Welcome! (And getting started...)

Posts should clearly relate to our reading and class discussions. Use this space, for instance, to cover something we just didn’t have time to get to in class or to explore that idea that hit you three hours after class got out. Feel free, though, also to be creative, bringing in links, videos, and images, and find ways to expand our conversations. For instance, if you come across a news story or editorial that makes you think about something we’ve dealt with in class, link to it and talk about that. If you see something interesting on TV, for instance, go ahead and bring it up.

Now for the technical stuff:

1. Everyone must write at least one 150-word post a week. Additional posts (of any length) are, of course, acceptable and encouraged.
2. Everyone must comment/respond at least twice per week. And the more, the better!
3. Weekly posts are due on Friday at 5:00 p.m. starting the first week of classes. In other words, you should have written at least one post and two comments by Friday, January 13.
4. Make sure your posts are clear, proof-read, and grammatically correct.
5. One other important note: remember to be courteous and respectful in your posts.

Blogging tips for beginners:

First, you’ll need to respond to the email invitation you get from Blogger which will give you permission to post to the blog.

Blogger actually has some helpful documents you can check out if you need more guidance on getting started with blogging, but here are some quick tips:

To write a new post:

1. Make sure you are signed in (click sign-in at the top right side of the page)
2. Click on “New Post,” also on the top right side of the page
3. This will bring you to a new screen.
4. Type your post’s title in the box marked “Title”
5. Then post the body of your response in the large white box. You can also type up your response in Microsoft Word and simply cut and paste it in. (That’s how I am writing this post.)
6. To insert a link, type the text you want to be displayed as a link, then click on the little button that says “Link.”
7. This will bring up a pop-up box. Paste or copy the URL of the site you want to link to into that box.
8. Inserting a picture is a similar process. You can either upload a picture or link to a picture elsewhere.
9. When you are all done, click “Publish Post” (the orange box below the big white box).

That’s it! Have fun!