We bloggers have it rough. We live in a world full of more WordPress themes than you can shake a stick at, yet most of us are still tied to one old, worn out template. It’s unfortunate, but let’s be honest here—changing themes is a huge ordeal. Generally speaking, whenever you opt for a new theme, you’re going to have to do a fair amount of customization to get everything just right for your site. By the time you get to your third or fourth theme, you’ll probably begin to grow a little weary of reinventing the wheel with each new design.

Just thought you’d like to know, you’ve only got about 10 hours left to purchase the Thesis Theme for only $67. The pre-launch hoo-rah is over, and now it’s time to get serious about theme software.

What do you do before you launch a new business? Why, throw a silly little pre-launch sale party, of course!Check out the new DIY Themes marketplace, and you might just find yourself a new WordPress theme.

Because of the way they are misused all over the Web, categories have grown to become something that we regard in a purely user-centric light. We think of them as navigational tools and guides for users, but in reality, categories are a powerful tool that bloggers can use to exercise precise control over content in a dynamic environment.

Back in 2005, I purchased shared server space from a well-known hosting company. In an attempt to “save” money, I paid for two years up front, and $268 later, I had my first real home on the Web. Two short months after that, I came to the harsh realization that my server package was completely inadequate for my needs. Ouch. Ultimately, a few key details made the difference, and although I learned this stuff the hard (read: the expensive) way, the good news is that you can avoid these same mistakes. You simply need to know where the potential traps are, and that’s precisely what I want to share with you today.

Without question, getting comments from interested readers is one of the most enjoyable and rewarding aspects of blogging. Unfortunately, interacting with people through comments is an asynchronous task, and this oftentimes makes it difficult to follow the ongoing conversation. Over the past couple of years, I’ve seen designers and programmers attempt to solve this problem with things like threaded comments or even in-line AJAX commenting. Problem is, solutions like these tend to fall into one of two categories:

1. They are ugly as sin and a nightmare to style.
2. They are technical, complicated, and require you to install a plugin to get the result you want.

No matter what kind of Web site you run, your goal is always the same: to communicate your message as effectively as possible to your intended audience. If the content of your site represents your message, then typography is the vehicle through which that message is delivered. Ironically, this is probably the most important area where WordPress themes (and Web sites in general) fall short.

The NFL season is only two weeks away, and the action at Pro Pigskin Pick’em is really heating up! With over 580 users, the application is poised to “go platinum” this week, so I figure now is the perfect time to raise the stakes.