ADDING LINKS, IMAGES, AND VIDEO
How to add linkable URLs, or images and videos as well. Here’s how you do those three things:
. To create a link : Creating a link to content outside your blog is helpful. Links are like breadcrumbs that draw visitors to your blog. Highlight the text you
want to link and click the Link button. Type the URL to which the text will be linked and click OK.
Make sure to enter the correct URL including the http.
. To add an image : Place the cursor at the point where you want the image to appear and then click the Add Image button. (it looks like a small picture).
You can upload images from your desktop to Blogger or specify the URL to an image stashed on the web. Note that if you create a link to an image,
you must include the image extension as well. Select the Radio button to agree to the Blogger terms of service. Click Upload Image.
The maximum file size you can upload is 8MB. Blogger accepts images in the formats BMP, GIF, JPEG, and PNG.
Here are the other options you have:
. Layout : The left and right options are useful when you want to keep an image inline with text. Eg: If you position the cursor at the beginning of a
paragraph before inserting an image, you can position the image to the left or right of the paragraph. The text wraps around the image.
. Image size : Accept the default medium image size or choose small or large. Accept the default option to use this layout every time if you like to do
things the same way every time.
. To add a video : Position the cursor wherever you want the video to appear, and then click the Add Video button. Click the Browse button and navigate
to the video you want to upload. Enter a title that contains a keyword applicable to the content of the post. (The title appears as alternative text, which
can be read by search engines). Agree to the terms and conditions and click the Upload Video button. You can upload a video file whose size doesn’t
exceed 100MB. Blogger accepts the video formats AVI, MPEG (including the popular and web-perfect MPEG-4), QuickTime (MOV), Real, and Window WMV.
MANAGING YOUR BLOG
The Blogger Dashboard is a wonderful thing. From there, you can create new posts, edit existing posts, change the layout, add pages to your blog, and perform other tasks. Here’s a list of what you can accomplish after clicking the Dashboard link:
. Edit posts : Click the Edit Posts link to display the Posting tab and view all posts you’ve created, including drafts. You can then edit individual posts and
delete or view selected posts, click the Edit Pages button to add pages to your blog or to edit existing pages. You can add as many as ten pages to your
blog. Add at least one page with a detailed bio of yourself and your company. A mission statement is another nice touch.
. Change settings : Click the Settings link to change your blog settings. To prevent users from spamming your blog with comments, change the
Comment Moderation Default Setting in the Comments tab to Always (which allows you to check all comments before they’re posted to your blog). On
the Permissions tab, you can invite other authors to post to your blog by clicking the Add Authors button.
. Customize your blog : Click the Layout link to change the look and feel of your blog. You can change its background colors, choose a different template,
change the image banner to match your other online content, and more.
. Monetize your blog : If you’re only in it for the money, you can click the Monetize your blog with AdSense (a Google service you can use to post targeted
non-completing ads on your blog). You can choose to display ads in the blog sidebar and posts, display ads only in the sidebar, display ads below the post,
or choose not to add new ads.
REVIEWING THE BLOGGER DASHBOARD
The blogger dashboard is where you access all the functions, features, and controls for your new blog. You can add new posts, edit old posts, add enhancements to your blog, change your blog’s design, and much more from your blogger dashboard.
Don’t rush into creating content on your blog until you take the time to click through the many pages accessible through your blogger dashboard. Reviewing each page helps you find out more about what you can do to personalize and configure your blog so it looks and works exactly how you want it to.
Review the following sections to see what kinds of tools are available from the various navigation tabs available through your blogger dashboard.
THE BLOGGER DASHBOARD MAIN PAGE
Log in to your blogger account, or click the Dashboard link in the upper right corner of any page within your blogger account, to access the main page of your blogger dashboard.
From the blogger dashboard main page, you can:
. Create a new blog.
. Create a new post.
. Edit existing posts.
. Configure your blog’s settings.
. Change your blog’s layout and design.
. Add money-making features to your blog.
