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Blog software
Web Design & Development Guide
Blog software
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Weblog software (also called blog software or blogware)
is a category of software which consists of a specialized form of
content management systems specifically designed for creating and
maintaining
weblogs.
Server models
Many weblog applications are available for users to download and install on
their own systems. Some of these are
open-source software that can be used, modified, and redistributed f
Other weblog applications are offered only through their developers'
hosts, either free of charge or for a fee. These typically include hosting
service for the published blog itself, but some offer the option of using this
hosted software to update a blog published elsewhere.
Clients
Maintenance through the Internet is a nearly universal feature of weblog
software. This is usually done through a browser-based interface, enabling the
author to update the site using the same client software used to view its
contents. Some software supports the use of specialized client software to
update sites, such an applet running on an internet-connected workstation or on
a
PDA, or a client that can run offline and/or interface with a variety of
weblog server applications.
Features
- Title, the main title, or headline, of the post.
- Body, main content of the post.
- Permalink, the
URL of the full,
individual article.
- Post Date, date and time the post was published.
A blog entry optionally includes the following:
Comments are a way to provide discussion on blog entries. Readers can leave a
comment on a post, which can correct errors or contain their opinion on the post
or the post's subject. Services like coComment
aim to ease discussion through comments, by allowing tracking of them.
- Categories (or
tags) - subjects
that the entry discusses
- Trackback and or
pingback
- links to other sites that refer to the entry
Other applications
Most weblog applications have features such as facilitating authoring and
editing of blog posts or articles, various linking and
web syndication features, and the ability to easily publish the blog to the
world wide web. Some services or organizations are also creating weblog
applications with extended features to aid communication, such as the wiki
capabilities in Socialtext and Traction TeamPage.
Many weblog applications allow the user to define static pages of content
which can often be placed into a hierarchy or tree. Pages differ from blog posts
in that the content is largely static and not time related. Pages are often used
to present information about the blog and its author. Extensive use of pages can
result in a blog that looks more like a website.
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Most weblog applications support English and many other languages. The user
selects a language during installation. Weblog applications usually offer web
syndication service either in the form of
RSS or
Atom. This allows for other software such as
feed aggregators to maintain a current summary of the blog's content.
Post moderation requires the people who want to comment on articles that are
posted on a blog to be approved before the comments are visible to the world. It
could also mean in some cases where multiple people have accounts and the
ability to post new items to the blog that new content must be approved by a
moderator or administrator before it shows up on the main page. Weblog
applications use various user account systems that allow readers to post
comments to a particular blog. For instance, users with
Blogger
accounts may comment on any Blogger blog. Other weblog applications allow users
to post content or comments only to blogs where they have an account.
The Post
API can vary greatly depending on the system that you are using. Some types of
blogware have plugins for Firefox that integrate into the browser's menus so that right-clicking on
selected text on any given webpage will bring up a small window that allows the
user to post to their blog. Other types of blogware that do not have this type
of interface require a person to fill out a form online. The form that is
required for posting material to a blog depends on the type of blogware. Some
types such as
Movable
Type contain a greater number of form fields and choices than ones such as
Blogger.
All types of blogware support adding thumbnail images within blog posts. Photo
blogging is a separate genre of blogging that deals primarily with images.
Documentation and support
Different blogware packages feature varying levels of community support and
documentation. Because the installation of some types of software requires an
advanced knowledge of computer administration, community support and
documentation can be very helpful. The web servers and database software can be
more difficult to install than the blogware itself. Also a strong and active
community surrounding the blogware gives advice on integrating the blogware into
a personal site.
Examples
A partial list of notable weblog software follows:
User-hosted
Software packages installed by weblog authors to run on their own systems:
Free/Libre/Open-Source software
These software packages are offered under an
Open Source Software license. Therefore they are free for everyone to use.
Also, commercial support contracts are often available.
- Diarios Online (Windows)
Apache Roller (Java-based)
-
b2evolution (PHP/MySQL)
- bBlog (PHP/MySQL)
Beta-Blogger (PHP/MySQL or text files)
BlogEngine.NET (C#/ASP.NET)
blojsom (Java-based)
blosxom (Perl)
boastMachine (PHP/MySQL)
Collablog (PHP/MySQL)
dasBlog (C#/ASP.NET)
PyBlosxom (Python)
Dotclear (PHP/MySQL)
- Drupal
(PHP/MySQL)
- Elgg (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP)
FlatPress (PHP/Flat Files)
Geeklog (PHP/MySQL)
Horizon Blogging Software (PHP/MySQL)
Livejournal (Perl) (Also available, developer hosted)
-
LifeType (PHP/MySQL)
- Mephisto (Ruby on Rails)
Nucleus CMS (PHP)
Pivotlog (PHP)
-
Serendipity (PHP/MySQL,PostgreSQL,SQLite)
- Simplelog (Ruby on Rails)
SimplePHPBlog (PHP/Flat Files)
Slash (Perl)
Subtext (C#/ASP.NET)
Textpattern (PHP/MySQL)
Typo (Ruby on Rails)
-
WordPress (PHP/MySQL) - also offered in developer-hosted form as
Wordpress.com
Proprietary software
These packages are under a
proprietary license. They may require the purchase of a license key to use
them. The specific licensing terms vary but some are free for personal or
non-commercial use.
-
Community Server (also offered in developer-hosted form as
CommunityServer.com)
- entity CMS
ExpressionEngine (formerly pMachine)
-
Movable Type (also offered in developer-hosted form as
TypePad)
- Radio UserLand
Traction TeamPage
Windows Live Writer - also offered in developer-hosted form as
spaces.live.com
Unknown license
Developer-hosted
Software services operated by the developer, requiring no software
installation for the weblog author:
- Atom5
Battle Blog
Blog.com
Blogger
BlogHarbor
Blogging Systems
Blue Kaffee
EFx2.com
DeadJournal
GreatestJournal
LiveJournal
Multiply.com
MySpace
NireBlog.com
NooBlog.pl
Open Diary
punditPending.com
TypePad
Typo
Windows Live Spaces
WeBlog.ro
Webmunism
Wordpress
AftaBlog.com
Xanga
Vox
See also
External links
Home
Up
Blog software
Open source content management systems
Version control systems
Wiki
Zope
List of content management systems
List of content management frameworks
Document management system
Enterprise content management
Geospatial Content Management System
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