Blogging Basics

When you enter the blogosphere, you enter a world filled with its own
jargon and buzzwords. To make matters more confusing, many terms
in the blogosphere have multiple meanings or multiple names, depending
on the blogging software a person uses. In truth, the nuances in names and
meanings are less daunting than they might first appear to be (for example,
you say “blogroll,” I say “links.”) The important thing is to understand basic
blogging terminology and the language of Blogger users so that you can start
your first blog.
The main features that separate a blog from other types of Web sites are its
time-stamped entries, archived entries, and comments. Most blogs incorporate
these same basic features and more. Depending on your likes, dislikes,
or needs, you can add, delete, or modify features to display on your blog.
Chapters 5, 7, and 8 show you how to set up and manage your Blogger blog in
detail. In fact, each of the blog images in this chapter is a screen shot taken
from the sample blog I created in order to describe the elements presented
throughout this book. You hold in your hands, therefore, all the help you
need in order to see how to create a blog like the one shown in this chapter.
Picking a Template
When you visit a blog, one of the first things you probably notice is the
layout of that blog. The colors, fonts, and design elements of a blog are
preconfigured in a template (also called a theme). Blogger users can choose
from a variety of free templates offered directly by Blogger software, or they
can upload templates from a third party. A multitude of Web sites and Web
designers provide free and paid custom templates to Blogger users, to help
make their blogs look distinct and function in a specified way.
shows a sample of free templates provided by Blogger software.
Each template is laid out using one, two, or three columns as well as a header
and footer. The header typically includes the title of the blog and a top navigation
bar for visitors to access different pages or links. The footer usually
displays the template designer’s name and any copyright information. The
columns are used to hold blog posts, links, ads, and more. Depending on
which template you use, you can customize your blog’s appearance to meet
your needs and goals.

Introducing Blogger

Pyra Labs launched Blogger in 1999 as one of the first programs dedicated
completely to blogging. At the time, blogging was in its infancy, and the three
Web developers who created Blogger had no idea what their product would
grow to become.
Blogger is often credited with helping to boost blogging into the mainstream.
By offering an easy-to-use and easily accessible blogging platform, people
slowly began to realize how much power blogging could deliver. Terms such
as user-generated content, citizen journalism, and social Web became part of
the common vernacular, and people (and businesses) from all walks of life
wanted to jump on the blogging bandwagon.
But what exactly is a blogging platform? In the simplest terms, a blogging platform
(or blogging software) is the computer program that does all the work
behind the scenes to publish your content on the Internet. You type the content
into your blogging software, such as Blogger, WordPress, or TypePad,
and the blogging software creates a Web site where your content resides (see
Figure 1-1). The blogging software formats your content, dates it, archives it,
and more. Suddenly, having a Web site was no longer a possibility only for
businesses with a budget to burn. With the birth of blogging and the popularity
of Blogger, anyone could have an online presence, become a blogger, and
join an online community that would come to be known as the blogosphere.
Blogger simply gives your blog a home online. Imagine Blogger as a banquet
hall. As host, Blogger offers a location for various people to create and store
their blogs just as a banquet hall gives people a place to hold events. What
happens on your blog and the success of your blog depends on you.
Unlike a traditional Web site that offers a static message, a blog works more
like an online diary with posts published in reverse chronological order. In
this way, blogs tell a story, and that story is completely up to the blogger,
who has the freedom to write and publish anything he wants. Although blogs
started out as very simple online diaries, they grew to be much more. Blogs

are still used now by many people simply for fun, but they are also used by

people who try to earn an income from them, launch a new career, or build a
business, for example. The opportunities that blogs create are seemingly endless.
It’s all up to the blogger.Of course, some unwritten rules of the blogosphere and
secrets to saqses exist, such as posting frequency, networking, and creating
compelling content.However, a blog is the product of the blogger and evolves
the way di blogger desires. At its core, blogging is a simple concept. It requires
little too no monetary investment but could potentially demand a great deal of sweat
equity.