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Archive Your Instagram Photos on a WordPress Site

add your Instagram photos to WordPress

Instagram has become one of the indispensable tools for marketers worldwide. Everything from hiring influencers to hawk their wares, to posting stories about how things get made or how they got where they are, if it can be expressed as a photo, Instagram is it’s home. Recent articles in marketing journals have flat out stated that Instagram is the social network. 

But Instagram, like all other social media networks, is ephemeral. Content has a very short shelf life on social media and given the time that it takes to craft great Instagram photos, that’s a shame. 

There is no need for you to lose your juice once a photo has been buried in the feed, give it new life by posting it on your WordPress site. Archive all of your Instagram photos on your site and link back to them giving them life both on and off of Instagram.

This doesn’t even require a plugin. All you need are three things.

  1. an Instagram account
  2. a WordPress powered website
  3. an If This Then That (ITTT) account.

If you are reading this, my guess is you already have the first two. You may not however have heard of ITTT. ITTT has been connecting web services for a long time. You can connect a WordPress site to:

  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit
  • Telegraph
  • Youtube
  • Slack
  • …and more

All with the click of a few buttons on a website.

While Instagram is an Instagram → WordPress integration, there are several of the integrations that take WordPress content and share it out to other services. For instance, you can notify Twitter and a Slack channel that you have new content on your site automatically.

Since most ITTT integrations are written by users, there are usually multiple integrations for any given combination that you want, each with a unique feature set that you can tap. One of the WordPress → Twitter integrations will post the title of your latest post, a link to it, and a link to your bio page on WordPress each time you post.

One caveat, for integrations that post to WordPress, it will ask you for a user name and password. ITTT stores these credentials in their database. While they have never had a reported data breach, if they do, you will need to make sure that you change the password on that account immediately. It is highly recommended that you not use one of your administrator accounts for this, the Editor level should be sufficient. In case you’re interested to learn more about user access in your WordPress, we strongly recommend that you read the article on the Principle of the Least Privilege in WordPress.

Don’t lose your valuable content to the merciless timeline, archive, and even republish your beautiful pictures elsewhere using WordPress and If This Then That.

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Webinar On Building a Website with WordPress

How to build a WordPress website

Last week we had the webinar “Building a Website with WordPress” where we explained how to easily set up a WordPress site with SiteGround. We received many questions and below, you can see answers to those we didn’t have time for during the webinar.

Also, if you’d like to watch the recording, here’s the video of the webinar session.

Questions about WordPress site setup

Q: Before this webinar, we tried to build the site without instruction. We had moderate success but would like to start over from square one. Is there an easy way to reset this and start from scratch?

A: The easiest way to do this is to delete your current website and then add a completely new one from your Client Area. First, go to Websites > Manage (next to the desired site), click on the kebab menu on the right, and select Delete. Then, again from the Websites list, click the New Website button. You will be prompted to select a hosting plan and after that, the Add New Website page will appear. 

If you don’t want to decide on a domain name at that moment, you can use the temporary domain option and change it afterward. On the second step of adding the new website, you will be able to choose WordPress as an application for your site, and it will be automatically installed for you. On the third step, you will be able to add some extra functionality to your site. When ready, click Finish and your new site will be up in a minute. 

Q: Will I need to purchase a separate domain to launch a new website? Is there any drag and drop application to build the frontend of the website?

A: To start a new website, you may use a temporary domain (free option available upon site creation), or use an existing domain, no matter where that domain is registered. You can change the primary domain of your site at any time from User Area > Websites > Manage website > Change Domain. 

If you wish to use WordPress as the backbone of your site, you may add a page builder like Elementor, or choose a theme with in-built drag and drop editor functionalities. When logging in your WordPress installation on SiteGround, you will first see a WordPress Wizard that helps you select a theme and plugins, which then get automatically installed for you. During that wizard setup, you will have the choice of adding Elementor as your page builder. 

Q: In the time I build my site, what happens with the index page?

A: If you do not want visitors to see your new website while you are developing it, there are several methods you can use to restrict access to the website and make it visible only to yourself. For example, you can password-protect the website, set a coming soon or under maintenance page with the help of a maintenance plugin, or allow only your IP to have access to the site. Read more about these methods in this article. 

Q: Can I use WordPress to make mobile apps?

A: No, WordPress is a Content Management System, designed to be used to build websites. You can use WordPress plugins to build and customize a mobile version of your website though.

Questions about security 

Q: Is using Captcha good for security, which one is the best and secure Captcha to use?

A: Using Captcha is good for security. If you choose to use a CAPTCHA on your website, the most popular one is Google’s reCAPTCHA. Alternatively, you can use the Wordfence plugin, which protects from brute force attacks by limiting login attempts.

Q: I have a main domain that is working ok with the free SSL certificate. I have also set up a subdomain. Can the SSL work with the subdomain as well?

A: The standard free  Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates cover only the domain name and the www subdomain. If you want to have an SSL certificate for another subdomain name as well, you can issue a new, free SSL certificate for the subdomain. Alternatively, you can use a free Let’s Encrypt WildCard SSL certificate for the main domain, which will cover any subdomains too.

Q: How to make sure WordPress is secure? I find Sucuri too complicated. Any tips on how to set up a security plugin without understanding what it does?

A: Security is a very important part of every website and you could check out our previous webinar where we explained the key security “layers” which every WordPress website should have, or our podcast episode “Is My Website Safe” .

Questions about plugins and themes

Q: I’m looking to create a virtual online debating arena or hall for my video hosting site uunitedtube.com that is on the way. What plugins are good for me to use to allow two separate located debating speakers and over 100s of audiences to all video streaming simultaneously, despite all their different IP addresses?

A: The setup you describe is quite an advanced one and requires lots of customization so it would be best to hire a professional programmer to develop the necessary functionalities for your website.

Q: What themes are best for service-based businesses and ministries?

A: ThemeForest is a trusted marketplace for WordPress themes and they have several ministry-oriented themes that you can choose from.

Q: Which plugin should I use to get a contact address?

A: Contact Form 7 is the most popular WordPress plugin for creating contact sections or pages on your website.

Q: Can you have multiple pages/titles and run a blog in each page?

A: With WordPress, you can create a custom template that renders your blogroll. Then, on the pages you want to have different blogs, simply set the Title and URL you want and configure them to use your custom template.

