48 of 50 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Still the very best for learning and using WordPress, August 6, 2010
This review is from: WordPress For Dummies, 3rd Edition (Paperback)
This is Lisa Sabin-Wilson's 3rd Edition of her bedrock "WordPress For Dummies". I own all three editions and each is thicker and filled with more knowledge than the prior edition. If anyone asks me how to learn, manage and use WordPress, this is what I recommend.
It is truly A through Z coverage. Sabin-Wilson is, in my opinion, one of the best technical writers around. Her language is clear, uncluttered and free of artifice.
Logically enough, she begins at the very beginning explaining what WordPress can do for you. To her credit, she doesn't hold it out as a panacea for all that ails you. She doesn't promise you that you'll earn millions or will win public office. Sabin-Wilson simply tells you how to set up your blog and then moves progressively into the minutiae of creating and managing a WordPress blog. (And yes, operating a blog is like most other things in the world - a series of small details that you must repeatedly (i.e., daily or thereabouts) attend to. In fact, one of the chapters is appropriately entitled "Establishing Your Blog Routine".
"Wordpress For Dummies" is thorough. The WordPress Dashboard is explained as is the use and, perhaps more importantly, the customization of themes. (With WordPress, your blog or website can look however you like it, but getting it right is not necessarily simple.)
Another important Sabin-Wilson covers in some detail is using WordPress as a Content Management System. Although she treats it in some detail, I personally wish that she would write a book on this subject alone.
In all, none of the other WordPress books I've read - and there are quite a few of them - measure up to the standard that Linda Sabin-Wilson has set in all three editions of "WordPress For Dummies". Each edition has been extensively revised to stay as current as possible with WordPress releases.
A total delight to read and use, it is, in my opinion, the gold standard for learning, managing and using WordPress.
Jerry
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
60 of 64 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not up to "Dummies" standards. Much better books out there., November 20, 2010
This review is from: WordPress For Dummies, 3rd Edition (Paperback)
If you want to learn WordPress there are much better written and more complete books out there. This book is severely disappointing in a way that Dummies books rarely are. The author touts herself as an expert and there's no doubt she knows some things about WordPress. However, her writing is not that great and you'll find that you're left with more questions about certain things about WordPress than you were before you read the book.
If you want to hear about how great Lisa is, buy the book. She uses every opportunity to showcase her site and things she's done, tooting her horn as only people who are self-described "experts" tend to do. Again, I am not used to this type of flagrant self-promotion in a Dummies book. It's annoying.
The author has capitalized on the fact that she "wrote the book" on WordPress, but it isn't written well or that great of a book.
Check out "Digging Into WordPress" or "WordPress Bible" for truly great resources.
Beginners would be wise to take advantage of the free WordPress codex: it's the official manual for WordPress. There are specific sections for people new to WordPress there. Also check out WordPress.tv for how-to videos.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not for This Dummy, October 23, 2010
This review is from: WordPress For Dummies, 3rd Edition (Paperback)
I bought the book about three weeks ago and still have my WordPress site hanging by threads, not completed. Although I'm not really a computer "Dummy," I found the book either too simple or not well organized ... and I really don't know which. All I know is after spending several hours trying to figure out how to configure the basic template recommended to do what I wanted to do, I lost interest and decided to "think about it." I found the explanations too often reverted to a programming language which I didn't speak: It looked like I needed to study PHP as a prerequisite.
The book seems to be full of good information, but at least for me, it was hard to convert all the info into a workable WordPress site. I'm sure it could be done, but I'm looking for another book.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
