Here's a quick update about a blogging contest being organised by Rose DesRochers from World outside my Window. Well actually the contest ends today. I'm really sorry, I've been busy this month and I forgot all about this contest.
Anyway about this contest, you need to promote this contest on twitter, write a post on your blog (kinda like this one, but don't copy it) and guest post on Blogger Talk Community Blog. Isn't this simple. Also commenting on Rose's blog will get you points.
The prize for the winner is 6 months of web or blog hosting from Vision This Hosting. This comes with 1 click install, Unlimited Hard Disk Space, 10 GB of Monthly Data Transfer, 1 Domain On 1 AccountPHP 4 & PHP 5, cPanel X with Fantastico, 5 Email Accounts, 10 SQL Databases. Its a good solution to for Wordpress Blog Hosting.
Well that does sound attractive, doesn't it? I apologize again for not promoting this earlier. But hope you make the most of the little time that is left.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Subscribe to comments vs Comment Reply Notification
In my opinion Comments are life blood of a blog. And its essential to keep the conversation going back and forth rather than just post a critical comment or remark and moving on. To encourage your readers to come back to check on their comment replies most blogs have the Subscribe to comments plugin. This is a nice plugin that sends the comment author a notification email everytime a new comment is posted to a blog post on which he/she has commented on.
Now this isn't bad, is it? The plugin does what is set out to do, subscribe you to the comments of a blog post. But Imagine this, you post a comment on a blog post you've liked and the author has replied to your comment as well and you then want to leave it there. You now have to unsubscribe from your previous subscription. If you don't unsubscribe you'll continue to receive notification mail whenever someone comments on that post, even a few weeks after you've read and commented on it.
Thats not such a bad thing but lets consider this from the point of view of the commentator. His/her mailbox is constantly receiving emails for comment notifications that they posted weeks or even months ago. And this person who is probably also a busy blogger has to spend precious time scanning these emails, when they could be writing the next most popular article or visiting some blog or commenting on another blog or doing some research or blog maintenance. Do you think someone who has had such an experience will consider subscribing to the comments the next time he/she is commenting. I don't think so!
Well thanks to fellow blogger Sire I've stumbled upon a plugin that not only solves this problem but also presents the comments in a threaded format, so you can easily follow the conversation, if your theme doesn't do it already. Its called Wordpress Threaded Comments.
This plugin does just what I really want as a comment reply notifier. The commentator is sent a notification email only if a reply is posted to the comment posted by the commentator. Thus the commentator does not have to worry about getting too many emails and be assured that any notification email received is for a reply to a comment that he/she has posted, hence the email will draw prompt attention to itself.
I've installed this plugin on my blog and it works fine. I encourage you to get this plugin too and don't let your commentators drown in the flood of notification emails.
Now this isn't bad, is it? The plugin does what is set out to do, subscribe you to the comments of a blog post. But Imagine this, you post a comment on a blog post you've liked and the author has replied to your comment as well and you then want to leave it there. You now have to unsubscribe from your previous subscription. If you don't unsubscribe you'll continue to receive notification mail whenever someone comments on that post, even a few weeks after you've read and commented on it.
Thats not such a bad thing but lets consider this from the point of view of the commentator. His/her mailbox is constantly receiving emails for comment notifications that they posted weeks or even months ago. And this person who is probably also a busy blogger has to spend precious time scanning these emails, when they could be writing the next most popular article or visiting some blog or commenting on another blog or doing some research or blog maintenance. Do you think someone who has had such an experience will consider subscribing to the comments the next time he/she is commenting. I don't think so!
Well thanks to fellow blogger Sire I've stumbled upon a plugin that not only solves this problem but also presents the comments in a threaded format, so you can easily follow the conversation, if your theme doesn't do it already. Its called Wordpress Threaded Comments.
This plugin does just what I really want as a comment reply notifier. The commentator is sent a notification email only if a reply is posted to the comment posted by the commentator. Thus the commentator does not have to worry about getting too many emails and be assured that any notification email received is for a reply to a comment that he/she has posted, hence the email will draw prompt attention to itself.
