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Tweet Old Post–WordPress Plugin

By Ignite Host on January 15, 2012 in Uncategorized

I’m doing a WordPress Meetup this week in Meridian, ID and came across some really cool social media plugins. One of those is a plugin that automatically tweets out an old WordPress blog post. Tweet Old Post connects to your Twitter account and then randomly sends out tweets linking to your old post. It does this on a schedule you set-up once you install and active the plugin. You can choose to add just the title or title and body. Plus you can add #hashtags and control how new or old the post is that you want tweeted.

If you want to exclude certain post you can do that under the “Exclude Posts” settings. I did this for a few events I had posted that have already past. There is no point in posting those to Twitter since the event dates have already past.

Search the WordPress Plugin Directory for “Tweet Old Post” or go to the plugins page and download the latest version.

Tweet Old Post

What’s your favorite social media plugin? Feel free to list it down below in the comments. Looks like the creator of this plugin has plans to post to Facebook and Google+. So keep an eye out for that and make sure you are always checking for plugin updates.

Dennis Smith is the author of “Promote Your Business or Cause Using Social Media – A Beginner’s Handbook”.

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Find Your Perfect WordPress Dream Theme

By Ignite Host on June 7, 2011 in Blogging, Themes, WordPress

The feature I like the most about WordPress is its ability to let you change the look and feel of your site. It can be done on the fly without any web development background. You can accomplish this by finding the perfect themes and plugins to suit your needs. WordPress has thousands of self-installs which means there are hundreds of options for free themes and a huge array of themes for sell.

I always suggest to my clients that they find a theme that matches the subject matter of their WordPress blog. Here’s an example of a friends blog Tandem Revolution, which covers her and her husbands biking adventures. I like the use of the image across the top showing the spokes of a bike. It is a simple yet effective use of a theme that matches the topic of her blog.

Free themes tend to have some limitations and affiliate links. Whereas paid for themes give you more flexibility with customization. I suggest starting out with something free if you are on a limited budget. But if it is in your budget I would take your time and find something that fits your needs. If your traffic grows you can change your theme at anytime. The theme I use for this site was free and fits in well with the look and feel of my book.

Here are five sites to locate your perfect WordPress dream theme.

#1| ThemeForest

Themes for any budget and any industry

ThemeForest has a wide variety of WordPress themes for the average blogger and those looking to sell product using WordPress. Themes are affordably priced for those on a budget or those looking for something unique. I have included a screenshot of the e-commerce theme WpShop below to show the power of WordPress. It is not just for blogging and can be used to sell a myriad of product, list homes and rentals, promote a restaurant or business.

Theme Forest on Facebook

#2 | Elegant Themes

Offers lots of themes at a great price

Elegant Themes has lots of great themes to pick from and at only $39 a year gives you access to 61 designs. Plus ET says they release 2-3 new themes each month so you are sure to find something. You also get 30-days to decide if it is worth it with their money-back guarantee. I like how they target themes towards specific industries such as restaurants, retail and a host of other themes to match your needs. Since I love food I included the MyCuisine theme as the screenshot below.

#3 | Woo Themes

Lots of free themes and a wide variety for any industry

Woo Themes is another big player when it comes to WordPress themes. Woo offers any array of themes that are build for SEO and functionality. I have heard through the grapevine that Woo offers great support from tutorials, video tutorials and user support forum. The thing that I like most about the Woo Themes is you can sort themes on their website to find the perfect match. How about at least a dozen free themes to boot? There is bound to be something for everyone with Woo Themes.

Woo Themes on Facebook

#4 | StudioPress

WordPress themes built on the Genesis Framework

These themes are built with search engine optimization in mind. Wondering what the Genesis Framework is? Here’s more information on that and why you should go with StudioPress. I have to admit that these are some of the best WordPress themes I have seen. The layouts are nice, clean, modern and eye-catching designs that stand out. Plus you can get all themes for one great price and you get future themes at no extra charge.

#5 | Legend Themes

New player in the theme market offering clean designs

Legend Themes is located right here in Boise and has just a few themes to pick from along with the free Emphasis Theme. The Snapshot theme is perfect for those who enjoy the art of photography. All themes have a nice clean look to them and offer various customization. The price on this theme and others are $70 which includes technical support.

