Every WordPress user use plugins, but there are some plugins that everyone use. They make through the entire recommended plugins list. Here are 5 such plugins that you would have seen in every other lists.
So why posting them here?
These plugins are so simple and light that the WordPress team should consider including them in the WordPress core. If you have missed any of these, use them; else consider this as an email to the WordPress team!
Dear WordPress – How about adopting these plugins?
No Self Pings
Right as the name says, it blocks the self pings. Without this plugin, whenever you link to your own post, a trackback would be sent, which doesn’t often look good on the pages.
No Self Pings - Visualization
Maybe under Settings > Discussion there should have been an option to disallow self pings 
Subscribe to Comments
Comments is what a blog is, it’s bad that WordPress core doesn’t have this plugin. When you write a comment, you would like to hear what others tell about it, why can’t we have it included in the WordPress core?
RSS Footer
The RSS Footer plugin simply adds a piece of specified text or html to the footer of the RSS feed. This text do not appear on your post, but will come in the RSS feed. Mostly this plugin is used to fight content scrapers.
Well, Blogger has this one right in their software. So essentially, this is something that WordPress misses.
Blogger Options for RSS Footer and FeedBurner FeedSmith
FeedBurner FeedSmith
Feedburner has grown as a standard for RSS Feeds. Either people use it or they do not, I haven’t noticed a third service for RSS feeds. Feedburner simply redirects the default WordPress feed to the Feedburner feed so that you can track every subscriber.
Blogger has this functionaliy inbuilt, WordPress, am I asking too much?
Top Commentators
I am a bit skeptic about this, but it shouldn’t be so hard for WordPress to include this as a widget. Just a sorted list and a plugin can be saved!
Plugin authors, no hard feelings. The plugins you made are so cool, that I think you must be adopted.
16 Comments
I agree with you! These plugins are a must! Using most of them
Totally.. I am trying to integrate most of them myself and save a plugin, if it works will post them over
I think that people who use widgets like the Top Commentators Widget should really look into WP Widget Cache to optimize performance. I’m pretty sure that plugin requires quite a few SQL queries (especially with larger lists). Great top 5 list!
Thanks bro, you are always with the SQL queries, I read a few posts on your blog, esp the one to replace a users link using sql query. Guess you are good at it!
I would add a WordPress Database backup plugin to this list.
Oh yea. How could I miss that one? Its something WP can include on itself, everyone needs that.
I think its the plugin support that makes WP this good. Else its just another CMS, pretty cool one though
This post proved that why WordPress is more popular than other blogging platform. Because it gives more customization option for those people who are zero in development like me.
Thanks Arun for your great WP plugin post.
I would say…stay away from the core! from wordpress 2.0, its been bloating up like anything…I want to remove every feature in it and put in packs of plugins for the user to choose from.
the wordpress is not confusing for newbies and heavier on resources with all those silly functions like sticky and all tht…if users need it, they will search and install it from the repository.
But I think most newbies find it difficult to handle plugins. Installing them itself was a mess until the in-built installer came. Wouldn’t it be better if a plugin can be replaced by a small tick-box?
hmm, Simple things are sweet, that’s true. Maybe that’s the only reason why we love twitter!
Good Post Arun,
These plugins are must to have in WordPress by default.What about adding Askimet and Captcha into the list? Or you have considered Askimet as a part of WP Core..? But I feel Askimet is again a plugin..Correct me if I am worng.
Thats most 5 worthful Plugins for WordPress too! Nice post.
Maybe WordPress can join hands with Akismet and introduce it in their core for preventing SPAM !
Cool list..
there is one more plugin which I think should be an official part of plugin and that is max blog press ping optimizer..
Coz wordpress has a dirty habit of pinging ping services everytime u edit a post….
Great post.
I think ALL in one SEO and WP Super Cache should also be included.
@George and @Pradeep and @Nihar
When I wrote this, I was listing the simplest plugins that doenst have more than a few lines of code. Akismet is a big plugin by itself, so is All-in-one-SEO and Super Cache. Its always good if we have them inbuilt, then the WP core would have to be update often.
But these 5 are seldom updated, so they make the list
@Harsh
I never noticed that one! That fix should be inbuilt too, you got a point there. WP, are you listening to any of this?
@Amal
Thanks man!
Great post! I’ve used all these plugins in the past and I mostly agree with you, but I’ve got some other plugins I find extremely useful:
WordPress Tweeter
WP-DBManager
Preserve Code Formatting
SyntaxHighlighter Plus
The last two are a bit too specific to be included in the core, though.
~Callum