A move to WordPress

[El Gordo]

I've been toying with the idea of moving away from the hand-coded HTML site for some time. It has a sort of quaintness value, but I fancy the relative simplicity of a proper content management system (CMS). I've mentioned Drupal a few times, which is (IMO) the champion of CMSs. Trouble is, after playing with it for months, on and off, I've decided it's a bit of an octopus, and possibly more than I need just at the moment.

So I've transferred all my content into WordPress. I've done almost no formatting or customisation yet, but the base site can be seen here --
http://www.runningcommentary.net/wp . (The Drupal version, in the basic out-of-the-box style is at http://www.runningcommentary.net/new .)

At some point I'll change over to the standard URL, but I'm finding it hard to let go just at the moment.

A few points:

The forum will be unchanged.

You will notice, if you search for something, that a lot of forum posts appear as well as my posts. The reason for this is: in my Drupal period, I experimented with a Drupal forum, and imported all the content from the forum into the Drupal db. These were stored as just more content, along with my posts. When I imported everything into the WordPress db, they came along too. I'm going to delete them, but of course they will all still be visible here in the forum. Some of the forum posts (I think the ones that start a thread only) are also included in the little word-count widget. So this figure will come down as they get removed. I don't want to delete them all manually, so plan to do this at the database end. I'm just nervously refreshing my long-dormant SQL skills to make sure I don't break everything.

Look and feel -- there is plenty of work to do here. I've gone for a simple theme so that I can tart it up. What would people like to see in the interface? Is it about time I got rid of all the existing decoration, or should I port over a few of these familiar items?

Do people want links to other places? Or should we remain a Bhutan of the web world?

Banner. I'm thinking it would be good to create a brand new banner, for the site header. Perhaps a collage of pics of the usual suspects? Or should it be more neutral? Any thoughts?

Retain Twitter?

Part of the problem is that I'm still not sure what the site is really about. Or what it's for. I wrote an item recently called "Where have all the plodders gone?", but didn't post it. The gist was that everyone apart from me seems to have got rather good at this running game. Which is grand, but it sort of changes the landscape a bit.

Anyway, if anyone has any thoughts on that, or any requests, or complaints.... you know what to do.

Hmm, that sounded a bit ruder than intended....

[El Gordo]

Just out of interest, is anyone else having any trouble with the interface for this forum?

I don't have any formatting buttons.

My PC was attacked by a virus in midweek which caused all sorts of problems. This could be linked. I may have to reinstall, so fingers crossed....

Edit -- OK, I solved it.

[marathondan]

EG, the wordpress page looks great. Probably the most useful feature will be categorisation.

I think a links library would be a good idea, and might even be worth a little thread to suggest a few.

Banner... my personal feeling is to save the rogues' gallery for the forum, and keep a more personal EG feel to the front page. But if you want some kind of montage, I'm sure you could come up with a range of iconic images relevant to the forum family (a pint of Guinness, a knee strap, etc...).

Maybe it's time the awards from 2004 and 2005 were dropped...

The Twitfeed is good; I don't use Twitter but the stream on the front page often gives a little indication of what you've been up to between posts.

Do post your piece on plodderhood... sounds like it would generate some good discussion in the forum.

[El Gordo]

Thank you Dan. You've said nothing I disagree with.

The look of the site will change. In fact, depending on when you last looked, it's changed already, and will change again, and again. As long as it's "/wp" it's in a state of flux.

There are plenty of technical reasons I need to change -- categorisation is just one. Ignore the current categorisation of the new WP version by the way -- these are just placeholders, and will be made more meaningful.

Incidentally, this is all your fault. When you asked about RSS all those months/years ago, it sparked a train of thought, and this is the result.

[Sweder]

No vehement disagreements here, but as its 4.50 am your time & I'm late for work I'll have to come back.
Where have all the plodders gone? I'm reliably informed 'they' banked 6.4 miles this weekend ...

[marathondan]

Incidentally, this is all your fault. When you asked about RSS all those months/years ago, it sparked a train of thought, and this is the result.

Ah yes, another good feature. So in fact, I'll never actually view the new front page, as I'll be reading your posts via RSS.

[Sweder]

[luddite alert] So ... (looks to heavens, scratches stubbly chin) if you subscribe to RSS feeds from various sites you end up with your own 'home page' where the latest editions of those subscribed pieces load automatically? Sounds pretty cool to me. [/luddite alert]

[El Gordo]

[luddite alert] So ... (looks to heavens, scratches stubbly chin) if you subscribe to RSS feeds from various sites you end up with your own 'home page' where the latest editions of those subscribed pieces load automatically? Sounds pretty cool to me. [/luddite alert]

That's pretty much it, yes. I've several times set myself up with an RSS reader but somehow haven't got into the habit of using it.

