Genesis

Upcoming Changes

mike — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:40:00 GMT

Soon after I started this blog, we decided to give Blogiversity a major overhaul. We will be revamping the whole site to make it more user-friendly, graphically appealing, and more functional. We will be adding lots of user options and new content to greatly increase the activity of the user community. We also have a few surprises in store that will make the whole site much more fun and rewarding for our dedicated bloggers. I will say, if you want a head start, get to blogging a lot now and you will be well on your way to winning prizes when the changes take effect.

I will be concentrating on the redesign and suspending most of my tutorials for the current site. The end result will be different enough that I will have to rewrite any tutorials anyway. I will keep diligently posting in my Reality Check blog.

Advanced Blog Posting

mike — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 16:09:00 GMT

There are many options that will allow you to get more functionality out of writing or editing your blog. Today we will go over how to change your font options, add pictures, change paragraph options, copy/paste, and paste from Word.

First, go into the "Write Blog Post" page. The "Edit" page is essentially the same as the writing page, and holds the same functions. You can access the write a blog post by going to your control panel > Common Tasks > Write a Blog Post. Once here, we can type our post and use the advanced options.

Bold:
The first four buttons are used to change the special format of words. The first icon from the left is the "Bold" function. This will make letters thicker and easier to read. I use this on all my text to make it stand out better from my background and easier on the eyes. You can use the "B" button to toggle bold on and off. The button will be outlined in gray when active. You can turn the button to the ON setting and type, then switch it OFF when you no longer want bold. You can also write your text and highlight it, then switch its boldness on or off. From here on out, I will be posting in bold.

Italics:
The second icon from the left is the "Italics" function. It works exactly like the "Bold" function, only it makes the words slanted. This is useful to offset or emphasize a word or statement.

Underline:
The third icon from the left is "Underline". It puts an underline below the selected words. It functions the same as the other two keys and is also used to emphasize a word.

Strikethrough:
The fourth icon from the left is "Strikethrough". This key functions the same way as the previous three and is used to cross out a word.

Indent:

The next set of buttons is used for paragraph format. The "Indent" key creates an indent to offset a paragraph.

Outdent:
This is merely a button that removes an indent.

Unordered List:
This creates a bulleted list. When you click this button, it enables the bullets function. Each time you press the "Enter" key, a new bullet will be made. This is useful when posting a list or outline where you want each item offset and itemized.

Ordered List:
This is basically the same as the Unordered list, but it uses numbers instead of bullets.

The middle set of buttons deal with images, hyperlinks, and smileys. We will save these functions for the second installment of advanced blog posting.

Cut/Copy/Paste:
These allow you to use the copy/paste functions from Microsoft Word. You should be familiar with these functions already but I will outline them just in case. Copy will create a copy of the highlighted text and save it to the memory temporarily. Cut does essentially the same thing, but removes the original text to move to a new location. Paste takes the text in the memory and pastes it into whatever place you have selected for it. There are quick shortcuts to do this from virtually any program in windows. Ctrl+X will Cut, Ctrl+C is copy, and Ctrl+V will Paste. Using these keystrokes can save lots of time.

Paste From Word:
Personally, I write up all my blogs in Microsoft Word, and copy/paste them into my blog. I write extensively long blogs and have a lot of work to lose if my browser were to crash on me. I also like to be able to write blogs ahead of time so I can post them each day, and I like to keep records of them on my computer. I used the "Paste From Word" to write this blog in Word and Pasted it into my blog. When you have finished your post in Word, click "Select All" from the "Edit" menu. You can also click and drag to highlight your entire post. Then either right click and copy, or press Ctrl+C. Now that your post is copied to the memory, click on the "Paste From Word" button in Blogiversity. Click in the blank box and press Ctrl+V to paste into it. Then just click "Insert" and your text will appear in your blog.

I will go over the other buttons in a later post.

Managing Blog Posts

mike — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 17:39:00 GMT

This post is about how to manage a blog once you have saved or posted in it. Because none of us has quite reached perfection in our writing, we will probably all need to go back and fix a few typos after posting from time to time. Today we will learn how to edit posts that have already been published and how to retrieve saved posts after a browser crash.