. View and edit your profile.
. Edit your photo.
. Access your Google account.
. View blog posts from blogs in your reading list.
Using the tabs in the top navigation pane, you can also access each of the pages provided on the Blogger dashboard main page from any page within your blogger dashboard.
POSTING TAB
From the Posting tab within your blogger dashboard, you can add a new post, edit an existing post, or manage your blog post comment moderation settings. The New Post tab is likely to be the page you use the most often, particularly if you publish content frequently on your blog.
SETTINGS TAB
The Settings tab is where you can access all the configuration options for your blog, including basic publishing, formatting, comments, archiving, site feed, email and mobile, OpenID, and permissions settings.
LAYOUT TAB
The Layout tab provides access to all of the design elements for your blog. From this tab, you can add functionality to your blog through the use of point-and-click and click-and-drag gadgets. You can also change your blogs fonts and colors, edit the HTML code for your blog (if you’re versed in HTML), and choose a new template for your blog to give it a completely different look.
MOETIZE TAB
If you want to make money from your blog, you should definitely spend time reviewing the options in the Monetize tab on your blogger dashboard. From this tab, you can easily add Google AdSense ad units to your blog.
CONFIGURING SETTINGS
Before you publish a new post on your blog, you should configure a number of settings to ensure your blogging experience goes as smoothly as possible and your readers enjoy the best possible experience when they visit your blog. The following sections walk you through some of the most important settings you should configure before you publish your first blog post.
The suggestions included in the following sections are the settings most bloggers who want to grow their blogs use, but you can choose your own settings. Also, you can change your blog’s settings at any time, so you’re not locked into the settings you choose when you start your blog.
PROFILE
Your blog’s profile is where you describe who you are and why you’re writing your blog. Take the time to write a complete profile so your blog’s readers can get to know you and understand why you’re the right person to be writing a blog on your chosen subject. Follow these steps to create your blog’s profile page.
1. Click the Edit Profile link on the main page of your blogger dashboard. The Edit User Profile page opens.
2. Make sure the Share My Profile check box is selected and select the Show My Real Name check box if you want to include your real name in your profile.
There are very few anonymous popular bloggers. If you want to grow your blog the best choice is to tell your audience who you are in your blog’s profile.
3. Deselect the Show Sites I Follow check box. This setting is active by default, but unless you’re certain that you want to promote every blog you follow,
leave this setting deselected until you have time to make that decision.
Only blogs published with blogger can appear in Your Sites I Follow List.
4. Scroll through the remainder of the text box fields on the page and enter your personal information as appropriate.
The more information you include in your profile, the more your readers will learn about you. While you might not want to get too personal, it’s a good idea to share enough information about yourself to establish why you’re qualified to write your blog.
5. Click the Save Profile button. Your information is saved, and a message that says Your Settings Have Been Saved appears at the top of your page.
6. Click the View Update Profile link at the top of the page to review your profile. You can click the Edit Profile button on your new profile page if you need
to make additional changes.
BASIC SETTINGS
The Basic Settings page is where you can configure the core settings for your blog, such as the title, and a number of post related settings as follows:
1. Click the Settings link on your main blogger dashboard. The Basic Settings page opens.
2. Enter a new title in the Title text box and a description of your blog in the Description text box. This is where you can change your blog’s title and
add a description to tell visitors what your blog is about, in 500 characters or less.
3. Make sure the Add Your Blog to Our Listings and Let Search Engines Find Your Blog Settings are set to Yes. Configuring these settings to Yes means
your blog appears in lists from blogger, and it’s included in search engine indexes.
If you want your blog to grow and attract more visitors, it needs to be visible within blogger and by search engines. Most blog traffic comes from search engine keyword searches, so you’re missing a huge opportunity to expose new visitors to your blog if you exclude your content from search engine indexing processes.
1. Set the Show Email Post links option to Yes. Make it easy for people to share your blog posts that they enjoy by including an email post option with
each of your posts.
