As of late I am building a lot of new projects on top of the Wordpress CMS because of it’s flexibility and scalability. I have had very little trouble getting clients up to speed with the Wordpress Dashboard but totally understand that just like anything else software related there is a slight learning curve. For that reason I have been asked by some clients to post some good books for getting up to speed on site management for managing a web presence using wordpress. Here are a few of my recommendations:
WordPress For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))
ISBN: 0470149469
ISBN-13: 9780470149461
I ran across something pretty cool today on Amazon that I thought was worthwhile posting here. It’s a neat little device that’s put out by online retailer Amazon.com. Here’s a little bit of info on the Amazon Kindle:
Amazon Kindle is a revolutionary portable reader that wirelessly downloads books, newspapers, magazines and blogs to a crisp, high-resolution electronic paper display that looks and reads like real paper, even in bright sunlight.
Kindle customers, no matter where they are in the U.S., can wirelessly shop the Kindle Store and download new content — all without a PC or a WiFi hot spot. Amazon pays for Kindle’s wireless connectivity so there are no monthly wireless bills and no service commitments for customers. The Kindle Store contains over 90,000 books that can be purchased and delivered wirelessly to Kindle, each in less than a minute. Customers can choose from hundreds of top newspapers, magazines and blogs and have their subscriptions auto-delivered wirelessly. All New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases are $9.99, unless marked otherwise.
At 10.3 ounces, Kindle is lighter and thinner than a paperback book, carries two hundred books, and includes built-in access to The New Oxford American Dictionary and wireless access to the Earth’s biggest encyclopedia, Wikipedia.org.
I am trying out a new tool that plugs into Windows Live Writer that allows you to quickly add links to books on Amazon through your Amazon Associates Account. Since I have read a lot of books related to web development I figured I should setup an Associates Account with Amazon and post book reviews on here to some of my favorite books. This Amazon Associates program is pretty cool, I get 4% commission on all sales that are generated through this site, pretty slick huh? This is yet another way to generate income from your blog or website. If you are interested in the Amazon Associates program, here’s a link: https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/, and if you are interested in getting the Amazon Associates Plugin for Windows Live Writer, here’s that link as well: http://gallery.live.com/liveItemDetail.aspx?li=41954338-69de-47d5-b15e-ca0d770146b6&bt=9&pl=8
I actually picked this book up a while back so that I could get up to speed w/ PHP and MySQL programming and I really enjoyed it. It was an easy read and I still refer back to it from time to time to find things, it stays on the bookshelf behind my desk. If you are looking for a quick way to get up to speed on PHP, I recommend this one for sure. I also have a few other recommendations that I will be posting later on.
This is another book that I purchased a while back to help me get up to speed on PHP and MySQL development. It’s a pretty straightforward book like a lot of the “for dummies” books are. Needless to say that a lot of the info in the book is kind of basic but it can be a great refresher if you are looking for one. I guess before you pick this book up though you would probably need to get one of the basic HTML books out there, otherwise a lot of this might be over your head.
This is another one of my favorite Sitepoint books, it’s a great resource for learning some cool Javascript tips and tricks. It really helped me to pick up some tools that I still use quiet a bit today. I recommend this book to anyone who is involved in building websites or managing them.
WordPress: Visual QuickStart Guide, 2/e
Kindle: Amazon’s New Wireless Reading Device: Kindle Store
PHP 5 / MySQL Programming for the Absolute Beginner (For the Absolute Beginner)
PHP & MySQL For Dummies 3rd edition (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))
The JavaScript Anthology: 101 Essential Tips, Tricks & Hacks