One of the things that make Wordpress so functional and highly customizable is the vast amount of free plugins available to users. With a few quick clicks of the mouse, Wordpress
administrators can secure their blog, add a shopping cart, start a photo gallery or install a spam filter. With thousands and thousands of plugins to choose from, how do you know which you need and which you can safely ignore? Here’s our guide to the most important Wordpress plugins.
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Akismet is the spam filter of choice of most Wordpress users. Akismet checks
your blog comments against those in the Akismet database for known spammers, blocking
99.9% of spam comments so that you don’t have to spend your day in the comment trenches.
- All in One SEO Pack is a search engine optimization
tool that will help you insert keywords, meta tags and more into your Wordpress
blog. Take the guess work out of SEO and download this plugin now!
- Google XML Sitemaps. Top search engines around the world,
like Google, Yahoo, Bing and Ask.com, use XML sitemaps to index your site. XML sitemaps
show crawlers the complete structure of your website, allowing search engines to
retrieve pages more efficiently. This plugin not only generates a sitemap for you,
but will also notify search engines each time your Wordpress blog is updated.
- Subscribe to Comments gives readers of your blog a new
way to engage with you. After viewers leave a comment, this plugin allows them to
be notified of follow-up comments. This is a great tool for interacting with your
audience!
- Theme Test Drive. If you’ve ever wanted to change the
look and feel of your Wordpress theme, but didn’t want users to see the behind-the-scenes
testing, then this plugin is for you. Theme Test Drive gives the Wordpress administrator
a chance to try out new themes without viewers noticing. Your Wordpress readers
will see your site the same way they always have while you’ll be viewing the new
design. How cool is that?
- Wordpress Exploit Scanner. Take control of your Wordpress
install and keep hackers and malicious code away with this handy plugin. Wordpress
Exploit Scanner searches files on your website and database for anything suspicious.
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WP Page Navi gives your blog numbered pages and navigation options.
- WP Super Cache speeds up your Wordpress blog by generating
static HTML pages.
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WP Touch iPhone Theme. Turn your blog into a mobile paradise for your readers.
This plugin makes your blog portable device ready for iPhone, iPod touch, Android,
Opera Mini, Palm Pre and BlackBerry Storm mobile readers.
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WP DB Manager. Your Wordpress database has never been easier to backup and manage.
This plugin is a must have for those less than tech savvy Wordpress administrators!
Remember, just as too many widgets will slow down your blog, so can a high number
of plugins. Choose Wordpress plugins that will serve you best, but don’t go crazy!
Some plugins can be safely removed or deactivated in the Wordpress control panel
when not in use.
Happy blogging!