Removing the Firefox Dotted Links

It is not a big deal really but it's good without the dotted lines. I am not sure if you have noticed it or not but i do.

When you click on the any links you may have notice a dotted outline, it appears around links when you click on any links this is the work of firefox. This is not creating any harm with your site though but if your a blogger like me i like it gone or dis-appear it looks better.

If you want them out aswell or want to stop the dotted outlines here's the simple thing to do. We just need to add outline:none to the a tag.

Go to your Dashboard then click Layout then Edit HTML place the code below:

a {
outline: none;
}

then save.

If your not sure where to place them, just click Ctrl+F then type a img then place the above code under it...please refer the image below for clarification.
you're done. It's simple, easy and bye-bye to that dotted outline.

My Friends Enjoy my DoFollow List

I think time run so quick, the next time you know you need to make another post, i sometimes feel like i can't keep up with blogging anymore. If you're one of my followers and read most of my post you might noticed that some of my post are my old post -- my reason of doing that is that because i was using 3rd party comment system and lately i decided to make the most of blogspot to show the result of some hacks, tricks etc...another reason is that some of my visitors miss my other post, even though i have related post at the bottom of every post i think it still great to re-post them. I am not sure if some blogger have problem with that but in my own opinion their is nothing wrong with it.

Anyways, lets get to the business. Some bloggers already displays their list of users who follows their blog and i am one of them -- my followers get a follow link which is counted towards their page rank because i removed the nofollow tag. It's a great incentive to your followers isn't it.

HOW TO CHECK NOFOLLOW TAG?
Here's my instruction of how to easily check if the link is nofollow: Right click to any image of my "Blogging friends" then scroll down until you find the "PROPERTIES" click it and it will open to new window which called Element Properties if the link is nofollow you will see under the link properties relation: nofollow if the no follow is remove you won't see this tag.

I hope i did not confuse you, gush! i think i confused my self with my explanation. just let me know so i can elaborate more.

HOW TO REMOVE THE NO FOLLOW?
Easy, just follow this simple step and your done. Important: save your template before you start.

1. Go to DASHBOARD - LAYOUT - EDIT HTML
2. Tick Expand Widget Templates then hit ctrl+F type Followers1 or you can type rel='nofollow' (The dis-advantage of this is that you might have other nofollow that you don't want to remove instead of just the friends list) it depends of which your comfortable of doing.
3. Then, look for this code rel='nofollow' and remove them
4. Preview and if it loaded alright then save.

CHECK THE RESULT
It is great to check the result if the nofollow tag is being removed -- just follow the same explanation above about how to check nofollow tag and if you won't see the relation: nofollow anymore then your doing a great job.

Congratulation and inform your reader so that you will get more followers.

How to install Yahoo Buzz

I just want to share of how to place the code in blogger, some have managed some have not heard them yet. Yahoo! Buzz is out for Entrecard user to use -- additional traffic to those who have great content. If you haven't read the Entrecard Blog: Attention Bloggers Yahoo Buzz has launched last 19th of August you can have a go and read everything about it and if you're ready to add them in your blog template this is how to do it.

Go to Yahoo! Buzz to choose the button click the "get code" and right click to copy and that's where we start.

This is the code i grabbed

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://d.yimg.com/ds/badge2.js" badgetype="small-votes">ARTICLEURL </script>

and all we have to do is replace the ARTICLEURL with this script <data:post.url/> so the my final code should be this below:

<script type="text/javascript"src="http://d.yimg.com/ds/badge2.js" badgetype="small-votes"> <data:post.url/> </script>

Where to Place them in Blogger?
If you want to place them at the top right corner of your post just copy the code below and follow the steps:

<div style='float:right; margin-left:10px;'>
<script badgetype='square' src='http://d.yimg.com/ds/badge2.js' type='text/javascript'>
<data:post.url/>
</script></div>

Copy the code above, then Go to Edit HTML then tick the Expand Widget and hit Ctrl+F and type Data:post.body then place the above code above the body of the post. as you can see i added style code in bold to place them at the right corner and it's margin.

