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Those who have been looking for a blogging platform or online content management system may have heard other Internet users talk about WordPress; however, they may not know what this platform is, or how to effectively use it. To get the most out of WordPress, it is important to understand how it evolved, how it is currently used, and how it can benefit users.

The History of WordPress

In 2001, Michael Valdrighi created a blogging platform called B2/Cafe. Although B2/Cafe was relatively advanced compared to other platforms available at the time, it failed to gain widespread attention. As a result, it was shut down in 2003.

Shortly before the termination of the project, one of B2/Cafe’s users, Matt Mullenweg, began incorporating the platform’s codebase into his own folk software. Soon after, Valdrighi and Mike Little joined Mullenweg in his efforts to make blogging more accessible and user-friendly.

The team launched the first version of WordPress in May 2003. Over the next several years, the platform evolved quickly to keep pace with a dramatically increasing global interest in blogging. In 2005, the team added a hosting service designed for users who lacked the interest or knowledge to host their own blogs.

That same year, WordPress added a template system, which allowed users to customize the look and feel of their blogs by uploading design templates. Many of the early templates were generic and lacked advanced functionality; however, in later years, premium templates evolved that allowed users greater control over the presentation of their blogs.

The popularity of WordPress has grown exponentially. The software was downloaded about 1.5 million times in 2005; by 2007, the number of downloads had grown by over 3.5 million.

How is WordPress Used?

Most commonly, WordPress is used as a blogging platform. Bloggers who choose the free hosted version of the software can select a basic template and begin blogging within a matter of minutes. Those who desire advanced functionality can choose to download the software and purchase a web hosting package to host their blogs.

In the early days of WordPress, bloggers typically used this platform for personal blogs. As blogging evolved, though, entrepreneurs and businesses began to take notice of the potential of this online medium. Today, it is used by countless start-ups, small businesses, and corporations to gain exposure, build customer loyalty, and increase sales.

The versatility of the software, coupled with the availability of highly customizable templates, has also allowed users to integrate aspects of both a static website and a blog into a single site. This allows entrepreneurs and business owners to create a more traditional online presence, while still building search engine optimized content through blog posting.

What are the Benefits of WordPress?

WordPress is quite easy to use, even for novice bloggers. A basic blog can be set up in a matter of minutes, allowing bloggers to turn a blog concept into reality very quickly. The user dashboard is easy to understand, and there are numerous tutorials available on the WordPress site to help users take advantage of the platform’s tools and features.

For many users, building an online presence with WordPress is a far less cumbersome task than launching a traditional static website. There is no need for HTML or PHP knowledge, and no need to hire an expensive designer or programmer to create a coherent, visually appealing site.

The versatility of WordPress is a significant benefit for many bloggers, particularly advanced users. Unlike other blogging platforms, WordPress allows users to create unique, customized sites that can be tailored to either personal or business use. A nearly endless array of customizable themes is available to make creating a unique, professional looking blog an easy task. There are also hundreds of plugins bloggers can use to further enhance the presentation and functionality of their sites.

Since its introduction in 2003, WordPress has continually redefined and revolutionized blogging. It offers a simple to use, versatile platform that removes many barriers to establishing an online presence. Whether a user wants to build a personal online diary, promote an offline business, or launch an entrepreneurial endeavor, WordPress offers the simplicity and functionality to make it happen. And is available in two versions.

WordPress.com or WordPress.org?

WordPress.com is an easily editable framework that anyone can sign up for, and with a little bit of technical knowledge, start writing articles. It’s pretty easy to upload your own header into the vast number of free templates (called ‘themes’ by WordPress) available and there’s plenty of plug-ins to utilise some of that powerful PHP backend powering the websites. Hosting is, of course, free, and WordPress.com websites are able to be redirected to a .com or .co.uk address without the .wordpress getting in the way, making your website look that much more professional. However, you won’t be able to edit the back end of your website, unless you sign up to the VIP scheme WordPress.com offers. This provides excellent quality hosting and server-side support, CSS and PHP editors for adjusting the look of your site on a basic level. WordPress.com can also be updated from your mobile phone.

On the other hand, WordPress.org provides the same level of polished and powerful PHP server-side control but puts you directly in the driver’s seat. This means that you have to install WordPress.org on your own web server, locally, or on your own remote hosting package. This method does take a lot longer for a beginner to get to grips with. It’s fairly easy again to set up your own header images and logo, as the same number of themes are available as for WordPress.com. They need to be installed in a slightly more complicated way, however. The real power in WordPress.org comes in its fully editable custom templates. These can be adjusted from the default theme to fit your layout in CSS with your own full set of images, or created entirely from scratch if you’re feeling ambitious. The PHP, class and hierarchy structure of template files for WordPress.org is very simple to pick up on if you already know HTML and CSS. For instance, if you have enough experience with web development and can happily code a CSS layout, you should have no problem designing your own custom theme. The easiest way to do this is by editing the default TwentyTen theme, using the more advanced PHP for comments and trackbacks in your own code and it’s not stealing, which is a bonus!

WordPress.com is fantastic for the beginner or the blogger who wants to get heard and is primarily a writer. The service is extremely polished and simple to use, more so than Google’s Blogger platform and others of its ilk. On the other hand, if you’re setting up a company website or are looking to start earning money from the web, WordPress.org is a great introduction to the complex world of PHP coding, provides fantastic frameworks for editing and has a great level of support from the community. It allows for simple CMS functions as well, so would be perfect for a multiple blog/static page website.