Arty Ekema

How to Install a WordPress Plugin WordPress is one of the most flexible and easy to use website creation tools available. But what makes it so flexible? Well the straightforward answer would be to say that WordPress is what’s known as open-source. That means that anyone can modify the WordPress software free of charge, even if you don’t know anything about programming. But how can that be possible? How can someone who doesn't know anything about programming possible re-program a website? The answer is quite simple. All you need to do is figure out what you want out of your website and install the appropriate WordPress plugins. What is a WordPress Plugin? A WordPress plugin is a piece of software that can add different functions to your website, such as ways to gather statistics about how your site is being used or even some that check comments for spam. Plugins are essential for running a professional site if you don’t want to have to do all the heavy coding yourself. Not only are WordPress plugins important for running a well-maintained website, but you can also download as many as you want without having to worry about your slowing down your site, so long as you only download well-made plugins. A poorly made plugin has the potential to slow things down, but so long as you check the user reviews before downloading you shouldn’t have to worry about anything. How to Install a WordPress Plugin. There are a few ways to install a WordPress plugin, and a few different places to find them. Many can be found on WordPress’ plugin directory, while others can be found at numerous third-party websites. Regardless of where you downloaded your plugins from, below we have listed a series of easy to follow step by step instructions that should help guide anyone through the various process' of installing a WordPress plugin. Search in the WordPress Plugin Directory WordPress has a large number of plugins waiting for you in the official WordPress plugin directory. Here you can spend hours browsing through thousands of free and freemium plugins, the freemium plugins are usually the lighter version of a paid plugin that may not have as many features, but may still contain all the features you need without forcing you to upgrade to the paid model. Step 1 – Press the Add New button under Plugins. This will bring you to the plugins directory, here you can browse for plugins or search more specifically if you already have one in mind. Step 2 – Select the plugin you would like to install, either from the main page or by typing the name of the desired plugin into the search bar. Step 3 – Once you’ve selected your plugin click the Install button and the installation process will begin. All the plugins you can find on the plugin directory will either be free or freemium, so don’t spend too much time agonizing over whether or not you should try a new plugin. If it doesn’t work you can just delete it and find a different one. Through the WordPress Admin Upload Of course, not all plugins are free to use. There are plenty of places that offer plugins for a fee. If you happen to find a plugin that you would like to pay for you will have to use WordPress’ Admin Upload feature. Step 1 - Download the .zip file of the plugin. Step 2 - On your WordPress dashboard go to Plugins > add new. Step 3 - Press the Upload Plugin button located at the top of the page. Step 4 - Click Choose File and select the plugin file from your computer, if you haven’t already moved the .zip file, it should be in your downloads folder. Step 5 - Click the Install Now button to begin the installation process. Manual Installation through an FTP The last and potentially most complicated way to install a plugin is to manually install the plugin through the use of a file transfer protocol, or an FTP for short. If you are completely unfamiliar with how to use an FTP, we have included a link to a detailed tutorial here. If you already know how to use an FTP, proceed to the instructions down below. Step 1 - Unzip the plugin file and save it to a folder if you're not sure how to do that head to this link Step 2 – Establish your link to the hosting account and head to the Remote Site panel. Step 3 – Look for a file marked WP content > Plugins Step 4 – In the Locate Site panel open the folder where you extracted the plugin. Step 5 – you should then be able to upload the selected files to your site. Activate the Plugin It’s important to mention that after you’ve completed the steps for any of the installation methods mentioned above that you remember to activate your plugin. This can be done by simply pressing the Activate button once the plugin is finished installing. A plugin won’t function unless it’s been activated. If you aren't sure that a plugin has been installed correctly you can go to Plugins > Installed Plugins. Here you can find all the plugins you’ve installed. If your plugin is not shown on the installed plugins list then you may need to reinstall or activate the plugin. If you continue to have problems installing the plugin, it may be an issue with the plugin itself and you should consider trying a different one. How to Uninstall a Plugin What happens when you’ve decided that you’ve decided you no longer need a plugin? Maybe you’ve found a better one, or maybe you’ve simply decided to take your site in another direction. No worries, you don’t have to let those old plugins just sit around and take up space. All you need to do is head over to the Installed Plugins page I mentioned earlier and follow the following steps. 1- After you’ve opened the Installed Plugins page locate the plugin you would like to uninstall. 2- Click the Deactivate link below the plugin 3- Once the plugin is deactivated you should then see a link that says Delete. Click that button and confirm that you would like to delete the plugin. As a side note it’s important to mention that you should also remember to delete any bits of code you may have added to your theme template centered around that plugin, otherwise error messages will appear on your site. Conclusion Thanks to plugins, it’s no wonder that so many people already use WordPress to make their dream websites a reality. WordPress is incredibly flexible and easy to use, and now that you know how to properly install plugins nothing can stop you from taking your website to whole new levels of functionality, perhaps in ways you never even thought you needed. It's important to remember though, that a plugin only works when installed correctly. Make sure you follow the steps listed above very carefully and remember to use the proper installation process. If you aren't sure that a plugin has been installed correctly make sure you check the installed plugins page mentioned above. It also can't hurt to occasionally check WordPress' plugin directory for new plugins, you never know what you might find.