Too Clever By Half

Copyright: Do not steal

2026-04-11T14:12:00.004-04:00

It's super easy to steal work that does not belong to you. I think you know that you should not do that.

See number eight.

Ask the owner for permission. If you do not know who the owner is, and there's no public license, don't use it.

Pasting into Blogger

2026-03-14T10:55:00.004-04:00

It sounds like a cool hack: draft your post in your favorite app, photos and all, then paste that into the Blogger editor. ¶

Grab that thing you're quoting from the web and paste into the post. ¶

The good news is that this will usually work (with some quirks), but you need to take extra steps to protect your blog from junk code.

When a blogging account is deleted

2026-02-14T13:19:00.000-05:00

Have you seen this blog? ¶

Deleting an account might delete the blog or blogs it owns—but it might not. ¶

And deleting the account might have other effects on a blog, too.

What's wrong with Blogger's responsive themes?

2026-01-17T09:16:00.004-05:00

A CATALOG OF DISCONTENTS ¶

So why do the Responsive blog themes, introduce by Google in 2017, continue to give me pause nine years later? ¶

Don't get me wrong: the fact that these are responsive means they provide a superior user experience on mobile. That is huge. ¶

Most web traffic today comes from phones, and a responsive theme makes your work easier to read, find, and navigate from there. ¶

Nonetheless, there are tradeoffs.

Blogger highlights of 2025

2025-12-27T12:44:00.002-05:00

Google introduced three new features to Blogger this year.

In July, Google introduced a new system for backing up our blogs.
As the year ends, we're randomly seeing two "beta" features that use machine intelligence to add hyperlinks from your posts to related Google searches.

The changes shared one thing in common: the absence of direct communication or explanation from Google about the new features. Bad Google!

The above links will take you to my unofficial guide to these new features.

Could Google delete your blog?

2025-12-06T12:36:00.003-05:00

Spoiler: Yes, Google can delete your blog. ¶

But someone else could have deleted it, if it is missing. Including you, by accident (or otherwise). ¶

It's easy to tell if Google is the culprit. Google will tell you, if you've let it.

Fifty ways to lose your blog

2025-12-02T12:06:00.002-05:00

"And when they went back to the blog, IT HAD VANISHED WITHOUT A TRACE!"

Not to scare you, but it's easier to lose your blog than you think. ¶

Secure your blog by understanding what can go wrong:

(1) you delete your blog
(2) a co-blogger deletes it
(3) you are hacked
(4) Google deletes it

With a little help from your friends

2025-11-24T15:46:00.002-05:00

Trusted contacts for account recovery ¶

Google last month created a new tool to recover your blogging account if you are ever locked out.

It's insurance that you have to set up while you still have access. And it involves a trusted friend or family member.

My Blogger theme experiment

2025-11-09T23:19:00.003-05:00

Notice anything different?

This isn't permanent, but as of today, and for maybe a month or so, this blog will be rendered according to the responsive theme I have been working on lately. ¶

What do you think? Your questions are also welcome. ¶

More below.

Uh oh

2025-10-16T13:32:00.008-04:00

For some, the most urgent information about a new Blogger feature is how to undo it. ¶

Clicking the "automatic search links" tool adds multiple hyperlinks to your blog post or page.

The links are to different Google searches. It turns out a lot of people do not like them.

To undo: If you act right away, the undo tool on the toolbar, or the standard undo key commands, will restore the blog post to its status quo ante.

Tricky Blogger stumbling blocks

2025-10-08T13:45:00.002-04:00

Some things about Blogger are not obvious. They make sense once you get the trick of how they work. ¶

Your account:

Even if you never exactly signed up for one, even if you sign in with an email address from someplace else, your blogging account is a Google account.

Quick account insurance

2025-09-04T11:09:00.010-04:00

May you never need to recover access to your blogging account! ¶

But:

This quick checklist will tell you how to avoid getting locked out of your account, by keeping your recovery options up to date.

Rocking the new backup

2025-07-31T10:13:00.001-04:00

Blogger's new backup feature, using Google Takeout, offers more choices about how to safeguard your blog. ¶

And, it's a big change. ¶

Maybe my story will help you to devise a backup work flow that suits you.

Mobile themes for Blogger blogs

2025-07-19T11:39:00.002-04:00

If your blog theme is not responsive, you might want to consider how your blog looks to readers on their phones.

You may not read blogs on a phone, but some of your readers surely do.

And, you do have options.

Your blog, on a phone

2025-07-11T06:52:00.004-04:00

If you haven't done so lately, read your blog on a phone.

At least some of your readers do. ¶

(If you haven't got a phone, there's a workaround below.) ¶

Do you like what you see?

New Blogger backup is here

2025-07-02T13:18:00.002-04:00

As of July 1, backing up your blog on Blogger uses Google Takeout and includes every Blogger-related file in your account at once. ¶

Takeout offers some new options including ¶

ability to schedule bimonthly backups ❦
ability to back up to Drive and other cloud services ❦
ability to back up multiple blogs at once

New Blogger backup advances

2025-06-27T13:08:00.009-04:00

Blogger in Draft, Google's beta channel for Blogger, now backs up blog content using Google Takeout. ¶

Update: Looks like this is rolling out for everybody now (July 1). Takeout is now the only way to back up blog contents (posts, pages, contents).

Earlier this month, Blogger in Draft gained the ability to import backups downloaded via Takeout. Now, it exports them using Takeout only. ¶

If this feature migrates to regular Blogger, it will replace single-file backup.

Blogger quick takes

2025-06-20T12:44:00.003-04:00

More small stuff that you might like to know

Blog backups get easier

2025-06-05T11:53:00.019-04:00

Blogger now uses Google Takeout to back up every part of all your blogs at once. ¶
Takeout lets you schedule backups every two months for a year. ¶
You can still back up your theme as a single file. ¶
The Takeout backup will download more data than you need. Extra steps can manage the size of your backup.

Questions for my readers

2025-05-23T13:03:00.004-04:00

Should I switch to a mobile-friendly blog theme? ¶

And who blogs from their phones anyway? ¶

Do you?

Hidden gems of Blogger

2025-05-09T13:28:00.003-04:00

Hidden in Blogger's labyrinthine user interface are a few interesting, and even useful, features.

A cautious way to change your blog

2025-04-25T11:18:00.007-04:00

If you've been blogging for a while, you might feel both intrigued and timid about making changes. ¶

You might hold back from trying a new blog theme for fear of subjecting your readers to an experiment, or to an extended period of switching things around. ¶

Ideally, you'd test and debug things in private, and then go live with the new design once it is ready for prime time. ¶

You can do that. I have done it twice (for another blog).

Puzzling interface hall of shame

2025-04-10T10:34:00.008-04:00

Blogger's back end (at www.blogger.com) includes some quirks that are confusing at best. ¶

A worst, they could cause you to make errors that cannot be undone.

Google is just not into you

2025-03-21T10:51:00.005-04:00

Google Search has changed. ¶

It's a lot pickier. ¶

Here is how to adapt.

Editing quick takes

2025-03-07T17:01:00.004-05:00

A few things about Blogger's post-and-page editor ¶

There are undo and redo buttons on the editing toolbar.

Use undo in Blogger, not "go back" on your browser, if you accidentally wipe out your blog post.