subject: A Basic Guide to Blogging [print this page] A Basic Guide to Blogging A Basic Guide to Blogging
A blog is basically an online diary or journal that digitally records about anything you would want people to read. "Blog" is short for the term weblog and a
term coined in humor in the late 1990's. They come in different styles and
formats, support and settings, all depending upon user preferences. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (art blog), photographs (photoblog), videos (video blogging), music (MP3 blog), and audio (podcasting).
Of the numerous topics displayed by blogs, perhaps the best
known are political, personal, niche, travel, health, religious, and
educational. All serve to be a collective of a specific topic written or produced by an individual or by a group of people.
Is Keeping a Blog for Me?
There are any numbers of reasons to start a blog. Once you see how easy it is, you can keep one for just for fun. Or you can use it to advertise yourself, much in the same way social bookmark sites promote individuals. Other reasons are to promote an already existing
website, and make money!! Blogging is simple, and if you can type, click a mouse, and have internet connection, then you have what it takes to get started. The best part of blogging is
that it is inexpensive.
How Do I Start a Blog?
You can create a blog for free. There are many free blog
hosting sites you can locate by searching for 'blog' in the search engine.
Blogger.com is a popular, but remember, Google owns your content, and can shut
you down for any reason. The plus side is that it is easy to use, great for beginners, and takes all of 5 minutes to up and running. As with other blog hosts, users are provided with pre-made, ready to apply, templates. Users are
also provided with easy to follow instructions on creating posts and options
such as allowing comments, social bookmark site buttons, and uploading photos
and videos. Beginners will also get a first-hand exposure to a blogging community and the wide variety of blogs on the internet.
Another very simple blogging tool is Wordpress. Wordpress is free, open-source software,
simple to install, and has a lot, I mean A LOT, of online documentation. Don't let the phrase "install on your own website" scare you. Most hosts have the Fantastico application in the cPanel, and one click later, you choose the Wordpress to have automatically installed.
If you get hooked on Wordpress themes, and there are hundreds of
thousands available for free, learning FTP (file transfer protocol) is another
easy skill to master. Wordpress themes do vary in complexity, so start with something simple such as ones found at AlexKing.org. Some folks concerned about how much they need
to know html and php. Again, there is a tremendous amount of help and tutorials on-line. When I first started with Wordpress, all
worried about my lack of expertise, here is what one business associate shared
with me about her perspective on code: "a little goes a long way." So, once you start with Wordpress, with all the controls and options you have over a platform such as blogger.com, you are sure to convert to WP, or the like, for life.