I've installed this plugin on my blog and it works fine. I encourage you to get this plugin too and don't let your commentators drown in the flood of notification emails.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Engage your Blog
Blogging is a team sport not a solo competition. Blogging is basically a means of communication and hence you need to connect with other bloggers to keep the spirit of blogging alive.
I joined Blog Engage some time back and I wasn't really sure of what to expect from this website. From the name I understood that Blog Engage is a platform for bloggers to meet and interact with fellow bloggers. I've come across several new bloggers via Blog Engage, so I can say that it is doing its task of engaging bloggers.
Also Blog Engage helps you to promote your blog post. The way it works is,
*You submit your blog post.
*Other members vote for your blog post
*If you get a certain number of votes (I think its 10) your blog article is featured as a published post. Thus helping to drive more traffic to your blog.
Isn't that simple. :)
Also I'd like to highlight that the person who runs the show, Brian is a very friendly person and one of the major reasons I've started to participate actively in this forum for bloggers.
So if you're looking to meet new bloggers, read interesting posts, promote your blog and have fun while doing it, then visit blogengage NOW!
I joined Blog Engage some time back and I wasn't really sure of what to expect from this website. From the name I understood that Blog Engage is a platform for bloggers to meet and interact with fellow bloggers. I've come across several new bloggers via Blog Engage, so I can say that it is doing its task of engaging bloggers.
Also Blog Engage helps you to promote your blog post. The way it works is,
*You submit your blog post.
*Other members vote for your blog post
*If you get a certain number of votes (I think its 10) your blog article is featured as a published post. Thus helping to drive more traffic to your blog.
Isn't that simple. :)
Also I'd like to highlight that the person who runs the show, Brian is a very friendly person and one of the major reasons I've started to participate actively in this forum for bloggers.
So if you're looking to meet new bloggers, read interesting posts, promote your blog and have fun while doing it, then visit blogengage NOW!
Monday, February 22, 2010
Data Connection for Google Maps
This post is about an error I encountered while trying to use Google Maps.
I tried to reinstall Google Maps after a hard reset on my Nokia N79 from the installation file I had saved earlier, it wouldn't work as it did not find a working data connection. That was strange because I've been surfing the internet with Opera Mini and Mobile and that has been working fine. So for the past few weeks I haven't used Google Maps.
Recently I tried to check if the software version on my phone was updated and I got a similar error that said on data connection found. Now this was with me running Opera Mini in the background. So I decided to investigate this further.
I then realised that getting the settings for internet from your operator doesn't configure all the settings correctly on this phone. So you need to manually configure Internet Settings to assign the access point to allow some applications to access internet .
To do this on the Nokia N79 you need to follow these steps
Menu > Tools > Settings > Connection > Destinations
Over here you will find the access point settings your network operator has sent under Uncategorised access points. You'll need to highlight the access point then press Options (left soft key) and select Organise and select move to other destination and then select Internet.
Voila! You'll now be able to use Google Maps and other internet services.
I tried to reinstall Google Maps after a hard reset on my Nokia N79 from the installation file I had saved earlier, it wouldn't work as it did not find a working data connection. That was strange because I've been surfing the internet with Opera Mini and Mobile and that has been working fine. So for the past few weeks I haven't used Google Maps.
Recently I tried to check if the software version on my phone was updated and I got a similar error that said on data connection found. Now this was with me running Opera Mini in the background. So I decided to investigate this further.
I then realised that getting the settings for internet from your operator doesn't configure all the settings correctly on this phone. So you need to manually configure Internet Settings to assign the access point to allow some applications to access internet .
To do this on the Nokia N79 you need to follow these steps
Menu > Tools > Settings > Connection > Destinations
Over here you will find the access point settings your network operator has sent under Uncategorised access points. You'll need to highlight the access point then press Options (left soft key) and select Organise and select move to other destination and then select Internet.
