Create+a+Blog

toc As for wikis, you have two choices when it comes to creating a blog, you can use an online one or setup your own one. If you don't mind the whole world reading your work, the easiest and most popular choice is to create a public blog on the intranet. There are many good services available so it is hard to recommend a 'best' one. The chart at http://www.ojr.org/ojr/images/blog_software_comparison.cfm may help.

For internal organisational use however, where privacy is important, you will might need to setup your own blog software. There is free and commercial blogging software available for use, but one options which can make simplify your organisations Intranet is to chose a wiki that has blogging built into it.

>Creating a Teacher’s Blog.
The two major options for teachers creating blogs are either a WWW hosting service (e.g. [|Blog.com], [|WordPress.org]) or an application downloaded and installed on their own or campus server (e.g. [|MoveableType]). //a) [|Hosting services] (6).// A hosting service is a Web site that will give you access to everything you need in order to create a [|blog]. It will offer a form for you to input your entries, some tools that allow you to create a [|template] for your blog, and access to some built-in accessories. Your blog is hosted on the hosting service (hence the name), and the [|URL] will typically reflect the hosting service’s URL. The best-known (and one of the earliest) hosting service is Blogger ([|http://www.blogger.com]). //b) Installed Applications.// A remotely installed application is a piece of [|software] (7) that you obtain from the provider and install on your own Web site. These systems are similar to Web-based applications such as [|ColdFusion] (8)or [|Hypermail] (9). Because of this, the number of users is much lower, but those who do use them tend (arguably) to be more dedicated and more knowledgeable than those who use hosting services. Installed applications are also more suitable for institutional use, since access can be controlled.

=>BLOG MOVIES=
 * MOVIES TO HELP YOU GET STARTED WITH BLOGS USING THE BLOGGER.COM SERVICE.**
 * The movies are in Flash (.swf) format so will need the [|Flash player to view them].**

This is not a movie [|BUT it's a handout for staff for creating their own blogs] and the movies below will staff to achieve the handout's exercises.

>Blog creation.
i) Creating a blog name, blog web site address (URL) and choosing a template for your blog. ii) Creating and posting a message that includes an image, to your blog. [|CLICK HERE TO COMMENCE THE MOVIE]**
 * This movie assumes you have created an account with the Blogger.com service and reviews the steps for:

>Editing posts and deleting blogs.
[|CLICK HERE TO COMMENCE THE MOVIE]**
 * This movie demonstrates the steps for editing a blog's existing messages (posts) and deleting blogs from your Blogger account.

>Blog design tips
[|CLICK HERE TO COMMENCE THE MOVIE]**
 * Here are some tips to help staff create usable and interesting blogs

>Adding your profile to your blogs.
[|CLICK HERE TO COMMENCE THE MOVIE]**
 * This movie demonstrates the steps for adding your profile, including your photograph, to your blogs.

>Adding your own banner to your blog.
[|CLICK HERE TO COMMENCE THE MOVIE] [|Here is a tutorial] (MSWORD) for creating your banner using MSPaint.**
 * This movie demonstrates the steps for editing the HTML code of your blog's template to enable you to replace the blog's existing banner with your own image. Note that a new version of Blogger has been released since this movie was made and some modification will be necessary to the instructions.