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Eleanor Edwards writes for UK registered charity Give A Brick and asks everyone to Give A Brick (i.e. just £1) Whilst these ‘bricks’ pay for real-world projects which improve life for children, young people and the elderly, Eleanor is also in the process of building an online community that will provide a place for people to share their experiences, to listen and be listened to in a safe and non-judgmental way.
How to WPTouch Your Way to a Mobile Friendly WordPress Blog
-by Eleanor Edwards
Love them or loathe them, there’s no denying that using a mobile device to browse the Internet is becoming increasingly popular. It seems you can’t go very far these days without coming across someone taking advantage of their mobile’s web browsing capabilities and the increase in free wi-fi hot-spots in town centres is further proof, if any were needed, that surfing the web is no longer only a desk top pursuit.
Unless you have such a devise yourself, you’d be forgiven for wondering why this discussion is of interest. However, if you have a website, you should be interested. Given the nature of mobile browsing, just imagine what such a small screen will do to your beautiful theme. If you’re lucky, users will be able to zoom in to read your content. On some devises however, your wonderful creation will be rendered so indescribably odd looking, your visitor will leave in seconds.
There is an easy solution and it comes in the form of a nifty little WordPress plugin called WPTouch
The easiest way to install WPTouch is to click on the add new option when viewing plugins on your dashboard. Enter WPTouch into the search box and click on install. Although WPTouch is supported and tested from version 2.7 of Word Press, before you install any new plugin, it is always best to back up your site.
Although the creators of WPTouch have a theme recommendation that accompanies this plugin, it is not necessary to use it. Since it is a plugin rather than a theme, it will sit in your plugins folder and only come out to play when someone views your site with a mobile device, specifically an iPhone, iPod Touch, Android or Blackberry Storm (although the list of supported devises is growing swiftly.)
What I personally love about WPTouch (aside from how much easier it is to read blogs when the author has it installed ;)) is the ability to tinker with the settings via your dashboard. This aspect of the plugin seems to be underused at present. As a result, the majority of websites having WP Touch installed use the default image displayed in the header (a rather boring picture of a piece of lined paper!) If you have a snazzy logo (or even your gravatar if you’re branding yourself) adjusting the settings so that this logo displays correctly is simple. Here’s how:
1. After logging in to your dashboard, hover your mouse over the settings option (toward the bottom on the left) and a list of plugins will be displayed. Find WPTouch in the list and click on it. As you will see, you have a massive list of options available to you. (Incidentally, if you’d like to re-direct your mobile users to a different place in your blog when they land on your site, you can do this by choosing an alternative page from the drop down list under WPTouch Home Page)
2. Scroll past the advanced options until you get to Default and Custom Icon Pool. Here is where you are going to upload your logo or gravatar. You’ll need your image to be the correct size which is easy if you have Photoshop or similar. However, rather convenient is the link to an iPhone icon generator from flavorstudios.com. This site gives you step by step instructions to help you create a professional looking image for your header. This same image will be used if someone chooses to add a bookmark to your website on the main screen of their phone.
3. Having uploaded your image, you need to decide where to use it. For the purposes of adding your logo to the header, you only need to think about the first option Logo & Home Screen Bookmark Icon. Select the file you have just uploaded from the drop down menu. If you’re feeling very creative, you can also go on to choose what image to display for each of your pages.
There’s space to add your Google Adsense information if you choose to display this and whilst you’re on this page, it’s worth checking the list of plugins that currently are compatible with WPTouch and making any adjustments as necessary. Please remember though to scroll right down to the bottom of the page and click on Save once you are finished ;)
A personal note from someone who regularly browses the web via her phone: The few moments it will take you to install this plugin will repay themselves ten-fold. Every time I visit a site that has WPTouch installed, I mentally thank the author (even if I rarely take the time to actually thank them properly!) Assuming the content is good and all other things being equal, I am also much more likely to bookmark a blog if it has WPTouch as an option. It really is that much easier to read from a mobile device.
Over to you. Any questions?
Eleanor Edwards writes for UK registered charity Give A Brick (i.e., £1). Each brick helps pay for projects improving life for children, young people and elderly. Eleanor is also building a community for sharing experience. Listen and be listened to, safely, non-judgmentally.