Voila! You'll now be able to use Google Maps and other internet services.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Nashik Trip
Those of you who follow me on Twitter @selurus would know that I went to Nashik yesterday. Yesterday was the Feast of Infant Jesus so we went to the Shrine in Nashik, my parents and me.
We went by an early train, Tapovan Express, which left at 6:25am, had to wake up at 5am (this was why I had to sleep early.) We reached Nashik well in time at 10am. We took a rickshaw to the Shrine, about 10 minutes away, fare 20 rupees for 3 people.
The masses are held every hour, when we reached the Shrine the 10am Mass was already in progress, so we decided to go freshen up and then waited for the 11am Mass. The Bishop of Amravati Lourdes Daniel said the mass with a number of other celebrants. At present there isn't any Bishop appointed for the Diocese of Nashik, so the Bishop of Amravati has been appointed to take care of the Diocese. There was a special priest who co-ordinated the hymns, didn't quite catch his name, sorry.
Once the mass was over we went for the veneration. There was a very long queue there.
Took us about an hour, no jokes. But the queue was well organised, no pushing around. There was water available and the place was also shaded, imagine standing in the hot sun for so long *faint*.
After the veneration we went back to the ground and sat and ate some sandwiches which my Mom made. There was chutney, beet root, tomatoes, potatoes and boiled egg too but I didn't eat the eggs. After eating we went to the market just outside the Shrine and bought some grapes (Nashik is famous for grapes) and raisins.
We decided to leave early and too the train at 3:30pm and reached home at 8pm. While returning the train was very crowed, so I was very tired when we came home and I didn't do much. I slept early too. But overall it was a nice experience, I really enjoyed the trip.
We went by an early train, Tapovan Express, which left at 6:25am, had to wake up at 5am (this was why I had to sleep early.) We reached Nashik well in time at 10am. We took a rickshaw to the Shrine, about 10 minutes away, fare 20 rupees for 3 people.
Mind you, the rickshaw does not operate by the meter, so you've got to agree on the fare with the driver before boarding to avoid getting into an argument later.
The masses are held every hour, when we reached the Shrine the 10am Mass was already in progress, so we decided to go freshen up and then waited for the 11am Mass. The Bishop of Amravati Lourdes Daniel said the mass with a number of other celebrants. At present there isn't any Bishop appointed for the Diocese of Nashik, so the Bishop of Amravati has been appointed to take care of the Diocese. There was a special priest who co-ordinated the hymns, didn't quite catch his name, sorry.
Once the mass was over we went for the veneration. There was a very long queue there.
Took us about an hour, no jokes. But the queue was well organised, no pushing around. There was water available and the place was also shaded, imagine standing in the hot sun for so long *faint*.After the veneration we went back to the ground and sat and ate some sandwiches which my Mom made. There was chutney, beet root, tomatoes, potatoes and boiled egg too but I didn't eat the eggs. After eating we went to the market just outside the Shrine and bought some grapes (Nashik is famous for grapes) and raisins.
We decided to leave early and too the train at 3:30pm and reached home at 8pm. While returning the train was very crowed, so I was very tired when we came home and I didn't do much. I slept early too. But overall it was a nice experience, I really enjoyed the trip.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Google Reader
There are so many blogs that I follow and its virtually impossible for me to visit each and every blog everyday just to check if a new post is added. And I'm glad I don't have to do that thanks to feed reader option available that quickly collects the updates to the blogs and presents it to you in one place. I subscribe to blogs and prefer following them via the feed reader if the full post is available in the feed reader and only visiting the website if I want to post a comment or read what others may have commented.
I've been using Opera Mobile for the past few days, its a wonderful browser, but it lacks a feed reader. Without a feed reader I keep surfing for hours and I still wouldn't have visited all the regular bloggers on my list. The internet is vast and I often get lost, he he.
I've been looking for online feed reader options and I didn't have to look too far, 'cos I found Google Reader. Its also has a nice mobile view available at http://google.com/reader/m/view/ which I've started using again recently. Although Google recommends you visit reader.google.com that brings up the FULL version. Well I'm not complaining, I prefer having access to both versions.
