This case study outlines some key WordPress related elements in the development of the Thompson Rivers University Intercultural Intersections website. Before we proceed with the case study I would like to identify a few undercurrents (I would use the word “themes” but there may be confusion with the WordPress usage of the word “themes.)
Fear of Code
Much of point and click, ease of use, modern computing is designed to shield us from code. Why? Because code is scary. Just look at it:
Sadly though, however much we pretend it is not there, WordPress is rife with code. In fact is is nothing but code. And if that weren’t enough, there are several different kinds of code:
So one opening undercurrent of this case study is a fear of code.
There’s a plugin for that
We WordPress users are always hungry for more functionality. One of the most common ways to achieve it is by adding a plugin…and another plugin…and another plugin. And why not, there’s lots of them and everyone seems to do it.
Putting these two together
But aren’t plugins (and themes) just more code? Sure they are. So who writes all this code anyway? Anybody can, that’s the magic of open source. So how do we know that all of the plugins and themes will work well together? Well, we don’t always. Most experienced WordPressians (WordPressionists? WordPresstidigitators?) have a process where they try to determine the providence and reliability of plugins during their selection process. (There isn’t time for that now though, talk to me later or by email or twitter if you want my opinion on plugin short-listing).