Blogging Basics-- Part 5--- Additional Tips for Using HTML Code

Blogging Basics Part 5--Tips for Using HTML Code

    I was going to get into a lesson in how to write other types of HTML code.  I have

thought better of it for now. I'm rusty at it since I don't do it often.   It is also something you probably

won't use much if at all.  Its fun to play around with, but clearly I need to brush up on it myself more.

Blogger and Go Smokies make it far easier than some web sites used and the need to know how to write code for me is really diminished because of it.   

Here is a link to a tutorial that describes various tips and tricks for HTML Code.

Tips and Tricks to Writing HTML Code 

    It is mainly helpful after you've worked and written a entry on your blog to know how to copy and 

paste it elsewhere.  I sometimes will post a blog entry here for a trip report.  I can then copy and paste the 

entire HTML script to Go Smokies as a blog entry on there.    It is a fast way to post trip reports in more

places than one.   I'll share how to do that.

   Posting a Blog Script to Go Smokies or Other Website

  Once you get your blog entry typed up and finished you can post it elsewhere simply.

Go to EDIT and open the blog .  Change to HTML EDITOR  Right click and highlight the entire using SELECT ALL.   Then click COPY.

Be certain to get the ENTIRE SCRIPT

Go to the next website such as Go Smokies. Click Add CONTENT and pick Add a Blog Post.

Go to HTML editor tab and click on that.  Once it opens in that format it has a pale yellow color.
Right click in that area.  Select PASTE. The entire script should be deposited there.

Change back into VISUAL  MODE. Eyeball your blog entry and see if it is Ok?

Once that is done you can title your blog entry.
Go to the bottom and add tags if you want. It will make it easier for you and others to look up later.

You can select the privacy options in this mode.
You can save as a draft and come back to work on it later.
You can PREVIEW it to see if it is correct.
Then once you are satisfied with it click PUBLISH POST.

On Go Smokies it gives you an automatic hit counter and lets you know how many times that blog has been read by unique individuals!

Intellectual Property ---Yours and Theirs!

   Its not a good idea to use other people's work without permission.  Its a good idea to at least ask
and give credit back to the creator of the work when possible.   Once in a great while I will snag a photo
on the net to illustrate something I saw, but was unable to photograph.  I try to ask permission and give credit. It is not always possible.  I limit that sort of thing on my own blog. Lots of free clip art, graphics, royalty free background schemes, CSS, and photos are out there that don't require any of that.
Try to be sure that's what you're using whenever possible.  

       Do you ever wonder if other folks are using your images or materials?  Here is a link that shows
how you can check on it.  I used this a time or two and I found my photos of waterfalls WERE being used by a woman.  She was using them to make money on her commerical real estate website.  Really bad form. Using someone else's material without permission or credit AND using it to make money off of!
I wrote to her and asked she stop. I have not been worried enough about it to check again, but I should.

Kevin & Amanda Blog --How to See If Your Photos are being used 

Hope these tutorials are helpful.

I have learned some stuff just in preparing them. 

It was a good learning experience for me.

Blogging Basics--Part 4---Customizing & Accessorizing Your Blog Home Page

Blogging Basics Part 4--Customizing & Accessorizing 

Your Blog Home Page 

Aug. 8, 2014

Dana Koogler 

 Once you've gotten your blog started you may want to customize it. 

Lots of possibilities exist.  I like my blog to look pretty and try to customize to my style.

I change it around according to the seasons or what is current with me or at least I try to.

Blogger makes it relatively simple to do. I don't like getting into the more complicated aspects of it and I try to change only a few elements in such a way that I KNOW it will work and suit me.

I change my background color or pattern.  I change my header.  I may add a few links or change my profile details or narrative.   Beyond that I don't change the template. The Template is the frame work for your blog structure.   Changing it around can alter the entire look and function of your blog. I experimented and found what worked and I don't change that part.
I only know how to customize Blogger  so that is what I will address. 

Picking your TEMPLATE is where to begin.

  Go to the top right on the home page of your blog.  Find the DESIGN button. 

Click DESIGN. It will bring you to a page called your Dashboard. It has a series of tabs

down the left side. Select TEMPLATE.   Once that is highlighted.. go to the right side of the page

and click on CUSTOMIZE.  It will give you a series of selections across the top part of the page. 

