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Book Snapper Author Book Theme

    It’s VERY rare for a theme to be specifically developed to meet the needs of a rather ‘niched’ market like authors. The Book-Snapper theme for WordPress has been released and clever self-publishing authors are taking advantage of it’s power and simplicity As authors (and aspiring authors) it’s not always easy to find solutions tailored to your specific needs. Well, here’s one such dilemma that you can happily cross of your list. It’s simple, yet sophisticated. Installs just like any other WordPress theme but give authors what they really need. Social media integration? Done. Want to highlight a Book Tr ailer? It’s got you covered. Need list building… Read More »Book Snapper Author Book Theme

    * Tech Tip For The Day **

      Can People Easily Access Your Files? WordPress Users: Do this now – enter your website address in your browser with /wp-content/uploads at the end. If you can see anything like what you see in this image … … so can everyone else. And they can tap into anything in those links. This is a real danger if you use the upload feature to load in pdf files etc. By adding an empty index.php page in your uploads folder then you can block some unauthorized access! You can add an index.php to your download folder as well. What this does is… Read More »* Tech Tip For The Day **

      WordPress + Akismet + Server

        One of those frustrating issues that crop up when you are on a server behind a firewall is the inability to configure Akismet in WordPress.

        Instructions are simple and involve editing the akismet.php file.

        Here’s how to do this properly:

        You may need to modify the wp-config.php file – check with your webhost.

        Irrespective of the server your host is running, you will need to edit the akismet.php file as follows:

        1. find the following line (around line 117)

        2. highlight all of the information between

        “// Returns array with headers in $response[0] and body in $response[1]”

        and

        “// filter handler used to return a spam result to pre_comment_approved function akismet_result_spam( $approved ) {”

        Be very careful in selecting the code – it’s easy to get that wrong! Here’s an image of the section of the akismet.php file to replace –

        3. replace that section with this…

        function akismet_http_post($request, $host, $path, $port = 80, $ip=null){         global $wp_version; $akismet_version = constant(‘AKISMET_VERSION’);         $args =Read More »WordPress + Akismet + Server

        Essentials After Installing WordPress

          I was hunting down a solution today for a niggling issue I have with one of my WordPress sites. There’s always something to annoy you when you develop and run your own websites! Anyways I came across this post and thought it was brilliant for when you’re setting up a new WordPress install. Use this guide next time you have to install WP and life will be much easier (and safer!). http://www.problogdesign.com/wordpress/the-ultimate-guide-to-setting-up-wordpress-after-an-install/

          WordPress Admin Plugins

            If you’re like me, I usually only worry about user interface plugins to enrich the customer experience. But as I have so many blogs now I find it useful to look for operational efficiency on the back end. So I was glad to find this post, again by the brilliant folks at ProBlogDesign. I’ve installed a few of these now and they have made my life way easier. See if any float your boat! http://www.problogdesign.com/wordpress/13-great-wordpress-plugins-to-power-up-your-admin-area/

            SEO and Rankings

              Finding the ‘best’ ways to get your site ranked in search engines is like a dark art in many ways …  so much advice, and much of it dated.

              Today I came across these guys who seem to have cracked the jackpot for one their sites.

              http://www.the42ndestate.com/how-page-rank-5-two-months/

              They give some of their tips and techniques but a fair bit is missing like the intricacies of how they tweaked the Thesis theme to get the most juice from it.

              Me?

              SEO is not one of my strengths, I’ll admit.

              Every day is a learning opportunity.

              Learn a bit. Apply a bit. Learn a bit more. Apply a bit more.

              At the end of the month I’m going to run a webinar asking two guys who have a solid grip on SEO for their best knowledge and ideas.

              I’ll keepRead More »SEO and Rankings