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Controlling, Filtering and Moderating Comments in WordPress
Many bloggers and website owners choose the WordPress platform for their blog or website. The WordPress software is attractive as it allows readers to leave feedback or post comments. All comments bring the discussions alive and make them interactive and dynamic. However, when a comment contains spam, the discussion turns sour and is less enjoyable for others. Realizing the importance of controlling, moderating and filtering readers’ comments, WordPress includes specific features to combat and control unwanted comments. One of the features is called Comment Moderation. It allows the blog owner or administrator to place comments on queue, preventing them from being automatically displayed without consent.
By default, the moderation feature will hold a comment containing two hyperlinks for the administrator to manually approve. After review, the comment can be displayed in full as originally submitted, be edited or deleted. Often, spammers will target blogs to spread links to their websites. They want readers to click on these links. For these types of spammers, they operate on the belief that the more links they can post, the higher their sites will be ranked in the search results.
Other than combating comment spam, this feature also allows administrators to filter the comment. For instance, if the comment includes inappropriate words or are insulting to the blog owner or other posters, the administrator can decide to delete it entirely or edit it before displaying.
In order to prevent unwanted comments from entering the blog, administrators can manage comments from their Dashboard. First, they need to log into their WordPress account. After logged in, they will see the Dashboard. Here, they can click on the Settings located at the left side bar. This will bring them to the Discussion Settings page. In this page, all the features to manage and control comments are shown.
Scroll down to the Comment Moderation section. Here, administrators can control which types of comments to hold for moderation. They can set the comments into queue if it contains multiple links. Many spammers are getting smart as they will add one or two links in their comment. Thus, administrators can change the default number of permitted links. This option can be strengthened by completing the Comment Blacklist section. For instance, the administrator can blacklist comments that contain an email address, URL or a name. However, some legitimate comments might contain one or two spam words. When choosing this option, administrators risk deleting a comment that may be beneficial to the discussion. Thus, this section should be used with care.
The Comment Moderation feature is highly functional in controlling unwanted comments from being posted. Choosing this feature helps the administrator to personally moderate and evaluate comments before displaying them. Although it takes time to moderate comments, and it may slow the interaction process, the administrator is able to manage all comments for compliance with their settings. By moderating comments and stopping spam from displaying, a blogger’s reputation will increase. A blog that is free of useless and irrelevant comments will be perceived as well managed. Readers will stay longer to read the blog and be eager to submit positive comments.
A Beginner’s Guide to WordPress Multisite
WordPress Multisite is a special configuration of WordPress that enables webmasters to launch several websites off of the main WordPress installation. This simply means that one deployment of WordPress with the Multisite mode enabled may host many WordPress websites.
With earlier versions of the WordPress platform, the Multisite feature was only available with WordPress MU. WordPress MU was the “multi-user” iteration of the platform. However, as of the rollout of WordPress 3.0, the multi-user feature was combined with the standard installation of the platform. In current versions of WordPress, the multi-user features is included, and may be enabled or disabled by the WordPress platform administrator.
WordPress.com
Perhaps the most notable deployment of WordPress Multisite is the WordPress.com blogging platform. WordPress.com allows users to create their own blog site on the hosted platform. WordPress Multisite has been enabled to create this functionality on WordPress.com. Each blog site that is created is its own entity.
University and Blogging Websites
University websites that provide web space for various departments and colleges are another possibility for implementing the WordPress Multisite feature. Websites that offer bloggers the opportunity to create their own blog sites, such as “Teach For Us,” are also good candidates for the use of WordPress Multisite.
WordPress versus WordPress Multisite
WordPress functionality includes the administrator security role. The administrator is able to access the WordPress dashboard to add and edit pages, as well as make changes to the site structure. This role also has the ability to add, manage and delete users. WordPress Multisite includes a “super administrator” role. This role has “god rights.” In other words, the super administrator role includes administrative rights for each site. In addition, the super administrator role is able to manage every aspect of the entire WordPress deployment. These rights include the ability to create new site administrators, or to remove them, as well as the ability to add or delete sites from the platform.
The super administrator level of access may also administer network-wide settings for the platform. For example, themes and plug-ins are managed by the network administrator role in WordPress Multisite. Plug-ins and themes are installed at the network level and made available to all sites deployed within the Multisite platform.
Deploying WordPress Multisite
Though Multisite is included with WordPress 3.0 and above, the feature must be correctly configured in order to function properly. Because Multisite requires more server resources than the standard deployment of WordPress, a shared hosting account is not recommended for deployment of Multisite. Check with your web hosting provide to determine if the host supports deployment of Multisite. Some hosts will and others will not.
Obtain a copy of the WordPress Codex named “Creating a Network” (http://codex.wordpress.org/Create_A_Network). This guide provides the step-by-step process of enabling the Multisite feature. The codex instructs the webmaster to insert a code snippet into the wp-config.php page. This code snippet provides the network administration features. Once the network administration features are enabled, the on-screen instructions walks the webmaster through the remainder of the setup process.
One decision the webmaster will need to make during the setup process is whether to use subdomains or subdirectories to delineate the subsites. This decision is not reversible so be sure that you are prepared to make this determination during the setup process.
Once Multisite is configured by stepping through the instructions provided in the network administration interface, Multisite is deployed and ready to use.
As with a standard WordPress deployment, plug-ins are available to add functionality to the Multisite platform. Plug-ins include the WordPress Blog Replicator, Gravity Forms and User Registration and WordPress MU Domain Mapping.
WordPress Multisite is a great feature for webmasters for deploying platforms that will host subsites under one domain. For example, if you have a domain named www.mywordpress.com, subsites set up as subdomains might include user1.mywordpress.com as a subdomain where “user1“ is User #1‘s own website. WordPress Multisite extends the functionality of WordPress to enable one installation of WordPress to perform as a hosting platform for a collection of additional WordPress sites.
Is Magento the right e-commerce platform for you?
Magento is an open-source platform that makes it possible to create a fully-functional e-commerce site. It is one of the most popular platforms in the world today when building an e-commerce store. If you are thinking about using Magento for your site, here are a few of the pros and cons that you need to know about the platform.
How Social is the Web? [Infographic]
The Web as we know it was first introduced in 1989 as a way for scientists studying high-energy physics to share information more effectively through the use of hyper-text documents. How far we’ve come since then! Today, people from around the planet use the World Wide Web to find information, buy and sell products, and, most significantly, to interact with each other. In the Infographic below, we’ll explore just how social the Web has become since its humble beginnings as a science medium.
4 Questions You Need to Ask Before You Purchase Blog Hosting
If you are a blogger it is likely that you have heard a tremendous amount about the importance of having good web hosting services for your blog. Though many believe that web hosting is only for large websites, or complex ecommerce situations, serious bloggers should consider purchasing web hosting services to ensure the greatest quality and professionalism for your blog. This is particularly important if you intend to monetize your blog and use it as a means of income, or utilize it for the promotion of another existing business.
As with many decisions related to a business, it is not as simple as just deciding that you need to purchase hosting services. There are several different types of services, meaning that you will need to select the one that is most appropriate for your blogging situation in order to support the greatest potential for success. When determining which type of hosting service is most appropriate for you there are several considerations to keep in mind. Evaluating each these carefully will help guide you toward the services that are best for your blog and your computer knowledge.
What is Your Hosting Budget?
One of the first considerations that most businesses will make regarding any decision is cost. When determining what type of web hosting service is most appropriate for your situation you will first need to decide how much money you are willing to invest in such services. Different levels of web hosting services cost varying amounts, so you need to figure out how much you can afford and then align this budget with the right services.