I use the Ethereal template with customizations to it because that is my personal preference. There are lots of others you can use. It will depend on your personal preference, what kind of blog you are writing, and what you want to include on the front page.  You'll just have to experiment with it and see which one suits you best.   Once you pick from the choices you can CUSTOMIZE the template by changing the background colors or make you a custom header. 

              Customizing the Template

     The only way I alter my template from the point where I've chosen it is by tweaking the background

and the text and link colors.  Lots of other possibilities exist for folks who want to get really creative.

I will share what I know and what I do and you can make your blog your own by experimenting with it.

I will provide some tips and links and that's about the best I can do. I like customization, but lots of past

experiments have caused me to not like trifling with this stuff too much.   

    Using the instruction set above for finding and selecting a TEMPLATE... go to the next phase.

BACKGROUND.  If you like your background to be different click on that tab. Blogger will give you 

lots of choices of background patterns you can use. It will give you options on how it is displayed also.

It will give you the option of tiling the background which will cover the entire surface. Pick SCROLL 

WITH THE PAGE if you want the blog background to be a continuous loop.   

      If you don't care for any of the blog background choices they give you you can search free ones on the web, save them to your computer and upload them to use.   I do this by picking Royalty free images or patterns.   Lots of free stuff out there.  Blogger will limit your size of what it will upload so I try to watch the file size.  I like to find free, good looking SEAMLESS Background patterns.   

Here is a link to one you can experiment with.  Vlad Studio Free Desktop Wallpapers

You can go to the ADVANCED section of your template design.. the bottom tab.. and edit 

the colors of your font, the links, headers, borders.  They give you color suggestions according to what

template you use, but you can pick anything.  You can pick PREVIEW to try it out, but not keep the change unless you like what you see!  Then once you get any change you want permanent and are DONE click SAVE ARRANGEMENT.    or APPLY CHANGES.  Then click VIEW BLOG to see the front page.

 Here is a color changer tool you may want to try.  Sometimes you won't like what colors blogger gives you.

Web Safe Color Picker Tool

Custom Style Sheets--Free CSS Templates

 Another way to edit and customize your blog on blogger and other blog sites is through using CSS.

Custom Style Sheets are HTML scripts you can copy and paste into your blog to make a template you 

prefer if blogger doesn't have one that suits you.    I don't do this. I have tried it and did not care for it

at the time. Not saying I'll never do it again, but I don't find it necessary right now. It can be fun to

experiment with.  You can find lots of free blog CSS here that are compatible with blogger.

Free CSS for Blogger

   Using CSS scripts goes like this.  Pick one you like the look of. Either download the file and copy and paste the script into the HTML editor on blogger... or find the script on the page and copy and paste it in.

Go back to COMPOSE or Visual mode and see if it looks how you want it?

If not try try again.  

        Since I am not the most familiar with the use of CSS I am including a How To Tutorial link I found

that is pretty simple. I will play around with it myself to see if I can get better at it!?

How to add CSS to Blog

YOUR Presence on Blogger

  Some folks don't mind telling about their adventures on blogs, but they are shy about the details regarding themselves on the internet even if its on their own blog.    Nothing wrong with using discretion on the internet.   I generally prefer to know a little bit about the person who is composing the blog.  Knowing a few details about the blog owner/author can make for a more interesting read and keep things in context.

    Fill out your PROFILE on blogger and include as much or as little detail as you feel is appropriate.

Here are some good and relatively benign things you might include:

• First name or online handle
• Gender
• Age group
• General geographic location

• Interests
• a thumbnail photo of yourself

  

Custom Blog Headers

 The header is the top part of the blog that contains the title and often the description what your blog is
about.  You don't have to get fancy with it, but you can!  To start off with just words do this.

Go to the DESIGN button up top right corner of your blog's title page.
click that.  Go to LAYOUT.
On Layout page there will be blocked out areas. The first long, rectangular area down from the top is your HEADER area.  Click edit.  Once you do that you can simply type in what you want to say.

