HTML Sitemap Generator Installation Guide

Thank you for purchasing the 7th Circle Designs HTML Sitemap Generator! This guide will walk you through the installation process and help you get started with configuring your HTML sitemap.

System Requirements

Before installation, please ensure your website meets the following requirements:

  • WordPress 6.0 or higher
  • PHP 8.0 or higher
  • Active theme compatible with WordPress standards
  • Administrator access to your WordPress dashboard

Installation Methods

Method 1: Installing via WordPress Dashboard (Recommended)

  1. Log in to your WordPress dashboard
  2. Navigate to Plugins > Add New
  3. Click the Upload Plugin button at the top of the page
  4. Click Choose File and select the 7thcircle-html-sitemap.zip file you downloaded after purchase
  5. Click Install Now
  6. After installation completes, click Activate Plugin

Method 2: Installing via FTP

  1. Unzip the 7thcircle-html-sitemap.zip file on your computer
  2. Connect to your website using an FTP client
  3. Navigate to the /wp-content/plugins/ directory
  4. Upload the entire 7thcircle-html-sitemap folder to this directory
  5. Log in to your WordPress dashboard
  6. Navigate to Plugins > Installed Plugins
  7. Find “7th Circle Designs HTML Sitemap Generator” and click Activate

License Activation

After installation and activation, you’ll need to activate your license:

  1. Navigate to Settings > HTML Sitemap in your WordPress dashboard
  2. Click the License tab
  3. Enter your license key in the provided field
    • Your license key was sent to your email address after purchase
    • You can also find it in your account on our website
  4. Click Activate License
  5. You should see a confirmation message that your license has been activated successfully

Initial Configuration

Once the plugin is installed and your license is activated, you can configure your HTML sitemap:

  1. Navigate to Settings > HTML Sitemap in your WordPress dashboard
  2. On the General tab, you’ll see a list of available content types:
    • Each post type (Pages, Posts, Products, etc.)
    • Each taxonomy (Categories, Tags, Product Categories, etc.)
  3. Check the box next to each content type you want to include in your sitemap
  4. For each selected content type, you can:
    • Exclude specific items by entering their IDs in the “Exclude IDs” field (comma-separated)
    • Rearrange the order by dragging and dropping sections using the handle icon
  5. Click Save Changes to update your settings

Adding the Sitemap to Your Website

To display your HTML sitemap on your website:

  1. Create a new page or edit an existing page where you want the sitemap to appear
  2. Add the shortcode

    Posts

    Code Ninjas Content

    Security Ninjas Content

    News Articles

    Products

    Software

    Services

    Pages

    Legal Pages

     in the content editor
  3. Update or publish the page
  4. Visit the page to see your new HTML sitemap

WooCommerce Integration

If you’re using WooCommerce:

  1. Make sure WooCommerce is installed and activated
  2. In the HTML Sitemap settings, ensure the “Products” option is checked
  3. The plugin will automatically display your published products that are set to be visible in your store
  4. You can exclude specific products by entering their IDs in the “Exclude IDs” field next to the Products option

Customizing the Appearance

The HTML sitemap inherits most of its styling from your active theme. If you want to customize the appearance further:

  1. Add custom CSS to your theme’s stylesheet or using a custom CSS plugin
  2. The sitemap is wrapped in a <div class="html-sitemap"> container
  3. Each section consists of an <h2> heading and an unordered list (<ul>)
  4. Example CSS customizations:
.html-sitemap h2 {
    color: #4a4a4a;
    border-bottom: 1px solid #eaeaea;
    padding-bottom: 10px;
}

.html-sitemap ul {
    margin-left: 20px;
}

.html-sitemap li {
    margin-bottom: 5px;
}

.html-sitemap a {
    color: #0073aa;
    text-decoration: none;
}

.html-sitemap a:hover {
    text-decoration: underline;
}

Troubleshooting

If you encounter any issues during installation or configuration:

  1. Plugin doesn’t appear in the plugins list:
    • Make sure the plugin was uploaded to the correct directory
    • Check that the zip file was completely downloaded before installation
  2. License key won’t activate:
    • Verify you’re entering the correct key
    • Check that your site URL matches the one registered with the license
    • Ensure you haven’t exceeded your site limit based on your license tier
  3. Sitemap doesn’t display on your page:
  4. Not all content appears in the sitemap:
    • Verify the content is published and not in draft status
    • Check if the content ID is in the excluded IDs list
    • For WooCommerce products, ensure they are set to be visible in your store

Getting Support

If you need additional assistance:

  1. Visit our documentation for detailed information
  2. Contact our support team at https://www.7thcircledesigns.com/contact/
  3. When contacting support, please include:
    • Your license key
    • WordPress version
    • List of active plugins
    • Description of the issue you’re experiencing

Thank you for choosing 7th Circle Designs HTML Sitemap Generator!