Use Blogmapping to Show Where You're Blogging From

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><i>Blogmapping</i> (or feed mapping) is a service that displays the geographic locations of bloggers on a mapping system, such as Microsoft Live Map or Google Maps. You can map your location based on your ZIP or postal code. You also may add your Web site address and RSS feed so that potential readers can easily reach you.</p> <p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">One great thing about this kind of service is finding bloggers in your own neighborhood, so you can turn your online relationships into offline friendships.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Some blogmapping services also allow you to create <i>tag </i><i>clouds</i> (a visual representation of the keywords used to describe yourblog posts) and keywords so that you can easily view the subject of the blogs on your map.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Just think of all the great blog posts you can write about meeting and getting to know other bloggers in your neighborhood, thanks to your blogmap!</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You can put a blogmap on your blog using one of these blogmapping tools:</p><ul class="level-one" style="padding:0px 1rem;margin:0px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px"> <li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;line-height:24px"><a href="http://www.csthota.com/blogmap" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">FeedMap</a></p></li><li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;line-height:24px"> <a href="http://www.frappr.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Frappr</a></p></li></ul>

Use Blogmapping to Show Where You're Blogging From

Blogmapping  (or feed mapping) is a service that displays the geographic locations of bloggers on a mapping system, such as Microsoft Live...

Read more »

Use Blogmapping to Show Where You're Blogging From

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><i>Blogmapping</i> (or feed mapping) is a service that displays the geographic locations of bloggers on a mapping system, such as Microsoft Live Map or Google Maps. You can map your location based on your ZIP or postal code. You also may add your Web site address and RSS feed so that potential readers can easily reach you.</p> <p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">One great thing about this kind of service is finding bloggers in your own neighborhood, so you can turn your online relationships into offline friendships.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Some blogmapping services also allow you to create <i>tag </i><i>clouds</i> (a visual representation of the keywords used to describe yourblog posts) and keywords so that you can easily view the subject of the blogs on your map.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Just think of all the great blog posts you can write about meeting and getting to know other bloggers in your neighborhood, thanks to your blogmap!</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You can put a blogmap on your blog using one of these blogmapping tools:</p><ul class="level-one" style="padding:0px 1rem;margin:0px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px"> <li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;line-height:24px"><a href="http://www.csthota.com/blogmap" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">FeedMap</a></p></li><li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;line-height:24px"> <a href="http://www.frappr.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Frappr</a></p></li></ul>

Use Blogmapping to Show Where You're Blogging From

Blogmapping  (or feed mapping) is a service that displays the geographic locations of bloggers on a mapping system, such as Microsoft Live...

Read more »

Share the Local Weather Report on Your Blog

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Let your blog readers know just what kind of weather you're experiencing today with <a href="http://weather.ibegin.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">iBegin Weather</a>. This little widget allows you to choose a Canadian or U.S. city with a simple browsing interface and then displays today's temperature and cloud conditions, along with forecasts for the next few days.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You can customize iBegin Weather and choose what size icons to use and whether you want to show today's weather, a forecast, or even a search box your readers can use to get a weather report themselves. You can also customize the text,link, and background colors, as well as the fonts used in the box to match your blog.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">After you customize your weather box, simply copy the code iBegin Weather provides into your blogpost or templates. Once set up, the widget stays current on its own, so you always have the current conditions and forecast.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">If you have a weather-related blog, this is the perfect sidebar addition for you! Bloggers who aren't weather-focused might also enjoy letting others know when an umbrella is needed, especially those who write about the area they live in.</p>

Share the Local Weather Report on Your Blog

Let your blog readers know just what kind of weather you're experiencing today with  iBegin Weather . This little widget allows you to...

Read more »

Share the Local Weather Report on Your Blog

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Let your blog readers know just what kind of weather you're experiencing today with <a href="http://weather.ibegin.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">iBegin Weather</a>. This little widget allows you to choose a Canadian or U.S. city with a simple browsing interface and then displays today's temperature and cloud conditions, along with forecasts for the next few days.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You can customize iBegin Weather and choose what size icons to use and whether you want to show today's weather, a forecast, or even a search box your readers can use to get a weather report themselves. You can also customize the text,link, and background colors, as well as the fonts used in the box to match your blog.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">After you customize your weather box, simply copy the code iBegin Weather provides into your blogpost or templates. Once set up, the widget stays current on its own, so you always have the current conditions and forecast.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">If you have a weather-related blog, this is the perfect sidebar addition for you! Bloggers who aren't weather-focused might also enjoy letting others know when an umbrella is needed, especially those who write about the area they live in.</p>

Share the Local Weather Report on Your Blog

Let your blog readers know just what kind of weather you're experiencing today with  iBegin Weather . This little widget allows you to...

