This post is intended as a reference for WordPress beginners, with instructions and screenshots from the self-hosted version of WordPress 3.1.2. Amid thousands of “WordPress for Newbies” posts and videos out there, I can’t find anything that really fits the bill. One more version shouldn’t hurt!

Background, or “What is this WordPress thing?”

WordPress is an online publishing platform. It began as a tool for posting quick blurbs of info to a personal website, but has enough horsepower to manage large, complex websites. The software’s selling point is the simple way WordPress drives your site’s template and navigation, allowing you to focus on content – and customize the nuts & bolts as much or little as you’d like. WordPress comes in two flavors, both free:

• WordPress.com – Sign up for a free WordPress site. The developers handle all the nerdy details, so all you need to do is choose a web address and username. WordPress.com charges fees for several optional features (such as ad removal) on an annual basis.
• WordPress.org – Download and install WordPress yourself. Self-hosted WordPress is much more flexible, but requires a web hosting account and some maintenance. Many web hosts (including GoDaddy, home of awful advertising and great prices) will install WordPress for you with no hassle.

The first step to running a WordPress site (after deciding its purpose) is to set the thing up. Both WordPress.com and WordPress.org do a great job of walking you through that, so I won’t belabor the issue. Next step: adding content.

WordPress manages two distinct types of content:

1. Posts appear in reverse chronological order on your site’s home page; add a new Post, and the others are bumped down automatically. Old Posts that get pushed from the home page are easily accessible through monthly archives – also created automatically by WordPress.
2. Pages are listed permanently across your site’s home page, generally in a band of navigation links near the top of the screen. Add a new Page, and its title will be listed prominently for users to see and click.

Because of the way Posts and Pages are displayed on a WordPress site, news, reminders, and event recaps are ideal Post content: they will be listed front-and-center when published, but less prominent as time passes. Basic “About Us” content, contact information, major events & initiatives, or other long-term items make for good Page content, as these are all things you’ll want users to be able to find 5 days or 5 years from now.

Publishing Content with WordPress

Once you’ve created your WordPress site and have content to publish, log in to your site (using the instructions provided by WordPress.com or your hosting provider). When you log in to WordPress, the first screen you’ll see is the Dashboard. The WordPress Dashboard provides an overview of your content, lists recent comments, and basically throws a ton of shortcuts on the screen that may or may not be useful. In the top right corner are several important links:

Starting from the left, the New Post button will let you quickly add a new Post. Clicking the link on your WordPress username will bring up a profile screen where you can change how your name is displayed, update your password, or otherwise adjust your WordPress profile. The Log Out link will do exactly what a Log Out link should. Screen Options lets you hide Dashboard items you don’t use, and Help will give detailed instructions for the current screen.

Tip: The Help link is available at the top right on every WordPress administrator screen, and provides some great info for new users.

Click the New Post button, and you’ll see the Add New Post screen. Type a clear, concise title in the field labeled Enter title here:

When you publish your Post, this title will be displayed at the top. Under the title field is an editor box containing a number of buttons:

Next to the Upload/Insert heading at top left are small icons you can click to add photos, video, audio, or other files to your Post. Click any of these icons for a screen that will walk you through inserting multimedia items.

In the gray bar are a number of formatting buttons – these should be familiar to most users, but you can point at any button to see a brief description.

• To add text, simply click in the editor box and type or paste (Right-click > Paste) your content.
• To format text, select the text using your mouse and click the appropriate button.
• To add a web link, select text and click the Insert/edit link button – it’s the one with a picture of a chain link.

To preview and then publish your Post, look for the Publish box on the right side of the screen:

Click the Preview button to see what your Post will look like when published. When you’re ready to display your Post on your website, click Publish.

Once you’ve mastered Posts, you can dig into the other features of WordPress using the left navigation. Of key importance are the buttons in the section immediately below the Dashboard button:

You can edit existing Posts or add new Posts using the Posts button. The Media button will help you manage multimedia files on your site. The Links button allows you to add links that may be of interest to readers. The Pages button will let you create new pages and edit existing Pages, which use an editing screen nearly identical to the Add New Post screen. The Comments button displays a screen where you can approve reader comments and delete comment spam.

For more advanced WordPress information, refer to the WordPress.com or WordPress.org documentation!

Fear not, fair Internet, for The Government is here:

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski now has the three votes needed for approval, despite firm opposition from the two Republicans on the five-member commission. Genachowski’s two fellow Democrats said Monday they will vote for the rules, even though they consider them too weak.

After a federal court ruled that his Federal Communications Commission could not regulate the internet, Julius Genachowski did what a good Obama appointee does: regulate it anyway.

Yet many supporters of network neutrality are disappointed. Clyburn and the other Democrat, Michael Copps, both said the rules are not as strong as they would like, even after Genachowski made some changes to address their concerns.

