Hi Scott,

I’m heading to bed, and saw your comment.

I vote “got for it”. If you like to write (which I believe you do), and enjoy the community aspect of blogs (which I believe you do), a blog would be a great fit for you. The only thing I would warn you of is that blogging can become addictive. Balance is the key.

Plus, if you started a blog, you would already have a following. For a new blogger, getting “found” is often the hardest part.

Let’s see what everyone else says.

Re: the garage sale. I vowed not to bring anything back into the house that doesn’t make my heart sing. I’ll keep my blinders on, and my purse closed tight.

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Hi Barbara - thanks for the open mic. We’ll try to behave .

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Hi Al,

Thanks for the brilliant comment I left one for you over at Liz’s blog for you.

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I have another question for you techie types. I can’t get into my blog this morning - I’m not getting the usual message I get when it’s too busy. It just says Error Establishing A Database Connection. Does this mean something is seriously wrong?

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Scott -I started my blog recently, and like you I was a bit hesitant about starting. I am writing about something I am passionate about and having fun at the same time. The great thing about the blogosphere is that you can be yourself and readers are pretty supportive. Have I convinced you yet? I say go for it Scott.

As a newbie, can anyone explain the use of tags. I put each post (only 3 so far) under a relevant category or categories but I don’t understand what the tags are about so haven’t used them.

Leanne Magraiths last blog post..Blogging Experiment Aftermath

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I know that you have a three column WP platform, but I was wondering what you thought of 3 columns vs 2 columns. Do you prefer one over the other?

Karl Staib - Your Work Happiness Matterss last blog post..Productivity at its Most Effective – When It’s Easy to Apply to Your Life

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Scott, go for it! You’ve got a strong voice and if I enjoy reading just your comments, I’ll love reading your more in-depth opinion. As soon as you hit upon a topic that seems “right,” I’d love to see you go for it!

Sara at On Simplicitys last blog post..Three Things I Suck At

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Has anyone heard of the “Thesis Theme” they were announcing about three days ago over at Copyblogger? It seems that for about $87 you get an awesome theme you can customize yourself. It looks really interesting.

@Cath: Yesterday I had to try several times before getting into your blog, so maybe there is something wrong with your server.

@Scott: Blogging is a lot of fun, go for it!

Marelisas last blog post..What is Love?

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Scott, if you start a blog, you already have me as a subscriber.

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Hmm…Let’s try this in small doses.

@Barbara: Cake. To add a background image to your header (the current theme) all you need to do is get the image online (you can do that via ftp, or attach an image to a post, or flickr account) then in word press goto Design>Edit CSS… In the text box, add the following:

#header {
background: url(’/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/2217562952_d359640e1d-300×200.jpg’);
}

.headerleft, .headerright {
background-color: transparent;
}

I’m using your Mic image as an example. Naturally it’s repeats because it small, but you can add no-repeat. Check-out http://w3schools.com/css/css_background.asp for more tricks.

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@ Hycran - good question. I was trying to think some up, and that’s a very good one, so I will tag along on yours. You don’t mind, eh? *smile*

@ everyone - Also, the Lion and I are just getting into adding ads to our blogsites. Any serious do’s and dont’s we should be considering?

@Scott - totally go for it. Somewhere along this comment stream, someone advised you to pick a central theme and stick to that. I started off with fairly random posts but quickly narrowed in on male/female interactions. That way my readers will know what to expect when they come to my site. BTW, I really enjoy reading your comments and keep wanting to click on your name, so as soon as you have it hyperlinked to a blog, I’ll be heading over to have a read.

Urban Panthers last blog post..Dressing to land a man - Part I Undergarments

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Thanks Cath and Linda for the links. Cath, we are using Smart FTP now. But the problem is my husband is the only one of us who knows how and is very busy right now. Maybe I’ll check out your link.. My hubby is so huge on security, he would really have to check it out first though.

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Scott, start up a blog!! I’d love to see how deep your rabbit hole goes. And, since you’re an avid blog reader, you know the game oh so well. You have, in a sense, a head start. Go for it.

Bamboo Forests last blog post..Realizing You’re a Magician Can Create Magic in Your Life

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@ Barbara: I agree with Scott, that “open mic” is a really cool idea!

Also, I think it’s a really great idea to sell your stuff. Not only does it put some extra cash in your pocket - but it gives the stuff an opportunity to be utilized by other people, which is entirely resourceful and the highest form of “recycling.”

Bamboo Forests last blog post..Realizing You’re a Magician Can Create Magic in Your Life

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@ Scott: lol… Well…. If you don’t know of the rabbit hole phrase then you need to go watch the movie, “The Matrix.”

In the movie, Morpheus offers Neo a red pill and a blue pill. With the blue pill he is told that if he chooses it he will wake up in his bed and won’t remember a thing…

Then Morpheus goes on to say, “You take the red pill - you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes.”