This is what it's going to look like in your HTML:

<div style='float:right; margin-left:10px;'>
<script badgetype='square' src='http://d.yimg.com/ds/badge2.js' type='text/javascript'>
<data:post.url/>
</script></div>
<data:post.body/>

before you save your template, make a preview to see if their are problem with the code and to see the result if your happy with it -- then save.

If you want the alignment to be at the left corner of your post just change the blue from right to left and left to right.

To those who like the small buttons, the great place for them is at the footer therefore we need to look at the post footer.

Dashboard - Layout - Edit HTML then tick Expand Widget Template Ctrl+F then type <div class='post-footer'> then copy the code AFTER post-footer it will be look like below.

<div class='post-footer'><script type="text/javascript"
src="http://d.yimg.com/ds/badge2.js"
badgetype="small-votes">
<data:post.url/>
</script>

Preview it and if satisfied and happy save it.

I hope you find it easy to follow and you like the tutorial.

Highlight Authors Comment and Move the Comment Date

If you're one of those who changed your comment code to highlight the authors comment, here's what to do so you can change your comment section and to make it look better.

This is sort of extension of my post on how to position the comment date above the comment body. I assume that you use the Blogger Buster Code to highlight your comment therefore the code is quite different from my previous post. I made a few changes of the code, i added some style and move the delete icon and also move the comment date at the right side.

Reminder: please save a copy of your template.

Take it easier, we will just replace the code with a new code.

1. Go to your Dashboard - Layout - Edit Html
2. Tick the Expand Widget Template
3. Ctrl+F paste this code <b:loop values='data:post.comments' var='comment'>
4. highlight this code below and replace them with new code:

<ul class='commentlist' style='margin: 0; padding: 0;'>
<b:loop values='data:post.comments' var='comment'>
<b:if cond='data:comment.author == data:post.author'>

<li class='author-comments' style='margin: 0 0 10px 0;'>
<b:if cond='data:post.dateHeader'>
<div class='commentcount'/>
</b:if>
<cite>
<b:if cond='data:comment.authorUrl'>
<a expr:href='data:comment.authorUrl'><data:comment.author/></a>
<b:else/>
<data:comment.author/>
</b:if>
</cite>
<br/>
<div style='clear: both;'/>
<b:include data='comment' name='commentDeleteIcon'/>
<p><data:comment.body/></p>
<div class='commentlink-date'><a class='commentlink' expr:href='"#comment-" + data:comment.id' title='comment permalink'>
<data:comment.timestamp/>
</a></div>

<div class='clear'/>

</li>


<b:else/>

<li class='general-comments' style='margin: 0 0 10px 0;'>
<b:if cond='data:post.dateHeader'>
<div class='commentcount'/>
</b:if>
<cite>
<b:if cond='data:comment.authorUrl'>
<a expr:href='data:comment.authorUrl'><data:comment.author/></a>
<b:else/>
<data:comment.author/>
</b:if>
</cite>
<br/>
<div style='clear: both;'/>
<b:include data='comment' name='commentDeleteIcon'/>
<p><data:comment.body/></p>
<div class='commentlink-date'><a class='commentlink' expr:href='"#comment-" + data:comment.id' title='comment permalink'>

<data:comment.timestamp/>
</a></div>
<div class='clear'/>
</li>

</b:if>
</b:loop>
</ul>

Then replace them with this code below, where i have added a few styles and moved the comment date at the top right side of the comment body:

Do you Know that you can change the word "said..." to say "commented..." all you have to do is look for the word said... that i put inside from the code below and change them with any word you want -- be creative! :D

<ul class='commentlist' style='margin: 0; padding: 0;'>
<b:loop values='data:post.comments' var='comment'>
<b:if cond='data:comment.author == data:post.author'>

