Show Sidebar Content on the Home Page Only

I recently had an advertiser that wanted to place an ad on one of my other blogs.   I gave some him some options and prices, but what he really wanted was something I didn't think was possible.  He wanted a link in my sidebar, but he just wanted that link on the home page of the blog and not on all the other pages.  I'm not sure exactly why he wanted that, maybe thought it would cost a bit less?

Whatever the reason, I had to tell him that I didn't know of any way to do that.  Whatever is in the sidebar is on every page and post of the blog.  That's just how it is.  So no ad.  Then I read this article the other day that explains how to have some of your sidebar content on the home page only.  I don't know how she figured out that it was even possible or how to do it, but I'm definitely saving these instructions so I can do it if anyone asks again. 

Besides ads, what other reasons would you have for showing some sidebar content on just the home page and not the rest of  your blog?

Keep Your Widgets

I'm thinking about changing the layout on my other blog, eventually. I've found a layout I really like, and I've even messed with personalizing the header. But what about all my widgets? You know how you start to upload a new template and blogger asks you to confirm widget deletion? I don't want to have to delete my widgets and then have to build them all up again. The HTML/Javascript ones would be OK, because I could just copy the code to notepad and add it back, but things like blog lists take a lot longer to put together.

So, I started searching for ways to change my layout without losing all my widgets and ran across a really good tutorial on keeping your widgets when changing your template. I tried it out on my test blog, and even though I didn't have many widgets there, Blogger wanted to delete them. So, I followed the tutorial and saved them all! I've got a few tweaks to make on the template and some code I need to grab from my blog, and I think I can change my layout relatively painlessly. So maybe eventually will come sooner rather than later?

Free Help for All Things Web Related

Image via Wikipedia

I keep coming back to this site when searching for web design information. The tutorials and explanations are simple and easy to understand, at least the ones I've used so far. They have tutorials on basic html, javascript, CSS, and beyond. You can also find tutorials for using popular graphics programs to create some great effects, free online tools and resources, and a whole lot more.

No wonder I keep coming back - there is so much here! As they say:

EchoEcho.Com is your one stop free help site for all things web related.

I think it's definitely going to be my first stop.

More Free Blogger Templates

I've noticed that a lot of people who visit this blog are looking for new Blogger backgrounds and layouts. I'm always on the lookout, too - even when I find one I really like, you never know if an even better one is out there somewhere waiting for me.

I just recently found a new site full of great looking Blogger templates, so of course I had to share. It's called Simply Fabulous Blogger Templates, and I haven't looked at all of them, but the templates I've seen are really nice. There are also some nice tutorials to help you change your template, add and configure your widgets, and add custom text to your header.

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• List to Sites with Tips, Tricks and Templates

Cute Blog Backgrounds

I found this site today - The Cutest Blog on the Block. There are lots of really cute free blog backgrounds as well as some tutorials on creating your own backgrounds and headers.

I followed the instructions and installed one of the backgrounds on a blog I hope to get going soon. It's not really something new. I just want to update my recipe website and blog, and I think I can use this new blog for that. The background was easy to install following instructions on the site. I'm thinking I might look for something new for this blog - either use one already there or follow the instructions to make my own.

Either way, I want to be able to find this site again.

Free Online Learning

Would you like to learn to build a web page? Would you like to learn to take better digital pictures? How about convert your video tapes to DVD, or record your favorite TV programs onto DVR? Check out the free online courses at Sony 101. When you find a course that interests you, all you have to do is sign up. When the course starts, and when each lesson posts, you will get a reminder email letting you know it is available on the site. Each course lasts approximately a month, and you can complete the lessons at your own pace. Usually there's a lesson to read through, then an assignment to complete, and a quiz to take, to be sure you understand what you've learned. You can always go back and re-take the quiz if you don't like your score. The point is to learn the material. You can also join in on the message boards to interact with the other students and ask the instructor questions.

I've taken several courses this way, and I always come away feeling that I learned a lot. My mom has taken a few classes, too, and she's the one who reminded me of the site. She's signed up to take the Intermediate Photoshop course. I probably should sign up, too - or she'll know more about Photoshop than I do. I've only taken the beginning Photoshop course.

Learn Firefox

I finally downloaded and installed the Read it Later extension I mentioned earlier. After I downloaded, installed, and restarted Firefox, I got a box asking me to drag the 'read later' and 'reading list' buttons to my toolbar. I hit OK, and it opened a box for me, but I didn't see those buttons to drag. I ended up closing the box, and then I couldn't figure out how I got it. I finally figured it out - right-click on the toolbar, and select 'Customize' - so that was pretty easy. When I reopened it, the buttons I was looking for were there. I simply dragged them to the toolbar, and they are waiting for me to use them.

Somehow I found this page that explained it all. I'm looking through the pages I was on, and I still can't figure out how I got there. One of these days I am going to keep track of my path through the Web. It would be quite interesting. I did pay attention to the main site that this page is a part of, and I think it should be quite useful. It's called Learn Firefox, and it's a visual guide to the Firefox browser. I just jumped in, downloaded, and started using the browser, but I don't think it can hurt to go back and see if there's something I can use here. For instance, there's a page here called Rearrange the Order of Your Tabs. I wish I had read this earlier, because I was using Firefox for ages, and loving the tabs, before I realized I could rearrange my tabs.

Learn Firefox has different categories such as themes, extensions, bookmarks, news, and more. It's nicely organized and easy to read, and it just might help you learn something you didn't know about Firefox.

Switching to My Own Domain

I recently read an article saying I could buy my own domain, but continue hosting my blog here on Blogspot. By keeping my blog in the same place and letting Google forward everything, I won't lose any of my incoming links, readers, or PageRank. I know that doesn't have anything to do with this blog, because it is brand new. I don't have any links, readers, or PageRank, yet.

But I figured that, if I was going to try the custom domain, I would try it out on a new blog first - before switching an established blog. Besides, now this blog will always have its own domain - provided I did it right. We shall see.

I followed these instructions on How to Use the New Custom Domain Feature for Your Blogspot Blog. Then I followed the instructions to use custom domain on my blog. Now I'm waiting to see if it works. It says it could take a couple days to get everything switched, which means I probably should have followed the first instructions to tell my domain where to point. Then, once it was pointing to the right place, changed my blog, instead of doing it all at once. Because the blog is already pointing to the domain, but the domain hasn't forwarded to the blog yet.

I will be sure to let you know how it turns out.