Bamboo Forests last blog post..Realizing You’re a Magician Can Create Magic in Your Life

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I’m going to go ahead and post the other things I was trying to do, sorry for the multi-postings.

@Barbara, if you find any of my post languishing in moderation or spam, feel free to delete them.

@jennifer: There’s really no wizardry to FTP, just a matter of running a “FTP application” and then copying files back and forth. Windows and OSX both have built in abilities to transfer files via http://ftp. They both treat the remote server as a folder. Or you can get a stand alone FTP application (which I prefer). If you want to delve into it, check out http://ftpplanet.com/ftpresources/ftpnew-user.html for details. If you use OSX, Cyberduck is ok and free. I use the firefox add-on FireFTP.

@Karl Staib I’ve found that 2 vs 3 columns, are really a matter of stylistic choice. You like them or you don’t. 3 columns does provide you with more options for placing blocks, links, or ads on the sides.

hyrcans last blog post..Not Bad Ass

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Hmm, I think I figured out my comment problem, I think wordpress thinks it’s spam. At least my answer to Cath.

Lets try it with out the things I think are catching the spam filter with no feedback saying so…

@Cath Lawson: If you’re speaking of the tag line right your name next to the big CL, that’s part of the logo.gif image used. You’ll need to edit the image with a photo editor and then you would need to upload it back via http://FTP.

As for your earlier problem, that means the database was down (not running/crashed). I would have to assume that your hosting provider has taken care of the issue if it’s up.

*crosses fingers hoping this will post*

hyrcans last blog post..Not Bad Ass

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Barbara,

Love the Open Mic idea! Thanks for the opportunity for the Q & A’s. Best of luck with the Garage Sale — we’ve done them over the years and they’re very fun to participate in and a nice way to lighten the load at home. Like a few other commenters, I would love to see a photo of you to see how it compares to your beautiful avatar (or is it called a gravatar?)! We’ve let you see us (many of us anyway), so it’s only fair . . . .

@ Scott - Definitely Go For It! I’ve been enjoying your comments, and your first guest post (is Part 2 up now? haven’t had time to look) was super. You have a knack for blogging so take the plunge. Count me in as a loyal reader — as long as your blog isn’t about cars, skiing, cooking or something I’m totally not interested in! LOL

@ Hyrcan — I’m on WP.org, self-hosted. As a new blogger WP is hard for me, but in the long run I think it was the correct decision for me.

Here are just two of my many learning to blog Q’s:

1. Does WP work differently in different browsers? i.e., if I’m getting an error message when trying to upload an image when I’m in IE, should I try the same thing again, but in Firefox or Flock? Haven’t had a chance to actually test this idea, but I was thinking I should. What browsers do most of you use with WP?

2. Cath said “I just feel a bit of a nuisance asking them to do such a small job when I know they’re rushed off their feet already” regarding asking your designer to make changes to her blog. I’m in the same boat, and while I’m batching them and only asking the designer once in a while, I’d like to feel I can “control” my blog myself. I would LOVE someone to spend some time answering my Q’s and walking me through how to do changes b/c I’m a fast learner. (I still don’t even know how the whole dashboard works!) How do you find someone to do something like this? Following WP Help or Forum instructions and YouTube videos to learn are OK, but if you get an unexpected error message then you’re on a detective hunt and if you find the fix, it usually involves something I’m not comfortable doing (i.e. coding).

OK, I’ll shut up now.

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thanks for your open mic…we can do this open mic in our life..hihihi

plrticless last blog post..Who Else Wants To Make Money With Adsense?

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Hi Robin,

Thank you! We had a good day at the sale. Hopefully by days end tomorrow (Sat), we won’t have much left.

I’m assuming I’ll have to do something in CSS, just don’t know the process.

Hi Al,

You’re welcome.

Like you, I would subscribe to Scott’s blog.

Hi Catherine,

Thank you! Garage sales can be a lot of fun, but they are also a lot of work.

Re: your tagline, you can to to your dashboard, then “settings” and change it there.

Hi Jennifer,

No, I’ve never done a lesson about FTP as it’s too difficult for me to try and put into words how to do it.

Hi Leanne,

Yes, another vote for Scott!

Re: tags, I’m not using them yet. Thus far, I only use categories. I have read that tags help for SEO (search engine optimization), but I’m not sure.

Hi Al,

Hi Karl,

Personally I prefer the three column as it gives me more “real estate” in the side bars. The two columns, thus far, have seemed limiting.

Hi Linda,

Hehe. I even made more than a tank of gas, so I’m pleased.

Hi Marelisa,

I haven’t heard of the “Thesis Theme”. Thus far, all of the themes I’ve used are free.

