the past month recording a series of WordPress training videos that are now available at no cost on WordPressTraining.com.
My hope is that the site will appeal to both novice and experienced WordPress users. Whether you’re looking for a comprehensive overview of the entire WordPress system, or simple insight into a single administrative page, WordPressTraining.com should help you get the most out of your WordPress blog.
I’ll be adding new videos as time allows, and, of course, updating the videos as new versions of WordPress are released.
The current collection of videos focuses on what I refer to as Core WordPress training — a detailed overview of the various blogging features and administrative options.
I look forward to receiving constructive feedback from the community. If there are specific topics you’d like to see covered in future videos, drop me a note, or leave a comment below.
AJAX Hall of Shame: MarketWatch Reinvents The Blink Tag
2/13/2006
A few weeks ago I happened to make the mistake of catching up on some financial news before finishing my first cup of coffee. I followed a link to a story on MarketWatch.com that immediately made me begin to feel queasy. As I stared at the page in my partially caffeinated state it appeared that multiple elements of text in the story were blinking at me in different colors, and numbers seemed to be changing before my eyes. Eventually I began to grasp what I was seeing. MarketWatch has jumped on the AJAX bandwagon and taken real-time stock quotes to a new level in the process.
The MarketWatch quotes display with either a minty green or pale pink background depending on whether the current quote has risen or fallen since the previous quote. Every few seconds the numbers blink as a stocks price changes. For stocks that are trading up and down throughout the day, readers are treated to alternating flashes of pink and green. The numbers include the current price, the daily price change, and the percentage change - so it’s a fairly long string of numbers that changes with each update. A story with a half dozen quotes embedded in it can be a truly a mind numbing experience.
This amazing innovation got me thinking - why stop at real-time quotes? Why not have whole sentences and paragraphs change in real-time as well? After all, the real-time quotes could change in a way that might fundamentally alter the nature of a story. Wouldn’t it be better to have writers create alternate scenarios that could be swapped into the story as the corresponding stock prices change? Talk about stickiness. Readers could spend an entire day just trying to get through one story;)
All sarcasm aside, I like the Web 2.0 thing as much as the next guy, but every once in a while I run across a DHTML or AJAX widget that just makes me scratch my head and wonder, “what could they have possibly been thinking”. Just because something is technologically possible doesn’t mean it’s a good idea. It’s all too easy to get carried away with the coolness factor of some new technique and lose sight of the user and the message you’re trying to convey.
In all fairness, I think the MarketWatch feature could work with a little tweaking. The real-time updates need to be removed from the article copy and placed in a quote box beside the article. The flashing and blinking would still be distracting, but at least the readers wouldn’t see numbers changing mid-sentence. Better yet, the updates could be moved to the real-time graph box that only displays when a user mouses over a ticker symbol. That would eliminate all distraction and give users the choice of viewing real-time numbers at will.
Note, I haven’t even begun to address the accessibility issues related to the MarketWatch real-time quotes. I’m guessing Jaws and other screen readers might actually explode if they were to encounter one of these pages.
Do you have other nominations for an AJAX Hall of Shame? Tell us about it in the comments.
Content Migration: Making It Successful
1/17/2006
I’d like to talk for a moment about what I call the Content Migration Fantasy. In this fantasy, an experienced team lead by a tough-yet-wise project manager ports legacy content to a new system. This being a fantasy, the work is done quickly and efficiently, due, in no small part, to a brilliantly executed content inventory and information architecture. In this fantasy, not only do the items that should be moved end up in the right place, but the items that shouldn’t be moved stay right where they are.
And, of course, the migration phase of the project comes in on time and under budget. No, better, it’s done early and under budget. The content migration team is celebrating at the local pub while other teams are sweating deadlines.
In the real world, we all go into content migrations with high hopes and solid plans. Depending on the size of the site and the culture of the organization, you can expect delays, misunderstandings, and more than one last-minute “uh oh”. There is a lot of good advice relating to managing the migration portion of a CMS project, and I’ve linked to some favorites below. In the meantime, here’s my short strategic plan:
Five Steps To A Better Website In The New Year
1/8/2006
The New Year is the perfect time to bring a fresh perspective to your website. Whether you’re planning a major site redesign in the coming year, or you’ve just finished one in the old year, there are a number of things you can do to improve the quality of your site.
Give Your Content Some Attention
If you’re using a content management system (CMS) there’s always the temptation to assume that your content is fine. It’s being “managed” right? So what could possibly go wrong?
Plenty.
Use the New Year as an opportunity to review the quality of your content. While most CMS systems include some form of workflow, you might be surprised by some of the things that slip onto your website. Be on the lookout for content that is outdated, inaccurate, irrelevant, or just plain incoherent.
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