Using Google Reader is very straight forward. Once you've subscribed to a feed it automatically shows you the last 10 posts and keeps on new posts to your 'reading list'. Once you have read the post it is automatically take off the reading list, which is nice too. If you like something you can add a 'star' to it or if you want to share something you can click on share and then the post would be displayed on your shared page which can be viewed by others. You can visit my shared page by clicking here.
One hurdle I faced was transferring my feeds from Opera Mini to Google Reader. Luckily there is a bookmarklet available on http://o.yeswap.com/ so you can easily subscribe to any feed with Google Reader. It may be a chore to do this when you've got a lot of feeds but the freedom you have once you've got an Online Feed Reader is 'priceless'.
So now I'm following blogs with Google Reader and I can switch to any browser Mini or Mobile and my Reading List is ready waiting for me. :)
How do you keep up with your reading list?
I've been using Opera Mobile for the past few days, its a wonderful browser, but it lacks a feed reader. Without a feed reader I keep surfing for hours and I still wouldn't have visited all the regular bloggers on my list. The internet is vast and I often get lost, he he.
I've been looking for online feed reader options and I didn't have to look too far, 'cos I found Google Reader. Its also has a nice mobile view available at http://google.com/reader/m/view/ which I've started using again recently. Although Google recommends you visit reader.google.com that brings up the FULL version. Well I'm not complaining, I prefer having access to both versions.
Using Google Reader is very straight forward. Once you've subscribed to a feed it automatically shows you the last 10 posts and keeps on new posts to your 'reading list'. Once you have read the post it is automatically take off the reading list, which is nice too. If you like something you can add a 'star' to it or if you want to share something you can click on share and then the post would be displayed on your shared page which can be viewed by others. You can visit my shared page by clicking here.
One hurdle I faced was transferring my feeds from Opera Mini to Google Reader. Luckily there is a bookmarklet available on http://o.yeswap.com/ so you can easily subscribe to any feed with Google Reader. It may be a chore to do this when you've got a lot of feeds but the freedom you have once you've got an Online Feed Reader is 'priceless'.
So now I'm following blogs with Google Reader and I can switch to any browser Mini or Mobile and my Reading List is ready waiting for me. :)
How do you keep up with your reading list?
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Live Chat Support
I've been having an issue with my wordpress blog dashboard where on certain widgets like the incoming links widget and the plugins widget there was an error message displayed which indicated that it was out of memory. I earlier thought I was exceeding my allocated space on the server. I tried all I could to free up space, I deleted unused themes, I removed unused plugins. But the error message would not go away, so I had just minimized those widgets and I was ignoring this for some time.
I've been wanting to contact the support team from BlueHost but I've been putting it off because of the trouble I had earlier just trying to get Live Chat to work on my Mobile. I was able to load Live Chat earlier with Opera Mobile 10 beta 2 but there was a problem with the text entry. Recently Opera Mobile 10 beta 3 was released which has fixed the issue with text entry, So finally I decided to contact Support Desk.
I must say that their operators were very helpful. They figured that I had not used too much space and put me to the tech support team immediately. There I chatted with a very smart guy who soon figured out that the I needed to install some php script and increase the memory allocation to make my blog work fine just by reading the error message. I followed the steps that I was told by the chat support advisor my problem was resolved.
So far the 2 times I've contacted the Support Team for BlueHost via Live Chat they've been able to solve the issue promptly. So based on my experience, I think they really have a very experienced tech support team.
I've been wanting to contact the support team from BlueHost but I've been putting it off because of the trouble I had earlier just trying to get Live Chat to work on my Mobile. I was able to load Live Chat earlier with Opera Mobile 10 beta 2 but there was a problem with the text entry. Recently Opera Mobile 10 beta 3 was released which has fixed the issue with text entry, So finally I decided to contact Support Desk.
I must say that their operators were very helpful. They figured that I had not used too much space and put me to the tech support team immediately. There I chatted with a very smart guy who soon figured out that the I needed to install some php script and increase the memory allocation to make my blog work fine just by reading the error message. I followed the steps that I was told by the chat support advisor my problem was resolved.