Hi Vered,

Posting a photo is something I’ve been on the fence about since I’ve started blogging. When I started blogging, that was an issued female bloggers were advised to give serious thought to . As you’ll notice, Catherine doesn’t post one either, and it’s something her and I have discussed. I’m guessing it won’t be long before I include one in my About Me page as I’m seriously contemplating adding one.

Didn’t a photo of me at six cut it? Hehe.

Hi Hyrcan,

Sorry about your comments not coming through. Apparently my spam filter was working overtime.

You’re awesome. The CSS code looks easy enough.

Thank you for the link to W3Schools. That’s a favorite site of mine but I never checked them for adding photos to headers.

RE: A blog host. I use BlueHost.

Hi Urban Panther,

RE: ads. I would say don’t clutter your site, and if you use AdSense within a post, blend the colors to match.

Us bloggers develop ad blindness, but other readers may not.

Hi Jennifer,

As mentioned earlier, I will eventually add a photo, and when I do, you all will be the first to know.

Hi Bamboo,

Another vote for Scott.

I agree that this “open mic” post has done well. Many of us have questions that aren’t always addressed in posts, so this gives everyone a chance to have their say.

Based on the responses, I’ll repeat this. I just need to know how often you all would like to see it? Weekly? Bi-weekly?, Monthly? Please let me know.

Isn’t it nice when we can recycle. Many times today I had people say, “I know just where I will put this/do with this.”

I haven’t heard about rabbit holing either.

Thank you Wendi, for the explanation. I’ve done that but didn’t know it had a name.

Yes, garage sales are lots of work, but with ours being an annual neighborhood event, it also works as a “bonding” experience/neighborhood watch gathering.

Hi Linda Abbit,

Re: different browsers. I use Firefox, but a lot of my visitors (not necessarily bloggers) are using IE. I usually check changes I make to my blogs in both browsers as often in IE there are problems. If something doesn’t work in IE, you could lose readers.

(That’s how I understand browsers)

What version of WordPress are you on? If you haven’t upgraded to WP 2.5.1 yet, Business Blogging 101 has WP video tutorials (I think he used version 2.3) . A guy by the name of Mark is the author. If you cant’ find his site, let me know and I’ll send you the link.

Photo coming soon………..

Hi Ellen,

Ok, Ok, I’ll put up a picture…as soon as I find one I like. Hehe.

Hi Pltricles,

Welcome to the BWAB community!

You’re welcome!

Hi Shilpan

Thank you,

Have you looked at “homepage excerpts” by Daily Blogging Tips? It’s the one I use, but haven’t tried modifying the message.

To everyone who participated today, I say thank you! You are all awesome and so helpful to each other. THAT is what I love about the community here at BWAB.

Hyrcan,

I’m going to check what happened to your comments. They are probably buried in my spam filter.

And to Scott!

We all give you the thumbs up. Just let us know when your blog is up!

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Hi Barbara. This open mic was a great idea!

Sorry I’m late for the party… been proofreading all day and my eyes needed a break before doing more reading. That’s why I try not to do too much proofing when I blog; otherwise I’d never rest — Phew! (But it’s still hard to resist doing!)

This is the first time I’ve heard of this Scott fellow I’ll have to check this out. Scott, I’m a newbie and I say go for it — I’m having a blast!

Hope the garage sale is going well Barbara. Glad it’s you and not me - ha ha.

No blogging questions from me today.

Davinas last blog post..Like a Bird

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@Linda Abbit: Each browser has an “engine” the takes the code and turns it into a page. They are pretty close in most cases, but can be very different in others. The error you describe could be an IE only problem, thus it might work in Firefox. Though, WordPress shouldn’t give you a problem like that normally. As Barbara suggests, if you haven’t upgraded to the current version of WordPress you should. The problem will most likely be corrected, and you get new features.

As for help, there’s a few books on WordPress worth picking up, you may also want to pick up a CSS/HTML book to get a bit more comfortable with the code. You can join the wordpress channel on irc.freenode.net and ask your questions there, but you’ll need to grab a IRC client to connect.

Check in and around your community, I’m sure you’ll find someone who knows WP and can sit down with you… often it’ll only cost you a beer, or a meal, or a few bucks…or just a thank you.

@shilpan: I haven’t used it, but a quick search brought me to the Post Teaser plugin.

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@hyrcan - thank you. I’ll have a look and see if it’s something I feel confident doing.

@ Barbara - it doesn’t work when I try that because it’s built into header. I have another problem now too- I also need to think of a tagline that will fit in the same space.

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@Ann: The easiest way for most bloggers to track subscribers is by going to http://www.feedburner.com and using their service. But it’s not without it’s flaws. But usually it gets the job done.

For folks who have their own hosting service (e.g. not just using wordpress.com) through your hosting provider’s control panel you’ll usually have access to something like Webilizer or some other web server stats package. This looks at the webserver’s logs and gives a report (just look for the URL to your rss feed for the numbers). But sometimes it’s not clear, so it to is not without it’s flaws.

