Klikr.net

In the last post I shared with you how to setup a multisite Wordpress blogs where there is only one installation of Wordpress codes that is required no matter how many blogs you have and run.

Before I talk about the productivity benefits, I would like to point out that there are many alternatives out there to choose from and you get similar outcomes with little differences between them.

I was told of a plugin called WP-Hive that could let you have a multisite configuration in Wordpress. I did give it a go and quite impressed with its simplicity in installation. Just drop the plugin, activate and you’re good to go. Personally, the only minus point is that I found no way to keep a separate database for each blog. I consider this as very important so that any problem with a blog can be dealt with without affecting others.

Another very popular option is the WP mu. I have yet to test this out for now. May be a little later in the future.

Now, should you go for a multisite configuration? And improve your productivity?

My straight answer is a resounding yes! And it’s not said without good reasons so read those below:

1. Ideally time required to maintain our blogs shall be minimal so that we can spend more of it on tasks which are more productive if not profitable. Blog maintenance may include tasks such as core code updates and theme and plugin updates.
2. If you run WP blogs, I found that plugins got updated very frequently. I am using around 25 of them and I see 2 or 3 updates almost everyday. Even though most plugins have one-click update feature nowadays, imagine having to log in to each of your 10 blogs and do a couple of clicks for plugin update…every day or so. Wouldn’t it be better to just one tenth of the work? The choice if obvious. And it doesn’t matter which blog you’re at the moment. Updating a plugin in that blog will render all other blogs (no matter how many of them) get updated too!
3. And think about when you installed a new plugin to a blog and you liked it and wanted your other blogs to have it too. You will then need to upload it to every blog which is tedious. With multisite, upload once and it is instantly available to all your blogs. It’s just a matter of whether you want to activate it or not.
4. Theme updates and addition is another big plus too. Imagine having to upload a theme and have it available to all your sites. This is marvelous.
5. Your file backup size will be significantly smaller which translate into easier handling and faster download or upload times.
6. You are better organized this way. I mean you can assign a single folder on your server to cater for all your WordPress sites, just one instead of a folder for each domain. In my case I have two main folders on my system – one for WordPress and another for Drupal as both are configured as multisites. I cannot be happier than this

Conclusion

So for just a one time effort, you get the benefits for a long time to come. I can’t help but to strongly recommend that you go multisite route!

{openx:43}