My first experience with web development was back in high school during the late 90's. Back then no one really knew about open source and most web design involved hard coding each and every page individually as you worked your way towards finishing up a site.

Sometime during my college career, when I was busy studying and drinking, that all changed. In college I did virtually no web design and figured I probably never would again - then I graduated and my father approached me about doing a website for the family business. I dove headfirst into coding the site that would eventually become the first draft of the Toomey Rents website and quickly found the idea of coding every page individually tedious and time consuming.

Then I discovered WordPress - the open source blog software that's really much more than it lets on.

WordPress, like many other pieces of Content Management Software (CMS), allows you to create individual pages that fit into your site's theme with little to no coding. This simple, extremely small, piece of software allows you to quickly and easily create a basic site or blog and offers some incredibly deep options for customization and growth.

The thing that I found most amazing about WordPress was how simple it was to learn and use. Within two weeks of initially installing it I had learned how to create custom themes. Within two months I was writing my own plugins - some complex and some simple.

When I got started I knew HTML but that was it. Thanks to WordPress I learned CSS, better HTML practices, and basic PHP in less than six months - within a year I had also learned some JavaScript. It wasn't enough to really do anything but it did make it easier for me to tweak existing JavaScript for re-purposing.

A few short years have passed and now I'm using WordPress, and a series of small blogs, to supplement my regular income and buy some of those extra gadgets, games, books, and movies that keep catching my eye.

If you're here right now you're probably either interested in starting to blog - or you're looking to get started customizing your own WordPress experience. These two things are what wp-Toolbox is all about.

A quick word. wp-Toolbox is about getting the most out of the WordPress platform we offer absolutely no tips or instructions for cracking WordPress, so don't ask.

wp-Toolbox concentrates on tips and tricks to keep your WordPress install running the way you want it to. We'll show you how to create your own themes, how to customize existing ones, and how to augment your blog to get it just where you want it.

In our first series of posts, which will begin tomorrow, we'll cover everything you need to do to install WordPress and get the basic “default” theme up and running. After that we'll explore customization, expanding your blog and even monetizing it. We'll also answer your questions and help you advance your blog onward and upward.

Along with our regular posting schedule we'll also take time to answer your questions and add simple tips for bettering your blog on a daily basis. If any of this sounds appealing be sure to stay tuned and feel free to contact us at any time for help or ideas.