Settings Options in Blogger

 Developed by Brett Bradley

The Settings option in Blogger can be found at the very bottom of the selection menu. It’s the one with the “wrench” icon at the very bottom.

There are six options that appear after you click on Settings, but we’re going to focus on the first four:

·         Basic

·         Posts and comments

·         Mobile and email

·         Language and formatting

Basic allows you to make changes regarding the title, description, privacy, and the number of authors and readers of the blog.  You can also change your Blog address here by creating a different URL that can be associated with the blog.  

Posts and comments lets you make changes to how many blog posts you want to be shown at one time on the main page. You can also make decisions on who can make comments concerning those blog posts, for example, everybody or just people with Google Accounts. You can also choose, here, whether you want the chance to see comments before they’re allowed on the blog.

Mobile and email subtopic lets you add an SMS or mobile device to your blogger account in order to have the ability to make blog posts from your mobile device.  

Language and format allows you to change the language settings for the blog as well how you want the time and date stamp to be shown.  

The last two subtopics (Search preferences and Other) are not applicable in regards to using Blogger for the Five-Star Technology Solutions Online Courses, so you won’t have to worry about them for our purposes.

Changing the Theme in Blogger

 Developed by Brett Bradley

When you create your first blog, you’ll have the choice of seven different themes to use as your main theme. You’ll see lots of different colors and layouts—it’s not unlike decorating a room (but it’s easier to change your mind). Even more themes can be found under the layout option once your first blog has been created!

After you’ve created your first blog, you will see a list of terms under the “New Post” button on the left hand portion of your screen.  That’s your selection menu.  It includes: Overview, Posts, Pages, Comments, Google +, Stats, Earnings, Layout, Template, and Settings.  (We've added text in red font).

 For now, though, we're going to focus on Template.

Clicking on Template will allow you to change the theme of your blog to any of the preset templates available. You’ll see pictures of each one to help you make the selection.   When you click on the image, you’ll have the option to apply or keep looking through the possibilities by clicking on the arrows at the bottom right of the window that opens.

After you have chosen your template, click on the orange “Apply to Blog” button to make the necessary changes to your blog. 

You can also choose to customize the theme of your blog yourself by clicking on the customize button rather than picking a preset template available.  Changes to your blog’s theme will be made instantly and can always be changed again in the future. Your theme doesn't have to be permanent!

If you're feeling adventurous, check out Customize Your Blogger Template in Simple Steps. 

Intro to Blogging

Developed by Brett Bradley

I. Overview

Blogging!?!  A term that you’re probably aware of…or probably have heard somewhere.  Maybe you don’t know the exact definition, but most of you are probably aware that blogging is much like writing a journal…it’s just an online version of that journal.  (In case you’re wondering, the word blog is short for weblog.)

Blogs are an easy way of publishing digital content online because their systems are easy to use.  This includes our selected blogging web site for this course: Blogger.com.  There are many more online blogging sites, but Five-Star Technology Solutions uses this particular blogging service for all of its online courses. 

Five-Star Technology Solutions also uses Google services for other aspects of its online courses, so another reason we’re using Blogger is that Google owns the rights to Blogger.com.  Google also owns the rights to other web services we’ll utilize throughout the duration of the course. 

Using Google applications means that the same credentials you use to sign into Google +, for example, also allow you to log into Blogger.com and vice versa.  One username and password for every service Google provides!

II. Stuff in a blog 

 You might be wondering what kinds of things you’ll find in a blog post. You’ll see:

• Entries organized by date (most recent first, at the “top” of the page)
• A title (gives readers an idea of the subject of the post)
• Content, or the actual substance or information of the blog post, includes text and any other media, such as images or video.

Now let’s look at some key vocabulary words that are strongly associated with blogging.

  

III. Your Blogging Vocabulary 

1    Blog (n)- A Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer/author.

2    Post (v)- To publish (as a message) in an online forum or blog (as an electronic bulletin board).  To add content to your online journal or blog.

3      Comment (v)- In regards to blogging, comments can be left by those who view a blog and want to share their opinions concerning the content that the author has chosen to write about.  Typically, a person can leave as many comments about your blog as he/she would like.  In addition, the author of the blog can also choose to post any additional comments relating to their original blog post or in response to a comment left by a viewer.

4      Theme (n.) A template designed specifically for use to enhance the visual appearance and usability of a blog. This blog has a travel or beach theme.

     And just for some fun, here's a song about blogging:  

    

      IV.  Test Yourself!

           

               What's the name of this blog?   

               What's the title of this post?

               Where are the comments on this blog? Has anyone commented?

               This blog has a travel or beach theme. How do you know this statement is true? 

               What media has this blog incorporated?