I've had so many ideas and from those ideas I spin off into making them reality and find even more options. More than I can keep track of. Software, it's advances, limitations and quickness to become obsolete/ unpopular, changes how you end up doing things. 

I wanted a web directory. But, keeping links became unpopular due to the SEO/ Google fanatics. WordPress and Joomla both stopped including their link management plugins/ extensions in the core software for the CMS. In the case of WordPress you can still download a plugin, Restore Lost Functionality, to bring back links and other features.  Joomla still offers Web Links as an extension, but further development seems very limited, if any.  

So, I could use Web Links with Joomla, I did upload and install it. But, I can't use it to import my links from WordPress. (I've noticed WordPress does not work well with other CMS). Also, there is no bookmarklet which I would have used to make keeping the web directory supplied with new links as I find them while using my web browser. Anyway, I spent a few days banging into road blocks with this and then I got the idea to change software. 

I did have PHPLD (PHP Link Directory), paid for it a few years ago. But, the support forums are gone. Possibly the software is no longer supported as I could not import my links even when I finally did manage to create a CSV file (which was frustrating in itself). There is an option to pull links in from ODP (but dmoz/ ODP is gone) and Google. This feature had an error and did not work. So, I have now ruled out PHPLD.

I've tried other web directory software, even considered other premium (not free) software. But, so many are old and seldom updated or lacking any support at all. I did upload, install and try several but they all had errors. Some would not even install at all. 

Now I'm looking at the idea of just creating pages of links. Not my preference, but, you have to work with the software (unless you know how to create your own, or can afford to pay someone to do it for you). 

There are page builders. I looked at lots of them when I was still using WordPress. Joomla also has a large amount of them. But, I'm not sure which are page builders, template makers, page editors, or something else similar with a different name. They seem to meld together and use the same description even when they say they can work as add-ons to each other. It's confusing. I don't like being confused. I think of myself as being an experienced web publisher. But, I am confused. 

Of course, none of them really have anything special for links. So, I can't say I'm eager to install any of them. It's a bit make-do at this stage.

Just moved the site over from WordPress to b2evolution. People have asked me why, a few times. There are a few reasons. But, for now I am fixing glitches with moving to another CMS. I like b2 and I don't think it will take me long to get to know how it works and where things are now. Meanwhile, images are mostly not working. Categories and tags did not make the import, not sure why. So I am manually going through my posts one by one to renovate a little. What usually happens when you move to a new place... you renovate to make it look more like the old place. :) People are funny like that.

Making my life easier, I have added comments from the original post to this post. I have been moving my site content to Joomla. It's a different set up from WordPress and b2evolution but I think it will be more active and user friendly.  Still need to fix the images with posts (that was mangled by WordPress) and add my links which I will end up doing manually, one at a time. But, I hope this will end the project of moving from WordPress to some other CMS. It has been a longer adventure than I expected.

Here are the comments:

Comment from: Jane Gassner [Visitor]

I lost the entire archive of MidLifeBloggers.com and JaneGassner.com sometime during the holiday season. It was one of those, "you only have 24 hours to migrate" and for various reasons, I got in at the 25th hour. I couldn't decide how upset I should/would be. MidLifeBloggers was a longterm venture that still got a lot of hits. JaneGassner.com, not so much. But MidLifeBloggers was old business, and I had said everything I wanted to about midlife and beyond. Jane Gassner had the potential to be new and, if not shiny, then gaining a slight glow about it after time. So I'm redoing JaneGassner.com but starting anew. It's springtime, and perhaps that's influencing me to not try to make it as it was. Considering that it wasn't that successful, it's probably a wise decision.

03/28/17 @ 09:27 pm

Comment from: laura [Member]

I really like history so that part of it would be hard for me. But, I have thought about just starting fresh too. Moving a site is never completely smooth and simple but I've been trying to move old content and have not made time to write new posts. That is kind of backwards. Starting fresh might have been better than trying to preserve old content (that mostly only matters to me).

03/29/17 @ 12:18 pm

Comment from: laura [Member]

I like your new site. Writing something for writers has it's own challenge. It makes me doubt myself and compare myself with others too much. I thought about closing this site. But, I do like writing it. So... here it still is.