More Resources:

80+ Clean and Simple WordPress Themes

380 Premium WordPress Themes

Free “Leather” Theme from Legend Themes

MagPress Free WordPress Themes

Article by Dennis J. Smith – Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media – A Beginners Handbook

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WordPress 3.0.4 Important Security Update

By Ignite Host on December 29, 2010 in Blogging, WordPress, WordPress Update

3.0.4 Important Security Update

Posted December 29, 2010
Content by Matt Mullenweg.

Version 3.0.4 of WordPress, available immediately through the update page in your dashboard or for download here, is a very important update to apply to your sites as soon as possible because it fixes a core security bug in our HTML sanitation library, called KSES. I would rate this release as “critical.”

I realize an update during the holidays is no fun, but this one is worth putting down the eggnog for. In the spirit of the holidays, consider helping your friends as well.

If you are a security researcher, we’d appreciate you taking a look over this changeset as well to review our update. We’ve given it a lot of thought and review but since this is so core we want as many brains on it as possible. Thanks to Mauro Gentile and Jon Cave (duck_) who discovered and alerted us to these XSS vulnerabilities first.

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Google AdSense Plugins

By Ignite Host on December 3, 2010 in AdSense, Blogging, Plugins, WordPress, WordPress Training

IgniteHost WordPress Training
Google AdSense Plugins

What is Google AdSense?
Google AdSense is a program from Google that pays website and blog owners to display specific ads on their sites. It is free and you can track your earnings with online reports. The ads are usually targeted to match the relevant content on your site.

How do I get started?
Visit http://www.adsense.com and Newbie Central for new users to get started and for more information about AdSense. If you have an account with Google you are just a few steps away from Google AdSense. If not you just have to enter a little information to get started with creating ads. I highly recommend that you watch the videos provided by Google. There are several books available to learn more about AdSense and there is lots of information online.

AdSense Ad

Create Your AdSense Code
Once you have an account set-up you can start creating the code that will generate your ad or ads. There are different sizes of ads you can generate and it is important think about ad placement in your blog. Placement of your ads is essential in the amount of revenue they generate. Review Newbie Central for more information on the placement of your ads.

AdSense Plugins
Several plugins are available to choose from when it comes to displaying ads on your WordPress blog. Search for “AdSense” from the Plugin menu of your WordPress dashboard to generate a list of available AdSense plugins. Click on “Details” for more details on each individual plugin and “Install Now” to install the plugin of your choice. There are also several WordPress themes that have settings to display AdSense ads along with other types of ads. Do a search on Google for “AdSense Ready WordPress Themes” for a list of themes ready for AdSense. I suggest you install a few plugins and see what works best for you. Take your code you created above and copy and paste it into your plugin. Each plugin will be different so read the instruction for the plugin you choose.

List of some of the many plugins available for AdSense

Things to keep in Mind
AdSense policy allows for no more than three AdSense ads displaying per page. Encouraging others to click on ads is a violation of AdSense policies. Don’t risk losing what might be a lucrative stream of revenue. Read Newbie Central so you are aware of policies, best practices and have the knowledge of what works best.

Need a WordPress Blog? Contact IgniteHost website and WordPress blog hosting and get started for less than $5 a month.

More resources:
Google AdSense – AdSense Website
AdSense Official Channel on YouTube – AdSense Videos
WordPress Themes – AdSense Ready WordPress Themes
Newbie Central – Information for AdSense Newbies
AdSense Blog – Inside AdSense Blog

Content Provided By Dennis J. Smith

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Black Friday Website and WordPress Blog Hosting Special Offer

By Ignite Host on November 25, 2010 in Blogging, Website Creation, Website Promo, WordPress

Get 20% off of all 1 and 2-year website and WordPress blog hosting plans from 11/25/2010 until 11/28/2010. Use code “Black Friday” on checkout. #blackfriday #website hosting #wordpress

Start your own blog with the popular WordPress blogging application that is free with every hosting package. You can even sell product online with the free Zen Cart and MySQL. Sign-up today and have a live website within 24 hours or less!

http://www.ignitehost.net/

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Learn WordPress Plugins

By Ignite Host on November 10, 2010 in Blogging, Plugins, Social Media, WordPress, WordPress Training

The information below is part of an ongoing training course for customers of IgniteHost website and WordPress blog hosting. We will be releasing more training information on WordPress over the coming months. What’s your favorite WP Plugin? Please feel free to comment below:

What’s a WordPress plugin?
Plugins are applications that allow you to extend the power and functionality of WordPress. The Plugin Directory offers access to hundreds of useful plugins for your WordPress blog.