      I made up one to practice with because it has been so long.
My title is Tutorial Blog and my description is Teaching People to Blog

 Another thing you can do that is simple is to go online and do a BING IMAGE SEARCH for
Free Blog Headers or Graphics .  Save the image of them to your computer.  Pick out which ones you like.
Below are three free ones I found in a few seconds.

      Go to DESIGN and then LAYOUT... go to HEADER.  Click upload image from my computer.
Pick which header you want to use.  Upload it. In the boxes below the image you are uploading select
Image BEHIND Title.  It will put your words OVER the free header art.

Try it! Its fun to experiment with.

       Another thing I do is go create my own photo headers with photo editing software and my own images.
Then upload the images to my blog INSTEAD OF TITLE under the selections.  I am including a link that I use to create art and graphics from my own photos.  You can play around with it and see what you come up with.  It is not hard, but it takes patience and time.  Foto Flexer
 

        Other Interesting Accessories

  Last of all play around with the LAYOUT feature of blogger.   You can add lots of things to it.

Hit counters that let you know how many visitors to your page.  Playlists for music. Video lists.

Links.  Google presence.   I try not to clutter my blog up with too much distracting stuff, but

add enough to make it useful and fun to me and visitors.    

  Examples of things you might want to add?  

Links to other websites you use and enjoy.  Useful links like maps.  

My blog includes lots of hiking and waterfalls so I included a link to Waterfall Rich Stevenson's NC Waterfalls.com     I also am working on completing the Carolina Mountain Club's Waterfall 100 Challenge.

I added that website to the side of my blog. It pertains to me. I use it now and then.  It is there for anyone to check out. It may inspire someone to try it themselves.  Should you grow tired of any of it you can remove it simply by going to that section on LAYOUT and click edit and then REMOVE. 

    

      Last of all.. Part 5 will address tips and tricks for writing advanced HTML code. How to post entire blog scripts elsewhere like on Go Smokies.  Checking to see if your intellectual property is being used elsewhere?! 

  

   
 

Blogging Basics--Part 3-- Spicing Up Blog Entries with You Tube Videos or Vimeo

Blogging Basics Part 3-- Spicing Up Blog Entries with Add-Ons

You Tube Videos and Playlists and Vimeo

      Sometimes in writing up a blog entry it can be hard to illustrate how something is.  

I have times when a situation I have found myself in is almost impossible to describe in words.

A photo may not do it justice either.   Some scenes or situations are best captured in a video.

One example would be a waterfall that is so large or oddly shaped or positioned it is impossible

to get it all in a photo.    Another example would be a funny situation at home.. a conversation

with a child or something a pet did.  Yet another situation that is hard to demonstrate in a photo 

is some of the ATV rides we go on.   Sometimes the best way to show it off aside from having

been there is to post a video of it!   

      I know of several ways to go about it.   

Let's start with You Tube

1. You can upload a video directly to your blog by going to the image tool in COMPOSE 

mode on blogger and clicking on the movie clacker icon. Hover over it and it will say "Insert a video" 

 Click on it and it will give you options on the left side to upload from your computer, You Tube, My You Tube Videos, My webcam, and My phone.   Select what you want and hit OK.  That should insert the video directly to your blog entry. I will tell you now that I have tried it and it has been problematic from my experience. Uploading from the computer directly is slow and often does not function.  Uploading from You Tube or My You Tube is also slow and does not function properly if at all.   I don't know if it is my system or the software. 

2.You can go to You Tube and add a single video to your website by finding the video you want and under it find the SHARE button. Click on that.  It will give you an option to choose a link or to EMBED. I like the
embed feature. Let's do that one.  When you open it it will already be highlighted.  Right click and COPY.
Its worth noting that there are options to choose the size dimensions of the video you embed.  The first one is usually the best one, but play around with it and see what you think.    Go back to your blog entry and go to HTML mode again.  Top left of the blog entry.   Go down to the spot where you want to the video to appear.  Right click and choose the PASTE option.   There is no need to write code here. The script you selected from You Tube to share the video should be all you need.  Go back to COMPOSE mode or visual editor mode on Go Smokies. The video should appear there.

If you have problems getting it to show up... try selecting the USE OLD EMBED CODE by checking the box before you copy and paste. It will give you another, older, different HTML code to try to post.

