As you discover more about WordPress, you may occasionally come across references to the term blogroll.
A blogroll is a list of links pointing to other websites or web pages that display on your sidebar.
According to official WordPress documentation …
“The term ‘blogroll’ was originally used because it was a list of links to other blogs, but you can include links to any sites.”
You can add a blogroll using the Links menu in your WordPress Dashboard. These links will then display on your blog if you have added the Links widget.
Before WordPress version 3.5 was released, Links were a built-in feature of the WordPress CMS. After v 3.5, the Links manager and blogroll sections were removed …
Before …
(Links – included in the WordPress dashboard menu until the release of WP v 3.5)
After …
(The Link Manager is no longer included in the WordPress menu after WP v.3.5)
If you have had an earlier version than 3.5 installed and updated your installation, the Link Manager would have been removed, unless you have previously used it.
How To Add A Link Section To WordPress
You can add a link section to your sidebar menu by creating a custom menu, or use a plugin like the one shown in the tutorial below.
If the Links feature is not visible when you log into your WordPress admin area you will need to install a plugin. In this tutorial, you will learn how to add, edit, delete and manage links on your sidebar using plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager)
Plugin Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Description Of Plugin
The Link Manager plugin restores the default Links feature on your WordPress dashboard, even if you update to a later version of WordPress or remove all of your current links.
Note: This plugin adds a single line of template code to restore the hidden feature. The last time we checked, this plugin had not been updated for some time, but it should still work fine. If you don’t want to use the Link Manager plugin, then use the plugin below instead, or contact us for help editing your site’s template code.
Simple Links
(Simple Links)
Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description
Simple Links recreates the same concept as the built-in WP Links Manager while removing the shortcomings of the deprecated functionality.
How To Install The Plugin
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
From your WP administration area, go to Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins – Add New)
Select the Install Plugins > Search tab, then type in “link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Find the plugin in the search results area and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin …
After activation, the ‘Links’ function will be restored to the WP sidebar menu …
(Links management menu)
Plugin Configuration
We recommend setting up link categories first before you start adding any new links. This way, you can assign new links to link categories you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a new link category, go to the admin menu and click on Links > Link Categories …
(Links – Link Categories)
This loads the ‘Link Categories’ screen in your browser.
Enter information into the following fields:
- Name: Enter the category name here.
- Slug: The slug shows up in the URL of the link category. It must be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description.
Click the Add New Link Category button to save your new link category …
(Link Categories screen)
The new category will now show in the table …
(Link Categories)
Tip: The default WordPress link category is called Blogroll . Unless you specify a category when creating a link, WordPress will automatically assign new links to the default category …
(Default link category name is ‘blogroll’)
You may want to change this to something that will make sense to your blog readers. This will not only make it easier for users of your site, but any new links that you add to the Links section will automatically appear under the new category name …
(Change the default ’blogroll’ to something your visitors will relate to)
To edit the default category name, hover your mouse over the item and click on Quick Edit …
(Quick Edit)
Replace both the Name and the Slug with a new category name (remember to keep the slug in lowercase letters and replace all spaces with a hyphen), then click on the Update link Category button …
(Quick Edit)
Replace the category name ‘Blogroll’ with a name more suitable to your purposes (e.g. ‘Recommended’, ‘XYZ Sites’ etc).
Let’s now add a description for this link category. To add a description to an existing link category, click on Edit under the category name …
(You can add/edit your category description)
Add your description in the ‘Edit Link Category’ page and click Update …
(Edit Link Category page)
Repeat the above process to add as many different link categories as your site requires.
Once you have configured your link categories, you can being adding new links.
How To Add New Links
To add a new link, select Links > Add New in the WP dashboard menu …
(WP Links – Add New)
The ‘Add New Link’ page will display in your browser …
(Add New Link page)
You can also reach this screen by clicking on ’Add New’ at the top of the main Links screen …
(Links – Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page includes various sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
Enter your link details in this section …
(Name, Web Address, Description area – Add New Link)
Type in information into the following fields:
- Name: Enter the link category name.
- Slug: The slug is the web address bit of your link category name. It must all be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description in the links section, or as a tool tip when visitors hover over the link name with their mouse. (Optional)
Categories & Target
Select a Category and Target for your new link …
(Categories & Target fields – Add New Link page)
In the Categories section, tick a link category you have already added, or click on the ‘+ Add New Category’ link to add a new category.
Next, select a target frame for your link in the Target section by choosing one of the radio buttons. This lets you specify where the link should open when visitors click on it:
- _blank means that when a visitor clicks on the link, a separate window will open up in their web browser to display the information associated with the link. Your visitor will be able to access the information without leaving your site
- _none means that when a visitor clicks on your link, they will exit your site and a new site or page will load in your web browser window instead.
- _top opens links at the top level of the frame system if you’re using frames. Ignore this option if you don’t use frames, or if you don’t know what frames are.
Link Relationship XFN
This section provides some additional link functionality …
(Link Relationship (XFN) area – Add New Link screen)
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN stands for XML Friends Network – is a way to define your relationship with the linked person. For example, if you have a professional relationship with Peter Cooper and you link to his blog, you would probably check co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional for WordPress links. You can leave everything in this section blank and your links will still work. Defining relationships with XFN makes your links more understandable to some sites and search engines that use this information.
rel – This field specifies the ‘rel’ attribute that will be assigned to your link. The rel attribute specifies the relationship between the current document and the linked document. For example, if you don’t want search engines to follow your link, enter nofollow into this field. Separate multiple ‘rel’ attributes using spaces.
