FBOTW Submissions

Sorry I've been seriously slacking on this blog. If you would like to be our featured blog of the week, please comment below. Remember that this is a round table format, so this is a chance to hear the good and needs improvement of your blog.

Featured Blog: Bridgetown Baby Momma!

http://bridgetownbabymomma.blogspot.com/

 It's an oh-so-cute blog with tons of baby pictures. Check out the link above and come back to leave feedback for Jenn. She can't cater to your reading needs without it. 

Weekly Featured Blog Submissions

There has been some controversy over who was picked for the featured blog last week. While the story does sound suspicious, the blog is still active and there's nothing in the rules saying a blog has to be true. So as let down as I am to learn that one of my favorite Bumpies may have been stretching the truth, she still remains as a featured blog.

But it did make me wonder, what happens if the blogs go under? And how do I hold everyone's info to make the FBOTW (featured blog of the week) fair and random? Probably the best thing is to have everyone submit for it on a weekly basis. So that's what we're going to do and to see if it works.

If you want your blog to be featured, comment on this post. Please remember that the point of this group is to help us grow in our blogging experience. So please be open for feedback. And us as readers should be offering insight, both the positive and what needs to be worked on.

Weekly Link ~ May 17, 2010

Sorry for the delay, but here's the weekly link:

http://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/36794747.aspx

Our First Featured Blog

This week's featured blog is Just Being Aother Mom

Check out the blog, and don't forget to add feedback/constructive criticism. We can't grow as writers if we don't know what you're thinking. Like what you see? Don't forget to follow her journey!

Creating a Blog Badge/Button

Holly asked a good question: how do you create a blog badge?

Basically, a blog badge is an image that is hard coded to open a website when clicked on. It is a great image brander and it better at getting a possible reader's attention than just a link.

So how do you make one?

First, decide on the picture you want to use. You can either use one already made (i.e. a snapshot of something), or create a new picture. If you're talented enough, you can create a picture using a program like Paint or (if you're lucky enough to afford it) Photoshop. Another avenue, for those not artsy enough to design their own and don't want to use a photo, is to take a snap shot of their blog header. Mommy Moment, one of my favorite blogs to read, ran this awesome tutorial a little while back: http://www.mommymoment.ca/2010/04/how-to-make-your-own-button-graphic.html. Make sure you save your work as a JPEG or PNG.

Okay, so you have your image created, now what? You'll have to upload it somewhere so that you get an image URL. Any photo gallery website will do this and in the past I have used tinypic.com, photobucket.com, and good ol' Facebook. If uploading to the first two, once it's completed, it'll give you the URL code automatically. Copy this code. If using Facebook, right click on the image when viewing the picture:

In Internet Explorer, your next step is to click on "Properties" and then copy everything under "Address". In Chrome, you'll only have to select "Copy Image URL." It's something very similar in Firefox, and you're on your own for Safari. 

Next step: hard coding the image. On a HTML field, use the following code:

*<*a* href*="YourBlogWebAddressHere" target*=*"_blank"*>*<*img *src*="YourImageURLhere" *border=*"0"*>*<*/*a*>

(Take out the *s as they were used to show you the coding.) The most thoughtful way to have this set up is to have the badge open a new window or tab (depending on how the reader has the browser set) when clicked on. The "target=blank" part does just that.

Don't know where to put the HTML? Under Blogger, look for this screen under "Settings" and then "Layout" and add a new HTML gadget:

Since this blog caters to The Bump, to add to your signature, click on "My Bump" and then "Edit my Profile." Add the code to the "Signature" box and press "Save Changes."

And if all goes well, you should have your own blog badge. If only I get off my tush and create one for this site...


Tried these directions? Did they work? Need clarifying? Share your comment!

Weekly Link ~ May 10, 2010

This week's question:

What made you start blogging?

You can comment here or follow the link: http://community.thebump.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/36417647.aspx