Saturday, July 17, 2010

The Giant Head

Late Tuesday night I added a widget to Straight From Hel – a Networked Blogs widget. You can see it in the sidebar. It wasn’t hard to add. You can google “Networked Blogs” to find where to go to get the code (or click the link above), then add it to your own, if you’re on Facebook. I’m pretty new to Facebook, but thought I’d give it a try.

I’m happy to report it’s working.

When I signed up for it, I also signed up to follow about three or four blogs that I recognized. Being the neophyte that I am, I thought my new widget would show the blogs I’m following. It doesn’t. It shows the blogs following me.

When I went back to my blog to see the pics of the blogs I had followed, all I saw was my “giant head,” as I call my avatar picture. Just me. I kept coming back to look at it ‘cause it made me laugh. It was like I was stalking myself.

I sent an email to the BBTCafe and told them about my giant head stalking myself and about five of them went right over and followed me. So my giant head is not alone now.

I thought I’d post about this because it shows how wonderful cyber friends are. They may not live close enough to stop by for coffee, but they offer advice, cheer you on when you’re stuck on problem, and step in when a giant head is stalking you.

I’m trying to remember to check each blog I visit to see if they have a Networked Blogs widget so I can follow them and to watch my widget so if someone follows me I can follow them back.

Hopefully, if I keep doing that, eventually the giant head will disappear from sight.
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24 comments:

  1. I'm following you!
    For a long time, I had a similar problem with Networked Blogs too, but gradually, my face disappeared!

    More than happy to help you along.

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  2. Rayna, I don't see your face yet, so it must take time to show up. I'll go to your site and make sure I'm in your network.

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  3. Thanks for this explanation Helen. It may be time for me...however, here's a question. Does anyone know how people get to be "friends" on a blog as opposed to "followers?" I noticed several weeks back that I now have a group of "friends" listed below my followers...and I can't figure out what this means. They are all individuals who are following...

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  4. I've noticed that some of the widgets may be easy to apply to your blog but they don't really explain how they work. Great explanation on the Networked Blogs widget. Thanks.

    Mason
    Thoughts in Progress

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  5. Liza, I am no expert. But I think if you find someone while you're on FB and you follow them, you are their friend. If you find a Networked Blogs widget on their blog and follow them, you're a follower. Maybe. I'm not sure. Anyone know the answer???

    You're right, Mason. There's little explanation, which stupefies me.

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  6. I'm stalking your giant head, Helen!

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  7. I really don't get this FB thing but I do get email requests from people I don't know to be my friend. I've also gone to my FB page and found a list of suggested friends no one of which I know. And they can't be my blog followers, because I don't have a blog. I thought FB would be intuitive, but it isn't—at least not for me.

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  8. Diane, you made me laugh!

    bonita, I'm with you. FB doesn't seem intuitive to me. I "got" Twitter and it's easy, but FB is sort of like a maze. If you could see the big picture, how it all fits together, it'd make sense. But I'm still inside the maze banging my head at a dead end, it feels like.

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  9. I clicked on the widget and copied and tried to apply it to my blog site but can't access my HTML gadget window. The Blogger is acting up again or my computer is still determined to be obstinate.

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  10. I don't think you have a big head.

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  11. Alex, you're right. I don't have an especially big head. The problem is I cropped the original picture, so it zeroed in on my head. I need to go back to the original and change the size without cropping, then the pic would show my shoulders and wouldn't look like just a disembodied head.

    Jean, Blogger seems to have glitches constantly. They also seem to correct themselves eventually.

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  12. I think your head looks just fine. I'm trying to build the ntworked blogs. Not sure if there is much in the way of promotion there but every little bit helps.

    Stephen Tremp

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  13. I've only had the Networked Blogs a few days and already I've forgotten who I'm following. I think I'm following you Stephen, but I'll check. I think it will be good for promotion, though and you have a book coming out.

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  14. I have a signed up for Networked Blogs and I even follow some people but mostly I use it just so I don't have to update my facebook page everytime I post a new blog entry. It saves time for me and for those people who follow my facebook but not my blog. Still, it is an excellent tool and I do love some of the blogs you can find using it.

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  15. Cassandra, I've now noticed that it does that. I didn't notice at first and was posting when I had a guest poster - only to realize I ended up with two posts. Yikes, stopped that!

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  16. Riley and Elizabeth are both following you. :)

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  17. You have a split personality, Elizabeth/Riley!

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  18. Helen,

    Facebook is not at all intuitive for me. Even with your instructions, I can't figure out how to add the widget. I've used Networked Blogs for a long time just to post my blog entries to Facebook because I seldom do any other updates. I've just accepted the fact that I'm a total flop at social media. :-) I haven't even attempted Twitter and don't plan to. I admire those of you who can keep up with everything.

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  19. I don't know how I missed this post. Maybe I was still laughing at the big head thing. If they want to admit it everyone has done that.
    Maybe I'll give this a shot--network blog, I mean.

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  20. Lillie, from what I can gather, you really need followers on FB. If you have followers, you can promote your book (subtly, of course). To me, Twitter seems a bit different. You can still use it to promote yourself, but the tweets go by so rapidly that you don't just tweet once a day. You tweet off and on during the day and you tweet about other things or people than just yourself.

    That's okay Mary. I'm used to people laughing at the big head. ;-)

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  21. I'm not entirely sure how the widget works, but I will check it out. I currently follow you via a LiveJournal feed that I set up, but if this is easier I'll probably switch over. :)

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  22. I haven't checked in with my Networked Blogs thingy in a long time. I signed up for it ages ago, but it told me I needed five people to confirm that my blog really belonged to me. I put out a call and some folks went over to try to confirm I am who I am, but they could not figure out how to do it. So I just sort of threw in the towel on NB. Maybe I should go back and try again.
    ~jon

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  23. I think my earlier comment got eaten by blogger...or the dog.

    I DM'd you a detailed path on twitter to get to your networked blogs on FB. :)

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  24. Hello Helen, I found your blog from a link (there were only three)on how to find the NWBs widget code. Even though I have mine, Amplify says i could use it with them, My memory must be failing me, since at some point in the recent past I made it with no probs.
    Anyway, I'm following NWBs to get it finally done, unless I quit if there are troubles on the way. Nothing is that important, phew!
    Have a good one! and Oh! yeah, I also signed in with yours, see my picture? (see if you'd like to do the same, that NWB thing is moving sooooo sloolwy.
    Peace!

    René

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