11 Aug 2013
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8 Mar 2012
SEO Tips for Blogspot Users
I hadn't given much though to SEO for blogspot until I moved my 1st blog All These Pretty things which is a UK Beauty Blog over from Wordpress to Blogger. While Wordpress is great for SEO purposes Blogger is not. But the good news is that there are ways to better optimise it so that you appear higher in search results. Now it is time consuming but well worth it.
So in the rest of this post i'll go through the steps you need to take to optimise your own blog.
7 Mar 2012
A Little Rant - IE Issues on Some Blogs
When designing a blog or website I often ask myself 'Will this display correctly on IE?' Internet Explorer is an antiquated browser and frankly Microsoft needs to up their game so that it accepts all the lates programming languages. but for the time being we are stuck with it.
A site that displays beautifully in firefox and Chrome often looks jumbled and unreadable on IE. As bloggers we want as many people as possible to read our content. Internet explorer still accounts for more than 20% of internet users and ignoring these people would be a big mistake. Testing your site in all browsers ensures that you can spot any problems immediately. Many bloggers display one theme for non IE users and make IE users click on a separate link on their homepage - DO NOT DO THIS! Internet users are notoriously lazy and many will leave your site rather than click on a separate link and doing this basically says you don't care about IE users as the linked IE version is usually formatted totally different and most just use Blogger's dynamic views default layout (ie Ugly!)
If your not a designer there are literally hundreds of themes out there that are compatible with all browsers. Any good designer would design a theme that that is cross browser compatible. I was actually discussing this same subject with a blogger yesterday and she actually unfollowed a blog that wasn't designed for IE. Catering for all internet users is a hallmark of good design and good blogging practice.
Rant over!
A site that displays beautifully in firefox and Chrome often looks jumbled and unreadable on IE. As bloggers we want as many people as possible to read our content. Internet explorer still accounts for more than 20% of internet users and ignoring these people would be a big mistake. Testing your site in all browsers ensures that you can spot any problems immediately. Many bloggers display one theme for non IE users and make IE users click on a separate link on their homepage - DO NOT DO THIS! Internet users are notoriously lazy and many will leave your site rather than click on a separate link and doing this basically says you don't care about IE users as the linked IE version is usually formatted totally different and most just use Blogger's dynamic views default layout (ie Ugly!)
If your not a designer there are literally hundreds of themes out there that are compatible with all browsers. Any good designer would design a theme that that is cross browser compatible. I was actually discussing this same subject with a blogger yesterday and she actually unfollowed a blog that wasn't designed for IE. Catering for all internet users is a hallmark of good design and good blogging practice.
Rant over!
5 Mar 2012
Blogger Tutorial - Add an Image to Sidebar Titles
Over on my other blog All These Pretty Things I have added a cute little feather to the start of my sidebar titles. this is a great design fluorish and makes the items in my sidebar stand out. so today I'm going to show you how to achieve the same thing on your own blogs. Of course you can use any images you like.
To start with you'll need to create your image in your photo editing software of choice. I made mine 40px high and 80px wide. Upload your image to photobucket and grab the direct link. Make a note of this url.
Log into blogger and navigate to the template designer. Click on advanced and select add CSS. Paste the following code into the CSS box.
.sidebar h2 {
background:url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL5KnsQeyX7wWhEAAApf6l6Vxjn1tc1pC8usxBuO1kb7EXOG3AE4clXyBJxK5bxHPivN10ifXSefLvAPyTJwgZJuj2UPzE9tCdqoochAmIr6aU4O4OwPdFxDIY0mfnCUC07Y-AWBOH2QI/s1600/feather.png);
background-repeat: no-repeat;
background-position:left;
height:40px;
margin:0;
padding:10px 3px 0 80px;
line-height:1.5em;
text-transform:uppercase;
letter-spacing:.2em;
}
Replace the bolded url with the direct link you made a note of earlier.
Change the height to the height of your image and replace the '80px' on the line padding: 10px 3px 0 80px with the width of your image.
Press apply to blog.
You should now have an image next to your sidebar titles. easy peasy!