You have doubled images in posts with WordPress featured image. I kept having that problem too.

Adding ASCII art to the source code (the HTML files) may not interest people who don’t look at source code.

The source code is an easy place to add ASCII art because those files open in plain text, no formatting or fancy fonts. So, the ASCII art shows up without much extra work, almost none in fact.

If you access your HTML files you can add ASCII art yourself, without the plugins. (See above). But, not everyone wants to do that.

WP Figlet is all about adding text created in ASCII art fonts (figlets). It even lets you choose which figlet fonts you want to use. The auto suggestions creates a figlet in your source code like this (you choose your own words):

It does work.

Source Code (although not updated in 4 years, also works). If you are timid about mucking around in the HTML files then either of these plugins will work for you. Source Code lets you choose to have the ASCII art in your header or footer. However, I found it did need the extra HTML code for keeping the formatting after I saved my text image.

One thing I dislike about Source Code is the lack of artist credit (artist initials). I checked several of the ASCII images available with the plugin and none had artist credits. I used my own ASCII image with my initials.

In the end… DIY.

Don’t be bashful about getting into your own source code. Skip the plugins and just do it yourself. Once you access the file it’s very simple to add the ASCII art with the code for notes. (See the first image in this post, no reason you can’t do that yourself).

I looked at 3 plugins to add ASCII art to your WordPress blog. This, Kilroy was here, is the first one I loaded up and experimented with. It does work but may not be the results you wanted.

There are no options to add the ASCII art to the bottom of your posts or pages. The plugin does place ASCII art at the very bottom of my site, under the footer. Below is my first experiment. I was pretty neutral with the results. But, I’m a bit traditional when it comes to the font I use. The spacing was out, the lines between text. Also, the top line of my art was pushed to the left.

I tried another ASCII, thinking a longer image would look better either way.

Adding HTML code worked to keep the formatting but, it shows up on the site.

Still it is nice to have a little surprise for anyone who reads to the end. So I will keep this plugin and see how often I remember to change out the ASCII art images.

I want to create a site which will be more than a WordPress blog or a site running with the limits of WordPress themes and plugins. I looked at Drupal and others but decided Joomla seems the most user friendly, with community support and enough extra features for me to have the site I want to build. Joomla is open source.

WordPress is still great for a site which is intended as a blog. But, I want to evolve. For years I have wanted to build my own web directory and create a site which will let me have a calendar of annual holidays and events which I can also use to distribute egreeting cards with my ASCII art. I have been trying to do this with various WordPress themes, plugins and just using WordPress as it is. It's not working. WordPress is great at what it can do, but there are still limits to WordPress if you want more content than an online journal or basic website.

I had a plan for my site when I was running WordPress but I kept bumping into roadblocks where WordPress just was not enough. I'd download one plugin and another theme and have them break, lack support or just be a drain on my bank account without giving me the results I wanted. So, off to explore new territory: Joomla.

Joomla Installed Easily

I loaded Joomla onto my web domain and now I am teaching myself how to get my site off the ground again. I like learning new things. But, I admit, I'm not learning as easily and quickly as I would have done when I was still 30-something. But, I want to do this. Another exploration for Laura the Explorer.

Installing Joomla was straight forward enough. You can install it from your web host, an automatic install which just needs you to type in a name for the new database you are creating. You need to know your web host information for the domain. This is the same information you would need for installing WordPress. So, if you have done that before you won't find Joomla a challenge to install.

I do find both Joomla and WordPress could have a more user friendly guide for the installation. Someone who is completely new to setting up a site will not have enough basic information to make the install go as smoothly as it could. I'm not saying the install is a complicated process, it will just seem that way to someone who has no experience at all.

Joomla Builds Websites, Forums, Portals and Blogs Too

I have found modules and extensions which I am learning to work with on my Joomla site. As a bonus, my sister runs her business site on Joomla so I will be able to help her from time to time too.

I'd write more about what I'm doing but I am just working in the background on my site, in the admin section. I'm taking my time and deciding which Joomla theme I want to start with now that I'm not blogging. It's all different when you step out from the blog.