I am also very grateful when blogs have WPTouch activated. I read and comment a lot from my android phone (like right now) and while some sites look fine as they are with my awesome phone, sites with 2 or more sidebars are a mess (like mine).
Thanks for the reminder to get in there and customize my mobile theme a bit more.
.-= Carlos Velez´s last blog ..Sunday Short: A Definition, A New Experiment/Series On Conscious Me =-.
I’m still a little wary about commenting from my phone. This site, for example, always sends my comments to spam when I use it. Nothing more frustrating that formulating the perfect quip only to have it end up in a spam folder ;)
As for customization, it really is very easy and yet very few people seem to bother. You’ve got no excuse given how talented your lovely wife is with graphics. I’m sure if you ask her nicely she’ll easily whip you up a small little icon :)
.-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..What do you do when your bottle threatens to pop? =-.
I have just discovered that Dave’s site really doesn’t like it when you put html links in your comments. The same thing happened yesterday when I tried too hard to be clever ;)
OK, so before I got thrown in the spam Carlos, I was just saying that I personally am wary of commenting via my phone. It seems to send some sites into a whirl and I get all sorts of unpleasant results.
But customization of the plug in is very easy. If a non-graphics-minded idiot like me can do it, any one can ;)
.-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..What do you do when your bottle threatens to pop? =-.
I deactivated 2 plugins after finding 5 false positives in spam this morning.
We’ll see what happens now.
Eleanor, thanks writing today. These kinds of fact-rich articles invariably get a lot of long term search traffic.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..How to WPTouch Your Way to a Mobile Friendly WordPress Blog =-.
You’re very welcome. The pleasure was all mine :) It was fun to write something that wouldn’t be suitable for Give A Brick and truth be told, after this and the one I did for Heather, I’m getting something of a bug for it. Might have to start putting myself about a bit. In between the other couple of projects of course ;)
.-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..What do you do when your bottle threatens to pop? =-.
Now I have it.
Didn’t realise it was that big a deal until now though; ah well, my blog should offend your eyes no more!
.-= Heather´s last blog ..The Mayans: Login Part 1 =-.
Your blog is never an offence Heather. How could an artist’s blog be anything other than fabulous? Having just navigated there via my phone, it seems that your site doesn’t like the plugin very much. I’m getting a 404 error which I don’t get from the mac.
I can’t remember if this plugin was a pain on blogs that are on a subdomain. I’ll have to check.
.-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..What do you do when your bottle threatens to pop? =-.
*groan* That’s gonna be fun. I’ll just double check it works from my computer actually, had to move something to make something else work properly and its possibly taken offence.
Ok, looks ok from here. I’ll check into it as well.
.-= Heather´s last blog ..The Mayans: Login Part 1 =-.
In the spirit of testing and tweaking, this comment is just me testing out whether your site looks better now sans those two pluggins.
You wont see a difference. It’s a matter of how much spam Akismet misses. (A lot) And how much I’m willing to put up with (We’ll see)
Sorry, what I meant to say was I was doing it from my iPhone. And it worked!! Back on the mac now though as it’s still a swine to add a reply via the phone ;)
Eleanor,
You know I never gave a thought to anybody reading my blog from their phone. I would never do it so I never worried about them. High quality customer service right? Just what you might expect from an old coot. Actually I never knew about that plugin and lately I have been trying to pare down the number of plugins by actually understanding what they do and then deciding if I need rather than whoever recommended it in the first place. Seems like I would be unfriendly to not install it now that I know.
.-= Ralph´s last blog ..Shameless plug for Cantankerous Old Coots =-.
I’m feeling cantankerous myself at the moment.
watchv out. Once you start it is hard to stop.
.-= Ralph´s last blog ..Shameless plug for Cantankerous Old Coots =-.
Carlos got me into the mobile site too. I had no idea the fancy phones needed their own theme.
.-= Justin Matthews´s last blog ..Our Fighting Men, Our Peace of Mind. =-.
Yeah, they’ll all need their own CSS, iPhone, Andriod, etc.
Keep up with the plugin you shouldn’t have to worry about it.
-d
crap I gotta get a post out for tomorrow…
I was never too concern about mobile topics until now, it’s something to think about. It’s a pity that I didn’t get to see how my site looks like in mobile devices, here are too many limitations that mobile is never a good option. I was just talking about this with my husband how convenient and cost-effective to own a mobile device in advanced countries, network coverage is never an issue, accessible in various areas. You got my attention, Eleanor. I need to give this plugin a try after this.
