This question came in via my email today, from a reader of my WordPress For Dummies book, regarding adding themes to a WordPress.Com blog 1 :
How do I set up my wordpress.com blog to use your xMark theme? The setup instructions on the website say to send the xMark folder to the server, but that sounds like a wordpress.org setup. …. Recently I’ve tried again using the wordpress.com setup, and found that was more my speed. Now that my blog is up, http://dominickrusso.wordpress.com/ I’m trying to find a fluid theme, and that’s why I wanted to try xMark.
The simple answer to this is you cannot add any theme you want to your WordPress.Com blog. You are limited to the themes that WordPress.Com provides for you - you are not able to add any new themes to your WordPress.Com blog. For a fee, the best you can do is upgrade your WordPress.Com account so that you are able to edit the CSS for the template you’re currently using - - if you know how to edit/write CSS, that is.
However, if you find a WordPress theme on the web that you’d like to use, and it’s not included in the WordPress.Com themes page — then you’re out of luck. There is no way around it - you cannot upload themes to your WordPress.Com account.
Your best bet is to obtain your own domain name, hosting account and begin using the WordPress.Org software on your own hosting account - - you can change themes to your hearts content at that point!
Have a theme that you think the folks at WordPress.Com should add to their theme selection? Then read this!
- Management of themes on your WordPress.Com account is covered in WordPress For Dummies in Chapter 5. [↩]
can we use our own plugins at wordpress.com blog?
Spend $20 and get wordpress.org and get your own hosting and domain. It gives your blog a much better look and feel because you can have whatever design you like!
@Xsir - no, WordPress.com does not allow you to use your own plugins on their system.
@Ncahost - completely agreed
Hi, i am new in wordpress but would like to find out the pros and cons between wordpress and joomla. Best Regards. Tom K.
@Tom K. - having never used Joomla, I couldn’t provide you with a good comparison. A quick Google search using the terms “WordPress versus Joomla” did reveal this link that looks to be helpful in what you are looking for:
WordPress vs Joomla: A Handy Guide
Cheers!
Adding something to the question…
My wordpress.com blog has got a PR2.
If I move to my host, will I lose the PR?I think I will, right?
Thanks