Starting a Basic Blog

What is a blog?

A blog is a simple website that enables you to tell a story, relay information, keep lists, and share pictures. The information you put on this site can be viewed by anyone with an Internet connection.

Within each blog, you will have a collection of "Posts". A post is like a chapter of your book, or an entry in your diary. Each post has a title, followed by the body of the entry. You can insert photos, if you like.

Let's look at some blogs:

http://sixtyminuteartist.blogspot.com/ This blogger posts about her paintings.

http://boston1775.blogspot.com/ This blogger posts about "History, analysis, and unabashed gossip about the start of the American Revolution in Massachusetts."

http://www.aaroninafrica.com/ This blogger posts about his Peace Corps service in Africa.

Starting your blog.

Step 1: Start at http://www.blogger.com/

Step 2: Click on the large orange arrow "Create your blog now"

Step 3: Complete the needed information for email address, a password, a 'display name' that will be associated with your blog entries, and word verification. WRITE DOWN the email address and password so you will have it later when you want to edit your page.

Step 4: Complete the needed information for blog title and a blog address (check availability). Ignore the Advanced Blog Setup.

When creating your blog address, simple but descriptive is good! Remember that this is the website address that you will share with friends and family.

Step 5: Choose a template style. If you decide later that you want to change this, you can.

Step 6: Create a title for your first blog entry. For today, let's make it something simple (you can change this later and make it anything you want). Some ideas:

• European Vacation, June 2007


• Our first car, the Buick


• Vegetable Garden: October Harvest


• My Favorite Meal


• What I'm reading now: The Diary of Anne Frank

The "Title" is going to be the title of this post. Make it something simple and descriptive.

Step 7a: Fill in the body for your post. Again, you will be able to change this later and make it anything you want.

Step 7b (optional): Insert a picture. Be aware that copyright rules apply! Free photos that you can download and use, while abiding by copyright laws, are available at http://commons.wikimedia.org/, and http://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/ (hold down the SHIFT key while you click the link, and it will open in a separate window), but you can also upload your personal photos from your camera or wherever you have them saved.

There is an icon that looks like a small picture in your Blogger toolbar. Click on it to upload a photo.

Step 8: At the bottom of your screen, click the blue "Save Now" button (if there is no blue button, but a gray button says "Saved", don't worry about this). Then click the orange "Publish Post" button.


When you are done for the day, click "Sign Out" at the top right of the page.

Great! Now that I have a blog, how will I edit and add to it later?

Step 1: Start at http://www.blogger.com/

Step 2: Enter your Username (this is your email address) and the Password that you created for the blog, and click "Sign in".

Step 3: You are now at your "Dashboard" where you can make decisions about what you want to do. You can view your blog, create a new post, change the basic layout or design of the blog, and edit your older posts. To edit an older post, click "Posts" next to "Manage". Next click "Edit" next to the post you want to edit.

Step 4: You should have a message that says "Your blog post published successfully!" Congratulations! From here, you have more options. You can view your blog (I would recommend choosing "in a new window"), edit the post, or create a new post.

When you are done for the day, click "Sign Out" at the top right of the page.