shelley-ann.com: musings in exploring design + business » blogging http://shelley-ann.com Wed, 09 Nov 2011 04:00:29 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 The Day My WordPress Site Died… http://shelley-ann.com/2011/10/the-day-my-wordpress-site-died/ http://shelley-ann.com/2011/10/the-day-my-wordpress-site-died/#comments Wed, 19 Oct 2011 14:00:30 +0000 Shelley http://shelley-ann.com/?p=3738 Well at least temporarily for a few days. My hosting company had some server issues which were fixed but for some reason my site didn’t work once they made their fixes. Nothing better than getting “NOT FOUND” when you type in your site URL.

So after freaking out for a little bit. I set out to find out what the heck was going on.

Thanks to some help from a friend I got it back up. Hopefully you backup your site regularly. If not start now. Start with WordPress Database Backup: on-demand backup of your WordPress database.

In case your WordPress site goes down here’s how to get it back up again:

  • If your hosting company does a backup you can try just doing a roll back to the last day your site was performing well. If that works you’re good. Panic mode averted. In my case it didn’t work. On to step 2.
  • Turn off all plugins. If you can’t get into your admin panel. Login to the server, go to the wp-content folder and rename the plugins folder to plugins_old or something similar. Your site should load minus all the bells and whistles.
  • If all else fails you might need to reinstall WordPress.

Resources I found or rediscovered:

If you don’t want to deal with the stress hire some support.



]]> http://shelley-ann.com/2011/10/the-day-my-wordpress-site-died/feed/ 0 Lessons Learns: Post A Day Challenge http://shelley-ann.com/2011/01/lessons-learns-post-a-day-challenge/ http://shelley-ann.com/2011/01/lessons-learns-post-a-day-challenge/#comments Sun, 23 Jan 2011 16:00:04 +0000 Shelley http://shelley-ann.com/?p=2509 I signed up on January 5th and here’s what I’ve learned so far….

  • Over-thinking is the reason posts take longer to write than they need to
  • Noisy neighbors are distracting. Headphones are your best friend.
  • Being tired isn’t an excuse not to finish what I started. There is always going to be something!
  • Finding new ideas is a challenge. Keep a notebook handy.
  • Write about things you are passionate about. Or else you will have writer’s block.
  • Save your posts often if writing in your browser. You never know when the stupid thing will crash. Better yet use a offline editor like MarsEdit (Sorry only works on a Mac OS).
  • I really don’t feel like writing a lot over the weekend. I need a break
  • Most importantly…write when you have something compelling to say on a topic

February is around the corner not sure yet what I’m writing about but so far it’s been a great motivator to participate in the challenge.



]]> http://shelley-ann.com/2011/01/lessons-learns-post-a-day-challenge/feed/ 0 Most popular posts of 2010 http://shelley-ann.com/2011/01/most-popular-posts-of-2010/ http://shelley-ann.com/2011/01/most-popular-posts-of-2010/#comments Sat, 01 Jan 2011 10:00:17 +0000 Shelley http://shelley-ann.com/?p=2055

© iStockPhoto/rubenhi


I didn’t write as much in 2010 as I did in 2009 but these posts appear to have resonated the most with my readers.

Thanks for reading my musings. Getting past writer’s block is worth it on a good day.



]]> http://shelley-ann.com/2011/01/most-popular-posts-of-2010/feed/ 0 My favorite WordPress plugins And Why I use them http://shelley-ann.com/2009/11/my-favorite-wordpress-plugins-and-why-i-use-them/ http://shelley-ann.com/2009/11/my-favorite-wordpress-plugins-and-why-i-use-them/#comments Wed, 04 Nov 2009 05:01:00 +0000 Shelley http://shelley-ann.com/2009/11/my-favorite-wordpress-plugins-and-why-i-use-them/ 23-wordpress_logoI have been using WordPress for a couple of years solely as a blogging platform but when I decided to revamp my website I made the decision to do the entire site in WordPress. It took me a few weeks to convert the old site to what is published today but it was well worth it. My site is easier to maintain and I don’t want to throw my computer out the window as often.

Here are my favorite plugins so far:

Fast and Secure Contact Form – The contact form lets your visitors send you a quick E-mail message. Blocks all common spammer tactics. Includes a CAPTCHA and Akismet support. Does not require JavaScript. The easiest installation of a form plugin I encountered. Other plugins require you to know HTML. I know HTML but I’m lazy about looking up code when I’m in the zone :)

After The Deadline – For contextual spelling, style, and grammar check for WordPress. Write better and spend less time editing. Honestly sometimes I forget to use this one.

Analytics360 – Allows you to pull Google Analytics and MailChimp data directly into your dashboard, so you can access robust analytics tools without leaving WordPress. Compliments of MailChimp

WordPress Database Backup – On-demand backup of your WordPress database.

Yoast Breadcrumbs – Outputs a fully customizable breadcrumb path.

Bad Behavior – Deny automated spambots access to your PHP-based Web site

DISQUS Comment System – The DISQUS comment system replaces your WordPress comment system with your comments hosted and powered by DISQUS. Very easy to setup and moderate comments.

WPtouch iPhone Theme – A plugin which formats your site with a mobile theme for the Apple iPhone / iPod touch, Google Android and other touch-based smartphones.

MailChimp – The MailChimp plugin allows you to easily setup a Subscribe box for your MailChimp list



]]> http://shelley-ann.com/2009/11/my-favorite-wordpress-plugins-and-why-i-use-them/feed/ 0 How I Process Blogs and What I Do With All That Info http://shelley-ann.com/2009/10/how-i-process-blogs-and-what-i-do-with-all-that-info/ http://shelley-ann.com/2009/10/how-i-process-blogs-and-what-i-do-with-all-that-info/#comments Wed, 28 Oct 2009 06:04:00 +0000 Shelley http://shelley-ann.com/2009/10/how-i-process-blogs-and-what-i-do-with-all-that-info/ reader I am a self-professed information junkie. It’s in my bio on Twitter, my Twitter background and my blog. I’ve said before that I read about 5 books at once. Currently I’m up to 10.

I subscribe to over 1000 blogs on Google Reader. My favorite blogs I subscribe to via email. I have an Alltop page where I keep track of blogs that I don’t read as often but that I like to keep up with.

I know it sounds complicated but to me it makes total sense. I see patterns in information. So having everything in one place would probably be boring.

So what do I do with all that information? I archive it in Evernote or Diigo (if I need to take notes) or Delicious. I share posts I find interesting on Twitter, too.

I just love to learn new things and reading blogs allows me the opportunity to be a part of a community that shares ideas and connects on a wide variety of topics. And I don’t have to pay for most of it. I even get ideas for blog posts. I got the idea for this post from reading Chris Brogan’s blog. Thanks dude! :)



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