Questions about posts, pages

Q: Instead of creating a blog post, if I have created a page as a blog page using the Astra template, how do I create an index of blogs on that page and create a link to open a new webpage for my new blog posts, instead of just scrolling down ?

A: This is a question specific to the functionality of the Astra theme and it is best if you contact the official provider of that theme for guidance.

Q: Can you please tell me how to display recent posts anywhere I like on a WordPress website, pages as well as posts?

A: The WordPress editor (Gutenberg) has a built-in block interface for displaying your recent posts that can be easily added to any of your pages. To do this, log into your WordPress admin dashboard, go to the desired page, navigate to the part where you want your recent posts to appear, and click the “+” icon on the left. Then, from the Widgets drop-down menu, select Latest posts, and click the Update button on the top right.

Questions about transfers

Q: Is there anybody who could tell me how to transfer a full website to a new domain if I have the same WordPress id?

A: You can transfer your WordPress to a new domain name using our WordPress Migrator plugin. You can find detailed instructions on how to use it here.

Q: How can I move a site from wordpress.com to wordpress.org?

A: There is no easy way to migrate a website from the wordpress.com platform without losing elements of the look and feel, unfortunately. Here is a tutorial we prepared about this type of migration.

Q: Any tips on how to move WordPress websites with emails to SiteGround from another host, e.g. Webfaction?

A: To transfer your WordPress website you can use our Automatic Migrator plugin. For transferring your emails, you can follow the step-by-step instructions here.

Miscellaneous questions

Q: How do you add an opt-in list (to start an email list) to your website?

A: You can use a plugin like Newsletter. 

Q: I have copyrighted science-based material that is for my site. Concerned about copying. Can WordPress protect my work? 23 years of research.

A: WordPress is a very well-maintained and secure software, but whether a malicious hacker would be able to hack your website depends on a combination of factors that go beyond WordPress. If you wish to store your material on your website, assumingly without allowing access of visitors to that content, we suggest that you password protect any URL containing sensitive information on your website from Site Tools > Security > Protected URLs. The tool allows you to limit access to the URLs you want, or allow access only to specific users. Also, it is extremely important to protect your admin login form with a plugin like Wordfence, or else that would stop possible brute force attacks. And, make sure you use very long and complex passwords, which you change frequently.

Q: How to encrypt the embedded video link in WordPress so that all view the video but can’t download it?

A: The embed itself can’t protect your video from being downloaded. You should rely on the video streaming service for such functionality. Note, however, that there isn’t a 100% protection against such downloads if the content is public.

Q: I want to add a captcha to my forum. How can I do it?

A: You can use a plugin to add a CAPTCHA functionality to your WordPress. One of the most popular CAPTCHA WordPress plugins is this one.

Q: How do I link my site to social media?

A: You can use a plugin to add a “Share” button for various social network sites. One of the most popular plugins that provide this functionality is this one.

Q: What is the limit of web pages I can have on the GrowBig plan on SiteGround?

A: There are no limits on the number of pages you can add to your WordPress website on any of our plans.

Q: Hi, where should I place the Google search console code?

A: It would be best to add the code to the header of your website. To do that you can use a plugin like Insert Headers and Footers. Once you install the plugin, go to Settings > Insert Headers and Footers page and paste the Google HTML tag code you copied earlier inside the “Scripts in Header” box.

Q: How to make WordPress + Woo instant load. My web takes 10secs, and that’s bad.

A: The problem you describe is specific to the unique characteristics of your website. It may result from a multitude of factors starting with simple ones like a bad combination of plugins and getting to issues like poor scripts added to the site, It is best if you hire a specialist to examine the website and suggest optimizations. 

Q: How do you get rid of the little “Edit” word under the “Home” heading?

A: The “Edit” button is a quick and easy way to get to your WordPress admin interface where you can edit the respective page of your website. It is only visible to you, not to your website visitors.

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When Do You Need to Hire a Programmer

UPDATE: In case you’d like to learn more about what goes into planning, building, and deploying a website, we strongly recommend that you watch our “Web Developer AMA (Ask Me Anything) webinar”. In this webinar, our panelists – popular experts Cal Evans, Michelle Schulp, David Bisset, and Mario Peshev – will answer various web development questions and share their own experience on the topic. You can also listen to our podcast episode “Do I REALLY need to hire a developer” where host Cal Evans talks more on communication with your developer, defining budgets, reporting on the task, and so on.

If you are thinking of building a website, a web application, or a web-based store, at some point, you are going to ask yourself the question, “Do I need to hire a programmer?” The short answer to that question is “It depends.”

Three Scenarios

The real answer to that question will depend on who you are and what you are trying to build. Let’s take a look at three common entrepreneurs.

Alice

  • Alice owns her own hand-made widgets store but wants to branch out into selling her widgets online.
  • Alice understands the intricacies of hand-crafting widgets of high quality. Alice understands to a great extent who her market is and how to reach them.
  • Alice knows what she wants her website to look like but doesn’t have the skills to stand up the site, design the site, and maintain it.
  • Alice plans on managing all of the content and products on her site. She just needs someone to deal with development and design.

Alice needs both a developer and a designer to work with her to get her site up and operational. After that, she will need her developer partner on a retainer to handle monthly maintenance, and deal with issues as they arise. She will need her designer only when she wants to re-skin her site or add new graphical elements.

Bob

  • Bob has an idea for a new service that is web-based.
  • Bob understands how his idea will work.
  • Bob knows what he wants the website to look like and how the application will flow.
  • Bob is not planning on selling multiple products or services, just this single idea.

Bob needs a development partner for the long haul. Bob should seriously consider hiring a developer either part-time or full-time until the product has shipped. Bob will need a designer to develop the graphical elements, but since there is a single service involved, the relationship with the designer will be temporary.

Mary

  • Mary wants to set up a webshop to sell her photography.
  • Mary is a power-user. She understands computers and knows a little about programming.
  • Mary is comfortable with computers and has always wanted to learn programming.
  • Mary has a steady permanent income, and this project will not be her primary source of income in the beginning.

Mary probably does not need to hire a developer. Given that she is a photographer, a creative pastime, she may not even need to hire a designer. Mary can start with existing plugins and themes and customize them as necessary, using the WordPress admin interface.

If Mary chooses a good hosting partner like SiteGround, that will take care of WordPress and plugin upgrades, as well as routine backups and scanning her site for malware, she doesn’t need to immediately invest in a developer retainer to manage all of that. She can set these things up herself.