@wchingya
Social/Blogging Tracker
.-= Ching Ya´s last blog ..How to Manage Busy Social Networking Life with Multiple Projects at Hand =-.
I just wonder, is there a way to check how it works out for those who don’t have an iPhone? If only there’s a browser for that.
.-= Ching Ya´s last blog ..How to Manage Busy Social Networking Life with Multiple Projects at Hand =-.
That’s a really good question, and if you find an answer, I’d love to have a (heh) short guest post about it!
It would tie really nicely with Eleanor’s.
There is a very simple and easy answer. Do you want me to spoil your fun and tell you or should we wait for that guest post?
I’ll give you a hint if you like?
I think I found it. :) But I like to confirm with you Eleanor. Does the solution begins with the letter ‘s’?
.-= Ching Ya´s last blog ..How to Manage Busy Social Networking Life with Multiple Projects at Hand =-.
Yep, that would be one answer :) Just searching out where I found the other one. Will send you a dm when I find it again. They’ve only gone and redesigned their website since I last looked ;)
.-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..1 Minute Motivator: People are your greatest resource =-.
You’ve been a big motivator, Eleanor. I’m going to try this one out as a support for your informative post. Will keep in touch and update my findings.
Dave, if this works, I’ll be honored to share the results here. :)
.-= Ching Ya´s last blog ..How to Manage Busy Social Networking Life with Multiple Projects at Hand =-.
That would be really cool, Ching Ya.
Excellent, thank you :) I had to stop looking for the other answer and get the children ready for school but I’ll look it up later and shoot you a quick message.
Latest phones with big screen can browse normal websites directly. Just like my HTC HD2. I don’t view in mobile mode but desktop version all the time. ;)
.-= Jayce´s last blog ..Top 10 T-Mobile HTC HD2 Tweaks and Hacks =-.
I want to be able to run this blog from the phone. Maybe from the iPad. That would be reason enough right there.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..“Dumb it down” they say… No! I say, “Smarten it up!” (Saturday Morning Surfing) =-.
The WordPress app for iPhone will undoubtedly also be available on the iPad (still can’t get over that name btw, always makes me think of sanitary towels :roll:) and that works great for replying to comments and writing posts.
Eleanor,
How does this plugin compare with the Wapple plugin; which is the one I’m using.
Regards
Paul
.-= Paul´s last blog ..Going against the grain =-.
Hi Paul,
Funny you should ask that. Every time I visit your site I always wish you had it installed ;) You know from this post that I’m very biased but I personally think WPTouch is the most elegant mobile theme available. It’s installed as standard on all WordPress.com blogs which tells me something too ;)
That said, your site still works well with Wapple. I certainly remember seeing worse – although fail to remember where which is good as I’d hate to be asked to name names :) – and any mobile theme plugin is usually better than none for most sites.
You need to play with them and see what you like . Now you have your snazzy new phone I imagine this will be easier for you :)
.-= Eleanor Edwards´s last blog ..Sunday Surprise: A rose by any other name? A look at life through a different lense =-.
Eleanor,
Thanks for your feedback. I’ve been tweaking my Wapple plugin, take a look and see what you think. I’m going to take a look at your WP Touch. I’ve sent you a Tweet about this too.
Regards
Paul
.-= Paul´s last blog ..Going against the grain =-.
Tweeted you back but replying here too because it’s valid to the discussion. The biggest disadvantage with Wapple (as seen on your site at least. Not seen it in action elsewhere) is there’s no RT badge. Since I always like to hit the RT button on my way out, feels like a wasted opportunity ;)
Eleanor,
Thanks again, I’ll take a look and if there’s no option I may be heading over to WP Touch.
Regards
Paul
.-= Paul´s last blog ..Going against the grain =-.
Paul, I hope you realize that once you do this comparison, I’ll be… ah… interested in sharing your opinion with my readers.
Such an excellent followup to Eleanor’s article.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..5 Simple Steps to be an Authority Blogger (you can do this) =-.
Dave,
That’s an interesting thought and yes joking apart it would be very helpful. It might be something to consider; a nice little exercise. I’ll let you know if I get anywhere with it!
Regards
Paul
.-= Paul´s last blog ..Going against the grain =-.