<li class='author-comments' style='margin: 0 0 10px 0;'>
<b:if cond='data:post.dateHeader'>
<div class='commentcount'/>
</b:if>
<cite>
<b:if cond='data:comment.authorUrl'>
<a expr:href='data:comment.authorUrl'><data:comment.author/></a> said....<b:include data='comment' name='commentDeleteIcon'/><div class='commentlink-date' style='float:right; margin: -15px 0 0 0;'><a class='commentlink' expr:href='"#comment-" + data:comment.id' title='comment permalink'>
<data:comment.timestamp/>
</a></div>
<b:else/>
<data:comment.author/>
</b:if>
</cite>
<br/>
<div style='clear: both;'/>
<p><data:comment.body/></p>
<div class='clear'/>

</li>


<b:else/>
<li class='general-comments' style='margin: 0 0 10px 0;'>
<b:if cond='data:post.dateHeader'>
<div class='commentcount'/>
</b:if>
<cite>
<b:if cond='data:comment.authorUrl'>
<a expr:href='data:comment.authorUrl'><data:comment.author/></a> said....<b:include data='comment' name='commentDeleteIcon'/>
<b:else/>
<data:comment.author/>
</b:if>
</cite>
<br/>
<div style='clear: both;'/>
<div class='commentlink-date' style='float:right; margin: -15px 0 0 0;'><a class='commentlink' expr:href='"#comment-" + data:comment.id' title='comment permalink'>
<data:comment.timestamp/>
</a></div>
<p><data:comment.body/></p>
<div class='clear'/>
</li>

</b:if>
</b:loop>
</ul>

Then Save.

Look at your comments and you will now see the changes.

If you want to place the other comments into border and style them aswell just add this CSS code for the General Comment and your done.

.general-comments {
background: #BFE4FF;
border: 1px solid #333333;
padding: 5px;
}

I hope you find this helpful and enjoy!

Increase Your Traffic By Changing the Title Tags of your Blog

You may have not noticed your title tag above, until you read this post -- but for some bloggers who knows SEO (Search Engine Optimization) they have tried to do different hacks just to enjoy the benefit of the Search Engine traffic.

Blogger came up a very simple hack and you can follow this easily. I found this hack from Amanda's and i would like to share it here.

Before This Hack:
Blog Title: Post Title (See photo below)

After this simple hack:
Post Title (Direct hit to your keywords)

Blogger Buzz posted their Updates and Bug Fixes for May 9th and this includes the simple fix of title tag.

Layouts now has a blog.pageName datum that gives the name of the current page without the “[Blog Name]: ” prefix that blog.pageTitle adds.

Most of us bloggers are no longer use the default template instead we use the third party template. I am using Amanda's Blue Steel Template from blogbuster.com and i am an avid fan of her, she works very hard of her blog and every blogger user can appreciate every post she made.

Anyways, just follow this very simple hack and your done.

1. Go to your blogger Dashboard, click Layout, then Edit HTML
2. Find this tag <title><data:blog.pageTitle/></title>
3. Replace the whole tag with the following
   
   
   
   <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "index"'>
   <title><data:blog.title/></title>
   <b:else/>
   <title><data:blog.pageName/></title>
   </b:if>
   
   
   
   
4. Save your template
   

Important: Make sure you replace the whole Title tag with the code given or else the word Title will show like i do when i first try this hack.

Once you've done this hack you can start seeing Only your Post Title, blog name removed.

This will increase the chance of capturing the search engine's attention, of course with proper use of keyword and you will benefit the extra traffic it brings to your site.

If hope your find this simple hack helpful and Enjoy!

Resources:
Bloggerbuster
Blogger Buzz

Why not use Gimp.

I love header using landscape. I tried to make one using gimp. If you don't have photoshop the closer program that i can recommend is gimp...you can also use the brushes made from photoshop which it is so handy.

You can read my post about vector graphic, image manipulation tools and Gimp is that i recommend -- during that time i have not much knowledge of how powerful gimp until i decided to give a try read a lot of tutorials and i love it so much. Photoshop is so expensive and gimp is free so which one is great for practice? of course the free one until you are skilled enough and not satisfied then that is the time you use photoshop but at the moment i can't see the reason not to enjoy gimp instead.