So far the 2 times I've contacted the Support Team for BlueHost via Live Chat they've been able to solve the issue promptly. So based on my experience, I think they really have a very experienced tech support team.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Shorts (movie)
I recently saw the movie Shorts. Its a nice fun movie about some kids who find a wishing rock and the adventures they have then.
The movie is based in a town called Black Falls Community which is the center for manufacturing the black box which apparently can do almost anything that any other gadget can do, like make calls, toast bread, open cans, vacuum, baby monitor, shred paper etc. One really interesting thing about the movie is that the narrative is not one continuous story but a collection of episodes that are played in random order, hence the name "Shorts". Despite the fact that the episodes are not in the chronological order the story makes most sense and adds suspense to the story, also that makes the movie fun to watch.
The movie is basically about some boys finding a rainbow coloured wishing rock at the 'begining' of the rainbow and how they then start making wishes and how the rock is then transferred to another boy by accident, and then to another and so on. By the end almost every character including a crocodile has wished on the rainbow wishing rock. I don't want to reveal the ending, in case you haven't watched the movie yet. But I can definately say that its a nice movie to watch on a lazy afternoon.
I'll wrap this post with a quote from the movie, "Be sure you're wishing for something worth wishing for."
The movie is based in a town called Black Falls Community which is the center for manufacturing the black box which apparently can do almost anything that any other gadget can do, like make calls, toast bread, open cans, vacuum, baby monitor, shred paper etc. One really interesting thing about the movie is that the narrative is not one continuous story but a collection of episodes that are played in random order, hence the name "Shorts". Despite the fact that the episodes are not in the chronological order the story makes most sense and adds suspense to the story, also that makes the movie fun to watch.
The movie is basically about some boys finding a rainbow coloured wishing rock at the 'begining' of the rainbow and how they then start making wishes and how the rock is then transferred to another boy by accident, and then to another and so on. By the end almost every character including a crocodile has wished on the rainbow wishing rock. I don't want to reveal the ending, in case you haven't watched the movie yet. But I can definately say that its a nice movie to watch on a lazy afternoon.
I'll wrap this post with a quote from the movie, "Be sure you're wishing for something worth wishing for."
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Switch to Wapple Architect
After I posted my review about the Wordpress Mobile plugins a few days back I immediately noticed that I had received a mail from the creator of the Wapple Architect plugin, Rich Gubby who said that he had noticed that although I'd recently signed up for the dev key to enable the Wapple Architect Plugin I was using the MobilePress Plugin. He highlighted that Wapple Architect could let me style my mobile blog to look like the desktop version rather than a theme used on thousands of blogs. He insisted that I try his plugin again and even offered to help style my mobile site.
I replied informing him about the xml parsing error I got on Opera Mini. To which he replied convincing me that it may be a small part of the code that was causing the error and offered to fix it and also update the plugin so that it benefits other users of this plugin too.
Also I've noticed that the Wapple Architect Plugin has upgraded from version 3.0.2 to version 3.1. I'm not sure of what changes have been made to it but I'm certain that it is an actively improving plugin and is being developed by one of the most persuasive person I've met online.
I have temporarily changed back to the Wapple Architect Plugin till I can find something that I really like.
I replied informing him about the xml parsing error I got on Opera Mini. To which he replied convincing me that it may be a small part of the code that was causing the error and offered to fix it and also update the plugin so that it benefits other users of this plugin too.
Also I've noticed that the Wapple Architect Plugin has upgraded from version 3.0.2 to version 3.1. I'm not sure of what changes have been made to it but I'm certain that it is an actively improving plugin and is being developed by one of the most persuasive person I've met online.
I have temporarily changed back to the Wapple Architect Plugin till I can find something that I really like.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Wordpress Mobile Plugins Review
A lot of users are browsing the web on their mobile phones, probably using an iPhone or the vastly popular Opera Mini. Although most mobiles are able to load normal websites, the web pages take a while to load completely. Also most people don't have an unlimited data plan and are charged for internet access based on their data usage. With that in mind I've decided that its essential to set up a mobile interface for my blog. Over the last few days I've been testing several wordpress mobile plugins.
