[Libs-Or] Tech-Talk: WEB AUTHORING - Peek Inside WordPress (WP) for Theme & Plugins

Tue Oct 10 14:41:18 PDT 2017

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 This Week's Tech-Talk: Web Authoring

1. VIDEO ...  Peek Inside WordPress (WP) for Theme & Plugins
2. ARTICLE ... Peek Inside WordPress (WP) for Theme & Plugins
3. COMMUNICATING ... "If you did know..."

NOTE: To view the VIDEO, click here<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xJ-rHogi47QaZkhpk_wBusCGmq5W7OH4v0B69MgatunHw_oTd_gSQSh0ydc1Zpf5gjuhUp8wwmBjiUjva2M6DL0r-ya4CCQDjOExlL1WKsZDFx3chQhDmN5TdMWgso2_u_lhC_8472-ydMzX6oIh5yVyvb2s6WBihbsnvoc7wU7QtxHFtK30bsffcZP4wcGMXxx8Ns1obsSCbKGIm-dYHw==&c=BptDcRld4Fwblf2fg5Qaz_OFoKV-_w8OYnd0faHBiI3gD39S646w2Q==&ch=Vt0fBxcNqau7DLK9fwLpwr2B5pSEQnX3HkhYVhUVmm9wA97KxQVuqA==>. Enter the User Name and Password!

Tech-Talk: WEB AUTHORING - Peek Inside WP for Plugins & Theme
Intermediate

I'm doing research online and I find a website I like. Since I need to create something new online, I'm looking for ideas and examples. "Wow, here's one. I love this site! It has a lot of what I'm looking for!"

I like the colors, the layout and some of the interactive features. I like how their schedule of events and class registrations is laid out. And because I am preparing to build a new website myself, I see that some elements of this one could be useful.

I wish there were a way to find out what theme they're using (its style) and what plugins they have (what it can do.)

[What Theme]

Since it's pretty likely that it is a WordPress website, it would be easier for me if I could use the same theme that they do as well as the plugins to create a similar effect. I know I can dig around in the back-end of their code and try and decipher what they are using, but that doesn't always work. I bet there's a better way ... a tool I can use.

As you may know, WordPress (WP) is one of the popular website platforms being used today. In fact, it is a CMS (Content Management System) ..."content" being things like blogs, courses and articles. Interestingly, there are over 500 new websites being created every day using WordPress.

[Wordpress]

Why is WordPress so popular?

With just a bit of training, you can create a custom-looking website. You start with the free WordPress platform and add a “theme” to it for the design and layout elements. There are thousands of free and paid themes out there so that you can create the look you want.

Then, to add more functionality, "plugins" (free and paid) are installed to create options such as:
·     Selling products and services
·     Adding a form to collect email addresses
·     Showing interactive maps
·     Displaying scrolling testimonials

Other plugins take care of administrative functions like backing up your site, connecting to Google Analytics, and site security

So when you find a website with a theme or some type of cool feature that's probably created with a plugin, wouldn't it be great to know what the web developer used?

It would be helpful to have a magic website translator to peek in the back-end and reveal what theme and plugins are being used in a particular WordPress website.

Well… guess what -- there IS one! It's called WhatWPThemeisThat.com.

What WordPress Theme Is That?

It's super simple to use. Go to http://whatwpthemeisthat.com<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xJ-rHogi47QaZkhpk_wBusCGmq5W7OH4v0B69MgatunHw_oTd_gSQSh0ydc1Zpf53KNgohG8coqT3ceMkJpCuvoGxbZa_yLDgtS0WrthK3waUveQFI4piAU9WirjnffnYaUL5dSkmW0p4F4ZC4BksQ==&c=BptDcRld4Fwblf2fg5Qaz_OFoKV-_w8OYnd0faHBiI3gD39S646w2Q==&ch=Vt0fBxcNqau7DLK9fwLpwr2B5pSEQnX3HkhYVhUVmm9wA97KxQVuqA==> and paste the URL of a website's home page into their online tool. Presto! The results appear!

You'll see what theme the site is using. Now you'll have the opportunity to download or purchase it yourself to use in a WordPress site.

