Trying to add a subscribe button to the sidebar

I wondered if something in the .htaccess file could be messing with it. WP created an .htaccess file when it was installed. I deleted the file a moment ago, but it didn’t make any difference, so I put the .htacces back.

It seems like a bunch of 2.6.3 sites are being hacked. I don’t think this is my problem, but since I just installed 2.6.3, I’m going to delete it and start over with 2.6.5, just for security. Maybe that will fix the problem. If not, I’ll be back in a half hour.

Looking at the source of your page, did you revert to using the text widget, instead of the plain code?

I just downloaded the theme you are using, to look at the files. In sidebar.php of your theme, the original file lists also other widgets, which don’t appear on your site (search form, calendar, etc.). Did you disable them from the admin dashboard?

Just in case, try to switch to the default theme, and see if the problem persists.

Another option, because sometimes error are silly small stuff (I have wasted many hours, to find out later that a comma or something like that was missing), did you check that there are no spaces between ” and “, or double slashes and such, in the html you wrote in the text widget?

The link to the feed in your test page is fine, while the one on the sidebar has your domain twice.

If not, and to single out the fact that the text widget may be the guilty one, try with the Simple Image Link plugin. See if that works as a test.

Good idea, start over with the latest release. I am upgrading right now as well.

Let us know if upgrading solved the problem!

Ok back with a fresh install of 2.6.5
Same problem as before.
I created a text widget and added the following code:
<a href=”https://www.gocanyoneering.com/blog/feed/”><img src=”https://faq.files.wordpress.com/2006/11/b28.png” alt="Subscribe"/></a>

If you look at the site, you will see a link that says “Subscribe”. This is interesting, because what it is displaying is the alt tag of the image instead of the image. The link url has been butchered like before.

In answer to your previous question. I left the widget in place and added you code, so you would expect to see both, but you code wasn’t displayed at all, only the text widget with the missing image was displayed.
Thanks for the suggestion about swithing themes. I had previously tried that. All themes give the same result. I changed to that theme, because it was the only one that showed a dark splotch where the image should appear which allowed me to right click and view the image properties. With other themes the image location isn’t visible.
I didn’t enable or disable any other widgets. It was really a fresh install, other than adding a few themes. Maybe I would have to enable those other themes for them to appear. However, like I said. All themes I have tried have the exact same issue, including the default themes. The 2.6.5 install you see now, is fresh out of the box. I deleted everything and started over. I haven’t even adding any themes. The problem behaves exactly the same as before.
The code I added is exactly as you see it in my previous post. I have completely typed it in from scratch several times. There are no typos unless you can find one in my previous post (I copied and pasted directly from the text wideget).
Thanks for you help!

Ok being that this is a fresh install, I have to conclude that there is an issue with this version of WP, or there is a problem with my server environment. Here what I know:

• WP 2.6.5 – fresh install
• Host- 1and1 (dont laugh)
• mysql5.0 database
• PHP Version 4.4.9

See anything wrong? Is there anything else about my environment I should check?

This a real mystery…

If you are using other plugins, did you try disabling them to see what happens?

I doubt it’s a host problem, because the link was perfect in the test page.

Let me think some more, and also hope that someone else with a bright mind in this forum can shed some light. =)

I went to look at the sidebar of my theme (Primepress)… rather than html coding, why don’t you try to duplicate what I have, hard coded in the sidebar.php of your theme, hoping that using blog url, rather than the full path, might make a difference…

<div id="pp-feed">
		<p><a href="<?php bloginfo('rss2_url'); ?>" title="Subscribe to this Feed via RSS">Subscribe to Feed</a></p>
	</div>

the css to add in the style.css

/*-----RSS feed*/
#pp-feed{height:32px; border-top:1px solid #aaa; border-bottom:1px solid #aaa; margin:0 0 1em 0; background:#ccc url(<strong>images/pp-rss2.png</strong>) no-repeat 2% 47%;}
#pp-feed p{margin:0 0 0 65px; padding:8px 5px; font:bold 13px 'trebuchet ms', verdana, sans-serif;}

play with it, and put the path to your image, where it’s in bold.

Disable the text widget when you try that.

Hope this works for you!

This is driving me mad.
buddha trance, thanks for you help. Thanks for not giving up on me.
Im not using any plugins that were not installed and activated out of the box. This is an unmodified fresh install. I completely deleted the old database and all files. Then I installed fresh. I did not add nor modified anything. I did not activate anything.
The only thing I did was add a text widget.
I installed the Simple Image Link plugin you suggested. It seems to work, but doesn’t explain what is wrong with the text widget. I also noticed something else strange since I installed the new version.
https://blog.gocanyoneering.com/feed/ no longer works. It should allow you to subscribe to RSS. It is my understanding that is a standard feature of WP and it worked with 2.6.3.
What the heck is going on? I have installed A LOT of php scripts over the years, but I have never had this much trouble with a fresh install.
I could use the Simple Image Link plugin as a work around, but I can’t help but think there is something broken in my install. Until I know what is wrong, I won’t feel confident putting a lot of work into a blog using this platform. I really hope I can figure this out. Thousands of people are using WP with no trouble. Why can’t I?

I noticed that 2.6.5 did not create a .htaccess file. Should there be one? Could that be why /feed/ is not longer working?

“Host- 1and1 (dont laugh) ” this isnt a 1and 1 problem since i have used them for over 4 years and there wordpress support is one of the best. i cant think of any reason why anyone would laugh about this. I think this is either a problem with just your install, i dont know whats going on but for some reason something may be getting messed up during your install or your not setting it up properly in your options panel.

I understand your frustration, it would drive me mad too…

I don’t believe the .htaccess file has anything to do with it. I did not have one either upon first install and had to create one.

When I click on the RSS blue button I do see the feed (https://blog.gocanyoneering.com/?feed=rss2), but you are right, the regular link now gives a 404 page.

And the text widget is not an added plugin, right?

If I were you, I would install a local copy of wordpress on your computer (I do have local backup copy also for testing purposes). For this you will need an app that can run phpMyAdmin and databases.

If you are on a mac, you can use MAMP (google it, first link), for a PC I’m sure you’ll find it with Google.

That’s a good way to see if it’s a host related problem, or if the FTP program changes files during upload…

Talon, WordPress is great, and there is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to use it.

Any experts out there that can solve this???

@erichamby
What, do you work for 1and1 or something? You sound a bit sensitive about my comment. If I didn’t think 1and1 would work for my site, I wouldn’t be using them. It’s just many people have strong feelings against 1and1 and I didn’t want to get flamed. If I offended you, I apologize. I didn’t blame 1and1 for this problem.
However I stand by my deduction that this is a problem with either version 2.6.5 of WP, or it’s a problem with my server environment (such as my php version of something). By saying server environment, I’m not saying my server is faulty or setup in a substandard way. I am saying perhaps something WP needs isn’t there, is the wrong version, whatever.
Assuming that I didn’t screw up the install (twice). This is a fresh unmodified install, on a brand new 1and1 account. There are really only two variables here. The version of WP and the Server environment.

If there are any things I need to setup after a fresh install to make this work (other than the things I mention previously), I hope somebody can enlighten me.

dude i just made a comment like you did, you didn’t say anything wrong i was just letting you know that i really dont think its a problem with 1&1 because i have used them for years and have loved everything about them. The reason i said that no one should laugh at you is that most people that would laugh at you are using far worse host so they dont really have a right to ??