How do I install a plugin?
There are a few ways you can accomplish installing a plugin to your WP blog. Visit the Plugin Directory to find the Plugin that you’d like to install on your WordPress blog. You’ll find information on what the plugin will do for your blog. Download the .zip file to your PC and log in to your WordPress Dashboard. Select the Plugin Menu on the left-hand side of the dashboard and click “Add New”. Select “Upload” at the top of the menu and browse for your downloaded .zip file and then click the “Install Now” button.

The other way to install plugins is to search for a plugin by entering the name of the plugin you are searching for. Click the “Search Plugins” button and wait for the results to display. If the plugin you are searching for is in the results list you just click “Install Now” below the plugin name. Activate the plugin to have access to the plugins settings.

Don’t let the Ratings of a Plugin stop you from giving it a try since you can always uninstall any plugin you don’t like.

What plugins should I use?
IgniteHost recommends that you install the following plugins to your WordPress blog:

All in One SEO Pack – Improves your blogs Search Engine Optimization.

Disqus Comment System – Adds more functionality and options than the standard WP commenting system.

Odiogo Listen Button – Give your blog a voice. Translates your blog post from text and turns it into audio.

Sexy Bookmarks – Allows your readers to share your post to various social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and more.

Wibiya Toolbar – Displays across the bottom of your blog in toolbar form to give readers options to share, like your blog posting, view recent or recommended post, subscribe to your RSS Feed and more.

WP Touch – Transforms your WordPress blog into an iPhone like theme for those accessing your site from a mobile device.

WP FB Like – Places the Facebook “Like” or “Recommend” button at the top and/or bottom of your postings. Links will show in the wall feeds of the Facebook users who click these buttons.

WP-DBManager – Backup your WordPress database and download it to your PC or have it e-mailed to you.

How do I update plugins?
When you log into WordPress Dashboard you will be notified of any new updates to any plugins you have installed and those that are installed but deactivated. You can update one at a time or you can do a bulk updated by selecting all plugins with an update.

How do I delete plugins?
Plugins can be deleted in the same manner as described above by checking those plugins you would like to delete.

More resources:
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/ – WordPress Plugins
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/browse/popular/
- Most Popular Plugins
http://codex.wordpress.org/Managing_Plugins – Managing Plugins
http://wpcandy.com/ – Blog on everything WordPress

WordPress Hosting from IgniteHost:
http://ignitehost.net/plans/index.asp?Plan=Ignite%20Blogger

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Book Trailer–“Promote Your Business Or Cause Using Social Media

By Ignite Host on November 7, 2010 in Blogging, Books, Facebook, MySpace, Social Media, Twitter, WordPress

Promote your Business or Cause using Social Media is a handbook for beginner’s interested in using social media to grow a small business or take any cause to the internet. Learn how to create a blog, start a blog radio show, upload videos to YouTube, Tweet on Twitter and build a fan page on Facebook with social apps and even ecommerce.

Purchase your copy today for just $9.95 through CreateSpace or Amazon.com:
CreateSpace – Order Now Online
Amazon – Order Now Online

- Learn how to add a shopping cart to your Facebook fan page and sell product right from your fan page.
- Learn how to get your own personal Facebook URL.
- How to get started with WordPress and your own blog.
- Twitter Tips!

About the author:
Dennis has been creating websites and browsing the web since the days of Netscape 1.0 while living in Seattle, Washington. His technology background goes back to the days of the Commodore Vic 20 and 64, Pong and Pac-Man.

He later turned his passion for technology and web design into a love for Internet Marketing, blogging and now Social Media.

He is the owner of IgniteHost website hosting, search engine optimization and social media consulting located in Boise, Idaho and writes the tech blog GigaDroid.com for the popular Android phones.
During his free time he enjoys road trips back to Seattle, exploring Idaho, microbrews, great coffee, sharing his knowledge with friends and Facebook acquaintances.

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More Resources:

9 Ways to Enhance Your Facebook Fan Page – Content by Social Media Examiner Originally Published May 11, 2010 Other Articles and Resources: 3 Simple Ways to Rapidly Create Custom Facebook Landing Tabs – Content by Social Media Examiner Originally Published October 19, 2010

Facebook Markup Language (FBML) – Facebook

9 Ways to Enhance Your Facebook Fan Page – Content by Social Media Examiner
Originally Published May 11, 2010

Other Articles and Resources:
3 Simple Ways to Rapidly Create Custom Facebook Landing Tabs – Content by Social Media Examiner
Originally Published October 19, 2010