To learn more about XFN, visit the site below:
Advanced
The last section of the Add New Link’ page lets you enter Advanced features for your links (You can leave the fields in this section blank unless you have a reason to use them) …
(Add New Link – Advanced area)
The Advanced section fields are as follows:
- Image Address: Lets you specify an image to be displayed with the link. Add the URL of your image and make sure that the image is small (around 16×16 like a favicon).
- RSS Address: If your theme allows it, the link’s RSS feed can display next to the links.
- Notes: Add notes about the link in this section for your own internal reference.
- Rating: Add a rating score to the link if you would like to sort links by rating (see the ‘Links’ widget section below).
Enter information in the above fields or just leave this section ignore this section.
When you have finished adding your new link information, click on the Add Link button to save your new link …
(Click on the Add Link button to update your link settings)
Note: If you tick Keep this link private, the link will not be visible when links are displayed on your site …
(Private link checkbox)
Making a link private lets you toggle its visibility on and off without deleting it (this is useful if you would like a link to display during certain periods and hide it afterwards) …
(Making links private toggles their visibility on and off)
To see a list of all your links, choose Links > All Links in the WP navigation menu …
(Links – All Links)
The ‘Links’ screen will display in your browser. The Links screen displays a list of all of your links and link information (e.g. URL, categories, rating, etc.) …
(List of links)
Tip: To view or hide columns in the list of links, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab near the top of the screen …
(Screen Options – Links screen)
Enable/disable fields on your Links table by ticking/unticking their checkboxes …
(Show/hide – List of links)
How To Edit Link Information
To edit a link, go to your dashboard navigation menu and choose Links > All Links to bring up the list of links …
(WP Links – All Links)
Locate the item to be edited and click on Edit to bring up the link’s information …
(Editing your link information)
Make changes to your link …
(Edit Link screen)
After editing your link, you can:
- Click on Update Link to save your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to view your link and make sure that you have set up the link’s URL correctly (your link will open up in a new window),
- Click Delete to remove the link …
(Edit Link: Update Link button)
How To Delete Your Links
To delete a link from the Link Manager, go to your WP dashboard navigation menu and choose Links > All Links …
(WordPress Links – All Links)
The ‘Links’ screen will load in your browser.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links by selecting their check boxes, or delete all your links at once.
To delete links individually, hover your mouse cursor over the link that you want removed and click on Delete …
(Delete links)
To delete links in bulk, either click on the checkboxes next to individual items that you want to delete, or select all links by clicking on the main check box next to the ‘Name’ column header …
(Delete multiple links)
Select Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click Apply to remove your selected links …
(Bulk-delete links)
All the links you have selected will be deleted …
(Deleted links notice)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to configure link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, let’s show you how to make links display on your website.
Using The Links Widget
The Links Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, go to the admin menu and choose Appearance > Widgets …
(WP Appearance – Widgets)
This brings up the ‘Widgets’ screen in your browser.
You will see a ‘Links’ widget in the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
To make the ‘Links’ widget active, drag the widget to one of your active widget bars and drop it wherever you want the links to display …
(Adding a links widget to a widgetized area)
The Links widget includes a number of options. You can specify what information you want displayed about your links and how many links you would like displayed on your sidebar menu …
(Link widget - settings)
You can also add multiple link widgets to your sidebars and footers. This allows you to add and feature specific lists of links sorted by categories on your site …
(You can add multiple link widgets to your widget bars)
You can create and display a list of items for a specific category …
(Link widget settings – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link title, Link ID, Link rating, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget options – Sort by options)
After configuring your Links widget, click Save to update your settings. Your links should display on your sidebar …
(Links can be displayed on your site’s sidebar)
As the above example shows, you can display specific links to your site visitors (e.g. a list for a specific link category only), and add multiple lists of links to your sidebar menu.
Need help using widgets? To learn more about adding widgets, see this article:
Links Manager – Additional Information
If you have many links, the Links Manager plugin allows you to easily administer these using filtering, searching, and sorting functionality.
Sort Links Function
To sort links, hover your mouse cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and click on the little black triangle displayed next to the column title …
(You can sort your links)
Searching Links
You can search for links using the ‘Search Links’ button …
(Search links function)
Filter Links Function
You can filter links by category …
(Filter your links by link category)
You can also search and filter links in the Link Categories page. Use the ‘Search Link Categories’ button to search for link categories, or click on the links in the ‘Links’ column …
(Search and filter links in the Link Categories page)
This displays a list of all links listed for a specific link category …
(Links filtered by category)
Links – Additional Options
If you plan to use links extensively on your site, or if you want to add a page containing a list of links to your site (i.e. not just add a links section to your sidebar), then you may want to look at using a plugin that can help you administer your links.
Link Library
(Link Library Plugin)
Download Plugin URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
The Link Library plugin gives you the ability to publish a list of all your link categories with a complete list of links together with descriptions and notes …
(List of links created with Link library. Image source: Link Library plugin website.)
Link Library creates a page on your web site that contains a list of all of the link categories in your Links section, and all links defined for these categories. Additionally, you can select a sub-set of categories to display or not display, show only one category at a time, display a search box and find results based on visitor queries, display a form to accept user submissions that can be moderated by a site administrator, and even generate an RSS feed for your link collection so that your site users can become aware of additions to your link library.
Visit this site to learn more about the benefits of using this plugin:
Congratulations! Now you know how to add a blogroll to WordPress.
We have written a detailed article about creating HTML hyperlinks in WordPress posts. Go here to learn more about this:
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"If you're new to WordPress, this can stand on its own as a training course and will stay with you as you progress from beginner to advanced and even guru status." - Bruce (Columbus, Ohio)