You don’t have to be a kook like Michael Copps to worry about providers throttling specific types of content, or charging for services in a way specifically designed to screw customers over. I’ll be the first to say that Time Warner sucks, and though I’m content with Verizon I hardly love ‘em. But let’s think about this whole “Net Neutrality” scam for more than fifteen seconds. Time Warner’s monopoly in Oxford was infuriating, so I’m now a happy Wide Open West customer. If I get sick of Verizon, I can dump them for AT&T, or T-Mobile, or Sprint. If the FCC regulates the tubes stupidly, guess what – we’re all stuck with those stupid regulations.

Companies sometimes do bad things. This is a fact that is well established. In some unfortunate circumstances, people have limited options for their home or mobile broadband service. If the FCC could predict trends, regulate wisely, and do more good than harm, that would be one thing. But where’s the evidence that the federal government is competent enough to regulate the industry? Genachowski wants all data to be delivered at the same rate, regardless of the content or how little the customer might be willing to pay for its delivery.

When I think of the government and I think of delivering stuff, I don’t get more optimistic.

• The United States Postal Service has a government monopoly on first-class mail
• The United States Postal Service lost $8.5 billion in fiscal 2010

Contrast packets of data with items delivered by mail: the USPS conducts business that’s not wildly different from when letters were carried by a dude on a horse. The internet is a global network of networks, supporting the creation of new technologies and businesses every day. The carriers selling access to this web of digital goods and services are continuously developing new ways to provide said access, from varying devices and at a wide range of price points.

Delivering letters is too complicated a process for the federal government. Think they’ll do a better job of regulating the internet? Maybe the USPS is an unfair example. After all, the last time Washington decided to take over a sixth of the economy, it went really well. When bureaucrats decide Americans have a “right” to a product, woe to the industry that produces it!

Like food?  Like Star Wars?  Does the idea of a Wookie Cookie sound too good to pass up?  Well then I have found the product for you over at Powell’s Books, salivate away…

Galactic Recipes at their Finest

The Black Keys make great music, and The Black Keys are great live. The Dispatch review of last night’s show at the LC Pavilion is… okay. Describing Brothers as the band’s defining album is way off base: it features some very good stuff, but also several utterly skip-worthy tracks. I agree, though, with the tone of the Dispatch review, as I heartily recommend seeing the Keys live if you like bluesy rock even a little.

I’ve got all but the first Keys album – yes, I’m one of those late arrivals who didn’t hear of the Akron duo until Attack & Release – and couldn’t have been much happier with the set list. Although Dan Auerbach’s voice lost the battle against drums and guitar, the rocking-ness of his guitar and Patrick Carney’s drums completely made up for that.  I was hoping to hear 10 A.M Automatic, but when a band has 6 albums to cover it’s hard to be picky!

If you want to see a movie based on a web comic which is itself heavily influenced by video games, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is nearly perfect. It’s more stylized than I expected, which won’t sit well with some viewers, but I was impressed. The trailers had me looking forward to indier-than-thou dry humor in a geeky wrapper, with some goofy action for good measure. That could have been entertaining, if not exactly original… given that Michael Cera himself has been in, what, 19 films matching that description? Pilgrim is, in fact, something unique, and something very, very funny.

My contribution to today’s geeky online defense of free speech, for reasons I discussed here, here, and here:

The folks behind Chuck seem to have completed their quota of dumb, repetitive love triangle episodes for season 3, and the show has bounced back in a big way. Tonight’s episode was another very entertaining one.

According to TV By The Numbers, tonight was actually intended to be the season 3 finale. Chuck is on the bubble again, it would seem? Allow me to refer you to last spring’s cutting insights on the topic of cancellation. Anyway, what would’ve made a great finale could also make for a good segue into what this season should have been all about: butt-kicking and laughs courtesy of a fun duo with a great cast of co-stars. Chuck as this guy. Sarah as this hot mama.

I didn’t think of this until my roommate said something a few months ago, but the relationship between those characters is the perfect template. Chuck’s got ridiculous talents, and is more of a clown than a tough guy (though admittedly about .04% as terrific as Wash from Firefly). Sarah is also extremely talented, but her sense of humor takes a back seat to all the skull-cracking she’s got to do. Like Zoe. They’re different but made for each other, blah blah etc etc.

So, yeah… if you’ve given up on Chuck as I nearly did during that string of lame episodes earlier this season, catch up! With any luck, the remaining filmed season 3 episodes feature a sturdy, non-high-school relationship between the show’s namesake and leading lady! Better late than never, and there’s still plenty the writers could conjure up besides everyone breaking everyone elses’ hearts and making sad faces 10 minutes per episode.

It doesn’t hurt that Adam Baldwin maintains a steady level of awesome.

Did anyone watch Dollhouse tonight? As an assortment of places reported awhile back, Fox is burning through the remaining season two episodes in 2-hour blocks this month, with the final three in January. As ever, Hulu is sure to have both of tonight’s excellent episodes within the next few days!

I don’t say excellent lightly here – I really enjoyed the end of season one and really liked how the Epitaph 1 episode on the season 1 DVDs wrapped things up while leaving ambiguity. I think it’s great how Joss (can I call him Joss? man I’m a dweeb) planned ahead with an episode that essentially said, “this is one of the possible horrendous outcomes of what’s going on in Dollhouse,” without closing any doors on season two.