2. In the Select Post Editor section, select the Radio button next to Updated Editor to ensure you’re using the most feature-rich visual post editor. If
you know HTML and want to write your posts using HTML rather than the WYSIWYG post editor, select the Radio button next to Hide Compose Mode.
3. Click the Save Settings button. Your configuration settings are saved and immediately affect your entire blog.
FORMATTING SETTINGS
The Formatting Settings page is where you can configure a number of settings that affect your blog posts. Following are some of the most important settings to configure before you start publishing content on your new blog:
1. Click the Settings link on the navigation bar near the top of your screen. The Formatting Settings page opens.
2. Click the Formatting link on the navigation bar near the top of your screen. The Formatting Settings page opens.
3. Next to the Show Heading, type the number of posts you want to show on your blog’s main page. Most bloggers choose to show five to seven posts
on their blog’s main page to reduce the need for excessive scrolling.
4. Using the drop-down lists, select the format you want to use for your post dates, your blog’s archives, your post time, your time zone, and your language.
These settings are based on your personal preferences.
5. Click the Save Settings button. Your configuration settings are saved and immediately affect all of your blog posts and archives.
COMMENTS SETTINGS
Configuring your blog post comment settings before you begin publishing content on your blog is very important. The conversation that takes place on your blog through the comments that visitors leave. On your posts is what gives a blog a sense of community and helps it grow. Following are some of the most important comment settings, which you should configure as soon as possible:
1. Click the Settings link on your main blogger dashboard. The Basic Settings page opens.
2. Click the Comments link on the navigation bar near the top of your screen. The Comments Settings page opens.
3. Next to the Comments heading, make sure the Radio button for show is selected. This sets up your blog posts so comments left an existing and new
blog posts are visible to visitors.
4. Next to Who Can Comment, select the Radio button for Anyone. Opening your blog posts up to accept comments from anyone will help it to grow.
5. Next to Comment Form Placement, make sure the Radio button for Embedded Below Post is selected. This configuration has become the standard
most blog visitors are used to and most comfortable with.
6. Next to Comments Default for Posts, make sure the New Posts Have Comments setting is selected. This setting ensures all new posts include the
commenting option.
7. Next to Backlinks, select the Show Radio button. Backlinks are published on one of your blog posts anytime another blog published on Blogger links to that
post. Backlinks are a great way to find out about new blogs, drive traffic to other blogs, and build relationships with other blogger – three important things
you need to do if you’re trying to build a successful blog.
8. Next to Backlinks Default for Posts, make sure the New Posts Have Backlinks option is selected. This setting ensures all new posts include the backlink option.
9. Select the date and time format you prefer from the Comments Timestamp Format drop-down list. This setting can be configured to meet
your personal preferences.
10. Enter a message to appear above the comment form on your blog posts in the Comment Form Message text box. If you want to include a personal
message above your comment form on all of your blog posts, you can enter it here.
11. Select the Radio button next to Always in the Section Titled Comment Moderation and enter the email address where you want your comment
notification message to be sent.
12. It’s a good idea to monitor all the comments that are left on your blog to remove spam, delete offensive comments, and ensure the conversation that
happens on your blog adds value to your readers. When comments are waiting in your moderation queue, you receive an email notifying you.
As your blog gets more popular and comments become more than you can handle, you can adjust this setting to only moderate comments older than 14 days (or the timeframe of your choosing). This is effective because older posts typically attract for more spam comments than new ones.
Select the Yes Radio button in the Show Word Verification for Comments section. To reduce the amount of spam comments that clutter your email notifications, you can add an extra step for
1. People to complete before they can submit a comment on one of your blog posts. In this step, people are asked to enter text that matches a text
string shown in the comment form before they can submit their comments.
2. Click the Save Settings button. Your configuration settings are saved and immediately affect all comments left on your blog posts.
