CREATE YOUR OWN BLOG IN MINUTES!
- To start building your blog, go to Tripod and log in. Once you're logged in, your username will appear at the top of the page, next to the "logout" button. Next, select the Blog Builder option from the Build & Edit menu.
- Once you're in the Blog Manager click on the Create a New Blog icon. Choose a template design (we used Tangerine Nip). Don't worry about customizing the template. We'll cover that in a later tutorial. Click Continue.
Enter a title (this appears at the top of your blog) and URL (this is the address of your blog which you can send to friends and family), then select your time zone. Choose your remaining options and preferences as you desire—click on the Learn More links to get details about a particular feature.
Once you're done, click Save and Create.
Hint: If you want your blog to be in your Tripod home directory (http://yourmembername.tripod.com/) instead of being located in a subdirectory, leave the directory name input field blank when you create your blog, like this:
Please note: Once a blog is in your home directory, it cannot be moved. Click on the "Learn More" link to see more information about blog URLs.
If you would like to post to your blog remotely (e.g. from a camera phone or other wireless device) be sure to enable the remote posting feature by checking the Enable Moblogging box. Click on the "Learn More" link for more information about remote posting.
- Now let's post something to the new blog. From the Blog Manager screen, be sure your blog is selected, then click the Create a New Entry button.
The first four fields are optional, but it's a nice idea to include a title for your posts. Click in the Entry box and type your thoughts. Next we're going to add a picture, so hit your Enter key a couple times to create some space after the text.
- To add an image, click on the picture icon
and the Tripod Image Aide will be launched. Browse to a picture file on your computer, then select Upload and Insert. You will receive a confirmation window when the upload is done - Now let's try creating a link. Hit your Enter key a couple times to create some space after the picture, and type the words "Check out this website: " (be sure to include a space after the colon). Now click on the link icon
and the Tripod Link Editor will be launched. In the URL box, type in "www.tripod.com" directly after the "http://". In the Description box type "Tripod". Click Insert. Click the Preview button to see how your entry will look. If it looks good, close the preview window and, click the Post button to publish the entry to your blog.
You will be returned to the Blog Manager, where your new blog will be listed. Click on the link with your blog's name and your blog will open in a new window. It's that easy!
Anytime you want to add a new entry, just go to the Blog Manager and click Create a New Entry. You can also modify existing entries at any time and re-publish them to your blog. To show off your blog to friends and family, just copy the URL (address) and email it to them.
Happy blogging!
