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When I first started and created a WordPress blog I noticed one of the default plugins that were included was the Akismet Plugin. Curious as to what it was, I visited the plugin homepage and soon discovered the greatness and importance the plugin has to offer.

The Akismet plugin basically detects if comments and trackbacks submitted to your blog are spam. It does this by automatically running tests on each comment submitted to your site, once comment spam is detected and identified, they are labeled accordingly making your job in deleting them easier since the work is being done for you. No more second guessing, Akismet allows you to spend time on more important matters with your blog.

To install Akismet, simply head to your plugins page and since Akismet is already included when you install WordPress all you have to do is activate the plugin. If you’ve deleted the Akismet plugin you can download it via the Akismet website.

Once the plugin is installed, you’ll need to enter a Akismet API key for the plugin to work. If you already have a WordPress.com account you can find the Akismet API key on your profile page or you can visit https://apikey.wordpress.com/ to find your key.

If you don’t have a WordPress.com account and don’t want to bother registering for one, you can obtain an API Key by signing up for one on the akismet.com website. There are paid plans if you choose to purchase one or you can also sign up for a free plan as well. There’s a quick registration that you’ll have to fill out and the API Key will be emailed to you.

Retreive the API Key in your email and enter the API Key on the Akismet Configuration page on your WordPress dashboard. Click on Update Options and your Askimet plugin should now be working. A couple simple steps in installing Akismet will save you hours in the long run in determining whether your comments are spam or not. Happy Blogging!

Have you ever seen an embedded video on a blog and noticed that it had the YouTube logo but the player didn’t resemble the normal YouTube player? It looked something like this:

This player is the JW Player which gives you the publisher more functionality, customization options and control over the videos you embed on your WordPress blog. The easiest way to use JW Player to play your embedded YouTube videos on you WordPress blog is to simply upload and activate the “JW Player Plugin for WordPress”.

You can download the plugin at its plugin page at wordpress.org.

Or you can search for “JW Player Plugin for WordPress” on the Add New > Install Plugins section on your wordpress dashboard. I find this method easier since you don’t have to manually ftp the plugin to the right directory.

Once you upload and activate the plugin you’ll notice a link to complete the installation. After clicking that link, installation should be complete and a JW Player will be shown with a “Big Buck Bunny” video showing that installation was successful.

One of the first things you’ll notice on your WordPress dashboard is the JW Player Admin section. Here you can Set up and configure the JW Player, Purchase a License, and Upgrade the JW Player. I’ll get to the specifics on a later post but for now I’ll just give you a run down on installation and how to post a YouTube video using the JW Player.

How to Enable JW Player to Play a YouTube Video

Now to the fun and suprisingly easy part. Now that you have the “JW Player Plugin for WordPress” installed and activated you can now easily start embedding JW Players into your WordPress post. You do this by clicking on the “Add Video” icon, from there the media overlay should be displayed. Go to “External Media” where you will paste the URL of your YouTube video. Click on “Add Media” and from there you’ll see media info of your YouTube video. WordPress automatically inputs the YouTube video information for you if available such as the Title, Description, and Thumbnail URL. Last thing to do is click the blue “Insert JW Player” button and your JW Player/YouTube video will appear on your post.

You will notice the code displayed to post your video is:

This is the shortcode system that the JW Player Plugin uses for embedding. We’ll get more in-depth with the basic syntax at a later time but for now, enjoy embedding your YouTube videos with the JW Player.