Codex page Installing WordPress: instructions issue

  • hommealone

    (@hommealone)


    7 years, 10 months ago

    I’ve been installing WordPress on scores of websites for years but never really noticed two problems in the instructions before. The problems are in the section with the heading “Finishing installation”.

    Most important: The screenshot shows the “Username” field filled with “admin”. Yet the very first bit of WordPress security advise that you can find everywhere is this: never use “admin” as your username! I don’t need to go into the reasons here. But the WordPress Codex instructions for installing WordPress should definitely not show “admin” for this field. In fact, the text instructions really should explicitly advise NOT using “admin”. And the screenshot should show something like “YourOwnUniqueUsername” or something obviously instructional.

    Second: the Codex text instructions state:

    Also displayed is a check-box asking if you would like your blog to appear in search engines […] . Leave the box checked if you would like your blog to be visible to everyone, including search engines, and uncheck the box if you want to block search engines, but allow normal visitors. […]

    On the actual screen, the field title is “Search Engine Visibility” and a checkbox for “Discourage search engines from indexing this site”.

    I read the form to mean: check this box if you want to block search engines from indexing the site.

    It sounds to me like the Codex instructions are backwards (UNcheck the box to block search engines), no?

    The page I need help with: [log in to see the link]

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)
  • Moderator Steven Stern (sterndata)

    (@sterndata)

    Volunteer Forum Moderator

    7 years, 10 months ago

    It’s a wiki! I added something about the “admin” login. Would you be so kind as to check that I didn’t mess it up?

    Thread Starter hommealone

    (@hommealone)

    7 years, 10 months ago

    Hi Steve,
    Thanks! Looks to me that the part about search engine visibility is now right.

    The part about the “admin” username is still the bigger problem, though, in my view. Hackers always target the “admin” user account – probably in part because that is what is suggested on this page! Literally anything other than admin is a better choice; “admin” is the single worst username that you can pick.

    Would changing that require a new screenshot? I could easily alter the existing one in Photoshop if that would help? (If so, let me know!)

    Also, now that I’m reading it carefully, “your choice of a password (twice),” is outdated and no longer applies. (It has used the improved password generator for some time now.) Probably better if it read: “your choice of a (strong) password,”

    Do you agree?

    Thread Starter hommealone

    (@hommealone)

    7 years, 10 months ago

    Sorry! Now I see what you added about “admin” username. It is below the picture; I missed it before!

Viewing 3 replies - 1 through 3 (of 3 total)

The topic ‘Codex page Installing WordPress: instructions issue’ is closed to new replies.