Basic Simplicity Theme

I just finished the next version of Basic Simplicity. I’ve made a few changes that should make it easier to use the theme including support for a full file path for the header background image.

Upgrading? – Watch the upgrade video

Upgrading should be fairly easy but you’ll need to know two things. Backup your current older copy of Basic Simplicity (especially if you made edits to the core theme files, like the index.php file) and you’ll need to fix the header background image. Everything else should be seamless. If you run into trouble please let me know. Continue Reading »

This short video shows how to upgrade to Basic Simplicity 1.4.1 which mostly involves fixing the header image. Watch the video and then give it a shot.

If you’ve never used Basic Simplicity it will still help show you how to add the header image. You can read more about adding your own custom header image here.

The most common question I got from users of the previous version of Basic Simplicity was “How do I change the header image?” There were clearly some usability issues with how I implemented that feature on the Edit Basic Simplicity page.

In this version it’s much easier and more flexible. You simply paste in the full file URL of the image into the Edit Basic Simplicity page. You can upload the image using your wordpress blog or FTP software.

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I’ve gotten a lot of questions about how to edit the meta information under the post/page titles. This is what the code that generates these four text lines looks like right out of the box, albeit with some extra line spaces between the lines of code to make it easier to read. Continue Reading »

I suspect everyone with some blogging experience has a list of their favorite plugins. Below is my list of must have plugins; but first I wanted to share an important reality that most pro-bloggers don’t tell you about. Continue Reading »

I run several blogs and field a lot of good comments. But I also see some spam that slips past Askimet, the WordPress plugin that automatically blocks spam comments. If you’re considering using this black hat technique to help drive traffic to your website stop now, you’re wasting your time.

Posting comments is quite likely the worst way to drive traffic to your site but when you do be sure to write relevant and thoughtful comments. If you don’t you comment will likely be considered spam and deleted.

Here’s a comment I got earlier today on a post I wrote about stopping sloggers. The spammers seem attracted to this post. Ironic huh?

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A splog is a spam blog with copied content from other sources. People usually learn about this scheme by reading the crap advice of internet schemers who sell people on the idea that all they have to do to make money online is build a bunch of copied content to rake in the bucks. Continue Reading »

I really hate it when people steal content, especially when they hotlink to my images and eat up my server’s bandwidth too. This is a real form of theft and ends up costing me money because my biggest blog sometimes costs me overage charges.

I found this great solution at DavidAirey.com (Thanks David!) that replaces stolen images with an advertisement for your site. It’s still an image hosted on your website but the smaller file-size image is not as bandwidth intensive and the value of stealing your content is greatly reduced.
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There are a ton of articles on how to blog for fun and profit and you could spend a lifetime reading all the articles on ProBlogger and you’d still be left asking the question… so how do I make a living as a blogger? This is my attempt to put it all in one article. Continue Reading »

Recently I simplified the look & feel of my busiest blog by installing my new WordPress theme, Basic Simplicity. In the past when I’ve changed themes on Tiny House Design but I’ve never noticed so much noticeable effect in user behavior. The only real difference I’m aware of is that I’ve never used such an uncluttered design before. Continue Reading »