ARCHIVING SETTINGS
The Archiving Settings page is where you can choose how you want your blog posts archived, so your old posts are easier to access. You can configure your archives as follows:
1. Click the Settings link on your main Blogger dashboard. The Basic Settings page opens.
2. Click the Archiving link on your main Blogger dashboard. The Basic Settings page opens.
3. From the drop down list next to Archive Frequency, select the way you want your old posts to be saved. You can choose to archive your old posts on
a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
4. Make sure Yes is selected next to Enable Post Pages. This setting makes each blog post publish as its own page with its own unique URL, which is very
helpful for search engine optimization, linking, and growing your blog.
When you select Yes for Enable Post Pages, your most recent posts still appear on your blog’s main page, but readers can click on each post and view it on its own page. Note that the embedded comment form option discussed in the Comments Settings section only works on blogs that have the Enable Post Pages Setting configured to Yes.
5. Click the Save Setting button. Your configuration settings are saved and the changes affect your blog immediately.
PERMISSIONS SETTINGS
The Permissions Settings page is where you can add new authors to your blog and choose who can view your blog as follows:
1. Click the Settings link on your main blogger dashboard. The Basic Settings page opens.
2. Click the Permissions link on the navigation bar near the top of your screen. The Permissions Settings page opens.
3. In the Blog Authors section, click the Add Authors button to give additional people access to your blogger dashboard. Each person you add as an
author to your blog can write and publish posts and content on your blog. You only need a person’s email address to add him or her as an author on your blog.
4. In the Blog Readers section, make sure the Radio button next to Anybody is selected. This setting means anyone who has internet access can view your blog.
If you’re creating a private blog that you want only specific people to view, select the Radio button next to Only People I Choose. If you’re creating a blog
that you only want yourself and their authors that you add to your blog to be able to view, select the Radio button next to Only Blog Authors.
PERSONALIZING YOUR BLOG
The many free blogger templates that are available can give your blog a more personalized look, depending on your tastes. You can access many free templates through your blogger dashboard, or you can down load templates from a variety of web sites.
If you’re happy with your blog’s template but just want to change the fonts and colors used in your blog, you can do that through your blogger dashboard, too, and the best part is that you don’t have to know HTML to do it!
CHANGING THE FONTS AND COLORS USED ON YOUR BLOG
Click the Layout link on your main blogger dashboard page and then click the Fonts and Colors link on the navigation bar near the top of the page to access the fonts and colors configuration page.
From the fonts and colors page, you can select the various elements that you want to customize within your blog’s template from the list on the left side of the screen. (Scroll to see all the options). After you select an element, you can use the color buttons on the right to choose the color you want to use for that element on your blog. You can even see how your edits will look on your blog on the bottom part of your screen.
If you don’t like a change that you make, just click the Clear Edits button. If you want to put your blog back to the way it looked before you started changing colors, just click the Revert to Template Default link to the right of the color palette. When you’re satisfied with your color edits, click the Save Edits button and your changes are immediately made on your live blog.
Changing fonts is just as easy as changing colors. Just scroll down the list on the left until you get to a text element, such as Text Font and select it. The configuration settings on the right of your screen change from color selections to font selections. Just select the font family, style, and size you want to use (view your changes on your blog on the bottom half of your screen) and then click the Save Settings button to save your changes (or the Clear Edits button to remove the changes you made).
If you change your blog to a different blogger template, your font and color changes will be overridden with the default settings for the new template.
FINDING AND CHOOSING TEMPLATES
It’s easy to change your blog’s entire color scheme and layout simply by choosing a different template to use as the skeleton of your blog. To change your blog’s template, just click the Layout link on your main blogger dashboard, and then click the Pick New Template link from the navigation bar near the top of your screen to open the Select a New Template For Your Blog Page.
The Select a New Template For Your Blog Page includes thumbnail images of the various free templates available for you to use on your blog without leaving your blogger dashboard. Just use the scroll bar to the right of the images to scroll through the list and view your options.
