Starting a blog, need advice

olegoleg subscriber Posts: 13 Bronze Level Member
edited July 2007 in Building A Website That Works
I`m think about starting a blog.  Any of you bloggers out there have any advice on where to start?  Should I use a site like blogspot or livejournal, or do something custom?  What other options are there?
· Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook

Comments

  • olegoleg subscriber Posts: 13 Bronze Level Member
    The topic is sports commentary.
    The purprose, hmm... Haven`t really thought of one yet.  It`s just a hobby thing for now, though I eventually plan on adding features and turning it into a bigger site; a blog seems like a good starting point.
    Wordpress.com is just a hosted implementation of the Wordpress software, correct?  What are the benefits of a stand-alone implementation over a hosted one?
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • olegoleg subscriber Posts: 13 Bronze Level Member
    :-) So it`s more about the technology and doing cool stuff with Web tools?
    Nope, it will be sports commentary, more specifically mixed martial arts & UFC.  Nothing to do with web tools or technology.
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • olegoleg subscriber Posts: 13 Bronze Level Member
    I`m still undecided on whether to go with a hosted solution or a standalone one.  I am leaning towards hosted at this point.  I want something that can be set up quickly, and it also seems like hosted blogs have the benefit of additional visibility from the parent site.  If I want to add features in the future, I can always move to a stand-alone website later.
    Wordpress.com actually seems nice!  I will look into Terapad.com as well, thanks for the pointer Andy.  I already ruled out Blogger.com (formerly Blogspot), as soon as I realized that it requires a Google account...
     
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • aquamaureenaquamaureen subscriber Posts: 0
    I`m a big fan of WordPress. It`s easy to customize, has the Pages feature which allows you to create pages that aren`t part of your blog and lots of plugins to extend the functionality.
    Hosting your own wordpress installation allows you to customize more. There are many more options for plugins and themes that wordpress.com will give you. Also, if you have yourownname.com you have to pay to point it to your wordpress.com blog. Why do that when you can have your own site?
    Good luck!
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • olegoleg subscriber Posts: 13 Bronze Level Member
    Hosting your own wordpress installation allows you to customize more. There are many more options for plugins and themes that wordpress.com will give you. Also, if you have yourownname.com you have to pay to point it to your wordpress.com blog. Why do that when you can have your own site?
    Are you saying I would have to pay Wordpress.com if I have a blog with them and have another URL that redirects to my blog?  That seems a bit outrageous; how could they possibly even keep track of this?  What if I have multiple URLs redirecting to my blog - would I have to pay for each one?
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • aquamaureenaquamaureen subscriber Posts: 0
    Of course you can set up your own redirect, but if you want to use their DNS you have to pay. You also have to pay for access to change your CSS, pay to have unlimited private users, and also pay for space upgrades-- 1GB, 5GB, 10GB
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • RichardBuggyRichardBuggy subscriber Posts: 4
    I highly recommend WordPress (the open source software at .org, not the host solution at .com). It only takes 2 minutes to install, is easy to use and easy to theme. There are also lots of plugins for it. Two I recommend are:Open Web Analytics - http://www.openwebanalytics/Sociable - http://push.cx/sociableThe whole process (domain registration, signing up for hosting and installing WordPress) will take less than a day.
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
  • eventbrandereventbrander subscriber Posts: 6
    I use textpattern open source blogging software. You do need some tech/programming knowledge to install most of the features (plugins) the hosted blogs come with. You could hire someone to set it up for you.
     
    I chose it because it`s very flexbile, has a nice cms, integration into my current website for more content, rated high among programmers, and most importantly it`s free.
     
     eventbrander2007-7-13 0:7:9
    · Share on Google+ Share on TwitterShare on Facebook
Sign In or Register to comment.