Mary may need to hire a developer in the future if she needs the functionality that does not currently exist in plugins she can download or buy. She may also want to eventually hand off the management of her infrastructure to a developer partner so that she can focus more on her photography.

Seriously, It Depends

As we’ve seen in these three different scenarios if you need to hire a developer, and at what stage of the project, largely depends on the project, and on you. If you are unsure about whether you need a developer, chances are good that you do.

Invest a little in your project by hiring a developer to sit down with you and do the “discovery phase” of your project. This is where the developer listens to your idea, asks you a LOT of questions, and then presents you with a detailed plan on how to build out your idea. They will most likely also present you with a quote for what it would cost for them to build it out.

The great thing about paying for the discovery phase though is that you now own the documentation that comes out of it. If you have any doubts about the developer you have chosen, you can shop the project around to other developers who can take the documents and give you an estimate without having to go through another discovery phase.

Don’t wait until you’ve gotten into the weeds of your project only realize that you are in over your head. Make the decision on whether to hire a developer early on in your planning phase. Then, invest the time necessary to find one with whom you feel comfortable working. Your project will go a lot smoother in the long run.

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Webinar About How to Set Up Your Site on the SiteGround Platform

How to set up a site with SiteGround

Last week we had the webinar “How to set up your website on SiteGround platform,” where we showed how to install WordPress or other CMS of choice, transfer a site, point a domain, and more!

If you’d like to watch the recording of the webinar, simply click the video. Below, you can also find short answers to the questions we missed during the event. Enjoy!

Questions about SSL

Q: I see that I can enable SSL on SiteGround WordPress site in my WordPress dashboard via FreeSSL with Let’s Encrypt. Is that all I need? Can I also use an SSL plugin like the Really Simple SSL Plugin — or would that be unnecessary?

A: Let’s Encrypt is integrated into your account with us, and it is easy to set up. There is no need to use any additional plugins for that. In order to properly install Let’s Encrypt, you have to log in to Site Tools > Security > SSL Manager. Don’t forget to do the HTTPS Enforce as well so you can direct the whole website to the secure https connection.

Q: What are the differences in SSL certificate choices when enabling SSL?

A: We offer three types of SSL certificates – Let’s Encrypt to cover the domain you are installing it for, Let’s Encrypt Wildcard to cover the main domain and all subdomains. Those two are free for any site hosted with us. The third option is the Premium Wildcard certificate. Мore about the differences between the free and the paid ones, you can check from your Client Area > Marketplace > Hosting Services > Additional Services > SSL, or in this informative podcast episode.

Q: How do I force the SSL on my website?

A: This can be done from Site Tools > Security > HTTPS Enforce, this article might help you with more details.

Q: Do I need an additional SSL plugin manager?

A: When using Let’s Encrypt installed on SiteGround, no additional plugins for the SSL certificate are required.

Q: My website points to HTTP sites and thus does not work; that was my primary reason for choosing SiteGround. How can I get help with this problem? I contacted the HTTP provider, but they don’t respond to my requests for assistance.

A: The site may not be properly configured to work on HTTPS. You can reach our support agents so they can check the specific case, here are the steps.

Q: I installed SSL but my site still says not secure. How can I fix this?

A: The site might need an additional configuration. Either you have not enforced the HTTPS connection, or you have some mixed content that needs to be fixed. This article might of use to you.

Questions about website transfers

Q: I have three websites to transfer, which folders I install them in?

A: For each website, you would have to set up a different site with us following the steps from the presentation, here it is. If you’re hosted on a StartUp hosting plan, an alternative way is to add the sites as subdomains. See how to set up a site on a subdomain here.

Q: Is the webinar covering domain transfer and site migration?

A: Here are some articles that will walk you through for domain transfer: How can I transfer an existing domain to SiteGround? and site migration: How can I transfer my website?

Q: Hi, from Edinburgh! I’ve built my website using brackets.io. Can this be transferred into SiteGround? Many thanks.

A: This can be hosted with us as long as you are allowed to download and have access to all files. Also, please note that as this is a local editor, you will not be able to make adjustments on your site directly on the SiteGround account. You would have to make them locally and re-upload every time.

Q: What about migrating a SiteGround website to another SiteGround website?

A: This can be done with the Automated SiteGround Migrator in case we talk about WordPress websites.

Questions about subdomains

Q: What are a subdomain and parked domains?

A: A parked domain is an additional different domain that opens the same website/content as the main one. The main purpose is more visibility and better branding. For example, it can be a similar domain or the same one with different extensions at the end, com, net, org. A subdomain is a part of your main domain, for example, blog.mydomain.com. This is usually used to open another site but related to the main one.

Q: A quick review of setting up subdomains?

A: We have step by step instructions that will help you out here.

Questions about WordPress and plugins

Q: Can we switch from WordPress to another platform and vice versa?

A: Switching from one platform to another is a rather complicated process. There are some plugins that can be used, but the result is not guaranteed in full. In case you have to do that, rebuilding the site from scratch will be way easier.

Q: What are the most popular, time-tested WordPress plugins that you would recommend for bloggers?

A: There are a lot of third party plugins that work great, but the most popularly used on our platform are the SiteGround Optimizer for better performance (developed by SiteGround🙂), Wordfence, Yoast SEO, and JetPack. The best would be to install some and try them out to see what will work for your project.

Q: Is the WordPress kit available to people that brought their domain over to your servers?

A: The WordPress Kit is available for any WordPress site hosted with us, if the site is using Site Tools.

Q: Hi! I have an existing domain on the Weebly platform. I want to create a new website on the WordPress platform. I do not want my current website to go dark while I work on the new one. I want to keep my current domain with the live Weebly site. What do I do for domain choice? Use existing or temporary?

A: The most convenient way would be to leave the domain pointed to the old site. At the same time, you can set up a new site on a temporary domain with us, and whenever you are ready with the new site, you can make the switch by changing the primary domain and the DNS settings, here is a useful article.

Q: Can I change the order of my websites on the My Websites page? I also would like to change the location of the “Manage Installations” box on the Site Tools “Install & Manage WordPress” page for each website – accessing the website is currently at the bottom right of the page; would like to put it at top.

A: The websites on the Client Area > Websites section are automatically sorted by creation date. There is a filter though on the upper right corner that can be used for easy search. As for the Manage Installations section, this cannot be currently moved to the top of the screen but thank you for the suggestion, it will be taken into consideration.