Let me stress again that the site is very much under development and will look quite different in a week or two, but I'll make sure I include an RSS link so that you can see how that works. When I switch the main URL it will be regarded as live.

[marathondan]

Two more ponderances...

1. Will your preferrered means of blog discussion be via the blog comments? (That's certainly the way any non-forumites would comment on your posts.) If so, would you do away with the monthly thread in the forum?

2. Will you remain the sole author of the blog? Last time you looked at changing the front page around, I think you were considering posting some of the more worthy forum posts there as well. I guess that's a personal question for you, based on how you feel your blog fits into the whole picture of RC. I think the current setup works fine - you are the proprietor or facilitator of this service to runners, you like to write a blog, your blog forms part of the public identity of RC.

Which actually leads me on to point 3 of 2... should the front page explain a bit more of what RC is about? At the moment the front page gives little indication that RC is much more than just a blog (albeit one of the best-written running blogs around, I think we all agree) - it's a virtual running club. Should that be advertised? Or is it more a case that, like the A-Team, if you really need us you'll find us?

[Sweder]

Should that be advertised? Or is it more a case that, like the A-Team, if you really need us you'll find us?

I'd just like to make it clear that, whilst insufficiently thatched in the first place, I am not under any circumstances having a mohawk.

(albeit one of the best-written running blogs around, I think we all agree)

Spot on.

[marathondan]

I'd just like to make it clear that, whilst insufficiently thatched in the first place, I am not under any circumstances having a mohawk.

But you gotta admit, you could just see EG with a cigar clamped between his teeth, declaring "I love it when a plan comes together."

(If only they would... )

[El Gordo]

Two more ponderances...

1. Will your preferrered means of blog discussion be via the blog comments? (That's certainly the way any non-forumites would comment on your posts.) If so, would you do away with the monthly thread in the forum?

2. Will you remain the sole author of the blog? Last time you looked at changing the front page around, I think you were considering posting some of the more worthy forum posts there as well. I guess that's a personal question for you, based on how you feel your blog fits into the whole picture of RC. I think the current setup works fine - you are the proprietor or facilitator of this service to runners, you like to write a blog, your blog forms part of the public identity of RC.

Which actually leads me on to point 3 of 2... should the front page explain a bit more of what RC is about? At the moment the front page gives little indication that RC is much more than just a blog (albeit one of the best-written running blogs around, I think we all agree) - it's a virtual running club. Should that be advertised? Or is it more a case that, like the A-Team, if you really need us you'll find us?

Sorry Dan, managed to miss your post.

1) Yes, it would make more sense to comment directly on the blog. The Monthly Forum was a sort of surrogate way of doing that. I don't think I would do away with the MF though. Would still be useful.

2) No plans either way yet, but blogging software does make it easier to expand or reposition things.

3) You're right, though part of the problem here, as alluded to in the last /wp entry is that I'm not really sure myself what the site is all about. It's an unusual, and unplanned, hybrid of blog and forum. But there definitely will be something to try to explain what's going on.

[Sweder]

We've had a break-in. Some bounder has snuck in and removed our Rogue's Gallery, replacing it with a series of small red 'x's. I've called Interpol. They assure me they're on the case.

[marathondan]

Red x's... as in embarrassed ex-runners? Maybe the software is trying to tell us something.

Note to helpdesk: I've seen the problem in Firefox but not IE.

[El Gordo]

Sorry, my stupid fault. I archived the old site the other day, including the directory with the image files, so the path to them changed. I forgot to check the forum.

Now fixed.

[El Gordo]

Right. Time to make some changes. The main site might be offline, or look a bit weird, for a day or two.

[Sweder]

Hello everyone. I'm still here, just about.
Anyone know where the WordPress bits went?
I've been hunting them today but so far failed to locate them.

One message redirected me here, but that's also drawn a blank.
Hope you're all OK

Ash

[Sweder]

Aha! Searched via Twitter and found it here: key word there was Typepad (I'd forgotten that)
https://runningcommentary.typepad.com/ru...orest.html

My purpose is I'm spending this enforced rest collating various bits and bobs for my own archive
It dawned on me that of this all went down tomorrow I'd lose every word written over ten fruitful years.

Anyway, carry on ...