Below is the sample of how great gimp is...if you notice the background image of my post title it is one of example of how great gimp is...here's my other sample.

Please let me know of what you think.


Here are tutorials to help you started with gimp:

• Gimp official site
• Gimp tutorial.net
  

I hope you like what you read and let me know if you want to use the image for your header and i will give you some link including psd to learn how i did it.

Download:
original image jpg

Fake Subscribers

Subscriber count shows you have 1000 subscribers Wow! i like that -- but you only have one or two commenters what happen to your readers. I must admit that before, i joined Entrecard; I joined many social networking sites then i joined the groups exchange such as "i subscriber to your site, you subscribe to my site" You might ask me whats wrong with that? First, some other groups such us digg mine, i'll digg yours or technorati exchange and more is not much of a problem but what i find is the subscribers count.
As for me i would rather want to show the real count of my subscriber, If i only have 1 readers then that's fine because those are readers who really appreciate and wants to read my post. After a few months of joining Entrecard i get the chance to really visit sites, i learned to appreciate bloggers effort but i noticed some bloggers who shows their subscriber counts yet if you check their post not even single comment if not one or two...

I really admire those bloggers who are really honest, showing their feedburner subscribers count even it's zero and i even understand those bloggers who did not even shows the subscribers counts ... for me maybe because there is no reason to put them because theirs not much enough subscriber like my site or maybe they think that it is not enough count yet. Whatever the reason would be lets just leave it unless you want to share here by commenting.

In my own opinion which i am not sure if you agree (If not please leave your thought) that -- it is much more better to have the real count than looking ways to show fake subscriber counts just to impress visitors or readers because it is so obvious. Most of our visitors are like us (bloggers) and intelligent enough to notice and it drive them off away from your site. I visited one site before and it shows he have 1000+ subscribers shows in the feedburner count yet he only have one comment or none in every post so what does it says?

Please let me know what you think about this...i just want to share what i have noticed and what i think. If you dis-agree with what i say please leave a comment because i welcome corrections.

Resources Tools that you must have to optimize your blog

This is my old post but i decided to re-post them because my brother ask me about SEO and i thought he already knew about this because he's been blogging for quite a while -- so, i hope this help you aswell. We value our blog so much we ask question on how to optimize, how to get link, how to get more visibility from search engine and follow some tips about search engine optimization. No matter what the purpose of our blog either personal blog, share our interest, or we want to earn easy money, we still need to go more deeper and understanding is the big part of blogging. We need to know the in and out of our own blog site.

I have here a must interactive tools that help you understand more the needs of your blog site, this tools don't provide you an optimization per se, but this will check on the results of your optimization efforts.

Marketleap - provides an integrated set of optimization check, this is free to use and you will be able to check the three below:

1. Link Popularity - which checks the number of incoming links to your blog/site. As we know this is one of the major key to get higher page rank.
2. Search Engine Saturation - simply refers to the number of pages a given search engine has in its index for your website domain. This show you a graph pf how much is your search engine saturation...mostly can be used for search engine marketing campaigns.
3. Keyword Verification - You can verify your site placement with the top search engines and directories, It's important to be in the top 3 pages of a search result because most people using search engines don't go past the 3rd page.....Make sure to use the keyword for checking is something you want to be found for (One of the keyword you put on your meta tag example: make money, earn easy money etc....).

Link Popularity Checker - This is an alternative to the marketleap. It going to show you the 5 search engines which is Google, MSN, AllTheWeb, Altavista and Teoma (Instead of Hotbot -- compare to the market leap).

Other resources which you can use to learn about optimization are forums to where the webmasters hang out and helping each other, tackle some issues and which much more focused on SEO and give more information. Sites where you can get more tips and read an articles where can help you learn more about optimization.

Webmasterworld and SearchEngineWorld- News and discussion and articles.
SEOConsultants - You will find various information about SEO including tips and tricks, Tutorials.

Understanding SEO is much more better than know nothing at all. When we blog we "DIY" our blog especially when we just start learning about blogging until the time that you are making enough money to pay for consultancy and professionals to Optimize you blog this resources are great tool to understand more and work more to get the high page rank and increase your site visibility.

