New to WordPress – Must have Plugins?

If you haven’t already.. I’d start with some anti-spam plugins..

SK2 Akistmet plugin

Bad Behavior

Other’s will post their opinions,.. I’m sure.. ?? =)

spencerp

Some listed here: WordPress Tools and Resources

Here is my 2cents on the ones I can’t live without. Sorry its such a long list, but these have worked for me tried and true for years..

My must have plugins include:

Bunny’s Technorati Tags – For SEO and Technorati links
Digital Fingerprint – To keep scrapers having to display my sig in article
Dagon Design Sitemap Generator – SEO, 404 page, sitemap
Fold Page List- Expand sub pages for asthetics
Fold Category List – Expand Category list for asthetics
Google Sitemaps – No Brainer
In Series – For articles that I have series and want to show related
Jerome’s Keywords – SEO
List Subpages – list subpages
Link Indication – Show Arrows after external links on whole site
Optimal Title – SEO and correct format for titles
Post Updated – Show when the post was updated if it was
Post Teaser – Show part of post on page to click for more..
Plugins Used Plugin – show all plugins used
References – show where I refer to in posts
Related Posts – show related links, SEO, user friendly
WP-ContactForm – must have to contact, easiest for me to use and config
WP-EMail – so people can email an article
WP-Print – so people can print user friendly format of post
WP-GenericFooter – I add a symbol at end of each article so known its the end.

Of course, I have others, but these are the best ones for me as far as have to have everytime.

Disregard most of the plugins posted by estjohn, you don’t really need that much SEOing or cosmetic stuff.

If you’re going to use comments, get “Akismet” and some other Spam tools.

If you’re goint to use Images in your posts, get “IImage Browser” (PHP Safe Mode OFF) or “ImageManager” (PHP Safe Mode ON).

If you’re going to use Pages, get “Search Pages”. Shame this isn’t on default WP install.

If you don’t like editing PHP files for you sidebar, get “Widgets” plugin and check for Widgets in widgets.wordpress.com

And a personal favourite, if you’re going to use the old Post view (without the damn TinyMCE stuff), get “WP-AddQuicktag”.

I prefer this solution over standard Akismet. That and Bad Behavior are really the only two “must have” plugins that I can think of.

Everything else is just “I wish WP could do this” and then getting the plugin to make it do that.

Wow, that was pretty rude of Stahn to say to disregard my stuff when thats what ribrob asked for was peoples suggestions.

I have personally found the following to be truly useful:

1. PHP Markdown Extra by Michel Fortin.
2. Bad Behavior by Michael Hampton.
3. WP-ContactForm by Ryan Duff.
4. Sitemap Generator by Dagon Design.
5. Notes by Michalis Sarigiannidis.

Thanks for your list, estjohn. I appreciate it.

Your welcome mrjcleaver. Hope there are some in there that you like!

He didn’t asked what we use, he asked what are the “must have” plugins. I don’t see how a plugin like “WP-GenericFooter” is a must have – you can live without it.

I didn’t meant to be rude, I hope you don’t hold a grudge at me for that.

In exchange I will quote two pretty useless plugins that I’m using:

x-Dashboard: To customize the Dashboard, of course. You can edit to show what and how things will get listed on the Dashboard. I use it for quick access to my Drafts and latests Comments.

Kill Preview: Kills the iFrame on the New Post view.

Stahn,
I don’t hold grudges. Grudges to me, like hate. is a useless emotion.

I have found in the past, what one person considers a “must have” another does not consider must have, but that is because everyone has their own opinion.

The ones I listed ARE the ones I consider “My” must have plugins, and “suggestions” were asked for. I can’t speak for everyone else, but I can “suggest” what I consider “My ‘must have’ plugins”. Just because they aren’t the same as yours does not make them “unnecessary”.

Opinions are like ******* – you get it.. everone has one. Others also read the posts, and maybe someone else found some useful. You will notice pizdin_dim also added a list of the ones found “truely useful”.. and they might not be “your” list, but they are the ones pizdin_dim found useful.. in other words another suggestion.

as for “generic footer” no, I cant live withouth it. It saved me hours and hours.. even days worth of work to print the same thing at the footer of every post isntead of doing it by hand. I have tried the same thing at the end of every post by hand and this is much easier, so out of the 40soemthing blogs I have built for people, everyone of them has used it..even if it was a different message under each post (some people prefer to have copyright info, some prefer to ahve a signature, some prefer to have an aend of file bug), so that is why I consider it must have.

To each his own and don’t judge someone else wrong just because anothers opinions is not yours.

Well said estjohn!

You started your list –

“My must have plugins include:”

YOUR Must have… I appriciate your suggestions, and have applied some of your suggestions to my site. But just like you said, what is must have for you, is not must have for others.

2 of MY must haves (bring it on Stahn) are because I use Flickr to host my images on the web.

I love using Flickr because it is free (pro service is a great value too) and make for seemless intergration with my photos, and my blog, without worrying about bandwith and storage.

Flickr Post Bar – This plugin will retrieve your Flickr photos and allow you to easily add your photos to your posts, via a click-and-add display directly below your post editor. I couldn’t do my site as easily without it.
FAlbum – A plugin for displaying your Flickr photosets and photos in a gallery format on your WordPress site. An amazing, no hassle gallery/photo album. You can check it out on our site: Rob and Kirstie Doar’s Homepage