Spring is in the air and that can mean only one thing…it’s Websites with WordPress time again! I’m teaching a full-day class on how to build a “regular” website with WordPress (for normal people, that is non-geeks) with UBC Continuing Studies on May 22nd (Saturday). The cost is $350 for the full day of my WordPress wisdom.
Build a Website with WordPress
TRIS HUSSEY
Learn how to make a professional looking website using the WordPress blogging platform with little to no coding required. Led by one of Vancouver’s WordPress and social media experts, this half-day workshop teaches you how to use WordPress to build dynamic, elegant and professional looking websites quickly and easily. Learn the settings required to turn a WordPress blog into a website, how to tune it for search engines, what plug-ins to install and how to choose the right theme for your website. You don’t have to know how to code to have a great website, you just have to know how to click.
IM810W10A Sat, May 22, 9am-4pm; UBC Robson Square. $350+tax.
link: UBC Computers, Media and Technology – Multimedia Summer Programs 2009 – Summer Workshops
One, somewhat, open question is how much of the class will be WordPress.com vs WordPress.org. The honest answer is it’s going to depend on a few factors:
- How many people are in the class
- How tech interested people are
- How many people already have domains and hosting set up (or want to during class)
- How WordPress 3.0 rolls out (final or not and if the new menus are going to be put into WP.com)
I’ve done this class as a half-day class and tried to cover WP.com and WP.org in four hours—that wasn’t enough time. When I did this as a full-day class we had a lot more time, but the question of using XAMPP or MAMP came up. Why would I teach how to install WordPress, when really it isn’t that much like using it on your own host? Sure it’s mostly the same, but mostly can be enough to confuse a lot of people.
Telling students, if they’d like to try this for real, come with a domain purchased and hosting set up can cause the inevitable problems with different hosts not working the same (or even very well). All it takes is for one student to have their hosting go even slightly off the norm to throw everything off for everyone.
So the answer is…
The morning will certainly be focused on learning WordPress through WordPress.com. The afternoon will cover more “advanced” topics. If that includes doing a little WP work with XAMPP or MAMP, then cool, if not well I know we’ll do something fun.
Though if I find a way to make a little server for people to play on “for real-ish”, now that would be cool.
Hmm.