Using WordPress for Blackberry

I’m typing this on WordPress for Blackberry. If you see any grammatical mistakes, you’ll have to excuse me. I really am glad that this app was developed. For someone who is always on the go, its a great way to blog while still runnin about.

Setup:

The setup wasn’t so bad. I installed it from the Blackberry App World. After I rebooted my phone, I added this blog, and my personal one. At first, I could see my blogs, but I couldn’t add any new posts. I refreshed them, and tada! There they were. As we speak, I’m downloading the new version.

Using It:

Using it is easy. Its like being on a miniature-sized computer that I have to type using its mini keyes. You can add video, photos, and audio. Of course, typing on a real computer is easier and more comfortable, but it’s better to have blogged than never to have blogged at all.

Be Warned:

I’m going to use WordPress for Blackberry more often. One thing people don’t tell you is that as a parent, you are constantly standing around. Now, Ill be standing around and blogging. I’m actually doind this at the airport while I wait to be boarded.

Happy Blogging Everyone!

My Favorite Blog Posts I Wrote in 2009

These are my favorite blog posts that I wrote in 2009. Reading these, I realized that practice does make perfect. My blogging technique has definitely improved for the better. I plan on writing many more blog posts in 2010.

1. 6 Ways to Publish Your Own Book – Mashable
March 1, 2009

Online self-publishing services have given users the tools they need to create, publish and promote their work. These sites allow authors to bypass the process of finding an agent and pitching to publishing houses, a venture that can take months, if not years. I wrote about six self-publishing services that will help you publish your work, guaranteeing you a published book that can be sold via different outlets, such as Amazon.

2. 10 Social Media Tools To Help With Your Crowdsourcing Efforts - Techipedia
December 31, 2009

Crowdsourcing has become more and more popular with private companies, non-profit organizations, and even government agencies. It’s a model that is based on many people contributing to an idea, product, or service that would have usually been done by one person. Crowdsourcing has become increasingly more widely used because it helps cultivate creativity and innovation.

3. Ten Tips to Get the Most Out of Posterous – MakeTechEasier
July 17, 2009

Posterous is the newest way of lifestreaming. What is lifestreaming? Lifestreaming is a feed of a person’s daily activities. This is usually done by social aggregating and/or the person posting photos, videos, and statuses through his/her smartphone. Posterous provides the service for you to do this by posting using email or SMS. It simultaneously posts to various services (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, blogs, etc.), so you don’t have to scramble around doing it yourself. Posterous is very flexible in that it allows you to pick-and-choose the services you want to post to, and it also allows you to have multiple Posterous sites. Ten tips to get the most out of Posterous.

4. 10 Social Media Plugins for Windows Live Writer - MakeTechEasier
October 9, 2009

Windows Live Writer is the best desktop-based blog editor for PC users. It allows you to manage different blogs and has rich functionality that makes it easy to create blog posts. Additionally, it provides a way for you to add social media features into your actual blog post, or notify services when you are publishing them. Here are ten plugins that will help your blog be social-media ready

5. The Yahoo-Facebook, Google-Twitter, OpenID Competition - Penn Olson
December 4, 2009

Yahoo announced that it has signed a five-year agreement with Facebook to allow its users to share content on its site using their Facebook account. Then, Google announces that it had partnered up with Twitter. What is OpenID to do?

6. LiveFye, the Better Twitter? - Penn Olson
December 18, 2009

After checking out new photos of Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland,” I decided to tweet it to my followers. I received a reply right away from @LiveFyre, letting me know about a conversation that was occurring on the film. I clicked on the link that took me to a new site called LiveFyre. LiveFyre allows users to discuss whatever topic of their choice, and connect with people with the same interests. You are able to link your discussions, called “fyres,” to both your Twitter and Facebook accounts.

7. Top Ten Animes of All Time - PunchyDrunkCritics
June 21, 2009

Anime lovers all have their own variation of what they think are the ten best anime series of all time. One of the reasons is that animes comes in all different flavors, so it appeals to all kinds of tastes. These are the animes that have made me think about my life, the world, and the future. When the series finished, I felt a sense of loss when these characters who I had let into my life were leaving. Here I list my top-ten favorite anime series of all time.

8. Apple and Psystar Finally Strike a Deal - Macgasm
December 1, 2009

Apple and Psystar have finally strike a deal in the copyright case that has been going on for months. If you haven’t heard, Apple was suing Psystar for shipping out Intel-based systems with Mac OS X preinstalled on them.  Apple finally got what they wanted because Psystar has agreed to stop selling these Mac clone computers.