Q: Weebly or WordPress – the best option for basic blogging?

A: WordPress will definitely provide more options to grow your project, but Weebly is a way more intuitive drag and drop builder, so it depends on your technical knowledge so far and, of course, your willingness to learn new skills.

Q: I have already created a website through a WordPress theme, can I modify it through SiteGround?

A: Once the site is migrated, you can manage it through us. The migration includes transferring the WordPress site with the theme you are using and all the content on it. Afterward, through the WordPress and theme editors, you can keep managing content as before.

Q: Does WordPress give us only one page? I tried to have different pages, and only one was viewable when the site is published.

A: WordPress allows you to create pages and posts. You can create as many as you need, in order to be visible, you would have to assign them to a menu. This is the official WordPress documentation that will help you out.

Q: How do you add a theme to your website that you purchase from someone?

A: If this is a WordPress site, we have a detailed article on how to install a theme.

Q: Is Weebly a tool for WordPress or a different platform to build a website?

A: Weebly is not a tool for WordPress. It is a site-building application that you can use to create personal or professional sites and blogs. To install Weebly with SiteGround, go to Site Tools > Site > App Manager.

Questions about domains

Q: Is there a way to rename the temporary domain to better track use?

A: No, you cannot rename a temporary domain. The temporary domain is used when you have not decided on your actual site’s domain yet, but you want to work on your site. Once you’re ready with your site, you can completely switch the temporary domain with the desired, real domain by following the steps here. Please note that you cannot go back to the temporary domain again.

Q: I still have the old cPanel with one primary domain. When will I be able to get the newer version?

A: We are in the process of switching all users to our new platform Site Tools in the upcoming months. You will receive an email from us once your website is scheduled for the migration.

Q: Is it possible to change the domain name to a website I already started building?

A: The name of your site can be changed to a different domain anytime. You can also use a domain for an existing site to create a new one with us. Contact our agents directly to elaborate, and we would help with the proper steps.

Q: Can you migrate a website into the new website (after the new website w/domain name has been created)?

A: Yes, you can create a new site by using the “Skip & Create an empty site” option and then migrate an existing website at a later point.

Q: I’ve been asked to take over a website, but I do not have access to wherever the domain lives. Is there a way to get it transferred without that login access?

A: You would have to have certain access to any transfer. Better to reach our agents for more information after we check the case.

Q: If I know the name I want to use, can I just register that? But, does that mean that people can go on my site and see what I am doing while I am building it?

A: Yes, if you already know the domain name, you can directly register it and start working on it. This is immediately visible to the public, but many applications like WordPress allow you to set up the “Under construction” page so people will not see the work in progress.

Q: I changed my domain name from 4bestsa.com to gbest.com, and the problem is I have to point the new domain to SiteGround. How can I do that?

A: This article will help you out through the process of pointing your domain to the SiteGround servers.

Questions about email

Q: What is the best way to transfer stored emails from another host to my SiteGround domain?

A: You can manually transfer emails over IMAP connection, we have detailed instructions for MacMail, but it’s similar for any other email client.

Q: How would you access those emails? Ie. Gmail, Outlook, etc.

A: You can access your emails via our Webmail client, or you can set it up on a local email software like Thunderbird, MacMail, etc. Here is a guide that will give you more information.

Q: Can you show us how to get quick access to the email account?

A: To get to your email account, simply go to Site Tools > Email > Accounts. In order to view your emails, the easiest way is to log in to our Webmail client by going to yourdomain.com/webmail.

Q: How to increase mailbox size?

A: The mailbox size can be increased from Site Tools > Email > Email Accounts > Manage Email Accounts > the kebab menu (3 dots) > Change quota. Please note that the mailbox quota is included in the total disk usage of the hosting package you have.

Q: Does the email consume the space from the hosting space?

A: Yes, the email space is in the total space allocated for your hosting package.

Q: When migrating from one SiteGround to another, will my emails be lost?

A: The migration process includes only the site. The emails are not included. To transfer your emails, you can do that over IMAP connection locally, here is a guide on how to do it over MacMail.

Questions about Site Tools

Q: Why we can’t change the database name in the new layout?

A: The database name is now predefined by our system due to security reasons, still you can put a label on it from SiteTools > Site > MySQL > Manage Databases > the 3 dots menu > Change label.

Q: Does SiteGround have MySQL?

A: Yes, we support MySQL databases. WordPress and many of the more popular apps work with MySQL.

Q: Do you have some features for other CMS like Drupal?

A: Drupal is fully supported on our servers, we offer caching system, backups, SSL. Reach our agents for more information and we will be happy to discuss it in detail.

Q: I am still on the old cPanel, any idea about when I will get Site Tools? I have been a customer since 2018.

A: We are slowly migrating all our customers from cPanel to Site Tools. We are doing it in batches as it is a complicated process and we would like to ensure a smooth transition for everybody. An email notification will be sent when your account is scheduled for migration.

Questions about site creation

Q: Hi. I am Jerry from Toronto. I just notice you are using Chrome, is that better than Safari to use to create a website?

A: Hello Jerry, you can use any browser to create a site and navigate through your Client Area with us. We were using Chrome during the presentation as it seems to work better with Crowdcast, the platform we were using for the webinar.

Q: How can I set up a multilingual site?

А: There are plugins that can be used for that, and that can be installed from the dashboard of your WordPress site.

Q: Can you create a website that doesn’t go ‘live’ until a specific date?

A: You can work on your site offline. You can set up a page “Under construction”. This is an integrated option in most of the site-building tools, but it can also be done manually.

Q: How to set multisite?

A: In order to set a WordPress Multisite, you need to install WordPress first. You can do that from Site Tools > WordPress > Install & Manage. Then, you need to enable the Multisite option in your wp-config.php. To do that, follow our detailed instructions in this help article.

Q: Hi Mila, thanks for this webinar. I’m a newbie. Is there a way to set up a website without going live?

A: Yes, first if you set up the site on a temporary domain, no one will actually know it so it can be kind of hidden from the public. There is a way to also hide it under “Coming soon” or “Under construction page”. This is an option within WordPress but it can be done for any other site building tool as well.

Miscellaneous questions

Q: What is staging?

A: Staging is a testing environment that allows you to create development copies of your site. If you’d like to learn how to create, manage, and deploy staging copies, check out our detailed tutorial.

Q: Is a WooCommerce website only for eCommerce and not blog and eCommerce?

