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  1. #1

    HTML or Wordpress Template?

    For a begginer in website's with minimal knowledge in html and wordpress, which template should one buy and have the easiest time editing and customizing for personal/business use?
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  2. #2
    Join Date
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    Managing a website using a CMS such as WordPress would definitely be much easier for someone who is not familiar with HTML.
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  3. #3
    Join Date
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    Wordpress is a great option if you're not familiar with HTML but there is some drawbacks:

    - due to the database session, plugins etc it'll be slower than your average static HTML site
    - if you don't keep Wordpress updated it will get hacked eventually but if you're careful and maintain it well you'll be fine
    - whenever you install a theme or plugin you're putting your trust in them. Without looking at each line of code you won't know if it's secure or not

    Using a static HTML site is a great way to learn HTML and allows you to have full control of your site but without HTML experience you may find it hard to maintain or extend it as you would like.

    Personally I use both static HTML and Wordpress. My main site is static and my knowledge base is Wordpress based. I also have a skateboarding site which is fully Wordpress based but used to be static (I converted it so it's easier to maintain).

    Jack
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  4. #4
    A WYSIWYG editor doesn't require you to know HTML either. You can get a basic layout and design (free or paid), and edit your content like a Word document - not very different from using Wordpress.

    You should make the decision based on your actual needs. If none of Worpress features really interest you, go with static website. It's more secure, and hosting is also less expensive (you don't need a VPS upgrade with ten times more traffic if compared to Wordpress with plugins).
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  5. #5
    depend on the project you are starting with.

    You understand that under static website you waste more time creating every single page.

    Even 8 year old kid can run Wordpress based website.
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  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by WriteHow View Post
    depend on the project you are starting with.

    You understand that under static website you waste more time creating every single page.

    Even 8 year old kid can run Wordpress based website.
    I don't know about free editors, but as for Dreamweaver (the industry's standard) it does everything for you and is in no way more time-consuming than Wordpress.



    By the way, CMS and Wordpress are not synonyms, there are countless others: Joomla, Drupal (my favorite), Mambo etc. If I chose a CMS, I wouldn't take Wordpress just this one reason: security. Wordpress is too popular, and because of that it's the main target for hackers. It's like Windows is the main target for viruses, and on Mac you are quite safe even without any antivirus software.
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  7. #7
    Join Date
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    17% of the websites on the Internet are run with wordpress.
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  8. #8
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    People are missing the point here I think. The OP is asking which would be easiest option when it comes to editing and customizing a template/theme.

    The answer based on you knowledge would be an HTML template. There are many on themeforest.net that are very feature rich with a lot of pages already designed and laid out that require less editing.

    Many already have things like twitter/facebook and other social links built in.

    Although Wordpress will provide you with much more functionality and is not a difficult platform to use, the editing of templates and anything beyond simple customization will require knowledge of PHP, if only to know what you are moving or changing and the effect it will have.

    My advice would be to check out the many themes available at places like themeforest. Try to find a wordpress theme that as near as possible fits your needs and go with that, if you can't find one that close then an HTML/CSS template might be better.

    Of course you can always find a worpdress template and then hire someone to customize it for you, which many people do.
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  9. #9
    WillyZ Since when?

    eurhos : of course but image managing 1000+ of pages in DW..
    At the moment I'm running 32 web sites 28 of them are under joomla with zero hack/spam issues.