I've read about displaying the site as on Google Reader mobile or setting up setting up another domain but I really don't want to divert traffic elsewhere. I'm just looking for a plugin that re-formats the page to be displayed on a mobile. Also an Important feature I've been looking for was to have an option to switch back to the Desktop version, because I think one size does not fit all and some users may prefer to use the desktop version based on the internet connection they have when browsing.
I've tried a few popular plugins and I'm just posting my opinion about them here which can be useful to you if and when you consider mobilizing your wordpress blog.
One of the very popular plugins I've tried was the WPtouch iPhone plugin by Dale Mugford & Duane Storey (BraveNewCode). I like the simple theme and although its meant for iPhone, iPod and android touch devices it also works on Opera Mini. Although it does not detect the default Nokia browser and the desktop site loads as normal. A cool feature is that It allows you to choose if you want to display an excerpt of the post on the homepage.
Now this is a really nice plugin if your focus is on the iPhone audience, but I want people on any mobiles to have a consistent experience irrespective of the browser they use. Also this plugin does not have to option to switch to the desktop site, so I had to skip this plugin.
Next I've tried the Wordpress PDA & iPhone plugin by Imthiaz Rafiq. This plugin formats the page to a nice and simple theme. By default it displays post excerpt on the homepage. It also displays Tags, Categories, Pages and Archives on the home page.
Another plugin that was recently mentioned by fellow blogger Tycoon Blogger is Wapple Architect by Rich Gubby. This is a really nice alternative. To set up this plugin you need to register to get a Dev key to enable the plugin. One thing that I really like about this plugin is that it displays the option to change to mobile or standard view at the bottom of the page and once you select an option it remembers it. Awesome! This plugin offers you a selection of themes and you can insert a picture for the header or the footer to improve the design.
Although on testing some pages with Opera Mini I got the error xml parsing failed, not sure why.
I've tried to install the Wordpress Mobile Edition by Crowd Favourite, and although I've followed the steps for installation, I kept getting an error saying WP Mobile is incorrectly installed. Although I must say that the Carrington Theme looks really cool.
Another very popular plugin is MobilePress by Aduity.
I really like the simplicity of this theme. This plugin also allows the use of other themes, and I managed to install the Carrington Mobile Theme with this plugin. Although the option to switch to standard version is removed if another theme is selected. Also I wasn't able to edit the about page on the theme.
Also I noticed that even after selecting standard version I was being redirected to the mobile site, I know, it can be really annoying.
I'm not really satisfied with any of the options available, however for now I've decided to keep the MobilePress plugin, for its simplicity. If you do know of any other plugin that works better please do let me know and I'll try it.
I've read about displaying the site as on Google Reader mobile or setting up setting up another domain but I really don't want to divert traffic elsewhere. I'm just looking for a plugin that re-formats the page to be displayed on a mobile. Also an Important feature I've been looking for was to have an option to switch back to the Desktop version, because I think one size does not fit all and some users may prefer to use the desktop version based on the internet connection they have when browsing.
I've tried a few popular plugins and I'm just posting my opinion about them here which can be useful to you if and when you consider mobilizing your wordpress blog.
One of the very popular plugins I've tried was the WPtouch iPhone plugin by Dale Mugford & Duane Storey (BraveNewCode). I like the simple theme and although its meant for iPhone, iPod and android touch devices it also works on Opera Mini. Although it does not detect the default Nokia browser and the desktop site loads as normal. A cool feature is that It allows you to choose if you want to display an excerpt of the post on the homepage.
Now this is a really nice plugin if your focus is on the iPhone audience, but I want people on any mobiles to have a consistent experience irrespective of the browser they use. Also this plugin does not have to option to switch to the desktop site, so I had to skip this plugin.
Next I've tried the Wordpress PDA & iPhone plugin by Imthiaz Rafiq. This plugin formats the page to a nice and simple theme. By default it displays post excerpt on the homepage. It also displays Tags, Categories, Pages and Archives on the home page.