Notice that many of the images include lists with Radio buttons beneath them. These list items represent variations of the theme shown. Just select one of the Radio buttons and the thumbnail image changes to the new version of that template. Select the Preview Template link under the template you select to see how your blog looks with the new template before you commit to using it.
After you find the template you like, select it and click the Save Template button. Your live blog immediately takes on the layout of the new template.
You can also access a wide variety of free blogger templates from sources across the internet. Following are a few popular sites for finding free blogger templates.
. eBay templates (www.eblogtemplates.com) this site offers a wide variety of free blogger templates and includes user ratings.
. BTemplates (http://btemplates.com) this site offers many free blogger templates, and it’s easy to search by number of columns, colors, and more.
. Blogger Buster (www.bloggerbuster.com) the free templates offered by blogger buster are very well designed and coded.
. Blog Flux (www.themes.blogflux.com) this site offers over 100 free blogger themes and includes ratings, demos, and profiles of designers.
. pYzam (www.pyzam.com) this site offers more than 1,000 free blogger templates, which you can search using predefined categories or keywords.
Many blog designers create premium and custom blogger templates at reasonable prices. Example, you can find premium blogger templates at www.bloggerbuster.com and http://themeforest.net.
UNDERSTANDING BLOGGER GADGETS
You can personalize your blogger blog and add enhanced functionality to it through the handy gadgets available through your blogger dashboard. Each blogger gadget represents a different feature you can add to your blog, such as a list of links, text, a video, a poll, and more. Adding gadgets to your blog is as simple as pointing and clicking.
To add a gadget to your blog, click the Layout link on your main blogger dashboard, which opens the Page Elements Layout page.
The Page Elements Layout page shows a wireframe image (a visual representation without content) of your blog’s layout with each element already included in your blog’s layout represented as a box-your header, your blog posts, your footer, and your sidebar boxes. You can drag and drop each of these elements to a different position by using your mouse. You can delete elements by selecting the Edit link within a box and following the instructions provided. (Note that not all elements can be deleted from your blog’s layout).
Additionally, you can edit the configuration of any element included in your blog by selecting the Edit link within a box and following the instructions provided.
You can also add additional elements to your blog by clicking the Add a Gadget link, which opens the Add a Gadget page.
Take your time selecting the link for each gadget and reviewing the options included for each to determine which you’d like to add to your blog. Most gadgets are added to a blog’s sidebar. Example, you can use the Search Box gadget to add a handy search tool to your blog, which helps visitors find posts related to specific keywords. Alternatively, you might like to add a list of links to other sites and blogs you own or recommend, which you can do in just a few steps by using the link list gadget.
One of the most popular blogger gadgets is the labels gadget, which allows you to add a list of the labels you use to identify your blog posts. Blog readers can use labels to find content related to subjects they’re interested in. You can use labels as a very loose blog post categorization system.
When you write your blog posts, be sure to take the time to add relevant labels so your post can be found using the labels list added to your blog.
Following are simple steps to add the labels gadget to your blog’s sidebar:
1. Click the labels gadget link (or the + sign to the right of the labels heading) on the Add a Gadget page. The Configure Labels page opens.
2. In the Title Text box, enter the title you’d like to use for your labels list. This title appears as a heading above your labels list and is helpful because
not everyone who visits your blog knows what a blogger label is.
3. Next to show, select the Radio button for All Labels or Selected Labels depending on your preference. You want to appear in your labels list. If that’s
the case you can exclude those labels by using the Selected Labels option.
4. Select the Radio button next to Alphabetically or By Frequency depending on how you want your labels list to be sorted. This option is completely
up to your personal preference, but alphabetically is the most common.
5. Next to Display, select the Radio button next to List if you want your labels to appear as a list, or select Cloud if you want your labels appear as a tag
cloud. This option is completely up to your personal preference. The list format is traditionally more common, but the Cloud option is gaining popularity.
6. Select the Show Number of Posts Per Label check box if you want to show how many posts in your archives were saved with each specific label. This
option is completely up to your personal preference, but until you have a deep archive, you might not want to show the number of posts per label.
