Blogging. The thing your friend does that you could do better. The hobby of
the century. Your key to boss-less freedom and your cat’s one shot at fame. So
do your homework with this list and start a blog the whole world, and your mom,
will love.
1. WordPress.org
Stats:
·
Recommended for: Blogging and websites
·
Founded: May 27th, 2003
·
Founder: Matt Mullenweg of Automattic
·
Total users: 60 million, 19% of the internet and 1 in
5 websites as of December 2013
·
Total employees: 151
·
Pros: Elegance and ease
·
Cons: You need to get a domain name and web hosting
first
·
Costs: Your domain name and hosting can be bought
together for about $3-6 per month. I recommend HostGator for this, but other
places are more than willing to charge you more
·
My verdict: The best place to blog if you’re serious
about it. Good for all types of review websites, fashion blogs, single page
websites, business websites, mommy blogs, company sites, eCommerce sites and
more..
2. WordPress.com
About:
WordPress.com is a free blog-hosting site with roughly half the features of
.org. The general idea here is less maintenance for you, but less control of
the blog. Get a .wordpress domain name like “ridanhblog.wordpress.com” or pay
to use your own domain name. Need a niche? WordPress.com sees 100,000 posts
published each day so you’ll surely find like-minded thinkers. Not a full
company website but a loyal companion for one. Write posts, try a free theme,
set up social media buttons and learn blogging at WordPress.com.
Stats:
·
Recommended for: Mass community blogging
·
Released: November 21, 2005
·
Founder: Matt Mullenweg of Automattic
·
Total users: 56 million blogs
·
Pros: Ease to use with little you can mess up.
·
Cons: Less customization and a bit fussy with adding
certain features.
·
Costs: Free, you can pay WordPress.com to get a domain
name without the “.wordpress” addition.
·
My verdict: A lovely intro to blogging that about 1
year in takes us all to a crossroads: stay put, or transfer to WordPress.org.
3. Blogger
About:
Blogger is Google’s free blog-hosting site. More popular at the turn of the
millenium, Blogger still offers a great service but the designs are a bit
elementary. Login and publish your first post for free with only a Gmail account.
Try Adsense “monetization”, design a new layout and even edit your first piece
of code.
Stats:
·
Recommended for: Blogging
·
Founded: August 2013, 1999
·
Notable events: Bought by Google in February, 2003
·
Founder: Evan Williams of Pyra Labs
·
Total users:
·
Pros: Publish anywhere, huge community, images, video,
edit HTML/CSS, template designer, track traffic stats in Blogger, Adsense at no
charge
·
Cons: While Blogger is where many writers started
publishing, it’s designs appear a bit childish today. Google owns your blog –
they axed Reader – so acknowledge a bit less control upfront.
·
Costs: Pay $10/year for a domain name without the
“.blogspot” extension – otherwise totally free.
·
Future predictions: May merge with Google+.
·
My verdict: Everything blogging should be and more –
Blogger was the sandbox for names now headlining in tech. The only real
negative comes from outgrowing Blogger, at which point many (like myself)
transfer to WordPress. Less popular today – even Google’s PR Mogul Matt Cutts
runs a WordPress site.
4. Tumblr
Introduction to Tumblr:
At a time when WordPress and Blogger were neck-and-neck for new users,
Tumblr showed up as the 3rd guy to the party. They received lots of sign-ups from
users wanting a totally refreshing take on blogging, and have grown ever since.
Tumblr was recently bought by Yahoo, who has interesting plans for the whole
blog advertising thing.
Stats:
·
Founded: February 2007
·
Founder: David Karp
·
Total users: 152 million
·
Pros: Ease of use and ability to share your friends’
work through re-blogging.
·
Cons: Less customization, just a shade less
professional and not ideal for conducting business.
·
Costs: Free, pay Tumblr to get your own domain name
without the “.tumblr” addition
·
My verdict: Great for photography and other forms of
art. Super-simplistic designs and a whimsical vibe make Tubmlr a great choice
for any new blogger.
5. Weebly
Stats:
·
Founded: 2006
·
Founder: David Rusenko
·
Total users: hosts 15 million websites
·
Pros: Drag and drop feature so easy a monkey could use
it.
·
Cons: Less control for the user
·
Costs: ?
·
My verdict: I’ve heard a lot of positive reviews here.
For a company owner who needs a website but despises tech, it’s Weebly or
Squarespace, and both are sound choices.
0 komentar:
Post a Comment