Intro to WordPress | CAES Office of Information Technology

WordPress is a CMS (content management system) that allows you to quickly post content to the Web. You can use WordPress to publish both posts (chronological entries that can be tagged and categorized) and pages (static information that is not categorized). Using WordPress’s built-in text editing tools, you can post anything from a simple message to resource links to image galleries.

How do I log into my site?

Video Guide

To log in, look for the “log in” link in the footer of your website.

Figure 1. Click the "log in" link in the footer of your WordPress site page. — Figure 1. Click the “log in” link in the footer of your WordPress site page.

If you work for UGA CAES, log in with your MyID.
If you do not work for CAES, look for the “Standard Login” link.

Figure 2. Sign is using your UGA MyID or use the "Standard Login" link if you are a non-MyID WordPress user. — Figure 2. Sign in using your UGA MyID or use the “Standard Login” link if you are a non-MyID user.

If you have problems logging in, please contact caesweb@uga.edu.

I’m logged in now what?

After you log in, your landing page is your WordPress Dashboard.

The top bar is your administrative toolbar. Use this to switch from your dashboard to your live site, monitor comments, and quickly post articles, images, links, etc. If you manage multiple WordPress sites under CAES or Extension, you can switch between them here.

Figure 3a. Administrative toolbar options. 1. Sites. 2. Site you are editing. 3. Comments. 4. New Post, media, or page. 5. Account information. — Figure 3a. Administrative toolbar options

Edit Site vs Edit Post/Page

It is easy to confuse the Edit site and Edit Post/Page buttons in the top toolbar. Remember that Edit site will navigate you to the site editor and the Edit post button will allow you to edit the current post or page you are on.

We have additional articles on Updating the Site Editor.

Figure 3b. The “Edit site” option is visible while logged in on a live page or post from your site.

The central panel has helpful content to notify you of activity on your WordPress site, news of WordPress, and quick tools to publish posts.

Figure 4. Central Dashboard screenshot. — Figure 4. Central Panel Dashboard

At a Glance: a quick overview of Posts, Pages, and Comments on your WordPress Site
Activity: what has been posted recently, what is scheduled to post
Quick Draft: a method to post a new WordPress site entry directly from your dashboard

The left-side panel is your main menu for using WordPress. You’ll use these publishing tools to edit and monitor content on your WordPress site:

Figure 5. Publishing Tools screenshot — Figure 5. Publishing tools

Posts: write, delete, manage, categorize, and tag posts
Media: upload and manage images, videos, and documents
Links: enter and manage links for blogrolls and widget content
Pages: write and manage static pages
Comments: monitor, approve, and manage comments for posts

Keep Learning

Look at Publishing posts and pages and Working with images and video to learn more about publishing content.

Depending on your role with the WordPress site, you may have access to the following administrative options. Use these options to configure settings, user access, and other customizations for your WordPress site. These features affect the way your WordPress site works.

Figure 6. Administrative options screenshot — Figure 6. Administrative Options

Appearance: Here you will find the Site Editor to edit the appearance of your website.
Plugins: Here you will find any plugins that have been installed and manage them for your site
Users: manage users and permissions, edit user profiles
Tools: import and export content and find other site health information
Settings: set general preferences for your WordPress site

Keep Learning

Take a look at Customize settings to learn more about these features.