Is The Genesis Framework The Best Place To Start?

I'm going to be starting up a WP blog, mostly based on travel and discussions about travel, and I need to choose a theme. Some people on another forum recommended the Genesis Framework. Do you guys agree? If not, what are some alternatives?

 

There is 2 things you have to fix your self about it :

1- If you want to start a blog about travel... choose a good theme, edit it, and start your blog.

2- If you want to Develop Your Own theme and your own options.. with one word : Developing a travel website/blog Under wordpress so in this case you can use Genesis Framework, Hybrid Code, Thematic, Thesis and plenty others...

Goodluck

 

Well, the people who do Genesis have plenty of themes of their own, so I could combine the two in one.

 

If you want to start a great blog you first need to write, write, write and then write some more. A blog is about the content not the design. Look at the design of http://codinghorror.com/blog/ (a popular programming blog) it has little to no design. But what it lacks in design it overwhelms you with content, and not just paraphrasing content found around the web but real meaty stuff that you know comes from experience.

So forget about your blog's design. I say don't even host the blog yourself, start your blog for free at WordPress.com, Tumblr or Blogger. Then write your pants off and once your pants are gone you'll start making money from your blog (if that's one of your goals) and you can hire a designer to make a sweet looking design to match your extra sweet content about travel.

Good luck on your new blog and don't forget to post the link!

 

Thanks for the advice. I've already got a host for the forum I host so that's not a biggie. And I'm not really THAT worried about the design. I just want a nice simple theme and something with search and tags. Writing isn't a problem.

My problem is that I don't know any of the inner workings of Wordpress so I'm sort of starting backwards. Picking a theme seemed like a good place to start. Someone else recommended Genesis, so that's why I asked about it.

 

If you want to learn a WordPress Theme Framework like Genesis you're going to first need to learn XHTML, then CSS, then PHP, and then learn how to create a WordPress Theme from scratch, then learn Genesis. If you try to do it backwards it will make no sense at all, it's like trying to read War and Peace with out learning your ABCs. Good luck on your adventure!

 

Interesting. I was told the whole reason to use a theme with the Genesis framework was because it was so easy and a TON of options were already baked into the options. As opposed to a regular theme where you might have to make more code edits.

Full disclosure - I have NO idea how to use Wordpress.

 

Yeah that's how they get your $59.95. They sell it as the best thing ever but if you don't do the Alphabet list of things on this page, your future blog will be a huge waste of time and energy. It's really all about content, and I know you want your blog to be successful but trying to make the outside look great first while the inside hasn't been worked on is a non-starter. Look at cars companies like Jaguar, they have awesome design but everyone knows they will come with huge maintenance and repair headaches.

Again you can pick any theme out there but if nobody wants to read your blog you could have the best theme in the world but no one will be reading it. Just write!

 

We're on the same page chief. If the Genesis isn't worth bothering with, then I'll just pick something off Themeforest.

To be honest, I'm not trying to be all "I'm going to make a mint on this blog!" I just want a nice looking place to spill my mind so that I can help people out.

 

I have been using Genesis framework, and I like it. Choose a child theme that you like. Of course, you have to spend some money and do make your choice carefully.

 

I work almost exclusively with the Genesis framework and highly recommend it. You do NOT need to know HTML, CSS or PHP to use their framework or themes. Each theme comes with detailed instructions on how to install it and get it set up to look like the demo. A basic understanding of WordPress is recommended though.

Like others have said, content is the main thing to focus on when starting a blog. You might want to stick with a free theme and put your energy into writing great content and learning the basics of WordPress. Once you've got that down, you can move on to Genesis and premium themes.