How to optimize Wordpress.org hosted blogs

[ShawnW]

I've got a blog I'm working on that isn't self-hosted. I've attached a screenshot of the message I get if I try to install any plugins. I really want to block archive, author, tag, category, etc pages but I can't seem to find a way since there's no server for me to block via robots.txt or .htaccess and I can't actually install these plugins which would give me the ability to do it.

Any suggestions?

vQfnt

[WebElaine]

Hey there Shawn,

Your screenshot mentions WordPress.com, which is a lot different than WordPress.org. The one you're using, .com, is more of a service for folks who don't want to deal with technical setup, just want to have a few options and start blogging. The one you mentioned, .org, is more of a hands-on deal where you purchase web hosting (server space) and install it on that server. That is where you're able to use .htaccess, robots.txt, etc., etc. You are also able to use a lot more themes and plugins and get into true custom coding with .org. You can do some of this kind of customization on .com if you pay for a premium package, and there are such things as virtual robots.txt files which some of their plugins might be able to generate for you, but I do not think you ever get to adjust server files like .htaccess. So you might want to look into trying out WordPress.org instead. If you're really looking to customize the site and have granular control over anything SEO-related or even functionalitywise, .org is the way to go.

[ThompsonPaul]

^^ Yup - great summary.

Paul

[ThompsonPaul]

As Red mentions, you're actually hosted on WordPress.com, not .org (which is the self-hosted version of WP)

To resolve the specific error you're asking about...

It's telling you that to be able to use the custom code features that are available, the settings for your domain name at your registrar should be pointing to the nameservers at WordPress.com, not the nameservers you're currently using (likely the registrar's own nameservers).

Hope that helps?

Paul