BlogPaws

Blogging For Beginners: Finding The Time

2012-02-04T08:55:37-08:00

Guest Post By Blog Manager Robbi Hess

In a perfect world we'd have time to lounge around all day sipping coffee and eating chocolates waiting for the muse to come, tap us on the shoulder and offer us a good idea to write about. Unfortunately, for writers if you wait for the muse to come, you'll never get any writing done. I've found you have to wrestle your muse to the ground and drag the ideas out of her.

One of the best ideas my muse ever gave me was to put an editorial calendar into place. Sure, the time you take putting together an editorial calendar is time you could have spent writing a blog post, right? Perhaps. But consider this: if you don't put together a calendar for yourself, chances are you'll be sitting and staring at the screen hoping that an idea will fall into your lap. Believe me, in my years of writing it rarely happens.

A prolific writer is a prepared writer. Sure that doesn't sound very romantic and you always believed that being a writer was one of the most romantic "jobs" out there. Sorry to burst your bubble. Sure writing and being able to write for a living is amazing, but it is work.

What does this have to do with finding the time to write? Well, writing is like any other task or routine. Once you get into a rhythm the words will just flow. Are you a morning person or a night owl? When do your creative juices flow the best? You need to know yourself first to know when your best time for writing will happen.

If you set aside time to do your blogging just as you would any other item on your to-do list you will get into the habit of it and it will be easier to get your pet blogs written. It may take a while for you to determine your best time to get your writing done, especially if you have a full time job. One way I've found to make my "me" writing time more productive is to have a nugget of an idea in my head then roll it around while I'm doing other things then when I sit down to write, it is there -- almost fully cooked!

What are your time-finding ideas for getting your blogging done?

Friday Freebies for your Blog: Image editing power with Aviary's Phoenix

2012-02-03T07:46:10-08:00

By Tom Collins

Last year, I announced that we'd activated a nifty image editing feature for adding captions, cropping, and adding special effects to your uploaded photos right within the BlogPaws Community site (I'm sure you can do better than I did, demo-ing some of the fun effects that are built-in presets). To use them right in the Community site, just upload your image, place your cursor over it, and a bar should appear across the top of your image. When you click on that, the Aviary editing panel opens and you're off!

As I mentioned in our November 30 Newsletter, though, you can do more than just edit images for your Community photo album:

"If you don’t have access to Photoshop, or some such, you can do a fair job of touching up, captioning, cropping, and so on, right here in your My Photos pages. Upload an image, edit/save it, then right-click and “Save Image As …” and, voila! You’ve got the edited version back on your hard drive to use as you please!"

But wait! There's more!

In keeping with my things I found while looking for something else theme, TypePad recently announced it's adding the plugin version of Aviary, too (now in Beta). So I was checking out the details and clicked over to the Aviary site and discovered their Phoenix image editing software.

Here's a screenshot, showing some of the advanced features (LAYERS is the big one) that I think make this an amazing resource for anyone without access to a high-end tool like Photoshop, or my beloved Fireworks (click image to enlarge):

I could go on about what you can do with many of the tools shown above and certainly there are tradeoffs with using web-based — "cloud-based" if you prefer — tools, especially free ones (maybe we'll come back to those questions in future posts), but for now,

GO! OPEN PHOENIX ON YOUR SCREEN! PLAY WITH IT!

Let us know what you think!

What's the deal with Pinterest?

2012-02-02T10:10:00-08:00

By Guest Blogger, Chloe DiVita

Pinterest seems to be popping up more and more lately - in our Facebook feed, in our Twitter stream and in our Community. We're new to Pinterest, but we are (dare I say) interested.

One such post that ran through our Facebook feed is written by Bridget Sandorford over on JeffBullas.com. She tackles "7 Ways to Use Pinterest to Promote Your Business" noting that, "Pinterest has become the social media network to watch after growing over 4,000% in the last 6 months. At an average of 88.3 minutes per visitor it ranks third on engagement behind Facebook and Tumblr and well ahead of LinkedIn (16 minutes) and Google Plus (5.1 minutes)." Those stats speak for themselves!

According to the post the 7 ways to use Pinterest to promate your business are:

1. Share Your Products

2. Add to Gifts

3. Highlight Services

4. Maximize SEO Efforts

5. Offer Added Value

6. Office Exclusive Content

7. Engage With Users

These ideas are good advice no matter what social media platform you are promoting yourself on. Read about them, apply them to Pinterest and think about how they apply in other areas of your marketing.