9. RUMOR: Apple Creating iPhone for Verizon to Come Out in 2010 – Macgasm
November 8, 2009

Rumors are flying that Apple is working on a “world mode” iPhone that is compatible with Verizon Wireless” CDMA network

10.  Quick Guide on Conducting a Business Impact Analysis - Chicwriter
November 16, 2009

I received a comment on my blog post, “Is a Disaster Recovery Plan Really Necessary?,” that asked an important question. How about a Business Impact Analysis? In order to write a successful disaster recovery plan, you need to conduct a business impact analysis (BIA). What is a BIA? A BIA is a thorough investigation of your entire company, including business processes and the resources (e.g. computer systems, personnel, etc.), to fully understand the impact on on your business if there were some sort of outage. It allows a company to know which business processes and resources are essential to continue to run with minimal impact.

11. GETTING TO KNOW SHEVONNE POLASTRE (@DCFEMELLA) - Bit Boss
February 11, 2009

Interview that I did with Craig Sutton, from The Bit Boss.

12.  Research Before Starting Any Project - Chicwriter
November 24, 2009

Before starting any project or document, there is something that you must do. RESEARCH! I can’t stress that enough. There have been all kinds of projects that I have been on, and the one mistake that they usually make is not taking the time to research. It’s something that time should be allocated for during the project planning process. Reading the client’s documentation, interviewing them, and analyzing external resources, you will have a better understanding of the issues that your team and you are trying to solve.

13. Is a Disaster Recovery Plan Really Necessary? - Chicwriter
January 12, 2009

Hurricane Katrina and other disasters have made some of us wonder if our IT infrastructure is protected. What can be done to ensure that if there were a natural or man-made disaster, your company would keep running with no issues? The answer is an IT Disaster Recovery Plan.

14. Ten Geeky Quotes That Will Aid You in Business - Chicwriter
January 5, 2009

Every geek knows that geeky movies have quotes that can be used in every day life or business. I have compiled the ten best geeky quotes that can be used when you are developing products and/or services for clients.

15.  Freelancers: Use Google Voice as a Virtual Assistant – Chicwriter
August 5, 2009

Google Voice can be a free, non-issue Virtual Assistant.  It’s a great tool that freelancers can include as part of their business.  After reading “The 4-Hour Work Week: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich,” I decided to inquire about getting an actual assistant.  When I saw the prices, I didn’t hire one.  For someone who was starting out, I couldn’t afford it. I read about Evoice Receptionist, and subscribed.  It was a good alternative to hiring an actual Virtual Assistant; however, it also got expensive pretty quickly.  I cancelled the service and started using my actual mobile phone.  This wasn’t a good idea because then I couldn’t have a different voicemail for my business.  These are five reasons that Google Voice has solved my problem

Your Comment is Awaiting Moderation…NOOO

Comment moderation seems to be the big thing now. Whenever I leave a comment on a blog and press the Submit button, I get “your comment is awaiting moderation. It will appear when the blog owner has approved it.” I’m starting to see this more and more. I can understand personal blogs doing that. I’ve had people, who I knew in real life, stalk my blog and leave rude comments whenever they could. This happens a lot with personal blogs, so if the blog owner wants to moderate the blog, then I don’t see anything wrong with that.

However, business blogs are increasingly getting into this practice and it doesn’t make sense. The rules don’t apply to them like they do with personal blogs. I’ve gotten my share of rude comments on my blog posts. It sucks when I see them, and I do get the urge to delete them, but I don’t. The best way to show your professionalism is to handle the comment head on. It will make your readers think “Wow, this person has got it going on,” and it will give you a sense of accomplishment.

Business blogs, take that moderation off.  If you are worried about spam, get something like Akismet to manage it.  If you are worried about rude comments, deal with it.  Not everyone is going to like what you write, so all you can do is accept that and move on.  It discourages people to leave anymore comments when they see the moderation message pop up.

What Tweeters Are Saying About the FTC Blogging Rules

50 Free or Low-Cost Web Courses for Web Writers and Bloggers

All over the Internet, you read how this and that person is an expert in something.  Yes, there are experts, but there is one thing that they all know.  You can never be an expert unless you are constantly learning new things about your craft.  Blogging and web writing is become increasingly popular, especially with the constant talks about the “death of paper publications.”   If you are new or an old-timer, and want to know more about blogging, web writing, or copywriting, here are 50 web courses that might be of interest to you.

50 Awesome Open Web Courses

Clicking on the links, it seems like the majority are free, so there is no excuse to not start learning more about web writing.  Additionally, many of these courses are offered by reputable university, like MIT.  There is an even a course or two offered by BBC News.

I know that I am definitely going to partake in a few (or all) of these courses.  Even though I have been writing professionally for over eight years, I can still learn a thing or two.

Photo Detail: Classroom Chairs 2, originally uploaded by James Sarmiento (old account).