For example, when we plugged in http://www.tech-talkforyou.com<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xJ-rHogi47QaZkhpk_wBusCGmq5W7OH4v0B69MgatunHw_oTd_gSQSh0ydc1Zpf5VyPbFTGYPXR1zk4T4Rm3L6VpbbKYRrjWROXHW3OPtVU0q41XAOz31PWHtOUjiwRc6Ah9JPc2lmIKbpXG6P6xA5n_g5G0ssR6&c=BptDcRld4Fwblf2fg5Qaz_OFoKV-_w8OYnd0faHBiI3gD39S646w2Q==&ch=Vt0fBxcNqau7DLK9fwLpwr2B5pSEQnX3HkhYVhUVmm9wA97KxQVuqA==> (one of our websites), it showed the theme name of Optimize Press and gave the link to where it can be purchased.

[What theme is that]

Or here's the theme details for the site, http://www.rotationscyclingstudio.com/

[theme name]

NOTE: As popular as WordPress is, there will be times when the theme name will not be appear. This happens when it has been customized or modified in any way ... a font style change, etc. Or you may find the site you're looking at was built on the Drupal or Joomla platform instead of WordPress.

Discover What Plugins are Being Used

When you paste a website's URL in the "finder" at http://whatwpthemeisthat.com<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xJ-rHogi47QaZkhpk_wBusCGmq5W7OH4v0B69MgatunHw_oTd_gSQSh0ydc1Zpf53KNgohG8coqT3ceMkJpCuvoGxbZa_yLDgtS0WrthK3waUveQFI4piAU9WirjnffnYaUL5dSkmW0p4F4ZC4BksQ==&c=BptDcRld4Fwblf2fg5Qaz_OFoKV-_w8OYnd0faHBiI3gD39S646w2Q==&ch=Vt0fBxcNqau7DLK9fwLpwr2B5pSEQnX3HkhYVhUVmm9wA97KxQVuqA==>, the plugins that have been installed will be listed as well.

If you find a page that has some functionality that you want to replicate, instead of spending time researching the thousands of plugins available, this site will reveal it to you.

Let's take a look at the home page shown in the beginning of this article ... with the event display and registration layout that we liked at http://salsalovers.com.

[sample website]

[theme name]

By plugging in the website domain at http://whatwpthemeisthat.com<http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001xJ-rHogi47QaZkhpk_wBusCGmq5W7OH4v0B69MgatunHw_oTd_gSQSh0ydc1Zpf53KNgohG8coqT3ceMkJpCuvoGxbZa_yLDgtS0WrthK3waUveQFI4piAU9WirjnffnYaUL5dSkmW0p4F4ZC4BksQ==&c=BptDcRld4Fwblf2fg5Qaz_OFoKV-_w8OYnd0faHBiI3gD39S646w2Q==&ch=Vt0fBxcNqau7DLK9fwLpwr2B5pSEQnX3HkhYVhUVmm9wA97KxQVuqA==>, it shows not only the theme name, and where we can get it….

... But it also discloses the name of the plugin used (Events Calendar Pro) to create the layout we want to mimic. We can also see other plugins used in building out the functionality it uses.

Of course you want your website to look original, not a cookie cutter site, so getting ideas from lots of others can be helpful. If you have the answer to the "how" they built it… it can save you tons of time!

[plug-in]

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Communicating: Talking
If you did know...

OK, you've been asked to create a flyer for an upcoming program or event. You want to know what the requester has in mind for the overall effect.

You ask him. He answers, "I don't know. You'll know best."

You have a choice. You can say, "OK" and get started with less knowledge.

Or ... better ... you say, "If you did know, what would it be?"

You might hear, "It just needs to be friendly", or "We want people to be impressed" or "It needs to convey a family perspective".

He could say anything. But now you know something very important ... you know what he was thinking all along without expressing.

TIP: While he may fuss a bit at first, if you ask it again, you'll generally get great insight.

Ideas For When To Use This Phrase

·     "What else do you think might work in this situation?" I don't know. "If you did know, what would it be?"

·     "What movie do you want to see?" I don't know. "If you did know, what would it be?"

·     "Why don't you like this?" I don't know. "If you did know, what would it be?"

·     "How could we get started?" I don't know. "If you did know, what would it be?"

·     "When will you have this project done?" I don't know. "If you did know, when would it be?"

[innovation]

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Darci Hanning, MLIS
Technology Development Consultant
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