A useful website to watch before, during and after learning to set up a website in class...

Slightly more advanced, but focuses on creating a blog site...

There are also new videos attached to topics in the support area of Weebly - see for example 'Intro to Content Elements'...

It is quite a challenge editing Weebly on an IPad.  It's great for viewing, and the new Weebly app is wonderful as long as you don't want to add the blog function to it, which we do.  We are working out ways around this for two people who have an IPad but no PC, but so far this is rather a challenge.

It's interesting to read this review of Weebly's Ipad app from PC Magazine (online this month).  Clearly Weebly is in the vanguard in developing an app which is already well regarded, however it is not without glitches.  The doesn't actually mention the fact the the Weebly Ipad app doesn't offer blog functionality!  But it does seem to offer more than most. 

So far it seems to me that it's best to find a pc when wanting to add blog entries - perhaps just cutting and pasting them in.  The Web app can then be used for other pages... but it's still a case of testing, testing!  Bev

Blogging has been such a boon to the writing process - people who love to write have taken on to blogging with gusto!  I suspect that where emails may not be archived in a way which leads to the later discovery of correspondence providing rich glimpses into past lives, blogs might be archived in a more permanet way, perhaps even printed out and kept somewhere for future reading. 

There are so many approaches to writing blogs.  I've decided to look out for more 'one' page blogs, with at the most three pages - an about and contact page as well as the blog page.

Here's my first find for today - it's a very simple one page wordpress blog involving reflecting on the psychotherapeutic process by social worker Alison Ball who has specialised in counselling and psychotherapy.  It has a 'serious' and 'reflective' tone, with categories highlighted reflect recent topics.
http://www.psychotherapistsinmelbourne.com.au/blog/

Sometimes a google search will come across a gem in a blog... such as a search for an image of Santa Claus and his helpers.... which led to this blog posted in 2009 in a very eclectic approach to blogging - https://nancyks.wordpress.com/2009/12/24/twas-the-night-before-christmas/ ....

Bev

There are many blog platforms.  Three common blog platforms are 'Blogger', 'Wordpress' and 'Blog Spot' - but there are many others.

Our group will focus on using Weebly's blog platform, as we are using this extensively within our website and we would like to encourage members to develop skills in this so that they have a better understanding of the website and perhaps might help out some day!

There are lots of resources in Weebly's support centre such as this one on Creating a Blog Post.

There are also lots of resources on You Tube - here is a useful video found on 'Weebly blogging - getting started'.  You might like to watch this video to increase your understanding. 

I-Pad users will also find useful resources on the Weebly support centre and on You Tube.

The first task is to develop an idea or concept for your blog.   Blogging usually involves a reflective writing process and quite often relates to a theme or area of interest.

In our first session, Margaret introduced us to the blog of her good friend who is using it to share his reflections and experiences as he cycles around Europe.  We had a look at his wonderful blog which has maps, plans, anecdotes and more.  Bev showed the blog of her friend Angie at http://www.spryandretiring.wordpress.com . 

Judy spoke about the film 'Julie and Julia', in which Julie blogs each day for a year testing the recipes of Julia Child, forming the basis for what became an enormously successful blog and later book. 

An edited version of an article which introduces some interesting ideas for a blog, both in the article and in the comments is included in this handout, 

It will be interesting to watch as concepts for blogs emerge and developing over the next few months.