3. You can paste a link into your blog entry and insert not an entire video, but a LINK to a video.

      Go to the SHARE option on You Tube.  It will have boxes across there to share on Facebook, Twitter, etc.  You should be able to share the video to your blog as a link by highlighting the link and copying it.
Left click in the link box.  Right click next and choose COPY.  Come back to your blog entry and either

Go to the LINK box at the top and insert first the title you want for the video.. then insert the copied web url there in the next box and click OK.  That should insert your video as a link.  

Bryants Cove Cascade Video  

  Just like adding too many images to a blog entry can make it slow to load---too many videos or add-ons can do the same thing.    If you are going to add more than one or two videos to an entire blog entry it is almost certainly best to post a link to a You Tube Playlist.  You could also create

a free You Tube Channel for yourself as I have done.  I post videos of my various trips and other things on Channel DBZR.    

      Creating a You Tube Playlist & Posting It

    Go to You Tube and select Playlists

Select NEW PLAYLIST 

 Give your playlist a name

Go to ADD VIDEO

If you're searching You Tube at large enter the name in the search box and find the video you're looking for.  Select it by highlighting it and adding it. 

If you're searching Your You Tube videos.. just highlight the ones you want to add to the playlist.

To share the playlist.. go to SHARE and left click to highlight the link to the playlist.

Right click to copy repeat the process to add as a link by using the LINK button up top of the entry in COMPOSE mode.  To Share by EMBEDDING click EMBED and highlight the link.

Right click. COPY and then come back to your blog entry. Change to HTML mode.. left click to position. Right click and choose PASTE.   Go back to COMPOSE mode or Visual editor mode on Go Smokies... your playlist will be there as what looks like a single video. However when that first one is done it will play the next one after a second or two.   

An example of a way I use this is on a trip report where I have visited seven waterfalls in Panthertown and want to give the reader an option to check out the videos for each one.. I can post a playlist like this and they can watch as much or as little as they wish.

    Sharing from Vimeo 

  I began using Vimeo when I lost my entire You Tube channel along with 120 videos I'd posted several years ago.   I have never cared for it as much as You Tube, but it is ad free. It can be

a little more professional looking, but I'm not a professional.   I'm just a gal who blogs about trip

reports and life.    It is free, but only up to a point. You can post about one free HD video per week.

It is pricey for paid accounts.  $60 per year.   Not going to break the bank, but I still prefer You Tube.    For those who don't want to use You Tube, Vimeo provides an alternative.

   Sharing a video from Vimeo goes like this.

Find the video you want to share.  

Go to the top right of the video and click the SHARE arrow.

It will give you the option to share as a LINK, E-mail or EMBED.

For the purpose of blogging we want either the LINK or EMBED.

To LINK remember.. go to the top of the entry.. find LINK and give your video link the name you want.  Insert the URL into the next box.  Highlight the link on vimeo... then right click and COPY.

Go to your second box under LINK and right click PASTE.

This should insert your video as a link.

Yellow Doors Overlook 

To EMBED click on the embed box on vimeo.

It will automatically highlight the link for you. Right click and COPY.

Go back to your blog entry. Go to HTML mode at the top left... 

Pick the position you want for the video to appear and left click.

Right click and PASTE.

Go back to COMPOSE mode or on Go Smokies Visual Mode.

 

Yellow Doors Overlook from Dana Koogler on Vimeo.

Vimeo's embed mode gives you options to change the text colors, show a caption or description of the video, autoplay this video or loop this video by checking various boxes.  Play around with it and see what you like for your own style.