    But the other 4 that are under Wordpress are under spam 24/24 ( i have like 5k spam comments in SPAM directory even with CAPTCHA and akismet "antispam plugin")

    In part of hacks... Someone manage to create username (registrations is disabled) and to post several spam posts that of course was indexed 3 min later... problem resolved with some more security tricks (but there is not lot of people who knows how to change wp-admin directory name or to set pass on it etc)

    In part of template editing. Even if you have minimal coding skills there is plenty of tutorials @youtube about how to edit WP theme or how to convert HTML template to WP
    Last edited by WriteHow; 01-06-2013 at 08:42 PM.
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  10. #10
    Join Date
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    Quote Originally Posted by WriteHow View Post
    WillyZ Since when?
    according to Forbes, 1 in 6 sites are WP ... there are 60 million wordpress sites ... and 100,000 more popping up per day.
    http://www.forbes.com/sites/jjcolao/...mother-tongue/
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  11. #11
    Join Date
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    I use WordPress to build sites. It's easy to get started using a premium theme, but there are lots of bad apples in that front. The themes are not "premium" because the theme builder is a pro, but because he/she is asking money for the theme. WordPress themes can contain quite a bit of PHP code.

    It's also quite likely that your skills or the features of the chosen theme run out before you're done with the site. Especially if you're building a business site. I've done the last 5-10% to several sites during the previous year. Actually I don't mind that at all, and find it inspiring that Joe Sixpack or Jane business owner can build his/her own site.

    I would not diss Dreamweaver. It takes some discipline to use that kind of tool efficiently, but it's possible. Just get to know the templating system properly.
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  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by AlexT25 View Post
    I'm thinking of getting maximum SEO benefit, so what would be best?

    Wordpress
    Simple HTMl?
    Most of people are better off by taking the WordPress route. The technical website side optimization involves a bunch of stuff, and WordPress happens to be pretty good at that right out of the box.

    Get a decent Premium template, or use the default theme (Twenty Twelve). Install WordPress SEO by Yoast, and try to understand most of the stuff the plugin does.

    This is only a small fraction of the field of SEO. Content Management System and a SEO plugin are just the starting point. Quality content and backlinks are much more important.
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  13. #13
    Join Date
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    Try Quick CMS, Get Simple CMS and Concrete5.
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  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by bruc View Post
    Try Quick CMS, Get Simple CMS and Concrete5.
    Why? Any particular reason for dropping that CMS name here and now?
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  15. #15
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
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    WordPress is far better than using only a html static website, please read the benefits below:

    Benefits of using WordPress


    Low-cost website development

    Easy-to-use for beginners and experts

    Scalable – it works just as well for a 2 or 2000-page website

    Highly customisable

    Quick turnaround on development

    Regularly updated and maintained

    Secure code maintained by a community of thousands of developers

    Thousands of themes and plug-ins freely available
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  16. #16
    WordPress. For design, you have many choices from free or premium themes. For functional, there are tons of plugins to enhance your website.
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  17. #17
    Join Date
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    WordPress templates are very fluid these days, a wide variety of them allow you to update and upgrade features on the fly with plugins. The great thing is after you add your content you can upgrade to a new look and feel at any time with a few clicks.:-P
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  18. #18
    Wordpress sometimes gets to bloated for my use (you need to keep your eyes on it or it gets hacked, etc).

    I run some sites that just need 3-4 really simple static HTML pages to basically inform really qucik about the status of an issue.

    However, even with just 3-4 static HTML pages it is important to get the SEO right. (tags, meta, CSS?, etc)

    In Sotaculous/Fantastico there are 10+ blog systems and Soft has 37+!! CMS systems there. But they all seem bloated, it seems they want to be all things.

    Are there any really really really simple CMS systems for 3-4 pages in html?
    On par with HTML editing yourself in a text document.
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  19. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by stoonley View Post
    For a begginer in website's with minimal knowledge in html and wordpress, which template should one buy and have the easiest time editing and customizing for personal/business use?
    For a begginer it will be easier to look for a commercial theme from the many available. Start looking at wordpress.org commercial themes page and visit the linked websites.

    You will want a theme that suits your desired look and feel, but also one that is customizable without the need of template modifications. That's where the commercial themes are usually better. When you got some candidates, do your research and compare the themes, but also the companies that publish them. Check for the type of support that they offer, and their online demos. You can also check the net for reviews of their customers or other blogs.