Goggle Analytics can also track to some existent. Here’s one example: http://www.gospelrhys.co.uk/2007/09/how-to-track-new-rss-subscribers-google-analytics-in-3-easy-steps.html

There’s crazier ways… that requires more coding…

Now that my firewall at work is fixed I’m going to go get lunch and enjoy the day!

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Hey everyone, I know it’s late Sunday but I have a burning question!

How many have you have upgraded to the new WordPress? I haven’t yet.

And if you’ve done it, how hard is it?

Ellen Wilsons last blog post..Spontaneous Memoir Meme

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Hi Barbara,

I’m even later getting back to you — it’s 12:30am Monday and I’d better get to bed. Thanks to you & Hyrcan for the browser 411 — it definitely helped. I am on WP 2.5.1 so that’s good.

Barbara, I found Mark’s Business Blogging 101 site and bookmarked it to go back to since I’m bleary-eyed now.

@ Hyrcan — thanks for the suggestions re reading a few books on CSS/html and asking local people if they’re familiar with WP. I tried last night at a party already, but the guy wasn’t familiar with WP. I will keep trying, however.

Time to ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ now. Taking a two-day “staycation” this week, so may be absent for a few days on commenting in our wonderful BWAB commty. I *have* learned to pre-load my posts however, so my blog won’t be completely stagnant while I’m off line.
Linda Abbits last blog post..It Is Better to Laugh than to Cry!

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Wow, what a lively comment section. Sorry I’m way late but I took the family to California for a much needed 3 night getaway.

Let me see if I can add to the conversation a little:

@ Cath - If you’re thinking of changing your tagline you most definitely should message James and Harry and ask them to change it. Once you know what you want to say it’ll only take a few short moments for them to change it.

Plus consider this: They designed your banner and refer clients to your banner as “This is a banner we created.” Also, when people tell you they like your banner you’ll probably say, “Yeah, Men with Pens did it.” I’m sure with this in mind, they would prefer to make any changes to your banner, otherwise, it will no longer represent their work but will be told it is.

So trust me, message them to change it - they will be happy you didn’t try to wing it.

However, to answer your question on how you would change it, you would need a few things.
1. The .psd image file they created your banner in (not the .jpg or .gif but the actual .psd file generated in Photoshop).

2. You would need a program like Adobe Photoshop or Macromedia’s Fireworks to edit that .psd file.

3. The font used for that tagline and place that font in your C:\Windows\Fonts directory (if using Windows operating system).

Then you would be able to click on that text, backspace it, and type in your new tagline. Save it and give it the same name as your current header and then upload it to the same directory your current header is in. Sorry, it doesn’t get much easier than that.

@ Jennifer - I found a decent video on

YouTube explaining http://FTP. But I would think the best method is if your husband knows

how to use it, have him show you. Once you’re comfortable uploading files, what you need to

know is where to put those files. If you have any specific questions, use my blog’s contact

me form and I’ll be happy to help.

@ Barbara - Is your header shorter than it use to be? It seemed thicker before. I think

smaller is better. It looks like hyrcan gave you some css code which looks good. I’ll be honest with you, there’s no simple down to earth way to explain it. It looks like you’re currently not using an actual banner but rather an empty black retangle box with images and text in there.

So to get an image in there, you’d have to create a black image in the same dimesions of your header using an image editor like Photoshop, Fireworks, or any free one out there like Paint.Net and then add photos to your header. Then upload them to the directory your #header tag refers to in your css.

Confused? Yeah it all kinda sucks. Just remember, if you want to toy with images, you need an image editor. Once edited, upload.

John Hoff - eVentureBizs last blog post..Videos To Help Craft A Better Website & Attract Attention

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Hi John,

YOU are SO helpful. What would we do without you and Hyrcan in the BWAB community?

I love how you’ve shared links with those that have questions. Often it’s difficult to find “just the right site”, and by looking at the links you’ve provided, it’s obvious you’ve done your homework.

With regard to your tutorial on upgrading WordPress, I’m looking forward to seeing that, too.

Re: My header. This one won’t change. I’m thinking of customizing the one on my new theme (which is currently on the back burner).

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@ Cath Lawson - Not sure if you’re subscribed to this thread but I forgot to comment on your “Failure To Connect To The Database” error.

If it is a reoccurring problem and your hosting company is not reporting errors to you (through tech support), then your problem is most likely a script that is causing the issue.

I don’t know what all you run on your server but WordPress is most definitely one of them and this could be causing the error.

It could be a misbehaving plugin that could be causing the issue. Maybe conflicts with another plugin or doesn’t like your theme. And yup, if it’s that, it could be hard to diagnose. Sorry.

John Hoff - eVentureBizs last blog post..Videos To Help Craft A Better Website & Attract Attention

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