7. Click the Save button to save your changes. Your label list immediately appears in your blog’s sidebar. You can click and drag it on the Blogger Page
Elements layout page if you want to change its position on your blog.
The process to add other gadgets to your blog works the same, although the instructions and options for each gadget vary. You can always delete a gadget after you add it, so don’t be afraid to test out the gadgets available to you.
MANAGING YOUR BLOG POSTS
Each of your blog entries is available in the Edit Posts list. To access Edit Posts, click the Posts link in the Blogger Dashboard. Or, if you’re already working with your blog, click the posting tab and then click the Edit Posts link.
You can perform several tasks here:
. Edit a post. Click the Edit link beside the entry you want to edit. Blogger displays the post in the WYSIWYG editor.
. View the live version of a post. Click the View link to see the individual post on your blog.
. View the text of a post. You can click the arrow to view the text of the post just below the entry.
. Delete posts. Click the Delete link to banish the post from your blog forever.
. Label posts. You can apply a new or existing label to one or more entries by selecting the entry’s check box and then choosing the appropriate item from
the Label Actions list.
. Search for posts. When you first start out with a new blog, you can easily locate a particular entry you want to work with. However, when your blog
grows to include a large number of entries, finding it can be a challenge. Use the Search box to look up an entry.
Clicking the Moderate Comments link gives you access to a facility for reviewing comments posted on your blog by readers. However, you need to enable comment moderation in your blog settings first.
DESIGNING YOUR BLOG LOOK
CHANGING THE DESIGN TEMPLATE
Perhaps the most important decision you make in your blog design is the template you decide to use. When you initially created your blog, you had a limited set of templates from which to choose. Here’s how to update the template with one you prefer:
1. Click the Template tab.
2. Click the Pick Now Template link. A directory of templates is displayed for you to select from.
3. Browse through the template listings and select the template of your choice by clicking its Radio button. Note that many template designs have more
than one variety. Click the Radio button to update the mini-design preview.
4. Click the Save Template button. Your blog is updated to reflect the new look.
You can also search around on the web for third-party templates. If you find one, click the Template tab and then the Edit HTML button. On this page, you can upload a template file or paste the template’s HTML code into the box that’s provided. Here are some sites that offer free or open source templates:
. www.geckoandfly.com/blogspot-templates.
. blogger-templates.blogspot.com
. www.blogskins.com
MODIFYING THE PAGE ELEMENTS
When you initially create your blog, it has a standard set of page elements, including these:
. Blogger-branded navbar at the top of the page.
. Header.
. Posts (the body of the page).
. Sidebar with Blog Archive and About Me sections.
You can edit each of these elements by clicking the Templates tab and then clicking the Page Elements link (you can click the layout link from the Dashboard page as well).
To change the navbar style, click the Edit link and choose from four color styles.
You cannot remove the navbar if you host your blog on Blogger. However, if you publish via FTP to another server, an option is displayed that enables you to hide it.
To modify the title or description of your blog, click the Edit link in the Header box.
To customize the layout of your post, click the Edit Posts link. The dialog box is displayed. Use it to determine which parts of a post you want displayed and how its to be laid out.
Blogger also allows you to add page elements to the sidebar to incorporate additional content to your blog. Click the Add a Page Element link to insert an element. The Choose a New Page Element Dialog box is displayed.
Choose from any of the selections. Click its Add to Blog button to insert. The page layout is updated to show your new element.
You can change the order of the page elements in the sidebar by simply dragging them around with your mouse. However, moving elements around is limited to the sidebar only. You can’t move any of the other regions of the page.
Click the Save button when you finish making changes.
CHANGING THE FONTS AND COLORS
Although the template you choose has default fonts and colors it uses, you can customize them if you want. Click the Template tab, and then click the Fonts and Colors button. A page is displayed, with settings at the top of the page and a preview window at the bottom.
The list box displays the default colors and fonts for your blog. As you select a font from the list, the settings area is updated automatically to display font information.
