For non-bloggers – WordPress is the organization with software that offers free template, blog site set up and hosting. There are others besides WordPress but I don’t have any experience with them.
There are many things I love about Word Press. First, it’s free. That is huge especially for beginning bloggers who don’t know if they will keep it up after a few weeks. There is a good selection of templates that do a lot of things. I am not a techy and I have been able to populate a sidebar, post photos and videos, and other things that are easy with the stock widgets.
So what’s the big deal you ask? Let me tell you.
Statistics – I love statistics. They tell me whether anyone besides my immediate family actually reads my stuff. However the numbers never add up. I am not one to bicker about a few digits, just look at my checking account statement, but how can the counter tell me I have 20 views (or whatever number) and then the most popular posts of the day show zero. You mean 20 people just plopped on my landing page and weren’t enticed to read one single post. I am crushed.
Ads – I can’t post ads. That’s ok as I am not selling anything. However, WordPress posts ads on my blog that I can’t see. I didn’t know about it until someone asked about the yogurt ad with the cleavage. Believe me, I have never posted a picture of any cleavage, let alone with yogurt dripping down in there. I never did get to see it but on the beloved husband’s computer I saw a Ford ad. Do the guys get the car ads and the girls get the yogurt? I’ll never know. I spent the money to have them all wiped off my blog.
The thing that bothers me most is the font type size. I realize the there is no one over 30 who works at WordPress but does anyone realize that older folks like larger type? The party line is that every person can set their computer to a larger font size. In order to do that, I have to override the formatting which means that the print goes over static information like titles and dates. The page is all messy. Can that be fixed? I haven’t been able to fix it yet. Why can’t I just pick my font size for my blog?
You can use coding to change it but if you get one space or character wrong, it doesn’t work. “They say” not to copy and paste because bad things happen so I would love that little button on top that has the sizes and lets me pick one.
Live Writer is a Microsoft free download that can help you format your posts easier. It seems that my theme is too complicated for Live Writer so I am still working on that one.
Back to the good things, Freshly Pressed – WordPress selects a few posts every day to highlight which increases your visibility and ultimately your readership. I was selected for what I thought was an obscure post I wrote in 15 minutes. I don’t know why they selected that one or what it was that stood out. They totally ignored my fabulous post on obituaries or the stupid people who use a drive-through.
They have recently added a little thingy at the top right that tells me what’s happened lately. The really great part is that if I comment on someone’s blog, I can find out if they replied without a lot of trouble. I can also tell what country my readers are from…cool! Great upgrades!
Did I mention it’s free (except for the ad-removal or other sophisticated upgrades)? They helped me increase my readership which has encouraged me to continue to write. Ultimately, I met (in a cyber sense) some really cool bloggers; learned how to use my camera; had a reason to upgrade my computer; and continued to terrify my friends (“you’re not doing a post about this are you?”). In the end, I guess I love you WordPress but let’s talk about that cleavage ad……
Photo Credits: Cleavage by Victoria Lynn Palmer via Flickr and WordPress logo by…well…WordPress.
Views and Mews by Coffee Kat 
I don’t see any ads on your blog but I have seen some disturbing ones on mine from my sister’s laptop. I complained to wordpress and they have since removed them!
Great lively post!
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I pay an annual fee to have an ad free blog.
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Hmmm. Interesting post. I didn’t know about the ads either but I must say that why else would wordpress be free? I mean lets face it, we are inadvertantly writing a global magazine and they are cashing in on our desire to be heard. It’s just business. And quite franky, I don’t really mind as long as wordpress continues to be free. I do like the idea of a disclaimer though, which states that as a blogger, I am in no way associated with these products being flogged on my blog.
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I think most people feel like that. It’s more that the blogger can’t see the ads so they don’t know what’s posted on their blog.
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Ads? Yikes! I didn’t know about that. Thanks!
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Gads, they post ads? I would love to see them.
I can totally see why they would post cleavage on your blog, Kate. 🙂
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You hit all the highs and lows, omg, and your humor is delicious…coming back for a second helping, I’m hooked. Thanks Kat!
namaste,
Roxie
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Thank you!
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You hit on some of my pet peeves, Kate. I heard from another blogger about the ads on blogs. Then, my hubby showed me one on mine. I do love the stats showing our international reach (one per country. Really, they couldn’t call a neighbor and say, “Hey, check out this blog.” And I do love the free part – and the freedom to be as creative as I want to be. Thanks for letting me vent along with you.
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Just awarded you http://jensinewall.wordpress.com/2012/04/11/being-loved/
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Pingback: being loved « jensinewall
I think we share some very similar frustrations, as well as the wonder that we can do it at all! I have certainly increased my technology awareness since first beginning. And my family is now sending me notes with blog suggestions–topics they think I SHOULD share. I am so amused by that. I tend to stay away from the stats…I don’t want too driven to feel a “need to succeed” and I think in some ways I enjoy reading everyone else’s posts much more than sharing mine! It’s a grand experiment as well as adventure, Kate. 🙂 Debra
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I agree with you that we shouldn’t get neurotic about the stats. I haven’t completely figured them out. Everytime I think I have it, I learn something new about them that changes everything. I just like to write. My family doesn’t send me suggestions. They just tell me things I shouldn’t blog about. Oh yes, WordPress should have spellcheck for the comments section. It would make live easier.
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I think I’ve learned more from this post than I have from WordPress. Thank you for the enlightenment.
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There are good WordPress tutorials but you have to look around for them.
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Wow, I had no idea about the ads. Very annoying.
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Great post, Kate. A few people have mentioned ads on my blog, but as you mentioned I wasn’t able to see them. One of the other bloggers I pop in on has a disclaimer on her home page about the ads. I like your idea of upgrading to the ad free pages. I do LOVE the newly added features and the blogging buddies I have made, so paying a bit for an ad free page still seems like a pretty good deal.
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I didn’t know about the ads … interesting, wonder what I have. Thanks for this and I concure
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The ads! Yes! I got an email from Hubby one day about the ads on my blog…what ads????? I couldn’t see them so I went to the FAQ and found out why they are there. One of the ads Hubby saw was for Obama. That was not an issue for me but what if it was???? But dear lord, yogurt dripping down cleavege??? I wonder if the ads are placed based on content?
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I never knew that I wasn’t seeing what non-bloggers are seeing! Hmmm… And like you, I would love to change font size once in a while for emphasis (and I chose a template with a fairly large font). But I do like WordPress, and I love the new activity list to see comments! And did I mention it’s FREE?
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Oh, so true! You hit all the irritations….and the wonders. (and as you say – it’s a great community and it’s free…..but those ads!)
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I wasn’t aware they did that posted ads on our page! I’ve got to see if its happening on mine. That is ridiculous! I was wondering the same thing about he statistics, but then I realized being that my page layout has a homepage before you can read the entire post, people were just going to my homepage and not reading my post. Annoying.
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The ads are tough to see because only non-WordPress people see them. You have to get a non-blogger friend to log on. You can go to the question section of WordPress and they explain it. The only problem is that you don’t get to see them nor do you get to approve what’s in them. I never saw the cleavage ad but I was told by several people that it was there.
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Gosh that is ridiculous! You said you paid to have them go away? How can I do that?
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Go into the store (on dropdown under dashboard). That’s where all the upgrades are. You can read about each one.
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Thank you so much!!!
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