A: WooCommerce is a plugin for WordPress, which allows you to create a site with integrated eCommerce functionality. If you wish to build a blog only, you can simply use the WordPress CMS without the WooCommerce plugin.

Q: How to use Cloudflare without www …….. do we need to set up from Cloudflare separately?

A: The Cloudflare service is only used when the website is accessed with WWW. More information on how it works and how to set it up here.

Q: What is the Purge SG Cache at my header?

A: This is to clear the cache in case modifications have been made and you already have the full caching system enabled, here is more information.

Q: Question is how to add the notification about having cookies on the site? Thanks.

A: Different plugins can be used for cookies notification. They can be installed directly from the back end of the website.

Q: How do we contact you if we need assistance?

A: The Help option is available on every page of your Client Area in the upper right corner under “?”. Here are the steps.

Q: How can I upload product pictures to the existing website?

A: This can be done in a few different ways depending on how many product pictures you want to add and what is the size of them. It can be done directly from the site back end. For example, in WordPress, there is Media Manager option. It can be done from Site Tools, or it can be done via FTP.

Q: Are there design & color options on the SiteGround menu?

A: You can change the User Appearance from the upper right corner under your initials > Appearance. But there are no other options on changing colors of your Client Area if that is your question. Reach us directly if you would like to elaborate, and our agents will gladly assist you.

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Website Challenges 2020: Have You Addressed Them Yet?

In our annual survey, we asked our clients what the biggest website challenges they foresaw encountering in 2020 were, wondering what we could do to help you overcome them. Now that the year is almost halfway through, it’s time to revisit what we’ve done so far to address those challenges and share some insights on how we help you tackle them, as well as tip you what to do about them on your own.  

Cybersecurity is The Biggest Challenge

The majority of our respondents (54%) saw keeping their sites secure as the biggest technical challenge in 2020. And we totally agree with you! Cybersecurity is an ongoing process that should be at the top of the mind of any Internet user, professional or otherwise. 

From the perspective of a web hosting company, here at SiteGround, we know that keeping our sites and users safe is a never-ending task. Hackers and all sorts of web criminals are getting smarter by the day and the constant and rapid evolution of technology leaves many doors open for software exploits. Keeping the software on our servers (like Apache, Nginx, PHP, MySQL, etc.) up to date is the first and most basic line of defense, but nearly not enough.

That is why we have a special team of security specialists whose main responsibility is to keep track of security reports and monitor for potential and unannounced yet exploits. Once they get a confirmation for a new vulnerability, they rapidly act to write custom firewall rules that patch it on day zero and protect the websites we host.

Then there’s keeping up with the latest technologies we can integrate. Take the encryption protocols that guarantee a secure connection between your browser and the server delivering the content. We make sure we always have the most recent one available for our clients to use – we were among the first to deploy HTTP/2, QUIC and HTTP/3, and more.  

At the same time, one of the most frequent threats against any website are the DDOS attacks, which are getting more fierce and prolonged as server resources are getting cheaper over time. That is why our system administrators monitor our servers’ health 24/7 and take immediate actions to divert the bad traffic through software and hardware devices. 

Then, there are brute-force attacks, one of the most common ways to hack a website by guessing their login details. We extend our server-level protection with an in-house AI-powered anti-bot software that monitors for malicious traffic and blocks from 500,000 to 2 million brute-force attempts per day. 

All the security work we do as your host should give you peace of mind, but it would work even better if you follow a few security guidelines yourself: 

  • Use complex passwords and do not share them with anyone. It’s recommended to use a preferably meaningless combination of letters and numbers about 8 symbols long to make sure that guessing or brute-forcing your password is extremely hard.
  • Install an SSL certificate. In case of a security breach, the encryption of the connection will keep your data safe (we offer the Let’s Encrypt certificate for free ).
  • Use two-factor authentication to log into your apps and more specifically your SiteGround Client Area. This will make it quite hard for anyone to log in even if they know your username and password. Read here how you can enable the two-factor authentication
  • Make sure you run on the latest stable version of PHP and WordPress or any other CMS you may be using for your site. Many clients postpone PHP updates, and even the more simple WordPress updates, out of fear that they may break their site and they will need to pay a developer to fix it. But believe us, when we say this – it’s a lot more expensive to fix a hacked website than the few broken queries potentially resulting from a version update. Additionally, we offer Managed WordPress auto-updates and a Managed PHP service, enabled by default for all new accounts, and which means that we will automatically upgrade your PHP and WordPress, so you don’t have to. 
  • We recommend installing a malware scanner as well, directly on your site so you can get an alert in case of a breach and act quickly. You can use a plugin, if it’s a WordPress installation, or use an external feature, like the popular anti-malware scanner we offer.

To find more on the best practices on WordPress Security, we highly recommend to check out our ebook 21 Tips to Keep Your WordPress Secure.

Improving Website Speed is The Second Biggest Challenge

Improving website speed is the second biggest challenge for webmasters, coming at 48% of all respondents mentioning it. There are a lot of things that could be done to improve website performance and just like security, it’s a never-ending task. As a website host, we’ve done a lot of things to boost the speed of websites on our servers, but we’ll focus on some of the more recent ones. 

We have been working on a complete WordPress performance solution built in our SiteGround Optimizer plugin. The plugin makes a connection with the host server to allow sites to take advantage of the caching capacity and also integrates a wide array of front-end performance features, which you can read more about here. 

An even bigger step for our performance-boost this year was the migration to Google Cloud infrastructure, which allows us to use their extremely fast network, high redundancy, and powerful N2 CPUs which offer nearly 40% faster performance! 

Additionally, with the launch of our new Site Tools, we replaced the Static Cache with a new NGINX Direct Delivery. We no longer serve images, CSS, JS files, and other static content from the server memory, but we use NGINX for direct loading of these files from the SSD instead. This improves browser caching for your site and also makes CDN usage easier and more efficient. Most importantly, NGINX Direct Delivery allows more RAM space to be used for dynamic content caching, without compromising on static content loading speed. Read more here.

