blogging | Ain't Complicated

(More and Better) Secure Passwords

Long and simple is better and more effective...even than sentence-based with symbols and numbers

So hackers and attackers have been on the loose against self-hosted WordPress installations.

This post applies to you…even if you do not use WordPress!

I’m here with a message for you…not about WordPress…but about practicing safe passwords.

Four years ago I wrote about Pitching Pitiful Passwords.

This morning I was reminded of a simpler, yet more effective, password tactic: Read it all

Dear Writer or Blogger

You have to convince your reader that your story is worth his time.

This is just for you:

You have to convince them
that your stories are worth their time.
—Tucker Carlson

It’s about your readers — you’d better listen up.

Pamela Wilson, in her blog post 8 Incredibly Simple Ways to Get More People to Read Your Content, notes: Read it all

WordPress: Invalid Security Token

So I learned from a wanna-be commenter here that efforts to post comments here (am I being redundant by now?) were failing.

Instead of the comment posting, this error message resulted instead: Invalid security token. Bad. Deal.

I did some research in the course of two days. 🙁 Read it all

My First WordPress Shortcode

Up until early this morning, I’ve resisted using shortcodes in my WordPress blogs.

But this morning I built my very own first custom shortcode. Sure, it’s simple and short and probably painfully plain. So?

I plunked it in my active theme’s functions.php file and it works great! I know that by putting it there I’m limiting its application to my current theme. If I change themes, I’ll have to add the code to that theme’s functions.php. Read it all

Perils of Borrowed Content

Whether in writing or public speaking, plagiarism is unethical.

At times I’ve seen lists or guidelines or policies on the Web that impress me as something I’d like to use as a pattern for my own site.

So I copy-and-paste.

Then I personalize it to my style and localize it to my site. (I dislike — and maybe disdain and despise — plagiarism.)

One problem with the practice of borrowing content is Read it all

Why Are You Here?

No, this isn’t some deep philosophical question, though if you want to answer it that way, that’s fine.

Or even a question about life, though if you want to answer it in that context, that’s great.

It’s just a question about why you’re here. Read it all