OK people - question: When I was checking your homework in class last week, the ones that I saw had done absolutely nothing to their blogs. I am amazed! How could you possibly have resisted? Something that is so easy and so much fun? And that is in fact a righteous introduction to web design? Which is the class that you are taking?
I am putting my money where my mouth is and setting you an example now:
http://easypeasydesign1.blogspot.com/2011/03/modifying-template.html
Please go to the above link and look at the examples that I am showing you which have all been made using a blogspot template, by simply changing the background images, making simple header images and replacing the default header with them, and then going to the template editor and choosing different layouts, widths and changing values from the advanced tab. No coding, no nothing! Except in very simple cases, such as adding a background image to a single post, which I was talking about in the entry just before this one. There are cases where some advanced CSS editing will be needed to tweak these into a perfect state but (with Selim's help) we will get to all of that when and if needed.
This is your homework now! grrr... I want to see some action on your blogs! And I will be even happier if you keep experimenting and take different screenshots and put them into posts. And furthermore, I would like you to keep on doing this - not only this one time, this week, but always! This is how you will get a sense of web design - not by sitting around and waiting for a miracle to happen, you know? And ooops - sorry, the miracle has actually already happened: You have a fully editable template, courtesy of blogspot, for free! And if that isn't a miracle, I don't know what is!
Here are a few good tips before you start to play around - so that you actually have elements to play around with:
1) Add gadgets - a nice text box, even two maybe. Links (find some stuff to link up!). Make different link boxes, for different categories....
And please delete the default gadgets: Absolutely no point in having a follower box on a brand new blog where you have no followers yet - or so few that it is kind of better to not show them at all, you know? Same for 'About Me'. This one is almost impossible to make look nice and aligned. So, get rid of it, for God's sakes! Make an 'About Me' page and put a nice big photo of yourself and some nice text. Easy peasy... And also 'Archives'. Again, too soon, you have only been around for 5 minutes - what archive?
2) Labels (which you can rename as 'Topics' or whatever you like: Now these will only happen once you start putting them at the bottom of the label box of a post. So, create a 'dummy post' (you can call it 'for labels' or something) and put a lot of labels in it. This will give you the list which you can then use as a gadget box. Similarly, add pages and use a page gadget. (The page menu on the top looks pretty awful in its default state and you cannot change it unless you re-code it, so for now I would stay away from that and go with a side gadget instead). You don't need to write anything in them yet, simply give them a name and write 'under construction'.
And, again, absolutely no kidding guyz - this is now your homework! ;-)
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