Delinker at 12:48, 31 July 2023

2023-07-31T12:48:20Z

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{{short description|Blogging platform currently owned by Google}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2013}}
{{Infobox website
| name = Blogger
| logo = [[File:Blogger icon 2017.svg|90px|Blogger logo]]
| logo_caption =
| screenshot =
| caption = Blogger's Updated Interface
| url = {{URL|https://www.blogger.com/}}
| commercial = Yes
| type = [[Blog publishing system|Blog host]]
| registration = Optional, Free
| language = [[#Available languages|See below]]
| country_of_origin = United States of America
| area_served = Worldwide
| owner = [[Google]]
| founder = Evan Williams, Meg Hourihan
| programming_language = [[Python (programming language)|Python]]<ref name="roadchap">{{cite web|url=http://rogchap.com/2011/09/06/top-40-website-programming-languages/|title=Top 40 Website Programming Languages|work=roadchap.com|author=Roger Chapman|access-date=September 6, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927184557/http://rogchap.com/2011/09/06/top-40-website-programming-languages/ |archive-date=September 27, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
| launch_date = {{Start date and age|1999|8|23}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blogger.com/about |title=The Story of Blogger |publisher=Blogger.com |date=October 8, 2003 |access-date=December 25, 2011}}</ref>
| current_status = Active
}}

'''Blogger''' is an American online [[content management system]] which enables multi-user blogs with time-stamped entries. [[Pyra Labs]] developed it before being acquired by [[Google]] in 2003. Google hosts the blogs, which can be accessed through a subdomain of '''blogspot.com'''. Blogs can also be accessed from a user-owned [[Domain name|custom domain]] (such as www.example.com) by using [[Domain Name System|DNS]] facilities to direct a domain to Google's servers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tweakandtrick.com/2012/02/how-to-move-blogger-blog-to-your-own.html|title=How to Move a Blogger Blog to Your Own Domain: Tips and Tricks|publisher=Tweak And Trick|access-date=June 30, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://support.google.com/blogger/answer/1233387|title=Set up a custom domain - Blogger Help|website=support.google.com|language=en|access-date=2018-06-02}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://buzz.blogger.com/2015/01/custom-domains-for-your-blog-made-easy_13.html|title=Custom domains for your blog made easy|publisher=buzz.blogger.com|access-date=January 13, 2015}}</ref> A user can have up to 100 blogs or websites per account.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://support.google.com/blogger/answer/42348?hl=en|title=the limits on my Blogger account|access-date=January 8, 2014}}</ref>

Google Blogger also enabled users to publish blogs and websites to their own web hosting server via [[File Transfer Protocol|FTP]] until May 1, 2010. All such blogs and websites had to be redirected to a blogspot.com [[subdomain]] or point their own domain to Google's servers via [[Domain Name System|DNS]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Important Note to FTP Users|url=https://blogger.googleblog.com/2010/01/important-note-to-ftp-users.html|url-status=live|access-date=December 25, 2011|publisher=Official Blogger Blog|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160906223017/https://blogger.googleblog.com/2010/01/important-note-to-ftp-users.html |archive-date=September 6, 2016 }}</ref> Google Blogger has a wide international user base and is available in more than 60 languages, despite its decline in popularity in the United States.{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}

==History==
[[Pyra Labs]] launched Blogger on August 23, 1999. It is credited with popularizing the format as one of the first dedicated blog-publishing tools. Pyra Labs was purchased by [[Google]] in February 2003 for an undisclosed amount. Premium features, which Pyra had actually offered for a fee, were made free as a result of the takeover. [[Evan Williams (Internet entrepreneur)|Evan Williams]], a co-founder of Pyra Labs, left Google in October 2004. [[Picasa]] was acquired by Google in 2004, and Picasa and its photo-sharing service Hello were incorporated into Blogger, enabling users to upload images to their blogs. <ref>{{Cite web|title=Official Blogger Blog|url=https://blogger.googleblog.com/|access-date=2021-04-20|website=Official Blogger Blog|language=en}}</ref>

Blogger underwent a major redesign on May 9, 2004, which included [[web standards]]-compliant templates, individual archive pages for posts, comments, and email posting. Blogger's new version, codenamed "Invader," was released in [[beta]] alongside the gold update on August 14, 2006. Users were moved to Google servers, and new features such as interface language in French, Italian, German, and Spanish were added.<ref>''[http://buzz.blogger.com/2006/11/blogger-beta-feature-complete.html Blogger Beta: Feature Complete!]'', The official Blogger Buzz, November 2, 2006,.</ref> In December 2006, this new version of Blogger was taken out of beta. By May 2007, Blogger had completely moved over to Google-operated servers. Blogger was ranked 16 on the list of top 50 domains in terms of number of unique visitors in 2007.<ref>[http://blog.compete.com/2007/10/30/top-50-websites-domains-digg-youtube-flickr-facebook/ "Top 50 Domains - www.TheLifeMovie.blogspot.com Ranked by Unique Visitors""] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625012552/http://blog.compete.com/2007/10/30/top-50-websites-domains-digg-youtube-flickr-facebook/ |date=June 25, 2008 }} September 2007.</ref>

