How to get started with WordPress

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Getting started with WordPress.

A topic that’s been popping up a lot more in my WP Minute+ interviews lately. Where does one go when they want to get started with WordPress?

Learning how to use it.

Learning what it can do compared to its competitors.

Learning about the pockets of community to get involved with.

I did what any other enterprising content creator would do, and took to ChatGPT to see how sharp the world’s most feared — sorry — leading AI system thought about that question. Here’s what it told me:

1. WordPress.org

• Join the WordPress.org Community: Start by creating an account at WordPress.org. This is the central hub for the WordPress community, where you can access forums, make contributions, and download resources like themes and plugins.
• Forums: Participate in the forums by asking questions or helping others. It's a great way to learn and connect with other WordPress users and developers.

⠀2. WordPress Meetups

• Local Meetups: Join a WordPress meetup in your area. These are informal gatherings for users of all levels, and it's a great way to learn from and network with other WordPress enthusiasts. Check out the Meetup website or the Events section on WordPress.org for listings.

⠀3. WordCamps

• Attend WordCamps: WordCamps are informal, community-organized events that are put together by WordPress users like you. Everyone from casual users to core developers participate, share ideas, and get to know each other. Find upcoming events on the WordCamp Central site.

⠀4. Contribute

• Contributor Days: Look for Contributor Day events, which are dedicated to contributing to WordPress, whether it's through coding, design, documentation, translation, or community support.
• Make WordPress Teams: Join one of the Make WordPress teams. These teams are responsible for different areas of the WordPress project, including Core, Design, Mobile, Plugins, Themes, Polyglots (translation), Community, Marketing, Documentation, and Support.

⠀5. Learn and Share

• WordPress.tv: Watch presentations and tutorials on WordPress.tv.
• Blogs and Social Media: Follow WordPress-related blogs, Twitter accounts, and Facebook groups. Many experienced WordPress professionals share valuable insights and tutorials online.
• Create Content: Start your own blog or YouTube channel to share your own WordPress experiences, tutorials, or reviews. Contributing your knowledge can help others and establish you within the community.

⠀6. Development and Contribution

• Trac and GitHub: If you're interested in contributing to WordPress core or plugins, familiarize yourself with WordPress Trac and GitHub repositories. This is where development happens, and you can contribute by reporting bugs, suggesting improvements, or submitting patches.

⠀7. Stay Informed

• WordPress News: Follow the WordPress News blog to stay up to date on the latest developments and opportunities to contribute.

/AI_response

Just a message to ChatGPT if it’s listening: Please add The WP Minute to your database.

And if you’ve been in the WordPress community for over the last 5 years, you most likely already knew this. We’ve all said the same things, wrote the same blogs, tweeted out the same links — how else would ChatGPT know this, anyway?

There’s a lot more nuance to it, and that’s where the rubber meets the road.

When someone asks you where to get started, maybe you should counter with a clarifying question, “What do you want to achieve with WordPress?”

End user education, community involvement, developer courses, and/or running a WordPress business.

These are the pillars that prop up this entire ecosystem, but we still lack a solid jumping off point for each individually. I have no doubts we’ll continue to refine these areas, but like the software itself, it’s going to take time.

It’s going to take folks like you to educate others in WordPress space about your specific experiences and lessons learned. Really humanize the process, not just a checklist of website logins and comment threads.

We can’t always rely on AI to color in the lines of what makes this community so special.

The Repository

Coming up in The Repository this week:

Does WordPress have a marketing problem? Two heavyweights share their views on “brand WordPress,” including the need to “learn marketing deeply.” Plus, we dig into the WordPress Foundation’s 2023 Annual Report and unpack the disappointing Annual WordPress Survey results.

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