That is enough for now.  Next Part 4-- Customizing and Accessorizing your Blog Home Page

Blogging Basics -- Part 1: Getting Started & Picking a Blog Platform

Blogging Basics Part 1-- Picking a Blog Platform

   Let me start off by answering the first, most basic of questions: What is a blog anyway?
The word blog is a shortening of the two terms "web log".  A sort of online diary to make entries in
about ones personal experiences.  I never really kept a diary as a kid or an adult.   Diaries in the past
and in my mind.. even today.. are private and not to be shared.  Web logs --blogs--- are out there
for anyone to see.  Blogging is the act of writing entries in the web log.  Some folks use them for personal enjoyment. Some folks use them for business reasons.
I'd say there are as many different blog types out there as there are people.  I am addressing this entry
to personal blog users since its all I know about.    I began mine as a way to post trip reports.
I was a long time poster of trip reports and trip photos from back in the early days of Yahoo groups.
You'd get on a yahoo group related to your topic and type up a trip report or post a collection of photos
in online albums hosted by Yahoo.  I had been doing that and back then I was ignorant of the fact that
Yahoo was a hookup joint.   I was clueless.   The internet was like the wild west back then anyhow.
You just never knew what you'd run across.   Yahoo groups are still around, but the relevance of them for me is pretty much done for.  Yahoo decided back then to stop hosting photos and me and a lot of other folks
had to decide what to do with photos we had stored on their servers?? I did some research and tried various things and finally went with  Smugmug Photos.
It is a paid subscription each year, but it is virtually unlimited. It costs me $40 a year and I have loved it.
It gives me freedom to store my digital images online and videos.  It is easy to use. I can order prints from it.
It also allows me to search photos to locate the one I'm hunting among the hundreds or thousands of pictures.

       The first steps to starting a blog is selecting a blog platform.  I use blogger and like it.
I am including here a link to reviews of the top ten reviews of blog services.  Wordpress is #1. While the one I picked .. blogger  is #3.

    Pick your blog service platform based upon your needs.  Pick you a photo service. You can either use a paid subscription or a free service.  Flickr is free. Picasa is free.  Photobucket is free.
Picasa web albums are truly free with your google account.  Flickr is free only up to a point.  You get so many photos stored per month and then you are cut off unless you want to pay for a subscription.
Your images if you link to them from Flickr photo image hosting... will be visible on your blog for a period of time then they will disappear. You'll have blogs with gaps in them because your image address has moved!
I use flickr for fun but not to host my blog images.  I've got entries way on back that are now needing to be repaired for that reason.


             Once you have selected your blog hosting service and photo service you need to decide
what you want your blog to be about?   Mine is mostly about my outdoor adventures and home life.
It is usually best to blog about something you really like and are passionate about.   Something you engage in often enough to make it interesting to readers and fun for you.   Some folks like DIY blogs (do-it-yourself) and write about home fixer upper projects, crafts, etc.  Some blog about hair, makeup, and fashion.
Some write about religion. Some blog about history. Some have foodie blogs. Some have history blogs.
The possibilities are myriad.    Pick something that suits you that you will like and can get better at as you go!
I have two blogs. One is just a place for me to store online recipes. The other is about my life and hobbies.

  An example of a way to make a blog fail is to make it too specific.    I occasionally do DIY projects and crafts, but its hit or miss with me.  I might have one or two projects per year.  If I only had two entries per year on a DIY blog that is not much fun for me or anyone else to read. I do lots of outdoor activities, but not ONLY hiking. I hike, backpack, bushwhack, paddle, camp, and go four-wheeling.   I would not want my blog to be Dana's Hiking Adventures.  Dana does far more than just hike.    I decided my life as a whole was  more interesting than just one hobby.    I will interject important entries about what's going on with me like my experience being seriously ill.  That has bearing on me and my hobbies and my life as a whole.
Then once you have decided what your blog will focus on name it.
Remember that you can change your mind about what you want to write about.
You can also change your mind about the name.
Its the internet.. and you can change the look of it and focus of it as you go!

   Important:  I am writing this up and some of the people who were interested in learning a few things about blogging use the Go Smokies website.   It is an easy to use blog hosting service run by Ning that is free.
It limits images to five per blog entry. Also important to note that Mike Gourley found that images on very old blog entries may disappear just like some of mine did when they had images linked from Flickr. 
I suggest you use another blog host and copy and paste the entries from your main blog over onto Go Smokies as blog entries.  Its never bad to have a back up source as I well know!  
Always remember that while blogging is fun and free it is the internet and you can lose your work.
Be prepared for that and ready to deal with that possibility.  
     RECAP:

Pick a blog hosting service

Pick a photo hosting service

Pick a concept/idea for your blog

Name your blog

Part Two will discuss typing up entries and embedding photos