Since website speed is such a critical factor, there are some additional things you can do yourself in order to improve performance:

  • Use the SiteGround Optimizer plugin and turn the dynamic caching ON. By default all our sites on all plans have the standard cache (Nginx direct delivery) turned on and it helps tremendously to the majority of the sites. But more dynamic sites also need dynamic caching and even Memcached turned on as well.
  • Turn the SiteGround Optimizer front-end performance features – image compression, using WebP format and lazy loading, minifying CSS and javascript, these may have smaller impact individually, but when added up together, the effect on the page loading speed is spectacular.
  • Use a CDN (Content Delivery Network). CDNs speed up sites immensely by caching up and delivering static content from the closest to the user location, saving precious fractions of time. Keep in mind that a CDN also blocks malicious traffic and even reduces SPAM, so there are other advantages in using one.

If you want to read additional tips on how to speed up your WordPress site, make sure to check the free ebook 21 Expert Tips for an Ultra-Fast WordPress Website eBook. 

Handling Site Growth is Also In the Top 3 Challenges

About 32% of all our users said that handling the growth of their website was a challenge they expected to experience in 2020. There are two types of traffic that we should consider – expected and unexpected. In the era of Internet virality, you never know when your site will become popular on Reddit or other media and get bombarded with traffic. At the same time, you can reasonably well predict the Black Friday growth and other seasonalities. So here’s how we approach the site growth issue:

Monitor your site’s normal growth

The more your business grows, the more traffic you will get, the more orders will be processed and hence the busier your website will be. There are two indications that your site is growing and you need to evaluate its performance: slow loading of pages and errors on the website (site becomes unavailable occasionally). 

  1. The first thing you should do is try to optimize your site – have a developer review your code, plugins, database queries, and structure and suggest improvements. Starting with simple things like removing old and unused plugins, reducing the number of plugins, activating cache, and going into more complex ones like re-writing some of the code, there are a lot of things that can help at this stage, which are also good for the long-term health of your site.
  2. Once you are sure you have optimized everything you could and you still experience issues, consider upgrading your hosting platform. If you started on shared hosting, maybe it’s time to move to a cloud and configure precisely the RAM, CPU, and space that you need.

Be Prepared For the Unexpected

This is trickier as obviously there isn’t much that you can do for things that you don’t expect, but there are 3 things that can help:

  1. Turn caching on – again, caching is awesome not only because it speeds up your site, but also because it saves server resources, especially RAM, by using the NGINX to load files from the SSD directly. Saving resources means that you will be able to process more visitors at the same time.
  2. Activate CDN – acts the same way as caching, because the CDN caches your content and stores it on many servers worldwide, then delivers it from the closest server to your visitor. Thus it does not use server resources to deliver the information and again your site is capable of processing a lot more visits simultaneously.
  3. Activate autoscaling on cloud – the option automatically and instantly increases your cloud’s CPU and/or RAM resources in times of need, preventing downtimes in crucial moments, such as Black Friday or Christmas shopping.

We hope that we have both given you a report on what we, as your website host, do to help you with your top 3 website challenges this year, as well as ideas on what more you can do yourself to tackle them.

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Faster CPUs, More Data Centers, Bigger GoGeek Plans

When we migrated our infrastructure to Google Cloud Platform a few months ago, we knew this was not just a one-time event but the base for continuous improvements for our customers. Today we are happy to announce that thanks to this move, we are able to perform a massive upgrade to faster CPUs, we have two more data center locations and our GoGeek plan offers more space than before. 

40% Faster Processors 

We will update all processors used to host our clients on the Google Cloud infrastructure. The new N2 CPUs perform roughly 40% faster than the ones we used previously. Both our shared and cloud customers will benefit from faster delivery of dynamic content due to more efficient script execution. With the upgrade, your site is expected to need less CPU seconds than before when serving the same type and number of visitor requests. This generally means more room for growth before you need a plan upgrade. Of course, the benefit for each individual site will be unique, based on its own code and database optimizations. 

The upgrade of our current CPUs will be done in the next few weeks. There will be a 24-hour notification about it in your Customer Area. The upgrade will involve minimal downtime due to a necessary reboot (roughly 15 minutes per server). Upgrades are scheduled to happen during the time of the day with historically least amount of traffic. Basically, that should happen very early in the morning, taking your data center local time into consideration. 

Two new data centers – Sydney and Frankfurt

Another great benefit of our migration to the Google Cloud Platform is that we can now add more data center locations around the world. It is a great advantage that we can now count on a single data center partner everywhere and benefit from their uniform high-quality service. We have been a host of choice for many Australians for the past 15 years and now we are extremely happy to provide a data center location on their own continent – in Sydney. 

A data center in Frankfurt, Germany is also available as a response to the numerous requests for German location by our customers. All new plans for customers from these locations are now activated in the new data centers. Existing hosting accounts can be relocated through the marketplace page in the customer area.

More space for GoGeek hosting plan

Our GoGeek hosting plan is often chosen by people reselling hosting service or hosting multiple sites of their own customers. After the move to Google Cloud platform, we are now able to increase one of the resources our resellers need most — the webspace, without changing the plan price. The GoGeek plans have been upgraded with 10 GB, and now include 40 GB disk space. Existing GoGeek plans have also received this upgrade completely free of charge.

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Accessibility in Our New Client Area and Site Tools

As you probably know, we have recently introduced our new, in-house built interfaces for hosting account and website management. One thing we are truly proud of in both Client Area and Site Tools design is the attention paid to web accessibility. We have invested seriously in implementing multiple features that make our service easier to use for everyone, including people with different levels of motor or visual disabilities.

High Contrast Themes in Both Interfaces

Our designers, with the help of accessibility testers and consultants, have created high-contrast themes optimized for visual accessibility. Viewing a high contrast content is generally easier to comprehend, read, and navigate through, and is proven to be beneficial for some eye conditions.

High-contrast settings are also great if you’re working outside and you need a little something to fight sun glare. We have added standard contrast light and dark themes so that any user can choose the best color combination for them.

You can also enable the Easy Read Font option, which is specifically designed to improve readability. This makes the font in your Client Area and Site Tools dashboard more visually appealing and easy to read. 

To manage your theme and font settings, click your profile picture/initials in the upper-right corner > Appearance.

How to navigate to the Appearance page in the Client Area

Keyboard Handling 

Keyboard handling, or the functionality to navigate through a website just with your keyboard, is essential for people who need to use screen readers to navigate and read through web content, as well as users who are permanently or temporarily unable to use mouse and touchpads for a variety of reasons.

Besides an accessibility must-have, the keyboard handling implementation generally makes navigation through different tools and pages faster and more convenient for users, who spend a lot of time managing their site and tweaking multiple settings. You can try it yourself – start with the tab to move between elements and click on enter when you want to activate a switch or enter a menu.