Another plugin that was recently mentioned by fellow blogger Tycoon Blogger is Wapple Architect by Rich Gubby. This is a really nice alternative. To set up this plugin you need to register to get a Dev key to enable the plugin. One thing that I really like about this plugin is that it displays the option to change to mobile or standard view at the bottom of the page and once you select an option it remembers it. Awesome! This plugin offers you a selection of themes and you can insert a picture for the header or the footer to improve the design.
Although on testing some pages with Opera Mini I got the error xml parsing failed, not sure why.
I've tried to install the Wordpress Mobile Edition by Crowd Favourite, and although I've followed the steps for installation, I kept getting an error saying WP Mobile is incorrectly installed. Although I must say that the Carrington Theme looks really cool.
Another very popular plugin is MobilePress by Aduity.
I really like the simplicity of this theme. This plugin also allows the use of other themes, and I managed to install the Carrington Mobile Theme with this plugin. Although the option to switch to standard version is removed if another theme is selected. Also I wasn't able to edit the about page on the theme.
Also I noticed that even after selecting standard version I was being redirected to the mobile site, I know, it can be really annoying.
I'm not really satisfied with any of the options available, however for now I've decided to keep the MobilePress plugin, for its simplicity. If you do know of any other plugin that works better please do let me know and I'll try it.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Do you Twitter?
Isn't Twitter such a wonderful tool!
Don't tell me you don't know what twitter is?
Well if I have to explain it to someone who has never heard about it I'd say, Twitter a free internet service which allows you to post short messages with a limit of 140 characters that are displayed on the authors page that is shared with anybody across the world. These short messages or status updates are called tweets. Now twitter has gained a lot of popularity all over the world. What started off as simple status updates has turned into a marketing tool that can reach thousands of subscribers at the click of a button.
My personal experience with twitter started in 2008 when I first signed up out of curiosity. My first tweet update for the world was on 10th Jan 2008 at 20:02 "just chilling out at home". I didn't see any practical application of this service then. Come on who would be really interested to know what I've had for dinner or whether I've brushed my teeth before sleeping or not, my Mom probably, but the rest of the world wouldn't really care. So I just forgot about my twitter account, until recently, when I realised the amazing potential it offers to promote and spread a message across the internet. I've started using twitter to promote good blog posts that I come across. So if you're looking to find interesting content follow me on twitter @selurus and you shall not be disappointed.
BTW I'd just like to draw your attention to the Tweetmeme button I've added, which you can use to tweet my posts if you use twitter too.
I would like to hear from you about your experience with twitter and most importantly "What do you use Twitter for?"
Please tell me about it in your comment.
Don't tell me you don't know what twitter is?
Well if I have to explain it to someone who has never heard about it I'd say, Twitter a free internet service which allows you to post short messages with a limit of 140 characters that are displayed on the authors page that is shared with anybody across the world. These short messages or status updates are called tweets. Now twitter has gained a lot of popularity all over the world. What started off as simple status updates has turned into a marketing tool that can reach thousands of subscribers at the click of a button.
My personal experience with twitter started in 2008 when I first signed up out of curiosity. My first tweet update for the world was on 10th Jan 2008 at 20:02 "just chilling out at home". I didn't see any practical application of this service then. Come on who would be really interested to know what I've had for dinner or whether I've brushed my teeth before sleeping or not, my Mom probably, but the rest of the world wouldn't really care. So I just forgot about my twitter account, until recently, when I realised the amazing potential it offers to promote and spread a message across the internet. I've started using twitter to promote good blog posts that I come across. So if you're looking to find interesting content follow me on twitter @selurus and you shall not be disappointed.
BTW I'd just like to draw your attention to the Tweetmeme button I've added, which you can use to tweet my posts if you use twitter too.
I would like to hear from you about your experience with twitter and most importantly "What do you use Twitter for?"
