WordPress explained

WordPress is the world's most widely used content management system (CMS): a software package that lets you manage texts, images and pages on your website yourself, without any programming knowledge.

What is WordPress?

WordPress is a free, open-source CMS that started life in 2003 as a blogging platform and now powers a large share of all websites worldwide. From simple business sites to large webshops and news platforms: the software is so flexible that it can be used in almost any situation. Because WordPress is so widely used, there is an enormous amount of knowledge, extensions and help available.

How does WordPress work?

Technically, a WordPress website consists of PHP code that runs on the web server and a database in which all texts and settings are stored. As a visitor you notice nothing of this; as an administrator you log in to a secure dashboard, the so-called admin environment. There you create pages, publish posts and adjust settings.

The styling is determined by a theme: a set of files that governs the look of the site. You add functionality with plug-ins, small extensions for things such as a contact form, a webshop or search engine optimisation. By combining themes and plug-ins, you put together a website that matches your wishes.

Strengths of WordPress

The popularity of WordPress is no accident. The main advantages at a glance:

• Flexible: suitable for almost any type of website, from portfolio to webshop.
• Publish it yourself: you manage texts and images without a developer having to step in.
• Wide choice: tens of thousands of themes and plug-ins, often free or at low cost.
• Plenty of knowledge available: thanks to the large community of users, you quickly find documentation and help.

Points to watch and maintenance

Set against that flexibility is the fact that a WordPress website calls for structural maintenance. The WordPress core, the themes and the plug-ins receive regular updates that you have to install in good time. Overdue updates are one of the main causes of security problems. And because WordPress is used so much, it is also a favourite target for automated attacks. Good security, reliable backups and keeping up with updates are therefore not a luxury but a necessity. If a site does become infected, expert recovery of a hacked WordPress site is possible.

Who is WordPress suitable for?

WordPress is a good fit for organisations that want to publish content themselves regularly or work with several authors. If what you mainly want is a stable presentation site with few changes, a different approach may suit better; we discuss that trade-off in CMS or no CMS. There is also Joomla , which is a fully fledged alternative. InnoDIGI provides professional WordPress web design and is happy to think along with you about the best choice.