    Ideally you want a theme that does not require modifications, as being a beginner, that can take a considerable amount of time.
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  20. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by zomex View Post
    Wordpress is a great option if you're not familiar with HTML but there is some drawbacks:

    - due to the database session, plugins etc it'll be slower than your average static HTML site
    - if you don't keep Wordpress updated it will get hacked eventually but if you're careful and maintain it well you'll be fine
    - whenever you install a theme or plugin you're putting your trust in them. Without looking at each line of code you won't know if it's secure or not
    That's certainly true. The first problem can be alleviated easily by using a caching plugin like W3 Total Cache along with server side caching systems like memcached.

    Because the other issues, I have seen people trapped in a situation where updating would break their installs or plugins compatibility, but not updating would jeopardize their server due the various security vulnerabilities. In other cases where wordpress is used to sporadically update a small business or personal blog, I have seen spending more time doing wordpress updates than actually writing content. Sometimes we have been asked to convert live wordpress sites to static copies of them to escape of those issues, by people who was really feed up with the situation.

    In the other hand, maintaining a pure static html site can become quite cumbersome and time consuming. For all those reasons and some other more, we finally opted for the best of both worlds and made a custom solution where our server uses pure static content, while we maintain the content of our site using wordpress.
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  21. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by 1stdev View Post
    Because the other issues, I have seen people trapped in a situation where updating would break their installs or plugins compatibility, but not updating would jeopardize their server due the various security vulnerabilities. In other cases where wordpress is used to sporadically update a small business or personal blog, I have seen spending more time doing wordpress updates than actually writing content. Sometimes we have been asked to convert live wordpress sites to static copies of them to escape of those issues, by people who was really feed up with the situation.
    That's possible, especially if the site builder is/was not experienced with WordPress. If the site is build like the way it should, updates are usually very easy to install. Literally one click, and couple of minutes of waiting at most.

    If stuff isn't done right, or when the updates go wrong... Well, I'm sure you all can imagine what can happen. I've seen a plugin upgrade lose all custom field information, framework themes change their HTML structure, etc. In these cases the update may easily take dozens of times more effort, because you have to hunt and fix the errors.

    Taking regular backups is the right way to go, and it's also very easy with WordPress. But that's only for the worst case scenario.

    BTW, it's possible to use WordPress as a CMS and still have a static site as a "frontend". There are also services that basically do that. Cloudflare might have been mentioned in the thread already.
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  22. #22
    Join Date
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    a widget friendly template allows you to add new features with a few clicks and with the amount of plugins out there you can install all kinds of configuration options.
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  23. #23
    Oh man, I've used many CMSs over the years. Most recently Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, and Dreamweaver.

    For someone just getting started, I recommend WordPress. It has tremendous support and likely one of the shorter learning curves.

    Plus, for template editing, it is easy enough for the basic stuff (changing colors, slight layout, images).

    Once you are ready to tackle larger edits, you will find it relatively easy, but will also be able to modify templates with the other CMSs fairly confidently.

    Good Luck in what you decide!

    Scott M
    InMotion Hosting Customer Community
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  24. #24
    Quote Originally Posted by nettiapina View Post
    BTW, it's possible to use WordPress as a CMS and still have a static site as a "frontend". There are also services that basically do that. Cloudflare might have been mentioned in the thread already.
    Cloudflare service looks interesting. I have been looking at their page and they state:

    "Adding your website requires only a simple change to your domain's DNS settings."

    The performance optimizations that they do are cool, but does their system prevent direct access to your server? I can think of a bad guy simple targeting the server by IP access directly, and in such case you better have a properly secured installation.

    Plese correct me if I'm wrong.
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  25. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by stoonley View Post
    For a begginer in website's with minimal knowledge in html and wordpress, which template should one buy and have the easiest time editing and customizing for personal/business use?
    Wordpress for sure. You can find a lot of free templates that don't need to be customized ... only istalled ( 2 - 3 clicks only )
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