WordPress.com Version 2.5 Upgrade Completed

Following the release of the official WordPress v2.5 standalone version recently, WordPress.com has followed suit by upgrading their users to the new version as well. The interface has been completely redesigned, and the back-end has received a myriad of improvements. This release of WordPress is said to be the largest release in quite awhile.

It was only a few hours ago when I opened up my blog’s administrator interface and was greeted by the new 2.5 version of WordPress. First thoughts? I was shocked they upgraded WordPress.com so quickly after the release. I figured that the WordPress.com team would wait until the public played with the 2.5 version of WordPress for a few weeks just incase someone could find any serious issues.

Matt Mullenweg, the creator of WordPress, stated on GeekBrief.tv that this release of WordPress is “probably the largest release of WordPress in about two years.” He continued by making everyone aware of several other improvements to the WordPress content management system:

• A redesigned back-end
• Richer media features
• Built-in image galleries
• One-click plugin upgrades

Regardless, everything seems to be going smoothly so far, and while it might require a few people to get adjusted, these improvements appear to be for the better.

Unfortunately, it appears that there are still some issues with Mac operating systems not being able to properly resize images, but perhaps this issue is going to be fixed soon.

Overall, I’d say that the community and developers are pleased with the results. WordPress continues to grow.

Guide for New and Amatuer Bloggers: The Art of Professional Blogging [Part 1]

The Art of Professional Blogging Series:

1. Mentally Blogging Like A Pro
2. Technically Blogging Like A Pro

First, let me get the credentials out of the way so you understand where I am coming from.

I am James Mowery, and I was formally a contributing writer and social media analyst for Mashable.com—it is currently the #1 ranked social media blog on the internet today. I left Mashable last year to pursue my own technology blog appropriately named Tech In Demand. It covers topics including technology, gadgets, web 2.0, and games. It is where I often express my insights and provide analysis about tech industry.

Before getting into blogging I worked as a proprietary financial trader.  I primarily traded stocks and futures.  It is during this time when I really got a sense for managing risk, as having millions of dollars under my control (without even having that much money to lose) could shake even the most mentally stable men and women on this planet.

After that, I took some time to join a gamer site called Total Gamer Zone. It was there where I finally understood what I wanted to do with my life. My ability to write amazing articles that people appreciated motivated me to write, and write I did.

I wrote articles that probably would have taken the average person days to write, and I did it in a matter of a few hours.  The words simply came to me, and having fast fingers helped as well.

All that was my into Mashable, which solidified my status as an authority on the topics I am so determined to write about. I hope this article proves useful and inspirational to all aspiring professional bloggers everywhere.

Part 1: Mentally Blogging Like A Pro

Let’s Get Busy

Picking Up Some Subscribers, A New Theme, And Virginia Wildfires

Subscribers

People benefit from having a community of bloggers that can be searched for. I seem to be benefiting from this as well. It is primarily the tagging functionality that is getting people to visit my blog.  So, if you are reading this, be sure to use really descriptive tags.

Think about what others will search for, and use that as a way to generate tags for your posts.  Try to pick both generic and specific tags for your posts. However, don’t abuse the system. If I went to a blog with no related content via a tag, I would probably be upset and never visit again.

Ironically, I never really expected to gain any subscribers with this blog, but I am starting to think different.  I thank the 4 of you that have subscribed, and I hope to make it more with time.  I will try posting at least every other day.  My main motivation for writing is knowing that I have helped at least one person with my words. Feedback from any of my readers is icing on the cake.

WordPress Theming

Anyways, I decided to install a new theme for Tech In Demand.  I actually like it more for its “magazinish” type look.  I’ve always been a fan of magazine themes for WordPress, and I am going to stick with the one that I installed.  I hope to customize it furthermore, and perhaps—if this blog gets popular—I will invest some money for the CSS customizations and try to mimic that design here.

Virginia Fires & A Terrorism Threat

(Image Credit: Associated Press)

The border between Virginia and North Carolina is currently suffering from heavy wildfires. It has actually gotten so bad that nearly 60 miles away I can smell the burning.  It has actually managed to give me a serious headache, and the fires are expected to get worse.  The officials think that the fire was started on purpose.

I think it is something that America needs to look out for.  It is not that hard to think that terrorists could start setting fire many of our forests with the intent to cause serious damage. Areas around here in particular are just starving for some rain. It is a scary thought, but until we find better ways to fight wildfires, there is little we can do.  We just rebuild.

A Few Useful WordPress Formatting Tips

Being a WordPress user means you have to deal with a few quirks of the CMS. Some of the functionality in WordPress just does not operate like it should, and some more of it is hidden away. Two of the three tips I am about to share with you I just learned about. Hopefully these will be of use to some of you.

I’ve Been Hard At Work

I have been working on a fairly ambitious article for the WordPress.com community.  It should be a great resource to amateur bloggers. Check it out if your hanging around here.

In other news, Drupal released the 4th release candidate for Drupal 6.  This is supposedly going to be the real last release (the 3rd was supposed to be the last). I am excited about that, and I keep getting new design ideas for the new site. Most of these ideas come up right before I end up sleeping.

Speaking of sleep, it is something I need to get to doing right now, but I must say that it is pretty amazing what will go through my head while trying to make an entry to dreamland. I actually had this amazing idea for a new social network, and it was something so unique and crazy. I just know it would be a hit.  The only problem is that I forgot most of what it was. I am guessing that I might have actually been dreaming while thinking about it.

It annoys me as I have been trying to get it back in my mind, but it just isn’t coming to me.  I am sure people have these types of moments, but they particularly annoy me as I experience them so often. Oh well, maybe I will dream about my other dream with a new dream in a few minutes?

To-do list:

• Track how many people have subscribed to this blog
• Work out the details with my new site design for Tech In Demand
• Make it through the rest of this weekend
• Figure out what time the Pro Bowl comes on television tomorrow

That’s all for now. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

My Thoughts On WordPress 2.3 and WordPress.com

In the past, I had signed up for a WordPress.com account, but never took advantage of it. I don’t understand why I did not, but I felt the need to sign up again. So here I am. I decided that I would quickly write some of my thoughts on WordPress 2.3 and WordPress.com.

WordPress 2.3

WordPress 2.3 is quite a step forward. On my technology blog, Tech In Demand, I just upgraded this past week. The upgrade went smoothly. I have no complaints really.

I do enjoy the integrated tagging support, the improvements to the editor, and all the other improvements. So in the end, I am glad that I upgraded.

WordPress.com

WordPress.com is a great site. This is one of the best and easiest ways to get a professional looking blog of your own for free. There are still some improvements that are needed to be made, but for right now, the service is doing well. I would be interested in trying out TypePad to see how that service compares to WordPress.com.

There are some caveats: space is limited, customization options are lacking (unless your willing to pay), and generating money from your blog can be difficult. These are only minor issues though. WordPress.com also has another great benefit: if in the future you decide to get your own site you can easily export all your posts to your new blog.