Read more »

Incorporate Social Bookmarking into Your Blog

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">When you create a catalog of linksyou want to bookmark on a social bookmarking site, you can share that list with others on your blog.<i>Social bookmarking systems</i> like<a disabled href="http://del.icio.us/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">del.icio.us</a> and <a disabled href="http://ma.gnolia.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Ma.gnolia.com</a> are great ways of collecting, saving, and sharing your bookmarks.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You have access to all your Web site bookmarks from any computer from anywhere, and those bookmarks are organized and labeled in ways that make sense to you so that they're easy to find again (and not how a search engine thinks they ought to be labeled). Conveniently, your bookmarks are saved on the Web, so you always have access to them, no matter what computer or browser you're using.</p> <p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Social bookmarking is especially cool for groups who are researching the same topic — imagine working on an academic project with a group where you all pool your Web research, or planning a family vacation.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Because bloggers have long shared lists of links with each other (usually in the form of blogrolls), this is a great service to use for your audience. For some <i>link bloggers</i> (link bloggers blog mainly about cool or interesting Web sites they find), social bookmarking has come close to replacing the need for a blog. Social bookmarking can even be used to generate your blogroll.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Both Ma.gnolia and <a href="http://del.icio.us">del.icio.us</a> turn your bookmarks into an RSS feedthat can be followed using a newsreader or any software that understands RSS. Ma.gnolia even publishes a feed that can be understood by phones!</p> <p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Some blog software can aggregate content using RSS and display it on your blog; you can use that functionality to display your Ma.gnolia or <a href="http://del.icio.us">del.icio.us</a> feed.</p>

Incorporate Social Bookmarking into Your Blog

When you create a catalog of linksyou want to bookmark on a social bookmarking site, you can share that list with others on your blog. Soc...

Read more »

Incorporate Social Bookmarking into Your Blog

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">When you create a catalog of linksyou want to bookmark on a social bookmarking site, you can share that list with others on your blog.<i>Social bookmarking systems</i> like<a disabled href="http://del.icio.us/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">del.icio.us</a> and <a disabled href="http://ma.gnolia.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Ma.gnolia.com</a> are great ways of collecting, saving, and sharing your bookmarks.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You have access to all your Web site bookmarks from any computer from anywhere, and those bookmarks are organized and labeled in ways that make sense to you so that they're easy to find again (and not how a search engine thinks they ought to be labeled). Conveniently, your bookmarks are saved on the Web, so you always have access to them, no matter what computer or browser you're using.</p> <p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Social bookmarking is especially cool for groups who are researching the same topic — imagine working on an academic project with a group where you all pool your Web research, or planning a family vacation.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Because bloggers have long shared lists of links with each other (usually in the form of blogrolls), this is a great service to use for your audience. For some <i>link bloggers</i> (link bloggers blog mainly about cool or interesting Web sites they find), social bookmarking has come close to replacing the need for a blog. Social bookmarking can even be used to generate your blogroll.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Both Ma.gnolia and <a href="http://del.icio.us">del.icio.us</a> turn your bookmarks into an RSS feedthat can be followed using a newsreader or any software that understands RSS. Ma.gnolia even publishes a feed that can be understood by phones!</p> <p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Some blog software can aggregate content using RSS and display it on your blog; you can use that functionality to display your Ma.gnolia or <a href="http://del.icio.us">del.icio.us</a> feed.</p>

Incorporate Social Bookmarking into Your Blog

When you create a catalog of linksyou want to bookmark on a social bookmarking site, you can share that list with others on your blog. Soc...