I loved both episodes tonight, and the first thing I said to my roommate afterward was, “I’m so glad this show was canceled!” Surely, Whedon’s experience with Firefly – Fox airing episodes out of order like total jerkbags before canceling during the first season – prepared him for Dollhouse’s abrupt cancellation. It’s good to see a focused team of writers and producers providing great characters with a worthy plot-line. Nothing sharpens the mind like cancellation! Let me choose between seven top-notch episodes and 21 that are a mix of “cool!” “meh” and “boo,” and I’ll take seven every time.

Enver Gjokaj was born for Dollhouse – I don’t think I’ve seen anyone better at adopting a different voice, attitude, and mannerisms. Ray Wise‘s cameo tonight was good. Summer Glau was better than I expected in that her role wasn’t the same one I’ve always seen her in, and she played it very convincingly. If I have one complaint, it’s that Eliza Dushku is too sexy. It seems somehow… unsafe.

I’m looking forward to the final seven episodes, hopeful that tonight was an indicator of the fun twists and madness we can expect!

As the first season of Dollhouse came to a close and we became fully convinced of Tahmoh Penikett‘s awesomeness, my roommate pointed out that Agent Ballard was also part of the Battlestar Galactica cast. Since I didn’t get Sci-Fi (er, “SyFy,” since somehow they haven’t realized that name sucks) when Battlestar Galactica premiered, I knew the series only as the go-to reference when you wanted to call someone a nerd. Given the plethora of nerdy things I already watched, there wasn’t a compelling reason for me to add it to the list.

Having now seen the first two seasons via Netflix, it is so good. Really, the best way to describe my enthusiasm for the first half of Battlestar Galactica is “Schrute-like.” After watching the pilot – basically a feature film unto itself – I expected the entertainment value to drop. It did not. Through the first season and nearly all of the second, the characters (even the sleazy ones) are convincing and their relationships are interesting. The action is great, the bits of over-the-top science fiction goofiness are few and far between, and the drama is… dramatic.

Then you get to the last 20 minutes of the season two finale. I’ve read mixed things about seasons three and four, and the way season two ended inspires no confidence. Let’s say you have a believable love triangle – involving several major characters – that’s picking up steam, sparks of romance between two other characters, and a huge shift in the roles of warring political leaders. Would you fade to black and begin the next scene with “One year later?” Me neither. It almost felt like the writers had gotten tired of the whole wandering through space routine, and wanted to move on to something lamer.

So, like a Schrute (or a lady), season two of Battlestar Galactica left me feeling as though I’d missed a whole lot of important events in the lives of the characters, left me much less excited for the Season 3 disc that arrived today, and made me glad I resisted buying the crazy-go-nuts series box set when DeepDiscount.com had it on sale.

[Update: Typo. First paragraph. Corrected.]

Our new theme is mostly done, so I went ahead and launched it. The goal is better use of screen real estate with fresh content – I was tired of the old theme’s standard fixed-width center column with stacks of archive/admin links on either side. Looking for something more sexy and less… texty.

There are a couple things missing (any kind of worthwhile content in the green social media box at the right, for one), but I’m happy with how this turned out. I used Colorschemedesigner.com to help pick bright, non-clashing colors for the extra content boxes. To save space and reduce the amount of repetitive text in the sidebar, I janked together some code to display a random post with a matching tag for each tagged post. That way if you’re reading a post on a certain topic, you can jump straight to another one instead of picking through the archives. As ever, the WordPress Codex made this less painful.

I’ll be adding links and stuff, but the whole point of the blue and red boxes to the right is that they’ll pull content based on what I share in Google Reader, favorite on YouTube, and listen to with Zune. What’s missing? Any suggestions for social media features?? Leave a comment – which you can now do with your Facebook, Twitter, or OpenID account! For the low price of all 10 of the old comments being eaten…

Yeah, maybe I’ll fix that next weekend!

Coffing has mentioned Dollhouse a couple of times before – once before the series started, and again when it started getting good. The late upswing continued through tonight’s season (and series?) finale. If you never gave the show a chance, put the season 1 DVD on your list! If you watched at the beginning of the season and got bored… refer to the second half of the preceding sentence.

At first it seemed like Fox was going to pull another Firefly on Joss. The first several episodes had some promising characters, but nothing all that intriguing going on. Then came the rumors that Alan Tudyk would be making an appearance. And about halfway through the season, the awesomeness ensued.

I’m not sure Joss Whedon and Alan Tudyk can work on something together without it being spectacular. Alan Tudyk is so good at what he does. Do you need someone hilarious? Done. Someone crazy? Sure. Someone hilarious AND crazy? Look no further:

We’re not bluffing! –I’m bluffing –But the rest of us mean business!

I hope Dollhouse gets the second season that Fox screwed Firefly out of. The crew at TV by the Numbers do not seem optimistic. If you’d like to lose some faith in humanity, and watching the evening news doesn’t cut it, take a look at this graph on James Hibbard’s site. Note how Dollhouse’s ratings drop in inverse proportion to the show’s level of face-rocking goodness.