After you customize your look, click the Save Changes button.
POSTING TO YOUR BLOG FROM EMAIL
Posting to your blog can be literally as easy as sending an email message. To do so, you set up a special email address to send your posts to configure it by clicking the Settings tab and then clicking the Email link.
In the Mail-to-Blogger Address section, supply a name in the box that’s provided. The name is used as a unique email address for posting to your blog. The syntax is yourblogname.newworldyousupply@blogger.com. In our example, we used newlife@blogger.com, although you can choose a more secure word that people can’t guess, to prevent an unwanted party from posting on your blog. Check the Publish box and click Save Settings.
After you enable email posting, go to your email software and compose a post as an email message. After you send the message, it’s posted on your blog in a matter of moments.
You cannot include pictures or other attachments with your email. Blogger strips them out during the posting process.
POSTING TO YOUR BLOG FROM FLICKR
If you upload and share your photos on Flickr.com, you don’t have to upload your images to Blogger again in order to post them on your blog. Flickr has a feature that enables you to post a photo directly from Flickr onto your Blogger blog. To do so, follow these steps:
1. Click the Blog This link when viewing any of your photos. When you do this the first time, Flickr takes you through a setup process to link your Flickr
account to your Blogger account. You’re asked to confirm the setup link by email.
2. After the connection is set up, you can click the Blog This link and click the name of your blog in the drop-down list. Next, a new page appears that
allows you to compose a blog entry inside Flickr.
3. Click Post Entry to post your new entry.
WORKING WITH COMMENTS
Perhaps the most noteworthy setting is the Comments page which enables you configure how you want to deal with comments. Reader comments are a major component of many blogs because they provide:
. Interaction between the blogger and the audience reading the blogs.
. A sense of community for people coming to your site.
Here are some questions to consider as you configure your comment support:
. Do you want to allow comments? The biggest decision you need to make is whether you want to allow people to comment on your blog entries. By
default, this feature is enabled. However, if you prefer to disable comments, click the Hide button in the Comments section to turn it off. (You can also
enable or disable comments for individual blog entries).
. Who do you want to be able to make comments? After you decide to allow comments, decide who can post: any one, only registered Blogger users,
or members of the blog (for Team Blogs, which is configured by clicking the Permissions link).
. Do you want to review comments before they’re posted? By default, a comment is automatically posted publicly within moments after the reader saves it.
However, if you’re concerned about inappropriate comments being posted on your site, you can choose to review comments first.
The Moderate Comments page, accessible from the Postings tab, is the location for reviewing news comments. However, you need to enable moderated comments first by choosing the Yes option in the Enable Comment Moderation box.
. Do you want to display comments in a pop-up window? It’s recommended, click the Yes button in the show comments in a Popup Window section. If
you don’t, the comments page you display looks visually like Blogger.com, not like your template style. However, the popup window looks visually more
neutral, thus working well with a variety of styles.
OPTIMIZING BLOGGER
Contrary to myth, Google doesn’t necessarily give preference to blogs hosted on its own service, Blogger however poses some unique advantages and challenges:
. Blogger templates place <h1> through <h6> tags into the source code automatically, thereby helping with SEO. You can easily adjust page titles and
blog names for the correct heading level in page templates.
. Blogger lacks theme-related categories, which makes it a little more difficult for you and for theme-based SEO. To overcome that problem, create
permalinks that include your categories or directory names.
. Because Blogger doesn’t provide a related-links feature, create that list of related text links within or at the bottom of each post. These links should
open your other postings on the same topic. Or, take advantage of unlimited sidebar space to create a separate section for related links above your blogroll.
. Blogger defaults to weekly archiving, but the timeframes for archiving. Adjust the time frame based on your volume of posts and comments to
maintain good keyword density. If you post only weekly, it might make more sense to archive monthly. For an extremely active blog, you might
want to archive daily.
. Creating text links is easy, so use your keywords in links whenever possible.