I stumbled across this series of instructional videos buried in the Themeforest web site. The presenter, Drew Douglas, does a great job of progressing through all pieces of WordPress in real time. If you have at least a cursory understanding of HTML, CSS, PHP, and PhotoShop this series will get you up and running fast with Wordpress development.
If you haven’t already, check out the Themeforest web site for a wealth of theming resources.
Day 1: Installation
Installation of Wordpress with a bonus of setting up a MAMP, or XAMPP development server on your desktop complete with web server, mysql, and PHP.
Tutorial reference links
Day 2: Basics
Explores the basics including the ins and outs or the Wordpress Admin panel.
Day 3: Create a theme from scratch.
It’s easier than you may think.
Day 4: Looping
Learn how to loop through arrays of information like posts and pages. There are lots of neat tricks along the way.
Day 5: More Functions
Divide a page with header, sidebar and footer files. Learn to set up a widget ready section.
Tutorial reference links
Day 6: Wordpress Template Heirarchy
This session investigates the template hierarchy as well as an in depth look at the single.php file – the page the displays static pages.
Tutorial reference links
Day 7: Widget Ready Sidebar
Tutorial reference links
Day 8: Intro to Managing Comments
The presenter discusses how to create the form necessary for posting comments. Also, he shows how to insert security checks at the top of an include file. And lastly he shows how to easily add avatars to comment posts.
Tutorial reference links
- Unraveling the secrets to comments.php
- Codex:Using gravatars
- Top 10 tutorials for working with Wordpress comments
Day 9: Advanced Comments
Drew shows the advanced commenting options (threading, pagination, etc) introduced in version 2.7, and how to upgrade older templates.
Tutorial reference links
Day 10: Create a Basic Plugin
Lots covered in this episode.
Tutorial reference links
Day 11: More with PSDs
This video demonstrates the process of translating a PSD design into a Wordpress theme.
Tutorial reference links
Day 12: More PSD – Slicing
Tutorial reference links
- NETTUTS-Slice and Dice That PSD!
- Snook.ca-Slicing in Photoshop and Fireworks
- 12 Fantastic PSD to HTML Tutorials
Day 13: Styling Wordpress
This session covers a basic reset, and coding the home page.
Tutorial reference links
Day 14: Styling the Static Page
Enjoy seeing lots of great CSS and Wordpress tricks and techniques.
Tutorial reference links
- WordPress Codex: WP_Query()
- Quick tips for WordPress query
- WordPress Codex: Using custom fields
- WordPress Codex: the_content_rss()
- WordPress Codex: wp_list_pages()
Thanks for the compilation, Simon. I wonder why Themeforest does not have a page with links to each day of the series. BTW, they keep adding new slides (I think they just posted day 15), so I hope you’ll keep your post updated. We count on you.