For the full details check out the complete post. Then, start maximizing your potential!

Wordless Wednesday Multi Pet Households

2012-02-01T06:00:00-08:00

Submitted by Christina Lee

Submitted by Doggitude

The rules are super simple: Show us your pets! Leave a link directly to your Wordless Wednesday Post Visit other blogs and say hello (don't forget! This is the part that is the most fun!)

Remember to leave a comment to let everyone know you stopped by for a visit. Share the link up with your readers so they can join the community and link up as well. You can grab the code and place it on your blog or you can refer your readers right back to the Wordless Wednesday post of the week.

If you would like your pet’s picture featured as our Wordless Wednesday picture of the week, please join the BlogPaws Community Center. Pictures you post there have a chance of making it to our Wordless Wednesday. You can post as many pictures as you want in our community - we encourage it! We never get tired of looking at all your pet pictures!

PS. Please make sure to upload full size pictures that are good quality so they can be used for the Wordless Wednesday post.

Pets In Need Of Assistance

2012-01-31T12:00:00-08:00

From The Editor's Desk: This came across our desks this morning and because we love and support all things animal we just needed to help spread the word.

Friends, on the show Pit Bulls and Parolees last night, they showed how tornadoes devastated and killed people and dogs in Tuscaloosa, AL. A dog rescue there, K9 Camp, lost 22 dogs (out of 50+), they are in the process of rebuilding the buildings they had, and dogs and humans are now living out of tents. One family lost EVERYTHING except each other and they had already been through a lot personally.

They need a lot of assistance: donations of food, treats, leashes, dog bones and cash are welcome and volunteers to help them rebuild. Please do what you can to help, and please let others in your network know too.

Contact: Tuscaloos K9 Camp, 366 Willcutt Rd., Berry, AL. 35546, 205-998-3342

Book Review: Dog Cancer Survival Guide

2012-01-31T05:00:00-08:00

Guest Post by Blog Manager Robbi Hess

The Dog Cancer Survival Guide by Dr. Demian Dressler, DVM and Dr. Susan Ettinger, DVM, dip. ACVIM (ongology) was provided to me to review and it was certainly not light reading -- in either material contained within or in sheer heft. It was, however, a comprehensive guide on not only what to do to help your dog -- and your family -- cope with this devestating diagnosis.

The book is divided into five sections:

My Dog Has Cancer, Now What?
What You Shoudl Know About Dog Cancer
Full Spectrum Cancer Care
Making Confident Choices
From The Oncologist

I imagine that hearing that your four legged family member is as earth-shattering as hearing that one of your two legged family members has been diagnosed with cancer. With a two-legged family member though, he or she, can be made to understand what is going on and what will happen. With your four-legged family member, it can be an experience that is frightening beyond his comprehension.

Prior to reading this book I had no idea that cancer was the number one killer of dogs, in fact, I hadn't heard of cancer in dogs untl my good friend Joanne Brokaw, was coping with it in her beloved dog, Scout.

The book is written in a readable, "Idiot's" style guide with sidebars that break down the concepts for the reader. Pet owners who receive this diagnosis for their beloved pet will likely receive a measure of comfort from the information in this book and the straightforward way in which it is presented.

While this book by is by no means a substitute for working with your own vet -- as the authors point out -- it is a fantastic resource for any family dealing with cancer in their dog.

Avoid These Home Remedies

2012-01-30T05:00:00-08:00

From The Editor's Desk:

Saw this information online the other day and wanted to pass it along.

I spent four hours one day last week trying to clean motor oil off a patient whose owner had tried to use the slick substance to kill mange. It was a fundamentally bad idea - and not just because motor oil is probably more dangerous to dogs than it is to mange mites. Turns out the poor dog wasn't even infected with mange in the first place. Read the rest here.

Do you ever use home remedies?

What to do about Content Copycats?

2012-01-29T07:08:00-08:00

By Tom Collins

This post grew out of a lively discussion over in the BlogPaws Community Blog Talk group over what to do when you discover another blog or website is republishing your content (group created by Dawn Miklich, afFURmation blogger). It started with Stephanie Hulett of The Shelter Shack blog asking for advice after she found her latest post copied verbatim (including images) on another site.