To start with you'll need to create your image in your photo editing software of choice. I made mine 40px high and 80px wide. Upload your image to photobucket and grab the direct link. Make a note of this url.
Log into blogger and navigate to the template designer. Click on advanced and select add CSS. Paste the following code into the CSS box.
.sidebar h2 {
background:url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL5KnsQeyX7wWhEAAApf6l6Vxjn1tc1pC8usxBuO1kb7EXOG3AE4clXyBJxK5bxHPivN10ifXSefLvAPyTJwgZJuj2UPzE9tCdqoochAmIr6aU4O4OwPdFxDIY0mfnCUC07Y-AWBOH2QI/s1600/feather.png);
background-repeat: no-repeat;
background-position:left;
height:40px;
margin:0;
padding:10px 3px 0 80px;
line-height:1.5em;
text-transform:uppercase;
letter-spacing:.2em;
}
Replace the bolded url with the direct link you made a note of earlier.
Change the height to the height of your image and replace the '80px' on the line padding: 10px 3px 0 80px with the width of your image.
Press apply to blog.
You should now have an image next to your sidebar titles. easy peasy!
4 Mar 2012
Tips for Creating a User Friendly Blog
This post is going to prove really controversial for some but remember this is just my point of view. I do have a little experience in good blog design and in designing a blog that is user friendly for readers. Certain things about blog design are great for readers and other things aren't so great for keeping users on your blog. So here are my tips for a user friendly blog.
No Autoplaying Music
This is one of my biggest bugbears and speaking with other bloggers it irritates them too. Autoplaying music can be a hassle when your trying to read a blog secretly at work or when I have the 3 year old asleep next to me. Don't do it.
Show Content Above the Fold
Massive headers are a real pain in the ass. A lot of bloggers opt for them but I really like to see some content without scrolling. Readers are notoriously lazy and you want to lure in readers as soon as they land on your page. Show some content above the fold please.
No CAPTCHA
Captcha really does annoy me and put me off commenting. Sometimes I have to enter it 3 or 4 times before I get the correct one. If you're worried about spam then moderate your comments.
Follow Button vs GFC
Some bloggers on the Blogger platform only have the follow button active and not a GFC box. There is one huge problem with this option. The follow button only shows when you're logged into Blogger. This is a huge problem for non Blogger users especially. Also having the follow button located there means that less people will see it and of course that will result in less followers.
Add a Search Box
Search boxes are vital for helping people to locate what they're looking for. If your blog is very new then you really don't need one. But if you have more than a couple of hundred posts then a search box is essential. You'd be suprised how many blogs don't have one.
Add an Email Subscription Box
The more options you give readers the better. You need to remember not every reader is a blogger. So RSS, GFC or Bloglovin' may be something they know nothing about. Blogger and Wordpress all give easy options for adding an email subscription box.
Dark Backgrounds and Grey Text
I am not a fan of dark backgrounds in general but when coupled with grey text it makes the content almost unreadable. Avoid dark backgrounds and grey text whenever possible.
Unclutter Your Sidebar
Only add widgets that are necessary. A lot of bloggers choose to add tonnes of images, badges etc to their sidebar. The more widgets in the sidebar, the longer the site takes to load. There are of course things that are necessary like social media icons, archive list, search button, subscription options, ads etc. But overloading your sidebars is never a good idea. Not only does it affect load times but it also makes a blog look cluttered.
Yes I am quite particular when it comes to design and I won't apologise for it. This is of course my personal preference and based on my experience. it is purely a post to give all bloggers something to think about.
No Autoplaying Music
This is one of my biggest bugbears and speaking with other bloggers it irritates them too. Autoplaying music can be a hassle when your trying to read a blog secretly at work or when I have the 3 year old asleep next to me. Don't do it.
Show Content Above the Fold
Massive headers are a real pain in the ass. A lot of bloggers opt for them but I really like to see some content without scrolling. Readers are notoriously lazy and you want to lure in readers as soon as they land on your page. Show some content above the fold please.
No CAPTCHA
Captcha really does annoy me and put me off commenting. Sometimes I have to enter it 3 or 4 times before I get the correct one. If you're worried about spam then moderate your comments.
