How to Install and Set Up Simple Author Box for WordPress Hosting

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This article describes how to use Simple Author Box to display author information on a post. The instructions will guide you through how to install and set up Simple Author Box for WordPress Hosting.

How to Install Simple Author Box

Installing Simple Author Box is as simple as any other plugin. You can do this from the WordPress administrative dashboard. Follow the steps below to learn how:

  1. Log into your WordPress administrative dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Plugins > Add New.
  3. Begin typing simple author box into the Search plugins… field.
  4. Click on the Install Now button next to Simple Author Box by MachoThemes.

    NOTICE: The button text changes with the status of the installation. The installation is complete once Activate displays inside the button.

  5. Click on Activate.

Now you know how to install the plugin. Read on to learn more about how to set it up.

How to Set Up Simple Author Box

The Simple Author Box plugin allows you to configure a few settings. It also adds custom fields to your WordPress user’s profile. These settings and details are used in combination to render how the author box will appear on the post. The next two sections will explain more about the settings and how to add author details.

Settings

  1. Log into your WordPress administrative dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Simple Author.

    NOTE: You can refer to the table below for more information on each setting available to configure.

OptionDescriptionRecommended Configuration
Manually insert the Simple Author BoxEnable this toggle if you want to manually add Simple Author Box via shortcode or PHP function.Off
Hide the author box if author description is emptyEnable this toggle to hide the author box for users that do not have an author description.On
Show author emailEnable this toggle to display an email link next to the social icons.Off
Open social icon links in a new tabEnable this toggle to force social media links to open in a new tab.On
Hide the social icons on author boxEnable this toggle to remove the social icons from the author box.Off
Hide the author box on archivesEnable this toggle to remove the author box from archived posts.On
OptionDescriptionRecommended Configuration
Top margin of author boxAdjust the slider to define how much space should be added to the top margin.Default
Bottom margin of author boxAdjust the slider to define how much space should be added to the bottom margin.Default
Padding top and bottom of author boxAdjust the slider to define how much space should be added to the top and bottom padding.Default
Padding left and right of author boxAdjust the slider to define how much space should be added to the left and right padding.Default
Border WidthAdjust the slider to define how wide the borders should be.Default
Author avatar image styleSelect an option from the drop-down to choose either a square or circle avatar image.Circle
*Rotate effect on author avatar hoverEnable this toggle to add an effect that rotates the avatar upon hoving over it.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you select Circle for the Author avatar image style setting.

Off
Show author websiteEnable this toggle to display a link to the author’s website.Off
*Open author website link in a new tabEnable this toggle to force author website links to open in a new tab.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you turn On the Show author website setting.

On
*Add “nofollow” attribute on author website linkEnable this toggle to have the nofollow attribute added to the link (<a>) tag.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you turn On the Show author website setting.

On
*Author website positionSelect an option from the drop-down to display the author website link to the left or right.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you turn On the Show author website setting.

Right
Social icons typeSelect an option from the drop-down to choose either black and white symbols or add a colored background for the social media icons.Colored
*Social icons styleSelect an option from the drop-down to choose the shape of the social media icons.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you select Colored for the Social icons type setting.

Circle
*Rotate effect on social icons hover (works only for circle icons)Enable this toggle to add a rotate effect to the circle social icons upon hovering over it.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you select Colored for the Social icons type setting.

Off
*Use flat long shadow effectEnable this toggle to display a shadow effect inside of the social icons.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you select Colored for the Social icons type setting.

On
*Show a thin border on colored social iconsEnable this toggle to show a border around the colored social icons.

NOTE: This setting only appears if you select Colored for the Social icons type setting.

Off
OptionDescription
Author name colorSelect a color for the author name text.
Border colorSelect a color for the border of the author box.
Background color of social icons barSelect a color for the background of the social media icon (bottom) section.
Background color of author boxSelect a color for the background of the author box (top) section.
Color of author box paragraphsSelect a color for the author box text.
Color of author box linksSelect a color for links in the author box section.
Social icons color (for symbols only)When using symbols for social icons, select the color for them.
OptionDescription
Google font characters subsetSelect a subset if you require additional characters.
Author name font familySelect a font from the drop-down menu for the author name text.
Author description font familySelect a font from the drop-down menu for the author description text.
Author name font sizeAdjust the slider to select a size for the author name font.
Author description font sizeAdjust the slider to select a size for the author description font.
Size of social iconsAdjust the slider to select a size for the social icons.
Author description font styleSelect an option from the drop-down menu for the author description style of font.
OptionDescription
Load generated inline style to footerEnable this toggle if you are using a plugin that utilizes the footer to load styles (for optimization).

Author Information

In the settings section, you can see a preview of how the author box will appear. However, in order to customize the details for the author, you will need to modify the user’s profile. When you navigate to that screen you will notice some new fields that have been added. Use these new fields to add the details that will be displayed in the author box. Follow the steps below to learn how to modify the details of an author.

  1. Log into your WordPress administrative dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Users > Your Profile.

    NOTE: You can edit another user by navigating to Users > All Users. Then, click on the user you would like to edit.

  3. Scroll down to the About Yourself section. In the Biographical Info field, enter the information you would like to display in your author box.
  4. Scroll down to the Custom User Profile Image (Simple Author Box) section. Click on the Upload Image button. Select or upload an image to use as your profile image, then click the Update button to use the photo you selected/uploaded.
  5. In the Social Media Links (Simple Author Box) select a social media platform from the drop-down menu and then enter the full URL to your profile page.

    NOTICE: You can add more social media icons by clicking on the + Add new social platform button. Another field will be added so you can enter the information for. To remove a social media icon, click on the red trashcan icon to the right of the field you want to delete.

  6. Finally, be sure to click on Update Profile to save your changes.

Congratulations, now you know how to modify author details to display in the author box on posts. Learn more ways to customize WordPress in our WordPress Education Channel.

JB
John-Paul Briones Content Writer II

John-Paul is an Electronics Engineer that spent most of his career in IT. He has been a Technical Writer for InMotion since 2013.

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