Blog (blogger.com)

Member Name: drew_greenday

Product:	blogger.com
Date:	04/12/02 (981 review reads)
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Get yourself an Internet tool from blogger.com that once you use it you will wonder how on earth you managed without it. It is called a ?Blog?. Yes, I am serious. It is called a Blog because it is a Web Log. (Say it fast. Weblog?we..blog) Get it? Ok.

I really believe that it can be used and appreciated by internet newbies and experienced webmasters alike.

Those of you who don?t have a website please read on because you don?t need to build a website to use a Blog. Yes, it works fine all on its own on Bloggers own free web space and it may be all that you need to have a worthwhile ?presence? on the web.


*** What is a Blog? ***

Well a Blog, as I said, is a web log and its uses are limited only by your imagination.

For instance, in its simplest form you might use a Blog as an online diary that you update each day so that you share your ?daily life? with others. Or perhaps you could use a Blog as an integral part of a website such as a ?What?s New? page or indeed any other page that you need to update frequently. The possibilities of what you might use it for are endless.
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The most amazing thing about a Blog is that you click just one button and your Blog is published to the web. Everyone online can see your ?diary? or ?opinions of the day? or whatever.
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*** How to get a Blog ***

Go to http://www.blogger.com , Click the Start Now button that is shown in the Create your own Blog box on the Home Page. This takes you to the page where you will create a Blogger account. Choose your own User name and Password, Confirm your password and complete the rest of the form to show your first and last names, your organisation or none as the case may be and your email address. Make sure that you have read the Terms of Service and that the little box is tic

ked. Then click Sign Up.

The next page is the start of creating your Blog. You fill in the title of your blog, a description of what your Blog is about and you choose whether or not to make the Blog public or not, choose Yes or No. Click Next.

You are then asked if you want to publish your Blog on Blogspot or on your own web space. If you choose to host it on your own web space you must enter the ftp details. Click Next.

If you are hosting Blog on BlogSpot then you are asked to choose an address for your Blog in the form http://xxxxxx.blogspot.com/ click the box that says ?I agree to the Blogspot terms of service? (I am assuming that you agree) and then click Next.

You are then shown a page of template designs. You should choose one by clicking the radio button marked ?Use this one? then click Finish.

All of these choices can be altered once your Blog has been created.

Blogger will now create your Blog for you! It takes a few seconds ? I?d say 10 seconds at the very most.

You are then transported to your Editing Page where you will write and update your Blog.

*** Writing and Updating your Blog ***

The Editing Page is split into halves horizontally. The top half is where you write your Blog. You can use simple text and write it as if using a word-processor. You can also, if you wish use simple html code to enhance the appearance of your post. The bottom half of the Editing Page shows your posted Blogs. If you have no posted Blogs then it shows instructions on how to write your first post.

When you have finished writing you have the choice of saving what you have done without publishing it or saving your work and publishing it also. To save without publishing simply click the Post icon at the top or to save and publish click the ?Post and Publish? icon also at the top.

You may also edit any posts that you have made simply by clicking the word [EDIT] that
appea
rs after every posted Blog.

The Editing Page has icons which when clicked take you to pages that allow you to

- change your settings (title, description, ftp details that sort of thing)
- change your template to something different ? there are even more templates to choose from than the selection that you saw on the sign up pages
- archive old posts
- invite others to join your Blog ?Team? so that more than one person can contribute.

There is also

- A Help icon that takes you to a Freqently Asked Questions page.
- A calendar which lets you to trawl through old Blogs which you may have Archived.
- A Search facility to locate Blogs which contain the search word that you are looking for within Blogs.

It?s all pretty straight-forward and easy to play about with until you feel confident and do some serious ?Blog?ing. The next time you want to update your Blog just log in at the Blogger website and you will see the name of your Blog or Blogs listed on the right hand side of the page. Click the name of the Blog you want to update and you are, again, taken to the Editing Page. Simple.

Serious Bloggers with knowledge of web design can make their Blogs incredibly powerful. For instance, it is possible to syndicate your Blog so that other webmasters can include your Blog on their websites. Details of how to do this and other easy to follow instructions are shown on the 'How to' page.

*** How much does it cost ***

++ Basic Blog ++

The basic Blog is free to non-commercial users and you can have as many Blogs as you want. You can host your free Blog or Blogs on either;

- Blogger.com's own web space ?Blogspot? ? A banner advertisement shows at the top of the screen unless you pay $12 per year to remove it.
- your own web space or
- webspace provided by a free host.

Blogger templates of various designs are free at the
site and
these include a small button ?Powered by Blogger? that you must display to keep within the terms and conditions of service.

You can host one or more of your Blogs on any of the types of web space I have shown above.

A special feature, such as the ability to run scripts on your web space is NOT required. Any old web space will do!


++ Blogger Pro ++

Commercial user MUST use Blogger Pro.

Blogger Pro currently costs $35.00 per year on special offer ($50 per year normally) and this is ?per user? not per Blog. So if a user has several Blogs then these all have the additional features I have shown below;


Features of Blogger Pro include

- the ability to post images
- spellchecking
- it is on a more robust server than the basic Blog so the number of users on at any one time can not affect the availability of the Blogger service.

There are also a host of other features, a list is shown on the Blogger Pro page together with many more features that are in the pipeline.


*** Examples of Blogs ***

The blogger.com home page shows a list of recently updated Blogs and also a selection of quality Blogs that the staff consider suitable for inclusion in a ?Blogs of Note? feature. You may want to visit some of these to get ideas of what you could use your Blog for.

*** Help Pages ***

Help and advice can be found on the home page by clicking the ?How to? button for a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and their answers.

*** My Experiences ***

I have played about with a free basic Blog for a while now and may one day go public with my Blogs, but not just yet. I have found it simple and easy to use. I have just one criticism of the free basic version though and that is that I always find difficulty logging on to the Blogger service early Saturday evenings and I assume that there are lots of people updating t
heir ?football?
Blogs J

Hope you all enjoy Blogging.

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