Follow Button vs GFC
Some bloggers on the Blogger platform only have the follow button active and not a GFC box. There is one huge problem with this option. The follow button only shows when you're logged into Blogger. This is a huge problem for non Blogger users especially. Also having the follow button located there means that less people will see it and of course that will result in less followers.
Add a Search Box
Search boxes are vital for helping people to locate what they're looking for. If your blog is very new then you really don't need one. But if you have more than a couple of hundred posts then a search box is essential. You'd be suprised how many blogs don't have one.
Add an Email Subscription Box
The more options you give readers the better. You need to remember not every reader is a blogger. So RSS, GFC or Bloglovin' may be something they know nothing about. Blogger and Wordpress all give easy options for adding an email subscription box.
Dark Backgrounds and Grey Text
I am not a fan of dark backgrounds in general but when coupled with grey text it makes the content almost unreadable. Avoid dark backgrounds and grey text whenever possible.
Unclutter Your Sidebar
Only add widgets that are necessary. A lot of bloggers choose to add tonnes of images, badges etc to their sidebar. The more widgets in the sidebar, the longer the site takes to load. There are of course things that are necessary like social media icons, archive list, search button, subscription options, ads etc. But overloading your sidebars is never a good idea. Not only does it affect load times but it also makes a blog look cluttered.
Yes I am quite particular when it comes to design and I won't apologise for it. This is of course my personal preference and based on my experience. it is purely a post to give all bloggers something to think about.
2 Mar 2012
Introducing a Service That Allows Non IPhone Users to Comment onInstagram Photos
I discovered a service recently that will be of interest to those on instagram and those who aren't. Instagram is one of the hottest social communities out there at the moment but only iPhone users can use it - until now! Webstagram aims to allow non iphone owners to comment on users photos. You can't upload photos yourself yet but you can comment via facebook comment system on the photos of your friends. This isn't the only reason it is a great service though. For instagram users who are bloggers it is a great way to connect with your readers even more as no matter what phone they use they can comment on your photos. You'll have noticed that I have added an instagram link to my sidebar. this links to the web version so now you'll be able to comment on mine but unfortunately you won't be able to follow me per se. BUT you can sign up to the RSS feed on there to be notified when I post photos. It is a great little service.
In other instagram news - you may remember that I blogged about a website called snapwidget that allows you to add your recent photos to your sidebar. well I've discovered another similar service called badgeplz. This service gives you more options for customising the look of your widget and that is why I am using it instead of snap widget. It also shows stats like number of followers and number of photos. As time goes on I fully expect that more services for instagram will be introduced as the service goes from strength to strength.
Webstagram can be found here.
Badge Plz can be found here.
In other instagram news - you may remember that I blogged about a website called snapwidget that allows you to add your recent photos to your sidebar. well I've discovered another similar service called badgeplz. This service gives you more options for customising the look of your widget and that is why I am using it instead of snap widget. It also shows stats like number of followers and number of photos. As time goes on I fully expect that more services for instagram will be introduced as the service goes from strength to strength.
Webstagram can be found here.
Badge Plz can be found here.
29 Feb 2012
Show Post Excerpts on Homepage with Thumbnails - Blogger
This blog is all about giving you the tools and options to design your blog to look however you want it. So today I'm going to show you how to show post excerpts on your front page instead of full posts. This method will show an excerpt with a post thumbnail and a 'continue reading' link.
So first of all navigate to Dashboard>Template>Edit HTML>Proceed.
Tick the 'expand widgets' box. Search for the </head> tag and place the following code above it.