Please tell me about it in your comment.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
A New Theme - BlueGray
I've been considering changing my blog theme recently and finally when I was informed by James Richmond that the site was to dark, making it hard to focus on the content and also that the page would be easier to read with a slightly larger font. So for the part few days I've been trying out different themes. Finaly I've decided to settle with BlueGrey by SkinPress.com for now.
I like this theme because of its simple design and color combination, that makes it appear very cool. The background is white with black text, which is good for reading without having to strain yourself.
A special feature about this theme is that it is search engine optimised, so it should help to get more visitors to my blog from search engines. Also it has a Featured Blog option which allows you to select a particular category that is displayed in the top bar on every page as the Featured Blog.
I also like the twitter feature on the top right hand corner. I just had to enter my twitter username in one of the fields in options and it detects and displays my last tweet on my blog. Isn't that Cool!
Also the pages are numbered at the bottom of the page so you can skip to a particular page without having to click on next multiple times. This theme also allows to feature ads in the sidebar but I've turned that off for now.
I really like this theme, what about you? Please comment to tell your thoughts about my new theme. :)
I like this theme because of its simple design and color combination, that makes it appear very cool. The background is white with black text, which is good for reading without having to strain yourself.
A special feature about this theme is that it is search engine optimised, so it should help to get more visitors to my blog from search engines. Also it has a Featured Blog option which allows you to select a particular category that is displayed in the top bar on every page as the Featured Blog.
I also like the twitter feature on the top right hand corner. I just had to enter my twitter username in one of the fields in options and it detects and displays my last tweet on my blog. Isn't that Cool!
Also the pages are numbered at the bottom of the page so you can skip to a particular page without having to click on next multiple times. This theme also allows to feature ads in the sidebar but I've turned that off for now.
I really like this theme, what about you? Please comment to tell your thoughts about my new theme. :)
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Blogging Goals Review - February
With the aim of improving my blog I've decided that I'll be reviewing my blogging goals on a monthly basis and set new goals.
Last month I posted my blogging goals which included exploring the internet and interacting with new people, post some useful content and get self hosted to be able to customise this blog. I've been working on these goals and I'm happy to say, I'm pleased with what I've done so far.
I've already set up my blog on a hosting account from BlueHost and I've been adding plugins to enhance the functionality of my blog.
I've been interacting with other bloggers and have been commenting on various blogs which has helped to increase the visitors to my blog.
I've made a few posts last month and this is the area I need to focus on this month. I need to increase the posts and the posting frequency.
So for the Month of February I'm targeting to post at least 2-3 posts every week, which should help me end the month with about 8-12 new posts.
Also I want to improve my social presence on the internet and promote other useful blogs via twitter. (I've already started doing this and will be posting my experiences soonish.)
Also I would like to improve my Alexa ranking. I've come a long way from over 14M to 2,470,559 but the rank growth has slowed down now. It may appear to be fantastic growth but it is still rather unimpressive rank to stay at. I'd like to be within the top 1M rank by the end of February.
Well February has already started so, I hope I can achieve these targets. Wish Me Luck.
Last month I posted my blogging goals which included exploring the internet and interacting with new people, post some useful content and get self hosted to be able to customise this blog. I've been working on these goals and I'm happy to say, I'm pleased with what I've done so far.
I've already set up my blog on a hosting account from BlueHost and I've been adding plugins to enhance the functionality of my blog.
I've been interacting with other bloggers and have been commenting on various blogs which has helped to increase the visitors to my blog.
I've made a few posts last month and this is the area I need to focus on this month. I need to increase the posts and the posting frequency.
So for the Month of February I'm targeting to post at least 2-3 posts every week, which should help me end the month with about 8-12 new posts.
Also I want to improve my social presence on the internet and promote other useful blogs via twitter. (I've already started doing this and will be posting my experiences soonish.)
Also I would like to improve my Alexa ranking. I've come a long way from over 14M to 2,470,559 but the rank growth has slowed down now. It may appear to be fantastic growth but it is still rather unimpressive rank to stay at. I'd like to be within the top 1M rank by the end of February.
Well February has already started so, I hope I can achieve these targets. Wish Me Luck.
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