The first step I normally do when creating a new WordPress theme is to make sure my local environment is setup. This includes:
- setting up a local personal server with a package like MAMP (mac users), WAMP (windows users), or LAMP (linux users)
- creating a database for your local WordPress development site
- downloading and installing the WordPress files
Depending on which operating system you are using, the process will be a little different. There are hundreds of written and video tutorials around the web on how to setup a local WordPress development environment, so we are not going to reinvent the wheel and make our own tutorial. Instead we are going to list some resources below to help you get started.
MAMP
This may sound hard or very technical but it is actually pretty easy to setup. WordPress has the steps outlined in there codex. The following videos also go over the same process:
Other written tutorials on setting up locally with MAMP:
- http://www.wpbeginner.com/wp-tutorials/how-to-install-wordpress-locally-on-mac-using-mamp/
- http://www.wpexplorer.com/locally-installing-wordpress-mac/
- http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2011/09/28/developing-wordpress-locally-with-mamp/
WAMP
WAMP is for people on a Windows machine looking to setup a local server for WordPress development. WPBeginner has a written tutorial that you can find here.
If you are more of a person that likes to watch how it is done, you can find all kinds of tutorial videos on YouTube. Here is a video tutorial on how to setup WAMP to get you started.
Other written tutorials on setting up a local environment with WAMP:
- http://www.wpexplorer.com/install-wordpress-in-windows-wamp/
- http://sixrevisions.com/web-development/install-wordpress-on-your-computer-using-wampserver/
Linux
The last OS we are going to cover is getting setup on Ubuntu. Like MAMP and WAMP, Linux has LAMP to help you get a local server setup for your WordPress development.
Here is a video that goes over how to install WordPress on Ubuntu.
Other written tutorials for LAMP:
- http://www.wpexplorer.com/locally-install-wordpress-on-ubuntu/
- https://www.digitalocean.com/community/tutorials/how-to-install-wordpress-on-ubuntu-12-04
Done!
By now you should be setup on whatever operating system you are going to be using while doing WordPress theme development. You should have your local server running and a vanilla copy of WordPress installed. If you had any problems getting up and running or got stuck on one of the steps, please leave a comment below so we can help!