I hope this help you in many way ... it does for me, i now know what particular keyword really put me at the first page of the SERP (Search Engine Result Page) when i use "make money" it did not put me in the search result but when i used the earn easy money this brings me at the first page of top 4 search engine results. Now i need to work on the other part of my optimization such as page saturation.

Long Post or Short Post?

Short post or long post?. If you ask me i read a short post, especially when it's straight forward and direct to the point. I am not sure if most of bloggers are like me -- but while dropping Entrecard i read post as quick as possible and i read the first paragraph and the end of the post, i usually don't read the middle of the post unless i am very interested with the post and i have seen a lot of bloggers who knows how to write good short content (Keep It Short and Simple) and one thing aswell, When i see a long post, my mind automatically choose not to read the post unless the title of the post gets my attention.

Now, i would like to ask you:

• Do you like to read a long post or do you like to read a short post?
• What do you think of long post?

I don't know which one is advisable to write though, a long post or short post. For me i think keep it short and simple but meaty, say what you need to say -- no stop over, no useless paragraph (K.I.S.S is always effective) because every blogger who visited you site are busy bee and don't have the time to read a long post.

This is just my own opinion, :) i don't know about you? let me know.

You can read my other post:

• Why is it important to leave blog comment
• Drop, read and post - learn to balance
• Your Post don't get comment, should we blame droppers?

Please Let Me Know!

The header auction did not go as i expected and i found that this is the dis-advantage because i can't tell of who are serious bidders and not...anyway, i still have the header and up for grab, of course Amanda gets the first offer but if not interested will be for anybody who are interested... I will change the header to go with your template. Despite of everything though, i still will carry on with my coming auction (3 column Template) I am open to any suggestion to make my auction available to only serious bloggers.

Today, i changed my template, i am back to bloggers comment system, i have nothing against intense debate still my favorite comment system but i want to use the full potential of blogspot since i am blogging about bloggers tips and tricks so might aswell use the whole system.

I am thinking of white post background but i will definitely will change my header, and the footer.

Please let me know if you find problem with my template while dropping and reading.

Last thing: I will be having a clean up with my links to replace with new ones. Please let me know if your interested of exchange links and wanted to be added to my list.

Update: This Header Auction is already Taken by Amanda...She is very interested in it...Thank you very much Amanda. It's a smooth transaction and she is very professional to deal with. Please wait for my next auction it's a Whole Template.

Color and Your Personality

I stumble this site today called color in motion and it's really cool. I found out the personalities of Purple which is obviously the color of my site, Purple's personality describes as follows:

• Purple Personalities have sensitive eyes and mind.
• You are proud of being artistic and enjoying art.
• You have good mind and wit.
• You have the ability to observe things which go unnoticed by others.
• You are aloof, temperamental, introspective and refined.
• Friends believe you are clever and capable of great things.
• You are easy to live with.
• You are specially polite but sarcastic at times.
• You like to be admired and welcome compliments.
• Purple personalities are conventional and tolerant.
• You may be inclined to let the problem rest as they are.
• Enjoy being extravagant every once in a while.

Isn't it great? and i can say that with what the personalities describe above shows some of my personalities and who i am -- moody and love art, easy to live with (I should ask my hubby about this easy to live with if it is true hehehe!), polite but sarcastic (I think that being sarcastic i learned from my hubby -- thank you honey! ) and more....

What about you? what color do you like? please let me know if it describe your own personalities aswell.

Header Auction Winner

Congratulation! to Jade for winning my Header Auction with closing amount of $2.75

It's my first auction and i would like to thanks Sasha, RT, Amanda and Jade for joining my auction. Although, there are only four who joined this auction i decided to continue if the communication will go without any problem with Jade and if she's happy with the auction.

I am planning to put an auction to one of the template i made, but will only start them once the first auction is finally delivered to Jade and she happy with it.

Once again, thank you guys for joining and i hope to see you again to my next Auction.