subject: Developing And Debugging Your Wordpress (for Non-programmers) [print this page] For those people who dont know a whole lot about computer programming, dealing with a tool like WordPress can be a daunting process as fiddling with code can quickly lead to mass confusion and hysteria. This is especially true when it comes to WordPress theme development as this has to be perfect since its the main external view of the entire website. But just like with custom WordPress themes, the themes that come with WordPress also have their fair share of bugs.
Developer or Custom?
When it comes to WordPress, this is entirely dependent on the proficiency of the user in question. But it should be noted that the WordPress developer themes will generally have less bugs than a theme completed by a user and downloaded from an external website. However, a custom theme will allow the user to have more freedom in design.
Developer Debugging
Firstly navigate to the WordPress dashboard and go to Appearance. The user should then go to Themes, click Install Themes, and then browse through any of the developer themes available.
Install the desired theme.
Then take the wp-config.php file and download it. This should then be opened in an editor like notepad or Dreamweaver.
Search for define(WP_DEBUG, false); and alter it so it reads define(WP_DEBUG, true);
Upload the file again and then check every part of the website for any errors in debugging mode. Its important to be just as thorough with this as one would be when installing one of the many custom WordPress themes.
Be aware that whilst debugging mode is turned on the website will provide error messages when any errors are discovered. These will often suggest proper solutions and links to the WordPress Codex, which can be invaluable later on.
Once this has been completed, the user can then go back to Appearance on the dashboard and then the Editor option to begin making the necessary changes. The file which needs to be debugged will be found under the Templates label. All necessary changes should be made and then the Update File button can be used to complete the changes, which then ends the WordPress theme development and debugging process.