Read more »

Create an Avatar to Represent You in Your Blog Profile

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">An <i>avatar</i> is a visual representation of yourself, often a comic or cartoon. Instead of a photo in yourblog profile, you can use an avatar!</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You can portray yourself in avatar form on any Web site that lets you set an avatar or photo for use with a profile, like Facebook, Digg, Flickr, and so on. And, of course, you can use your avatar on your own blog.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Here are a few resources to use to create an avatar:</p><ul class="level-one" style="padding:0px 1rem;margin:0px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px"> <li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:24px"><a href="http://www.zwinky.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Zwinky</a> is a fun Web site that lets you a build cartoon version of yourself, customizing everything from skin tone to hairstyle to clothing accessories.</p> </li><li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:24px"><a href="http://www.meez.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Meez</a> offers a fun interface with lots of customization to help you build a virtual you. Use the Meezmaker to pick skin color, hair color, clothes, jewelry, even the right environment.</p> </li><li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:24px">Another site you can check out is associated with the release of <i>The Simpsons Movie.</i> At<a href="http://www.simpsonizeme.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">simpsonizeme.com</a>, you can replicate yourself as a Simpsons character, right down to Moe's hair and Homer's nose.</p> </li></ul><p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">If those sites don't offer what you're looking for, try searching for <i>"free avatar</i><i>" </i>using your favorite search engine.</p>

Create an Avatar to Represent You in Your Blog Profile

An  avatar  is a visual representation of yourself, often a comic or cartoon. Instead of a photo in yourblog profile, you can use an avata...

Read more »

Create an Avatar to Represent You in Your Blog Profile

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">An <i>avatar</i> is a visual representation of yourself, often a comic or cartoon. Instead of a photo in yourblog profile, you can use an avatar!</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">You can portray yourself in avatar form on any Web site that lets you set an avatar or photo for use with a profile, like Facebook, Digg, Flickr, and so on. And, of course, you can use your avatar on your own blog.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Here are a few resources to use to create an avatar:</p><ul class="level-one" style="padding:0px 1rem;margin:0px;color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px"> <li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:24px"><a href="http://www.zwinky.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Zwinky</a> is a fun Web site that lets you a build cartoon version of yourself, customizing everything from skin tone to hairstyle to clothing accessories.</p> </li><li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:24px"><a href="http://www.meez.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">Meez</a> offers a fun interface with lots of customization to help you build a virtual you. Use the Meezmaker to pick skin color, hair color, clothes, jewelry, even the right environment.</p> </li><li><p class="first-para" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:24px">Another site you can check out is associated with the release of <i>The Simpsons Movie.</i> At<a href="http://www.simpsonizeme.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">simpsonizeme.com</a>, you can replicate yourself as a Simpsons character, right down to Moe's hair and Homer's nose.</p> </li></ul><p class="Tip" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">If those sites don't offer what you're looking for, try searching for <i>"free avatar</i><i>" </i>using your favorite search engine.</p>

Create an Avatar to Represent You in Your Blog Profile

An  avatar  is a visual representation of yourself, often a comic or cartoon. Instead of a photo in yourblog profile, you can use an avata...

Read more »

MyBlogLog Builds Community with Blog Visitor Activity Tracking

<h1 style="font-size:20px;margin:0.25rem 0px;padding:0px 0px 0.5rem;border-width:0px 0px 1px;border-bottom-style:solid;border-bottom-color:rgb(204,204,204);color:rgb(51,51,51);font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><br></h1> <p class="Byline" style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif"><a href="http://www.mybloglog.com/" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">MyBlogLog</a> is a tracking and community tool that allows<a class="" href="http://m.dummies.com/DummiesArticle/MyBlogLog-Builds-Community-with-Blog-Visitor-Activity-Tracking.id-124093.html#glossary-blogger" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">bloggers</a> to bookmark and share favorite <a class="" href="http://m.dummies.com/DummiesArticle/MyBlogLog-Builds-Community-with-Blog-Visitor-Activity-Tracking.id-124093.html#glossary-blog" style="color:rgb(1,69,138)">blogs</a>, display cool widgets, and keep track of what blog visitors find interesting.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">MyBlogLog says it's in the business of helping you identify what your readers like about the content of your blog. The side result has been to create a community-building service, which the folks at MyBlogLog are pretty happy about, too!</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">Using a combination of RSS,tagging, and other tools, MyBlogLog tracks what links your visitors click when they visit your blog (and not the ones to your own site), letting you know where you're sending people. If you keep a blog where you refer people to other Web sites, MyBlogLog can help you know whether you're doing a good job of choosing resources to share.</p> <p style="margin:0.75em 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-size:18px;color:rgb(51,51,51);line-height:24px;font-family:Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif">The key feature of this service is the MyBlogLog community badge that you can display on your blog. As a MyBlogLog member, when you visit a site with this badge, you're added to a badge displaying your profile information. It's an instant community!</p>

MyBlogLog Builds Community with Blog Visitor Activity Tracking

MyBlogLog  is a tracking and community tool that allows bloggers  to bookmark and share favorite  blogs , display cool widgets, and keep t...

Read more »