How To Start A Blog

Quick Tutorial: Easy One-Click WordPress Installallation With Fantastico

Without a doubt WordPress is the most popular blogging software in use.  It is a popular choice because it is simple and easy to use and allows for easy customization of your blog or site.  Even a novice can quickly install it.

WordPress is a free blogging software.  But of course if your goal is to make money blogging, you have to get serious about making your sites your own.  To do that you will need your own domain name and your own web hosting account.  Your web host account comes with a user control panel called cPanel.  Cpanel is a tool that helps you manage and maintain your sites.

I strongly recommend HostGator hosting because they have a great reputation.  They are dependable, reliable, and they are low cost.  They also have a software called ‘Fantastico’ in your user panel which can automatically install many scripts onto your site.  Fantastico can easily install WordPress on your site with a simple “one-click installation”.

Point Name Server To Your Domain

Before we start make sure you have a domain name and have the name server in your domain account pointing to your web host.  This is basically telling the domain registrar to send people to the address of your website.  If this step is not done your site will just be parked at the domain registrar.

Installing WordPress

You should have received the welcome email from your web host with all the information you need.  In that email should also be your login information to your cPanel.

You can login to your cPanel by going to:

http://yourdomain.com/cpanel

Substitute yourdomain.com with your actual domain name.  Then login with your information from your welcome email.

The first time you login to your cPanel you might be overwhelmed by all the different menu options in front of you. You probably will not use most of them and for now we are going to focus on using Fantastico to install your WordPress blog.

1- So scroll down until you see the blue smiley face icon “Fantastico”.

Click on the “Fantastico De Lux” icon and it will take you to the Fantastico page.

2- You will see many software options on the left sidebar.  Click on “WordPress”.

3- Next click on “New Installation”.

4-This page asks you to fill out some important information.  Read the form instructions and complete the fields.

After you finish filing out all the fields, click on “Install WordPress”.

5-The next page is telling you that the database and user will be created, and also the directory your blog will be installed to. Click on “Finish installation” to complete the step of creating your blog.

6- Your WordPress blog is now fully installed!  This page is confirming that everything is good to go and reminds you of your chosen username and password. Enter your email address to have all your installation info emailed to you.

That’s it, you’re done! Don’t forget to bookmark your URL to your admin panel.

Now login to your brand new WordPress site with the username and password you’ve just created.

To login your site either pull out the bookmark or just put “ /wp-admin” at the end of your site’s URL.  For example “yoursite.com/wp-admin”.

As you can see installing WordPress with Fantastico is quite simple.  You can repeat this same step for each new blog that you want to create.

Creating A Blog – Starting A Blog On Self Hosted Vs Free Blog Hosted Platforms

So you learned the basics of how to start a blog and the many things you can do with them.  There’s lots of ways in which you can get started creating a blog.  The easiest way though is to use a free blog host like Blogger or simply WordPress.com. Starting a blog with the above platforms are pretty easy. You can create your blog and customize it for your needs but only to a certain extent.

It’s to a certain extent only because you don’t have total control over a blog that is hosted on a blog’s host site.  You have limited control with the design and sometimes even the content of your blog.  So basically although you are using the blog it’s not really yours. Simply put the software that manages the blog and the files that hold your content, are hosted by someone else.  Though those are free to use think of it as leasing or renting as opposed to owning.  Whichever platform you’re using when creating a blog be it WordPress, Blogger, Foursquare, Livejouenal, Blog, and etc. you are just renting the space and have limited control.

Of course there are some advantages and drawbacks of both blog hosted and self hosted.  However it should be apparent that you have more control hosting your blog yourself rather than using in-house blog.  You have more flexibility from designing to total control of the content you put on your site.

Starting a blog by uploading WordPress to your site is not that difficult as you might think. It is quite easy.  There is even is a 5 minute installation guide.   You get the WordPress software from WordPress.org, and you upload it to your website into a directory of your choice. The easiest way to do this is to use an ftp client.  There are quite a few good free ftp software which you can use.  You then make a few modifications to some of the files and you are finished.  Also most cPanel have a quick auto installation through the use of Fantastico software where you won’t need to use ftp.

Once you are set with installation you have a blog that you can change to suit your own needs.  No worries or hassles of restrictions that are imposed by the WordPress website or any other similar blog sites.

There are thousands of templates you can use both free and paid.  You can also customize and design your own templates through the use of software or hard coding it yourself. What you can do is limitless.  You can change the entire look and feel of your blog.

You can offer any links that you feel is needed and put whatever ads you want on your site.  You can use ads like Adsense to make you money.

Creating a blog is simple.  Once you know how to create a blog just like you want it, you have a great tool to use any time you need to.  You can use your blog to promote your business, services, or products. You can make direct sales from them or through advertising.

Once you know how to start a blog and host it on your own site, you have very little restrictions and full control. You can use your blog to accomplish whatever it is you want with your site. Just use your imagination and ideas because what you can do is limitless when starting a blog of your own.

How To Start A Blog – A Bigginers Guide To Blogging

If you are new to the world of blogging don’t worry.  We will cover all the basics of how to start a blog.  This guide caters to the newbie and is easy to understand.   First here is an introduction to what a blog is.  A blog is just your online diary or journal.  You use it to express your feelings, ideas, views, and opinions.  You can even advertise your products on it. Basically you can do almost anything you want with your blog within a certain guideline, depending if you use a blog hosts site or your own host.

Blogging can be more that just your own personal oasis, as you can join groups that blog about specific topics.  These topics can be of anything that interests you such as movies, music, basketball, fashion, gardening, and so on. You can share your knowledge, skills, and expertise.  Some blogs operates just like a forum.

Examples of blog platforms are WordPress which this site is using and Blogger or Blogspot.

You can add pictures, music, videos, and links to other sites to your blog. Some blogs platforms allow you to add more things than others.

You can also use your blog to advertise products or even events. You can also use it to drive more traffic to your site.  Some people do not have a website but use a blog to showcase their products and services.

There is so much you can do with a blog, while there are some things you can’t do. It is best you get started and then find what you are capable of.

Start off by choosing a blog provider of your choice and signing up for the blog.  Most newcomers to blogging find it easiest to start blogging from a provider’s website.  Then as they get more comfortable graduate to installing blogging software on their own site.

Installing a blog like WordPress on your site takes a little more effort, but it allows you to use plugins that gives you total personalization of your blog. That way it is completely different from everyone else’s and is uniquely yours.  You cannot use plugins when you run your blog from the provider’s site, whether it is WordPress, Blogger or any other blog.

Although blogging from your own self hosted site sounds exciting, it is probably best to start blogging from the blog hosting site, and then graduate to your own website once you are comfortable with the blogging process. You will have plenty to take in and learn when you self host your site, without having to worry about how blogging works. Once you have learned how to start a blog and have gotten the hang of it, you can think of running it from your own website.

Being a blogger can be a wonderful and fun experience.  It can also be very lucrative. There are specific techniques involved in making money using blogs. However, there can also be some drawbacks if you are unaware of the pitfalls and the right way to do it. But still, blogging can be very rewarding, both personally and financially.

Now that you understand how to start a blog best of luck, and get to blogging.  Don’t leave it a minute longer because there is much to learn.  Hey you might even end up being a blogaholic.