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.com & .org ~ Which is which?

  1. tammyspianostudio
    Member

    I think I have uploaded/started/downloaded/installed a bunch of things on my computer because I want to have both a website and a blog. (I believe I have transferred both successfully today.) I used to subscribe to a host that had a template and all I did was click on the picture I liked, filled in the blanks, and presto: a gorgeous website (support and forums were dismal, hence the change). My questions:

    1) For the life of me, I cannot figure out which is which. WordPress.com ~ is this the blog? Can I have an icon of this on my desktop? (I cannot locate the site or my dashboard and the edits I made yesterday have been lost, so maybe if it is on my desktop, I can find it more easily.)

    2) WordPress.org ~ if this the website? Can I have an icon (shortcut?) of THIS on my desktop, too? (And how does one do this?) When I type in my website address, I get "SSL Connection Error". Does anyone know what this means?

    3) BlueHost is my host and I do not have any idea what their function is and how it is related to WordPress. I have been to the BlueHost site, watched many tutorial videos, participated in the videos, but how will BlueHost benefit me? Have I just wasted $85?

    To recap, in some random way I have managed to make it to my blog and play around, but I have been unable to locate it many times and login, even though I've watched the WordPress tutorial (or was it BlueHost?). WordPress is an entirely new ballgame to me and I'm sure I will like it once I get the hang of it.

    Tammy

    The blog I need help with is tammyspianostudio.wordpress.com.

  2. auxclass
    Member

    This might help a bit:

    For more on the difference: http://support.wordpress.com/com-vs-org/

    There are also some sticky posts at the top of the forum that should help a bit also.

  3. tammyspianostudio
    Member

    Thank you! Where are the sticky posts??

  4. thesacredpath
    Member

    They are in the yellow section at the top of the main forum page.

    http://en.forums.wordpress.com/

  5. 1tess
    Moderator

    They are at the top of the forum home page:
    http://en.forums.wordpress.com/
    Under "Welcome tammyspianostudio"
    below "search the forums"
    there is the title: "Important Notices"
    The rectangle is pale yellow to show it is composed of sticky threads you should read.

  6. tammyspianostudio
    Member

    I have read the stickys and many forums. Thank you for those helpful links and ideas. I am starting to get the hang of the blog now. The only thing I remain puzzled about are:
    1) How do I get my email address to appear as a link on my "Contact" page?
    2) What are categories and how do I make my posts and/or links get into them?

    May I also ask about the website side of all this? (Is this the correct forum to be asking?) Now that I am starting to get the blog figured out, I still have not built my website because I don't know where or how to install it. Do I need to purchase another web building 'system' (probably not the correct word), such as Web Easy Professional 8? I've looked at Concrete5 and Simple Scripts, but everything I read (and start to install) only leaves me with more questions. I have Windows 7 and have already purchase BlueHost.

  7. 1tess
    Moderator

    You don't need to expose you email address with the contact form shortcode.
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/contact-form/

    Your email addresses are never shown, and the sender never learns it (unless you reply to the email!).
    All contact form messages are filtered through Akismet, so the amount of spam you receive will be minimal, if not zero.
    Visitors can type anything into the name and email boxes, so it is easy to fake an identity. If a logged-in WordPress.com user sends you a message, the email will tell you that it was sent by a verified user and you can trust the name and email. As with anything online, know that anonymity is both a curse and a blessing :)
    You can include any text or other allowed elements above or below the contact form

  8. 1tess
    Moderator

    When you make a post, it will appear at the top of your front page. Your newest post will always be at the top of the page. Older posts, in reverse chronological order, will be below or on archive pages. You will most likely be writing about various topics so you can use categories to organize your posts. There is a category module on your post or page editing screen. (If you don't see it, look top right: screen options, check to enable.) That is one place you can create and assign categories.
    The article describe other ways to add categories, and ways to manage them:
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/posts/categories/
    Put a categories widget into your sidebar, then you and your readers can easily find the posts you (they) are interested in.

  9. 1tess
    Moderator

    Categories help to organize your blog. But they play another role as well: your categories become part of the Global Tag system on WordPress.com. People surfing around categories of interest to them can come across your blog. And search engines will find your blog as well.

    In terms of search engines, tags work the same way, though I don't find them useful for organizing my blog. Categories can have subcategories, so you can have broad topics like Music, or Cooking, or Miscellaneous. Music could have child categories: piano, clarinet, basoon… Cooking could have child categories such as cakes, casseroles,etc. Tags are useful to describe some details within a post: name of the composer, or song, or mangoes or ginkgo nuts.

    http://en.support.wordpress.com/posts/tags/

  10. 1tess
    Moderator

    Oops. Forgot these links:
    Global tags
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/global-tags/
    More info about categories vs tags
    http://en.support.wordpress.com/posts/categories-vs-tags/

  11. 1tess
    Moderator

    Now that I am starting to get the blog figured out, I still have not built my website because I don't know where or how to install it.

    You can use WordPress.com to build a website (a blog is a special kind of website). I think you can even redirect your wp.com site to have a url without the wordpress.com at the end of it.
    http://tammyspianostudio.com as opposed to http://tammyspianostudio.wordpress.com

    http://en.support.wordpress.com/domain-mapping/
    I don't know much about this process. It might be good to start another thread with this question. Make it easier for another volunteer to help you.

  12. 1tess
    Moderator

    The other way to go with your website, is to use the free software from WordPress.ORG to build your site. You have a host, BlueHost. They are the folks who will get your site online. You must also purchase a domain name like tammyspianostudio.com.

  13. 1tess
    Moderator

    Here is a thread about hosting your own site:
    http://en.forums.wordpress.com/topic/what-and-how-to-start-self-host-blog?replies=10

  14. tammyspianostudio
    Member

    You have been very helpful. This is a lot of information to digest and I thank you.

    I have purchased and transferred my domain name to BlueHost, so that is taken care of. I will go through all of the information you have graciously provided and hopefully come back with a solution.

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