Screen Reader Support

A considerable number of web users heavily rely on using a screen reader software for navigating the web due to permanent or temporary visual disability. Generally, just having a good code is enough to make your site readable for most screen readers.

However, a web application with a variety of custom tools, elements, and different settings such as the Client Area and Site Tools needs a bit more work done to make it accessible for screen reader users. We have dedicated a lot of time to research, develop and test each page in both interfaces to make sure that the content is readable in the most popular screen reader software programs such as JAWS, NVDA, and Voice Over.

Implementing screen reader support for the complex components needed for web hosting tools was uncharted territory for us. We have started the implementation following established accessibility standards and along the way, we have invited accessibility experts with different visual impairments to help us test and improve what we have done. Working closely with them and observing how our work enabled people to do things they weren’t able to do before made our efforts worthwhile.

What’s Next?

We consider the implementations described above essential for any web page. And while they certainly cover a lot of people’s needs for accessibility, we want to go even further and make the Client Area and Site Tools as accessible and easy to use as possible. To do that, in the next few weeks we’ll be releasing additional accessibility features such as an easy-read font.

Help Us Make Our Product Even More Accessible

We understand that due to the diversity of needs users may have and the variety of different software, browsers, and devices used, we may have missed something. Having said that, we’re constantly working on improving the accessibility of both interfaces and we’d love to hear your suggestions and feedback on what we’ve done so far.

If you’re using one of the accessibility features and notice behavior that may be improved, or you’re having trouble accessing specific content, drop us a line in the comments section below.

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Custom Hosting Packages and Roles for your Clients

Custom Hosting Packages And Roles For Your Clients

We are excited to introduce two newly released functionalities for our Cloud hosting plans working with Site Tools – the options to create Hosting Packages and define Client Roles. The Hosting Packages feature allows you to tailor the resources allocated to each of the sites hosted on your cloud, while the client role allows you to specify which site management tools will be available to your clients. 

Customize the hosting resources of your clients 

Customise the hosting resources of your clients
You can specify what resources each package has access to.

With the new Hosting Package feature you can create a custom hosting package for each of the websites hosted on your cloud. By default, every website on a cloud can use the cloud’s full capacity, but with the new feature, you can easily limit any website to the resources you consider appropriate. If you host multiple clients on a cloud plan, this feature will make it easier for you to provide a tailor-made hosting plan to each of them.

Manage the set of tools available to your clients

Manage the set of tools available to your clients
You can specify which tools will be available for each of your clients.

With the new Client Role feature, you can control which tools will be available to the clients hosted on your cloud. By default, all clients you create receive full access to all management tools in a white label version of our Site Tools. By creating custom roles and assigning them to your clients, you can choose which tools exactly to be included in the Site Tools of each of your clients.  

Who has access to these features?

Тhe new features are available to our existing Cloud customers using Site Tools and new Cloud clients. If you are a SiteGround client and have a Cloud plan with WHM and cPanel, have no worry! We will be switching all our cloud users to Site Tools in the upcoming months and once we do, you will be able to take advantage of these functionalities, no later than March 2021.

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What’s New in WordPress 5.4

What's New In WordPress 5.4

On March 31st, the latest version of WordPress was released, number 5.4 and named after Nat Adderley, an American trumpet player, continuing the tradition of naming WordPress releases after jazz players.

I had the honor to be involved once again as the release co-lead, in the role of coordinator. This was possible with the support of SiteGround, donating my hours to the project.

By now, depending on the settings of your auto-update function in the SiteGround user area, your version of WordPress should be updated to 5.4, so let’s check the most exciting new features from the WordPress end-user perspective. 

Two new blocks

You can now add social media widgets in your post. By clicking on each icon you can add your link and show them inside a post.

The second one is the button block: now you don’t have to fiddle around with CSS to create your own buttons to use in those Call to Actions at the end of your sales page. Just add the button, or the buttons, you can have multiple inside the same block, adjust the settings (background color, text color, border width, link) and hit publish!

More Coloring options 

You can now selectively color parts of a text within a block. Gradients were added to the button and cover blocks and you can now apply color options to  Group and Columns blocks.

Fullscreen Editing 

New WordPress installs now open the block editor in fullscreen mode by default for a distraction-free writing session. The W logo in the left corner is the shortcut to going back to the admin area, Posts list. If you want to switch off the fullscreen mode, click on the three small buttons to the right of your screen and unflag “Fullscreen Mode”. 

Full Screen Editing

Improved navigation and accessibility

It is now clearer to see what block you are using with block breadcrumbs: you will notice them on the very bottom of the screen.

breadcrumbs navigation

With each new release, the block editor becomes more accessible for people that rely on screen readers or keyboard navigation to use WordPress. The tabbing across elements has been improved and your screen reader will tell you if you are un Edit or Navigation mode.

What’s next

WordPress 5.4 has just been released, but the Core team is already working on preparing for the next two planned releases for 2020, 5.5 and 5.6. Josepha Haden, the WordPress.org Executive Director, wrote an update on the status of some upcoming projects and these are some of the features I am most excited about:

  • A block directory, so you can discover blocks and easily install them on your website like you would do for plugins. This is an opportunity to experiment with blocks and think of new ways to organize and show your content.
  • Support for blocks in the Customizer to make it easier to change the appearance of your website. This is another step towards full site editing via blocks. Endless possibilities!
  • A navigation block that will allow you to add a menu inside a post or a page. For example, you could create a “Where to start page” with links to relevant sources that might help your visitor move around easily.

Passing the mic to you

What do you like the most about the new release? What are you excited about in terms of future features. Let us know in the comments!

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How to Organize Online Events – SiteGround’s Easy Guide

Easy guide to online events

The world is in a difficult place right now, and the online communities aren’t an exception. Everywhere you look, events are being canceled, and for people who network online, this can be really unsettling, as we’re all close and we miss our gatherings. Luckily, we get to stay connected online, and especially now, when everyone is staying safely at home, taking your event online is a smart and easy move. We’ve put a short guide that will help you to organize an online conference in 4 easy and actionable steps, so without further ado, let’s discover them together!

1. Why you need an online event and how to promote it

Мany people find the idea of organizing an online event a little unsettling, but it’s actually not difficult at all. Keep in mind that right now people all over the world need to stay put, and will likely be way more willing to attend a virtual event and pay more attention, considering they are cut out from many of their regular outdoor activities and social circle.