A few key points that emerged from the discussion and my follow-up with Stephanie:

Finding the Filchers

Several people asked questions around how to know if your stuff is being republished — or copied, stolen, infringed ... you pick a term. Stephanie learned that her post had been stolen because it showed up in her WordPress trackback/pingback list of sites linking to her blog. Rene Agredano (Tripawds blog) shared links to an earlier thread on the "repurposing" problem and a LiveWorkDream post that mentions another passive way you may find out: friends recognize your stuff on someone else's site!

More proactive approaches are found in links to posts on ProBlogger and HyperArts blogs. But in our follow-up messages, Stephanie herself sent me a link to the most comprehensive resource I've seen, a post by Kristi Hines on the KISSMetrics blog: Content Scrapers – How to Find Out Who is Stealing Your Content & What to Do About It, where she describes several methods, including:

CopyScape - a content search engine with free and premium versions
Google Webmaster Tools - Kristi provides details and screenshots
Google Alerts - again with details and screenshots

In addition, while looking at an article on the difference between plagiarism and copyright infringement, I discovered that PlagiarismChecker.com (a favorite tool of teachers and professors) now has a specialized tool for checking webpages! It can even create on ongoing Google Alert for you.

Sue the Bastards?

Sorry. The legal training kicks in unexpectedly now and then. ;-P

Actually, as shown in my initial reply to Stephanie and you'll see in the HyperArts post linked above, there's a line of reasoning that says, "Do nothing." As long as the thieves are smart enough to give you credit and a link back (in order to give some semblance of credence to any "fair use" defense they might want to raise), you may get some SEO and/or exposure benefit. The HyperArts post even offers some strategies for enhancing those "benefits."

But if you really want to get the offending content removed, here are the leads I offered for helping you get that done:

A recent GigaOm article comparing DMCA with the proposed SOPA law and giving some insight into how much misery you may be able to cause the infringer - http://gigaom.com/2011/11/27/with-friends-like-the-dmca-who-needs-s...
IPWatchdog post from a couple of years ago, describing his own experience very similar to the way you describe yours and how he dealt with sending a DMCA "take down" letter, complete with a sample form that he grants permission to use (but please note his disclaimer) - http://ipwatchdog.com/2009/07/06/sample-dmca-take-down-letter/id=4501/
DMCA.com is a company mentioned in another IPWatchdog post that will sell you a DIY Takedown Kit for $10, or do a "Professional Takedown" for you at $199 that they say is "100% Guaranteed" (they also have free badges and a WordPress plugin on their homepage, but I have no experience to share on any of their stuff) - http://www.dmca.com/Takedowns.aspx

Oh, and Stephanie's problem that started the discussion? Well, she took a strong, but slightly softer approach, and I'm happy to say she reports that the page where her post was "repurposed" is now blank.

Any other experiences you've had with content pirates, or resources to share for dealing with them?

Friday Freebies for your Blog: Music from Kevin MacLeod

2012-01-27T04:52:00-08:00

By Tom Collins

If you're looking for free music to add to that cool video or slideshow you're working on, the first place to check should be Kevin MacLeod's site: Incompetech.com.

Kevin is a prolific composer, music score producer, and a big believer in the Creative Commons "By" license. He makes his creations available for free download, asking for credit on your production and allowing for voluntary donations. He provides an FAQ page, with details about the extensive uses he allows for free (including most commercial uses), instructions for giving him proper credit, along with the few wrinkles and exceptions.

On his site, you can browse hundreds of music pieces, some with vocals, by genre, feel, and keywords. Here's a sample I found by clicking on the "Search by Feel" button and checking the box for "Humorous" pieces. This one is titled, Scheming Weasel, and I just had to use it in honor of our favorite ferret, Snotface, and his famous Weasel War Dance (the music isn't very warlike, but the title is just perfect):

KevinMacLeod - Incompetech - Scheming Weasel >> Click to play

And here's an interview with Kevin MacLeod, where you can learn about him and his approach to music, sharing, and more:

Do you use music in your blogging and social media work?

Wordless Wednesday - Snow

2012-01-25T06:01:00-08:00

Submitted by Scrappy @Yorkie Tails

Submitted by Melissa McDaniel

Submitted by Veronica Robertson

The rules are super simple: Show us your pets! Leave a link directly to your Wordless Wednesday Post Visit other blogs and say hello (don't forget! This is the part that is the most fun!)

PS. Please make sure to upload full size pictures that are good quality so they can be used for the Wordless Wednesday post.