Cool Stuff For Bloggers

Contributor Vs. Editor Vs. Author in WordPress

Wondering what the different WordPress roles are or mean? Below is a copy of the Q&A found on LockerGnome.

In a blog what are the roles of the contributor, author and editor?

I assume you’re talking about a WordPress blog…if so, here’s what I found.

Administrators – have access to all the administration features.
Editors – can publish posts, manage posts as well as manage other people’s posts, etc.
Authors – can publish and manage their own posts.
Contributors – can write and manage their posts but not publish posts or upload media files.
Subscribers – can read comments/comment/receive newsletters, etc.

*found by clicking HELP in the users section of WordPress administrator panel

via LockerGnome

Want more? For a good explanation of the differences between Author vs Contributor, see this WordPress Site Builder page.

posted by stuffblog in Quick And Dirty Blog Tips and have No Comments

Quick And Dirty Blog Tip: The Search Box

For today’s quick and dirty blog tip we bring you a most important element which many blog owners (for some unknown reason) forget to include in their sites.

The search box!

If your particular WordPress theme doesn’t have one built into the navigation or sidebar, add it at once. This is a vital piece of web design that musn’t be overlooked.

Read more…

posted by stuffblog in Quick And Dirty Blog Tips and have No Comments

Netbooks Great For Mobile Blogging

If you blog while out and about one of the best investments you can make is to get a netbook.

dell mini 10 in white 

What is a netbook?

It’s a smaller laptop usually with a 7 to 10 inch screen and all the major PC makers have one or two models available. Dell has one called the Dell Mini 10 which I own, (use alot) and love. It costs me $225 last year in 2010 via Walmart.com and you can still snag a high quality netbook for about the same price.

They’re fully featured with plenty of RAM, good hard drives, web cams, decent sized processors and of course built-in WIFI.

I highly recommend one to all bloggers. They’re great for cafe blogging, park blogging, and other mobile blogging or IM activities. I tend to take mine while I travel, sure the iPad is lighter and smaller but with no keyboard – it’s a no go for me.

I plan to do a round up of a few good high quality inexpensive netbook models in the next few days, so stay tuned.

Cheers,
Missy

p.s. Do you have a netbook? If so, which model and do you agree or disagree with my sentiment above.

posted by stuffblog in Cool Stuff for Bloggers,Whats in Your Office and have No Comments

7 Compelling Reasons To Use Host Gator

Need some vital reasons on why Host Gator is worth your money? How about seven.

1. Phone and Chat Support – one thing you will come across when you set up a website or blog is that things will inevitably break. It just happens and of course when you least expect it to. This is why tech support is incredibly important a factor to consider when you sign up with a hosting provider. Some only offer email support, while others have a full blown call center you can reach 24/7 which is the case with Host Gator.

2. Price – if you’re setting up a full fledged website or blog even one with shopping cart functionality or other such features, all you need is shared hosting. Don’t let anyone tell you different. A shared hosting account is plenty sufficient to handle your handful of sites, a dedicated server or VPS is absolutely not necessary. Should you in the future balloon to stardom or get a mention on Oprah all you would have to do is upgrade your account to a more robust one that can handle a million or billion page views. But for starting out, shared hosting is all you need which should run you no more than $15 a month tops.

3. Unlimited Domains – as most site owners and bloggers will tell you, when you set your first site up another will eventually follow. It’s highly addictive and after some success under your belt, you will surely want to follow up and create another web property. Which is why it’s good to also take this into consideration when you sign up for a host account. How many domains and sites does your host allow in one account? Host Gator allows unlimited under their plans.

4. Great Affiliate Program – should you want to refer Uncle Ned or Aunt Betty to a good web host, you will get credit for the referral via the Host Gator affiliate program. Simply send your relative (or friend) to the site via a special link given to you and get a nice big fat referral commission for doing so, as much as $50 per referral. They have one of the best affiliate programs in the industry.

5. Free Stuff – are you wanting to switch from another host? No problem as they offer FREE site transfers, which can be a blessing in disguise. Moving an entire site to a different host can be a time consuming and or complicated process, let them do it for you at no cost. This is a major perk for current site owners unhappy with their present host company.

6. History – around since 2002, they no hosting inside and out. As for the company itself? They’re based in Houston, Texas and employ over 400 people.

7. Insane Black Friday Discount Offers – another reason to sign up with Host Gator is their good prices. However on Black Friday is when things really get wacky and special offers are thrown around that no one should pass up. For 2010 it is no different. You can take advantage of their Black Friday promotion this year which offers up 50% off everything and during (special early morning) hours offers up 80% off everything. Now if you know anything about hosting, you know this is a deal like no other. You can sign up for one, two or three years and pay all up front, no need to worry about monthly payments. This one is a no brainer!

Sign up through one of my affiliate links above and take advantage of this blow out annual event as it only comes along once a year. Host Gator is not perfect by any means, but they are a good choice for high quality, reliable, flexible  and affordable hosting.

posted by stuffblog in Cool Stuff for Bloggers and have Comments (8)

Work At Home Humor Guest Post

My guest post over at the WaHumor blog has been approved and added to the site, when you get a minute do stop over and have a look. The article is a list post in which I write about how working from home can be loads of fun.

work at home humor guest post

If you like, tweet it. Cheers!

posted by stuffblog in Cool Stuff for Bloggers and have Comments (7)

Top 16 Free Blog Tools

I was looking over the various services and products I use for blogging, and realized most if not all are 100% free. If you take pride in free blog tools and low overhead business operations, you will truly appreciate this list.

animoto pics to video

1. Firefox – no stranger to web warriors and blog deal seekers. Firefox is a top notch web browser with global community support and a large directory of free useful add-ons. Many articles exist exclaiming the top add-ons for Firefox, just do a quick Google search and you’ll be greeted with hundreds of results. Everything from SEO to social bookmarking, Firefox has it and for free.

Read more…

posted by stuffblog in Whats in Your Office and have Comments (15)