While this is an unfortunate moment for everyone, it’s a good opportunity to strengthen the relationship with your peers and add new people to your local community.

What you need to focus on is promoting your event as much as possible.

Let’s see a few practical tips on how you can capture the attention of your audience:

  • You probably have an account at meetup.com, so newsletter to previous participants is certainly in order. If this is a WordCamp, mailing your visitors from the past events is absolutely fine as well, as long as you follow the Code of Conduct.
  • Make sure to post your announcement in all relevant Facebook groups – people are spending a lot of time on Facebook and other social media right now! You can also join the international ones if your event is in English. Use captivating creatives for your posts in order to get the attention of people browsing: pictures from your past events, bright colors, human faces, or animated videos (a 4-8 second animation will do just fine).
  • Instagram isn’t that big of a channel for WordPress-oriented stuff, but it doesn’t hurt to post there too and on Twitter usually, you will find several folks interested in this kind of events. For these two channels don’t be afraid to dive deep into the hashtag game!
  • You can ask your past and present speakers to spread the word amongst their audience – they usually are happy to do so on their own platform and channels.
  • Sites dedicated to events would be a great channel, especially if your event is in English. If that’s not the case, you can always go for local event promoting sites.

Overall, regular rules of thumb apply; hosting an online event requires as much noise as possible (just be careful not to come off as obnoxiously spammy!).

2. Get the right platform 

Let’s start with your most obvious need: when you’re wondering how to host your virtual event, your first thought is probably related to the streaming. We’ve posted below two of the best options you can use, though you’re not limited to that, of course.

  • Google Meet popularity is skyrocketing ever since Google made them into a business tool, and it’s a really amazing option for company meetings and virtual events.

Because of the Covid-19 situation, Google announced that the premium features of Google meet – typically available only for Enterprise users of G Suite – will be free until July 1st. Some of the most useful options of the platform include:

  • An increased participants limit from 100 to 250 per call
  • An increased audience limit for Live streaming up to 100,000 watchers per domain
  • Option to record the virtual events (online meetups) and upload the recording Google Drive

If you’ve never used the online platform, it’s a great time to test it out. Not only does it allow a huge number of potential viewers, but it also has a couple of features you won’t find anywhere else.

One of them is the option of creating instant captions; while the mechanism isn’ perfect, it’s still an excellent accessibility option for live virtual conferences. Another is the high-resolution streaming and pinch-to-zoom on a mobile app – a great feature for mobile participants. 

Also, it doesn’t require installation – you can join by opening the respective link in a browser, which makes things way more straightforward for potential viewers. Of course, classic options such as phone dial-in, presentations, and reporting are also available.

Overall, it’s a powerful yet incredibly clean solution for online events. We strongly recommend giving it a try!

  • Zoom.us seems to be another favorite option when it comes to hosting virtual events due to its good balance between useful features and cost. The platform’s Pro plan includes up to 100 participants, and it doesn’t have a minimum of host subscriptions (which is actually the case with their next plan). They have a great range of features which makes it the perfect platform for smaller virtual conferences and meetups. 
How to organize a virtual event
  • Great control of the session; you can mute and unmute participant yourself (as a host), you can invite other people to speak, you can quickly moderate when necessary etc.,
  • Chat and polls available (especially useful in live online events for making the experience more interactive)
  • Notifications and reminders (also handy)
  • CVS import 

You will probably find their interface clean and very easy to learn, which is another great thing about them. Overall, its effortless use and decent pricing makes it an excellent choice for small gatherings.

Oh, and there is also a replay option, in case you’re looking to offer that to your audience. If this isn’t quite what you wanted, there are many other great platforms, such as Crowdcast.io,  GoToWebinar, Livestorm, WebinarJam, etc.,

3. Prepare your presenters 

Speaking in front of many people can be genuinely frightening for many speakers, especially for the first few times. Believe it or not, speaking on an online event can be even more unsettling, because there is no option for you to see your audience reaction to your talk – not in the same way, at least.

The best way to avoid awkward moments is just the same as with normal events; rehearse! 

An essential part of our virtual events guide is the preparation of the speakers. Suggest them to rehearse in front of a webcam and record themselves. First of all, they’ll get used to the idea of staring into a device, instead of people. Secondly, they can see where things go south and correct themselves. Typically, they may discover the following problems:

  • Not looking directly into the camera
  • Not speaking clearly and using a lot of filler words (uh, um, er, ah etc.,)
  • Lack of voice modulation

These are all normal obstacles that most people experience. Kindly helping your speakers with potential issues will allow them to do their job better, which in turn can upgrade the experience and make your event way more successful.

4. Test technical settings 

Test your technical equipment and environment as early as possible. Conduct tests with your speakers too, and if anything comes up (and it usually does), you will have plenty of time to fix it.

It’s best if you use a checklist of anything that can go wrong when it comes to hosting your online event. Here is one to start off with: 

  • Volume/microphone issues (e.g., mics not working) Make sure you check the “Adjust microphone level” option upon joining
  • Low-quality image (e.g., camera isn’t good enough) If your device doesn’t provide good-quality image, try to borrow one or rent a studio room – they’re paid by the hour
  • Poor streaming quality (e.g., internet connection isn’t fast enough, that’s a pretty important one) Disable all other running services or downloads on your machine, use cable internet or search for a location with faster internet 
  • Noise disturbance (e.g., the location isn’t very sound-proof) warn people around you and minimize noise by using a headset or borrowing/buying a noise-canceling microphone
  • Presentation issues (e.g., text on the slides are too small for some resolutions) simply check this beforehand and apply the necessary fixes
  • Screen Sharing (e.g., your screen might not share properly) see if there is a visible obstacle and if not, try to contact technical support

You also need to think about all the little things that can get in the way. 

For example, how are you going to deal with reminding people about their time limit, if you don’t have a timekeeper? Interrupting them would probably seem rude, so explore alternative paths. How will you handle Q&A? Do you have different MCs, and how will you handle handing over the host position?

Finally, remember to have fun! Events have always been an amazing experience, so the best thing to do is keep it that way, even if the experience is slightly different.

We’re all in this together, so our hearts go to everybody that’s currently in a bad situation due to this global crisis. All we can do is stay connected and keep our spirit up with small gestures like online gatherings and events, even if just to see how your audience is doing. Stay home, stay safe and finger crossed that this situation will be soon over!