// July 21st, 2009 //
WordPress is a state-of-the-art publishing platform with a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability. WordPress is both free and priceless at the same time.
More simply, WordPress is what you use when you want to work with your blogging software, not fight it.
If you aren’t using it, Try WordPress today!
// February 28th, 2009 //
Here is an continuation of my last post WordPress Workshop -Part 1
WordPress Workshop
I think I had written a lot in my last post on the day 1 of wordpress workshop. After self analysis of our performance with first batch me and Snehal decided to have some changes for the second batch. I had explained a lot of extras for the first batch and had to cut it down for the second batch. Also we decided that Snehal and Sanket will handle some portions. And to take some snaps of the workshop which we had missed out yesterday 
We were in time at browsing center. We started uninstalling the wamserver installed by the previous batch candidates. Gudi sir set up the projector for us and he was going to be the photographer for us ! Sohel was missing since he went to attend the hacking Contest at K.L.E. Engineering College, Belgaum. Although we expected a lot of people today, there was no crowd outside. Everyone came one by one in time.
K.K.T. sir started with the introduction and later he went out since he had some work. The first part i.e introduction to websites, blogs, wordpress, hosting, domains etc was done by Snehal. She explained it slowly point by point, asking questions to participants to make the session interactive ( I had finished it just in 5 min yesterday!). As we had decided to tell the hosting & domain setup at end , I started with WampServer Installation. Unlike yesterday I did not make use of ppt for this. Everything was live ! The installation step seemed to be very easy to everyone( WordPress rocks !). Then Sanket took over to explain how to post on wordpress and how to create categories etc. I came back to explain wordpress themes, plugins and widgets.
The participants were more active compared to yesterdays batch. They were trying to create themes with wordpress theme generator and use it while i was explaining itself. Many had created beautiful designs in no time ! Same was the case with plugins. they googled and got new plugins. But Plugins seemed to be complicated for them due to the diversity in nature of usage from one plugin to plugin. They had a lot of questions to ask unlike yesterdays batch. Since it was afternoon time they seemed to be hungry and wanted to out fast !
I explained only basic stuff cutting a lot of information. Since Snehal and Sanket explain some portions my work was reduced. It was almost 3.30pm and decided to conclude. K.K.T had finished his work and had returned to workshop to conclude it ! Thus making the end of the movie WordPress Worksop – Part 2
We have plan about WordPress Workshop – Part 3 on Monday… Keep awaiting for my next post…
// February 27th, 2009 //
Hello Everyone,
Today was one of the most wonderful day in my life. As I has posted earlier the Workshop on ” Blogging with WordPress” started today. This was the first workshop I have ever conducted. there was an huge response from the students of I.S.E., GIT we had to decide to organize workshop in batches. So we had divided the registrants into two batches. One batch for those who submitted the assignment work given by us and another batch for those who are lazy to complete the assignment but still wanted to learn wordpress !
The schedule was announced in class and displayed on notice board.
Batch A: Late submissions (First come First Serve Basis)
Day: Friday
Date: 27th Feb 2009
Time: 2.00pm – 5.00pm
Venue: Browsing Center, GIT.
Batch B: For students who have submitted the website designs on or before 25th Feb, 2009
Day: Saturday
Date: 28th Feb 2009
Timing: 12.30pm – 4.00pm
Venue: Browsing Center, GIT.
But everything didn’t go as per to our plans. There was an hacking contest organize in K.L.E.Engineering college, Belgaum and many wanted to attend it. So they requested that they will be attending on friday itself and we could not deny for that. Secondly the C.S.E. Department woke up after an semester to conduct an I.T. Quiz clashing with our workshop. They had taken registration entries in last semester and organizing this semester that too by announcing it on the previous day.
The students from I.S.E were totally not interested in attending it and all of them prefer to attend our workshop. ( Even I had registered for quiz last semester !) Most of the students had come early as we had said that entries will on first com first serve basis creating an mob outside the browsing center. Everything would have went fine if our H.O.D. would have not interfered in between. They had called up from C.S. Department saying we have told the students to attend the workshop mandatorily by bunking the I.T. Quiz (???????) Our H.O.D’s concern was genuine as he wanted to have an good relationship with the C.S. Department. So he asked us to cancel the workshop and send the student to I.T. quiz !
We had taken a lot of efforts from a week to organize the workshop and offcource how can we cancel it just like that? Prof. Kiran.K.T. was in support of us. We anyhow managed to convince our H.O.D. Math Sir that we shall not allow the students who have enrolled for I.T. quiz (except me !) to attend workshop and send them to auditorium for I.T. quiz. We ensured I.T. quiz registrants that we shall conduct the workshop on some other day for them. they agreed upon and went. It was an different matter that most of they went to home instead and those who went for I.T. quiz had missed the preliminary round and coud not participate in that too !
The workshop was finally started with the words of Prof. Kiran K.T. He introduce us and then i took over. I started with the presentation I had prepared. I have embedded the same copy here :
As you can see it is an self explanatory power point presentation with live screen shots on how to install wordpress. It starts with the basic fundas like website, blog, wordpress, uses of blog, web hosting, domain etc. The actual part starts with signing up free web hosting account at www.FreeHostCell.com. Then comes an overview on hosting control panel and creating database in your free hosting account. The there is details on transferring files to the web server using FileZilla FTP client. After that comes the actual step by step installation of wordpress. The presentation also contains slides on getting an free co.c domain name. It has links to various resource websites.
But due to problems with internet connection in the college we proceeded with the installation on localhost using WampServer. We explained everything live on the projector and simultaneously the participants did it on their computers. We explained all the menu in the backend i.e the control panel of wordpress. it was be creating post, editing it, changing permalinks, using tags and what not. We also gave an insight of generating wordpress themes using a wordpress theme generator. We also explained how to use plugins and widgets to enhance the functionalities of wordpress. The candidates also got to know how to use google analytics on wordpress and basic search engine optimization.
The worskhop went on for 3 hours and I don’t know how I managed to speak continuously not even drinking a drop of water ( I got to know about it only after Snehal told about it ) Finally we explained the judgement criteria’s for the wordpress blog contest and showed some popular blogs. Finally Prof. Rodd and Prof. Kiran concluded the workshop.
Thanks to Snehal, Sanket, Sohel and others who have helped a lot make it a grand success.
All the participants were very happy as the workshop was good, above their expectation ( and our expectation too !) Many of them commented that I’m best suited for lecture post ! Snehal was asking me how I spoke for 3 hours continuously in a loud pitch without a break ( and I got to know about it only after the workshop was over). I was totally in a different world for those 3 hours. We remembered that we had forgotten to take snapshots of the event late but luckily we have a chance to get them in the next batch !
Now I’m awaiting for the second batch to be organized tomorrow. So await for my next post i.e WordPress WorkShop – Part 2
// February 19th, 2009 //
We have got an overwhelming response for WordPress blogging workshop/contest I had written in my earlier post. There has been more than 125 registrations till date. I think probably first timewe are getting such an response in Department of Information Science & Engineering, GIT. Thanks for all who have registered their names.
Due to this large turn-out we are giving an small assignment to registrants. This is to filter out people who just write their name and never participate actively.
The assignment is to :
- You can make it your personal website or of any other topic of your interest like sports, movies e
- This may be your intro on home page, your biodata or any other article you want to have on your website.
- This may be a block diagram with menus and features of the website
- Creativity has no limit. Submit your own stuff which others may not even thought of !
I wish to make this Workshop / Contest a huge Success and each student of Department of Information Science, GIt to have thier own Blog.
Please comment your suggestions and feedbacks.
// February 17th, 2009 //
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