<script type='text/javascript'>var thumbnail_mode = "no-float" ;
summary_noimg = 300;
summary_img = 350;
img_thumb_height = 200;
img_thumb_width = 300;
</script>
<script type='text/javascript'>
//<![CDATA[
function removeHtmlTag(strx,chop){
if(strx.indexOf("<")!=-1)
{
var s = strx.split("<");
for(var i=0;i<s.length;i++){
if(s[i].indexOf(">")!=-1){
s[i] = s[i].substring(s[i].indexOf(">")+1,s[i].length);
}
}
strx = s.join("");
}
chop = (chop < strx.length-1) ? chop : strx.length-2;
while(strx.charAt(chop-1)!=' ' && strx.indexOf(' ',chop)!=-1) chop++;
strx = strx.substring(0,chop-1);
return strx+'...';
}function createSummaryAndThumb(pID){
var div = document.getElementById(pID);
var imgtag = "";
var img = div.getElementsByTagName("img");
var summ = summary_noimg;
if(img.length>=1) {
imgtag = '<span style="float:left; padding:0px 10px 5px 0px;"><img src="'+img[0].src+'" width="'+img_thumb_width+'px" height="'+img_thumb_height+'px"/></span>';
summ = summary_img;
} var summary = imgtag + '<div>' + removeHtmlTag(div.innerHTML,summ) + '</div>';
div.innerHTML = summary;
}//]]>
</script>Now search for the following line of code.
<data:post.body/>
Replace it with the code below:
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "static_page"'><br/>
<data:post.body/>
<b:else/><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != "item"'><div expr:id='"summary" + data:post.id'><data:post.body/></div>
<script type='text/javascript'>createSummaryAndThumb("summary<data:post.id/>");
</script> <span class='rmlink' style='float:right;padding-top:20px;'><a expr:href='data:post.url'> continue reading "<data:post.title/>"</a></span></b:if>
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'><data:post.body/></b:if>
</b:if>You'll see that I have bolded the words 'continue reading' you can change those words to read on or to whatever you like.
Hit save.
That is all there is to it :)
25 Feb 2012
Netflix Won't Support Blackberry's Playbook Anytime Soon
Bad news for Blackberry users. Popular film and TV streaming service Netflix has announced that they have no plans to bring its service to Blackberry's Playbook any time soon. It is yet another area where the playbook lags behind its competitiors. Netflix is available on iPad and iPhones at the moment. The company made the announcement via their Twitter page. RIM have been trying to bridget the gap between itself and the iPad in recent months. The newest upgrade included a native app but the iPad is still streets ahead of the Playbook. It is all a bit too little too late for RIM and sales figures reflect this. Netflix is a hugely popular service with more than 20 million subscribers in America and a growing subscription list in the UK. It is available here on the Playstation3.
RIM upgraded the software of its poor-selling PlayBook on Tuesday, making it possible for app makers to easily move their existing Android apps across to the PlayBook.
The upgrade also enables a BlackBerry smartphone to remotely control the tablet, which connects to a television via a standard cable.
It was not immediately clear if Netflix would port its existing Android app across rather than create a specific app for PlayBook.
Netflix has more than 24 million U.S. subscribers, where it offers both a mail-in service and streaming movies and TV shows. It also has also expanded its streaming-only service to Canada and parts of Latin America
24 Feb 2012
Nike Unveils High Tech Nike+ Footwear
Earlier this week Sportswear company Nike unveiled Nike+ Basketball and Nike+ Training. These two new products connect your footwear with your iphone for a unique training experience. Nike+ was unleashed on the public in 2006 and the community has grown to be over 6 million members strong.
Nike+ Basketball breaks down a users performance and delivers the information to their iphone. It measures how high, how hard and how quick a player performs in a given game or training session. Perfect for professional and amateur players alike.
Nike+ Training transforms a daily workout and allows the user to see where they are lacking and see what areas of their performance needs improvement. It will transform the way we train.
The technology in both experiences utilizes a new Nike+ Pressure Sensor built into each shoe that collects information about the user’s movement and then wirelessly transmits data to their phone. It is then translated into different metrics delivering previously unknown information about either their workout or their game.
I can't wait to try out this new training kit and it is sure to become as popular as the Nike+ app. A must have for any kind of athlete from amateur runners to professional sportspeople.
The first NIKE+ enabled Basketball shoe will be the Nike Hyperdunk+ which will be worn by LeBron James this summer.
The first NIKE+ enabled Training shoes will be the Lunar Hyperworkout+ for Women and the Lunar TR 1+ for men.
The shoes hit stores on June 29th.