First of all, we will need to go to the control panel from your blog page. From here, select the “Manage Content” bar and click on “All Posts”. This will show a list of all blogs you have posted or saved. The “Published” column will show if a blog is currently visible (Green Check) or merely an invisible saved draft (Red X). Also any previously saved draft that might have been lost will show up exactly as it was when you saved it as a saved draft. The “View” and “Delete” buttons allow you to edit or permanently remove a blog right from this main page. If you would like to edit a specific blog, click on its title or click the “View” button.

This will take you to the “Edit Post” page, which is exactly the same as when you were first writing the blog. Here you can edit tags (these will be discussed later), title, and content. You can also hide a blog so it is only visible to you but not posted on your page for others to see. To do this, click the “Save, but don’t publish” button. It will stay in your archives as a saved draft. Remember to click the “Save and Continue Writing” button often while writing any post because it will save you from losing your work if the browser closes or crashes. When you have finished edits, click the “Publish” button to post it to your page for all to see.

Basics of Posting in Your Blog

mike — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 18:38:00 GMT

I will start this blog with very basic instruction for new Blogiversity users. I highly recommend these earlier posts for beginning bloggers. While this is information that more experienced bloggers probably already know, some information may be new to them as well. The posts will be getting more and more advanced as time goes on, so be sure to keep up to date.

Today we will review the basics of posting to your blog.

Accessing Your Blog:

To post in your blog, you must first make sure you are logged in. In the top right corner of the page, it should show your username(1). If it says “Sign In”(2), you will need to follow that link and enter your name and password to do anything in your blog. If you do not yet have a blog in Blogiversity, click on "Join"(3) or the "Sign Up"(4) link. Once signed in, click on the “Blogs”(5) section of the title menu. You can find your new blog in the “Premier Blogs”(6) section. If it doesn’t appear in the list, click the “Next >”(7) button at the bottom of the list to scroll through the other pages until you find yours(8). This will take you to the main page of your blog. Be sure to bookmark it for easy access.

Accessing Blog Entry:
Once on your blog page, look at the task bar on the side. Click on “Write a Blog Post” under the "Common Tasks" box. You can also write posts from the control panel, which we will cover later.

Writing a Blog:
From here you can write your actual post. Be sure to enter an interesting title in the “Title” box. Making an eye catching title is the first step to get someone to read your post. If it is intriguing, the reader is likely to keep reading to find out more about it. Then proceed to write your actual post in the “Body” section. Any misspelled words will show up underlined in red. Be sure to click the “Save and Continue Writing” button at the bottom of the page every few minutes. If a power failure or browser crash causes you to exit the page, you can still retrieve any information you entered before saving. Later I will show how to retrieve saved posts.

Publishing:
Once you have finished writing your post, click the “Publish” button. If you aren’t sure you want to publish the blog yet, or want to work on it later before displaying it, click the “Save, but don’t Publish” button. This will save it to your archives but not display it. Once published, be sure to go back to your main page and read the post to check for any typos or formatting problems.

I will post more on the basics of posting blogs in the next few days. Be sure to keep checking back for updates.

GENESIS: The Beginning

mike — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 22:10:00 GMT

The word "Genesis" means an origin, creation, or beginning. This blog is devoted to teaching others how to create their own blogs and get the most out of them. While I have only basic training in graphic design and web programming, I have always wanted to learn to make professional grade websites. I am learning new techniques constantly and I will be posting to share that knowledge with you. You will be able to watch my blog evolve from its humble default beginnings as my skills develop, and hopefully yours along with me.

I will be starting with the plain default blog and slowly adding new features and changes as I post. I will be adding explanations of everything I do so others can learn how to make their own blogs unique and interesting. I will also happily answer any questions that I can and share some of the resources I have found for polishing up the look and feel of a website. Be sure to check back often for more updates.

Also be sure to check out my main blog, Reality Check. There you can see the finished product of my current level of skill. You can also get a good laugh delivered to you each morning before lunch.