typr.org: blogging done right

Here are some quick tips on taking advantage of all the features of your blog:

The difference between a POST and a PAGE:

A “post” is your actual blog. The entries you write will be posted on the front page like any traditional blogging system. For most people, you will be using this to add entries to your blog.

However, sometimes you want static information that never changes. That is what a “Page” is. By default, we auto-generate an “About” page for your blog, and it is automatically listed as a Link at the top of your default theme.

Change your theme:

In your Dashboard Blog Admin, click on the “Appearance” tab, click “Themes”, and choose the theme of your liking by hitting the “Activate” link.

Enabling/disabling plugins:

In your Dashboard Blog Admin, click on the “Plugins” tab, click “Installed”, and choose “All” to see a list of all available plugins. Activate the ones you like.

Important: Plugins are powerful for extending features, but sometimes plugins do not like each other, so make sure you activate them one at a time to prevent conflicts.

Adding media such as videos, MP3s, and images to your post:

With our system, adding media is as easy as a few clicks. At the top of your post screen, you will see “Add Media” followed by 4 icons. It doesn’t matter which icon you choose (Add Image, Add Video, Add Audio, Add Media). Just choose one and you will be asked to browse for the file to upload, or you can choose a URL, or you can choose a piece of media from your Library of previously uploaded media.

After the upload, you will have a customization screen, where you can edit the properties of what you just uploaded. After uploading, just click “Insert into Post”.

Embedding Youtube, Vimeo, and Google Videos into your posts:

For youtube, vimeo, google video (among many others), simply copy and paste the link to the video in its own line.

Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfjH3svkC20

For other sites,  most have an “embed” code that you can copy and paste. To use the “embed code”, make sure you click the “HTML” tab at the top right of your post screen (where you write your entries) and paste the code. You can switch back to “Visual” afterwards.

Embed an MP3 into your post:

First, activate the “WPaudio” plugin. Afterwards, upload the mp3 to your blog by opening up the “Media” menu and choosing “Add New”. Simply upload the MP3. A link will be generated once the MP3 has finished uploading. Simply copy and paste the link of the MP3 into your blog. The plugin will do the rest.

Customizing your post editor:

By default, the post editor  is called “TinyMCE”. It is a very powerful visual editor and if you have ever used Microsoft Word, you will notice the similarities. It is a WYSIWYG editor and will generally display your posts the way they look in the editor.

You can customize the buttons by opening up the “Plugins” menu and clicking “TinyMCE Advanced” to rearrange, add, remove, and edit the way the editor looks on your post screen.

Simplify your dashboard:

For first time users, WordPress (the powerful backend that controls your blog) can be a little overwhelming. On every screen of your Dashboard, you will see a “Screen Options” link at the top right. When you click it, a menu opens up and you can select/unselect what is displayed to simplify your view.

Can’t access your admin dashboard:

If for some reason, you can no longer access your administration page, just add “/wp-admin” to the end of your blog. For example, if your blog address is “http://typr.org/newblog“, make it “http://typr.org/newblog/wp-admin“. It is a good idea to bookmark this page for quicker access.

A a plugin is available to enable crossposting to livejournal or livejournal clones. You may activate it in your dashboard.

It is called “JournalPress“.

Also available is “Facebooker“.

This plugin will cross-post all your blog entries into your Facebook wall so that your friends can read your blog from your Facebook.

sorry for the mess…

as you can clearly see, this is a work in progress. but you’re welcome to join anyway .  it seems like the days of a web service free of outside interference seems to be dwindling as bigger companies by up smaller companies and the smaller ones merge together and lose sight of what made them successful. similar promises have been made and ultimately broken before, but as long as i run this site you will never see:

• popups or banner advertisements — not even google ad words. this site will be 100% non-commercial.
• forcing linkbacks or branding — it’s your content. you do what you want with it.
• subscription fees
• encroachments on your freedom of expression — unless you’re being blatantly racist or posting child pornography (common sense, people!)
• scaling of services — everyone gets the same full access and services, and it will not be diminished as long as the servers can handle it.

this enterprise will be fully run out-of-pocket, and supported by donations as (hopefully) we grow, and we only have one goal in mind: to give you the most pleasant blogging experience anywhere on the web, a place to share ideas, meet new people, and build community.

what we offer:

every account will have the following –

• a fully implemented, fully-up-to-date copy of wordpress to do with what you will.
• 100mb of free storage for your music, videos, and images (we can also grant requests for more space on a case by case basis. just let us know. as a free service, our resources are limited.)
• optional subdomain. by default, your blog address will be typr.org/yourname, but we can activate yourname.typr.org for you.
• no bandwidth limits — post as much as you like, whenever you like
• virtually unlimited themes (as we grow, we’ll continually add themes from the wordpress theme library. if there’s one you want, just let us know and we should be able to implement it for you.)

with that said…

what are you waiting for? sign up!