WordCamp Toronto 2009 convinced me I have a lot to learn about using  WordPress as an authoring platform for a website.

I am committed to being hands-on as much as I can when it comes to technology; although I will admit WordCamp was a sobering event! To begin with, WordPress is complicated. It is not a self-contained program but a platform that absorbs external visual themes, plugins, widgets, and user tweaks. Hopefully what I learned will become apparent when the zenPeak website delivers a better experience to more and more client technology companies, and job candidates in Toronto, Ontario and throughout Canada.

Lorelle VanFossen showcased woopra which is a great real-time analytics tool for WordPress websites. While Lorelle VanFossen set me up with a beta woopra account,  she told me at least 2 dozen things that needed urgent repair on the zenPeak website – ouch! First step was buying her book!

I enjoyed the talk Rob Campbell gave on Internet Marketing from SMOJOE as well as the keynote talk from Nick La on custom fields and conditional tags etc…..  Not that I could absorb it all that fast!

Met some interesting people along the way too. Overall I’d give the WordCamp Toronto 2009 experience a 7.5 with marks off for the temperature = COLD, the chronic late start times, the choppy Wi-Fi connectivity, and the lack of explanation in advance of what each session was about. But its a lot of work to put on an event like this (as volunteers!), and the content was good, so it was a worthwhile weekend and appreciated!