Should I use Multisite?

Read through https://halfelf.org/2011/dont-use-wordpress-multisite/ first.

Make SURE you really do want SEPARATE sites. No matter if you have separate installs or a Network, these are separate instances of WP, so you have data segregation.

Still do? Remember you’re making people ADMINS of their own sites. So do you want them to be admins? Full admins? Minus only a couple abilities?

How well do these people know WP? Will you be there to help ’em out later?

Tough questions to ask.

Hey Mika,

thanks for the reply and helpful post – definitely a tough one, I seem to fall into a bit of a grey area…

We definitely want different sites to make a clear distinction between the courses and the type of people who may wish to go on them.

We will only have a few sites in the network and I will be the admin for now, otherwise I’d like most others to be authors. They don’t need to edit the structure of the site, just post blogs. Are you saying that users have to be FULL admins?!

It sounds good to keep all contacts in one database as there will be some who will have a presence on Buddypress on multiple sites in the network. Any known issues here?

Leaning towards multisite still… sound good?
Thanks!

They don’t need to edit the structure of the site, just post blogs. Are you saying that users have to be FULL admins?!

No, what I mean is “If you’re going to make people blogs on a network and not give them access to adminster the blogs, you are not really using Multisite the way it was intended and may be really frustrated later.”

Think about the things you can do as an Editor, and what you can do as an Admin on a site. Log in as each type of account and try it out :/ You’ll see.

Hello Mika Epstein,

I read your post titled “do not use Multisite” and I would like to pose one issue that you might have overlooked or I failed to understand.

Yes, I don’t want the users on the MultiSite doing anything ecept posting articles. However, don’t you think the following categorization problem makes WPMU a necessity?

Imagine:
* A site that has news and blog posts, which needs to be presented as distinctly as possible (since news items maintain some sort of standard, while blog posts are of varying quality)

*That site consists posts in two languages.

* Of course, items will have to be segregated by category and sub-category based on their subject-matter/topic.

NOW, if this site is going to be on a single WP installation all the three things will have to be accomplished through category, sub-category and sub-sub-category alone.

For example: A post in English language, which is a news and covering terrorism will have to be assigned to Example.com/category/English/news/terrorism
In the same manner, an English blog post on terrorism would be
Example.com/category/English/blogs/terrorism

You may still insist this is better than the complications of WPMU.

However,
1/WP doesn’t allow similar slug for subcategories even if they belong to different parent categories. That means the actual url of category pages would be lengthy and less attractive than those in my examples

2/WP doesn’t allow(or I think) to create and use more than one dynamic pages that can be used as alternative front pages. That means there will be only one front page with all sorts posts from the site on it.

3/The category pages – atleast those I saw so far – are simply a list and do not have the versatility to be used as a “home page” of some sections.(I may err here, for lack of knowledge on the limits of customization).

Dear Epstein,
These are not idle questions. They kept me in dilemma for almost two months. I would be grateful if you would suggest ways to accomplish these things without using WPMU (creating subsites)

Thank you very much.

I think that you need to make your own post, and consider that nothing is an absolute.

A site that has news and blog posts, which needs to be presented as distinctly as possible (since news items maintain some sort of standard, while blog posts are of varying quality)

Custom Post Types.

That site consists posts in two languages.”

There’s a plugin for that. WPML, qTranslate, to name two.

Of course, items will have to be segregated by category and sub-category based on their subject-matter/topic.

Again, custom post types, categories, tags. A combination there of.

HOWEVER.

I never suggest that one way is better than another, I instead urge everyone to consider ALL of the implications of their needs (not wants, needs), and consider the different methods seriously. Better is entirely subjective. For every single thing I mention in that blog post, and the presentation I gave at WordCamp SF, I have done or approved of someone doing that in Multisite.

Because nothing is an absolute.

And that means Multisite is not an absolute answer for everything either. I see way too many people lock themselves into one answer and ONLY one answer ?? Hence my tongue in cheek topic: Don’t use WordPress Multisite.

There will always be exceptions.

Thanks Mika, I think long term, I’d get a few chosen people to become admin who are web savvy and up for helping out, as I’ll know a lot of the people involved. However I could do this whether this was a multisite or not.

The 2 elements that attract me most to multisites are keeping all users on one database (otherwise we’ll have duplicates and people having to re-enter their information on multiple sites) and managing everything under one wordpress installation.

Perhaps this isn’t using wordpress mu to it’s full advantage.
We definitely want different sites though, so maybe we just use sub domains and keep the installations separate.

Do you think that makes better sense?

We definitely want different sites though, so maybe we just use sub domains and keep the installations separate.

Multisite can do subdomains, and remember, your sites are ‘separate’ when it comes to content, so really you totally CAN do this in Multisite. I’d probably do it. Just consider the tech ability of your ‘admins’ ??

Thank you very much Epstein, we appreciate your effort to inform us the fundamentals and let us decide by ourselves.
However, your take/judgement is equally important for me and others.

Thus, let me pose one quick question:
* All things considered, for a site mainly run by one Admin(with others having very little familiarity with WP), do you advise making two WP installations rather than MU?

Thank you.

Pardon me Epstein.
How does Custom Post Type serve my purpose?

As far as my limited knowledge is concerned,Custom Post Type could help me if:
*I could have two Standard post types (say, standard-1 and standard-2) AND
*if there is a way to display all posts using one Custom Post type in a dynamic page.

Am I right/ or did I miss something?

After reading Mika Epstein’s blogpost on WPMU for the nth time, I noted the main concerns(atleast those relevant to me) are:
*The additional know-how needed to work as a network admin;
*The trouble of being admin(supervisor, upgrader, etc) of several blogs;
*The risk of having multiple deputy admins, who might not be as careful or as skilled;
*The difficulty of separating blogs hosted on a WPMU site, incase one decides to switch at some later date.

In that case, for someone who can be satisfied with a few – say, 2 or 4 blogs; it seems prudent to use several WP single installations rather than boarding on WPMU.

I imagine that search engines would treat them as sections of one site, esp. if the blogs are setup as subdirectories (rather than subdomains).

If my summation is wrong, I hope to be corrected.
If correct, someone else would find it helpful.

Thank you.

Oi, daniel berhane

MAKE YOUR OWN TOPIC FOR YOURSELF.

You are not unfold82, and unfold82 deserves exactly the same amount of attention you do. Every time you post here, you make it HARDER for anyone to help unfold82.

Go make your own topic.