This is a testing ground for Wordpress themes. It gives you a chance to see how Wordpress can be used in different ways. I’ve installed a theme switcher so you can try different themes I have made. Each theme will use the same content (database) but is coded to present them differently. The sidebars are widgetized, which means different parts can be changed without knowing code. If you are interested in any of these themes, contact me and I will provide the files. I will eventually have a download available here. I’m just a bit busy right now to get to it. Thanks for stopping by.

The themes I’ve put up so far:

Incense: Another of my Sunday afternoon themes. I’ve been using structural code written by others and making adaptations. It might be quicker to just slice it up myself and write it, but it’s a habit. This one might still need some work.

Dark Water: The latest in my themes is this dark, simple offering that builds on the basic code I usually use. Actually, I removed some of the structural elements because this design is simpler.

Maine One: This is a nature theme with pleasant nature colors. The image is of Mt. Katahdin, taken by me at the well-known overlook rest area. Sidebar is widgetized.It’s a fairly simple theme and the banner can easily be replaced.

Maine Two: This is another nature theme with the same files as Maine One. This one has a banner of Mt. Katahdin with a screaming eagle in the foreground.

Sidebar is widgetized.

Patriot One: I started with a basic template using clean code. I like the code by Arcsin, it’s easy for me to read and I give credit where credit is due. Then I added some simple graphics. As with all themes, the banners can be changed. The sidebar is widgetized, so you can get plugins and activate them. You can also add code to the sidebar.

Candidate: This uses a magazine type coding which I adapted from Justin Tadlock and Darren Hoyt. Customizing this theme requires some comfort with code around the backend. I’m still playing with this one as it’s a good way to learn what’s happening and get your own ideas. All the widget code is there and can be commented in or out.

Candidate Two: This is the same basic design as Patriot, only the colors lean to the red. I know my naming scheme is confusing right now, but that can always be changed. I named two of these “Candidate” to suggest that any political candidates out there might want to use one of these themes for their site.

Homework 2: Again, starting out with a basic code structure, I created and coded the stylesheet with the new graphics to look like you’re doing your homework at the desk. This can also be used for a journal blog. There is a Homework 1 theme, but it is kinda exclusive right now and can be seen at kharger.com. I’ll probably create another journal type theme soon.

Fractalicious One: Here’s a simple theme, starting with my favorite basic code again. I wanted to use some fractal images and this is a start. There are more tweaks to it that can be done, but this is a starting point. There will be a number two and hopefully a number 3 to this fractal series. I don’t usually make dark themes, with fractal images I will.

Fractalicious Two: As indicated, I worked up a darker theme. The css has extra divs in it in case I, or anybody else, wants to use them. The way I styled this, it doesn’t need the wrapper and container both. I could have simplified it and I may do that on another day, but wanted to publish this today. The fractal art was purchased from 123rf.com.

Wordpress Default: I’ve kept the Wordpress default theme because it shows the basic blog structure. This theme comes with every Wordpress installation and offers a cool customization script in the banner. You can change the colors in all sorts of ways. I’ve added the theme switcher code to it so it’s available for viewing here.

If you are not familiar with Wordpress, this page is an example of a “Page” which behaves differently than a “post.” Posts are stored chronologically under categories. Pages stand by themselves, but the content is also stored in the same database. So, content that isn’t going to change very often can be a Page. If you are going to have a lot of content under a topic, I suggest you think about creating Categories for those topics and use Posts as your content managment method. You will be able to manage your site better and visitors will be able to find content.You can create as many pages or sub-pages as you like and manage all of your content inside of WordPress. You can create an entire site using this method. It’s all in the planning and knowing what to make a Page and what to make as a Category and Post. When coded to do so, Pages will appear on the horizontal navigation menu automatically. So, think about whether you want your information to be a Page, or an article under a category.

The categories have their own navigation in the sidebar. Pages can also be listed in the sidebar. If you have subpages, Wordpress code can be setup to list them. There is also a plugin that will allow more customization for listing subpages. This is actually the About Page and I have it set as the home page. By default, the Home Page in Wordpress is usually the list of recent posts.If you want your site to look like a “regular” site and not a blog, you can set the Home page to be any “Page” you’ve created. This is done through the Wordpress dashboard. If you see a login area on the sidebar, it is a widget coded into the theme. If there isn’t one, I’ve not added the widget, but instead I added just a plain Admin login and you’ll see it somewhere on the page either in the footer or sidebar. This is used where you don’t have a lot of subscribers. If you do plan on having subscribers, you’d probably want the widget.