On February 24, 2015, Blogger announced that as of late March it would no longer allow its users to post sexually explicit content, unless the nudity offers "substantial public benefit," for example in "artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific contexts."<ref>[https://www.theverge.com/2015/2/24/8097975/google-owned-blogger-bans-sexually-explicit-content Google-owned Blogger bans sexually explicit content]. Retrieved 2 March 2015</ref> On February 28, 2015, accounting for severe backlash from long-term bloggers, Blogger reversed its decision on banning sexual content, going back to the previous policy that allowed explicit images and videos if the blog was marked as "adult".<ref>[http://www.ibtimes.co.in/backlash-forces-google-reverse-move-ban-porn-blogger-624803 Backlash Forces Google to Reverse Move to Ban Porn on Blogger]. Retrieved 2 March 2015.</ref>

===Redesign===
As part of the Blogger redesign in 2006, all blogs associated with a user's Google Account were migrated to Google servers. Blogger claims that the service is now more reliable because of the quality of the servers.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://buzz.blogger.com/2006/12/new-version-of-blogger.html |title=Blogger Buzz: The New Version of Blogger |publisher=Buzz.blogger.com |access-date=December 25, 2011}}</ref>

Along with the migration to [[List of Google products|Google servers]], several new features were introduced, including label organization, a [[drag-and-drop]] template editing interface, reading permissions (to create private blogs) and new [[Web feed]] options. Furthermore, blogs are updated dynamically, as opposed to rewriting [[HTML]] files.

In a version of the service called Blogger in Draft,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://draft.blogger.com/ |title=Draft.blogger.com |publisher=Draft.blogger.com |access-date=December 25, 2011}}</ref> new features are tested before being released to all users. New features are discussed in the service's official blog.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bloggerindraft.blogspot.com/ |title=Bloggerindraft.blogspot.com |publisher=Bloggerindraft.blogspot.com |access-date=September 9, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120919102244/http://bloggerindraft.blogspot.com/ |archive-date=September 19, 2012 }}</ref>
In September 2009, Google introduced new features into Blogger as part of its tenth-anniversary celebration. The features included a new interface for post editing, improved image handling, Raw HTML Conversion, and other [[Google Docs]]-based implementations, including:

* Adding location to posts via [[geotagging]].
* Post time-stamping at publication, not at original creation.
* Vertical re-sizing of the post editor. The size is saved in a per-user, per-blog preference.
* Link editing in compose mode.
* Full [[Safari (web browser)|Safari 3]] support and fidelity on both [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] and [[macOS]].
* New Preview dialog that shows posts in a width and font size approximating what is seen in the published view.
* Placeholder image for tags so that embeds are movable in compose mode.
* New toolbar with Google aesthetics, faster loading time, and "undo" and "redo" buttons, also added the full justification button, a strike-through button, and an expanded color palette.

In 2010, Blogger introduced new templates and redesigned its website. The new post editor was criticized for being less reliable than its predecessor.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://experimentgarden.blogspot.com/2009/12/critique-and-criticism-of-new-blogger.html |title=Critique and Criticism of the New Blogger Post Editor – Experiment Garden |publisher=Experimentgarden.blogspot.com |date=June 26, 2008 |access-date=December 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721223554/http://experimentgarden.blogspot.com/2009/12/critique-and-criticism-of-new-blogger.html |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2020, Google Blogger slowly introduced an improved web experience for Blogger. They moved everyone to the new interface starting in late June, many Blogger creators see the new interface become their default. Blogger is now responsive on the web, making it easier to use on mobile devices in addition to having a new look.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Official Blogger Blog|url=https://blogger.googleblog.com/|access-date=2021-04-20|website=Official Blogger Blog|language=en}}</ref>

===Available languages===
As of late 2016, Blogger is available in these 60 languages: Afrikaans, Amharic, Arabic, Basque, Bengali, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese (Hong Kong), Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English (United Kingdom), English (United States), Estonian, Filipino, Finnish, French, Galician, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, Korean, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malay, Malayalam, Marathi, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish (Latin America), Spanish (Spain), Swahili, Swedish, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese, and Zulu.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Official Blogger Blog|url=https://blogger.googleblog.com/|access-date=2021-04-20|website=Official Blogger Blog|language=en}}</ref>

===Country-specific Blogger addresses===
In February 2013, Blogger began integrating user blogs with multiple country-specific URLs. For example, <kbd>exampleuserblogname.blogspot.com</kbd> would be automatically redirected to <kbd>exampleuserblogname.blogspot.ca</kbd> in Canada, <kbd>exampleuserblogname.blogspot.co.uk</kbd> in the United Kingdom. Blogger explained that by doing this they could manage the blog content more locally so if there was any objectionable material that violated a particular country's laws they could remove and block access to that blog for that country through the assigned [[Country code top-level domain|ccTLD]] while retaining access through other ccTLD addresses and the default Blogspot.com URL. If a blog using a country-specific URL was removed it is still technically possible to access the blog through Google's No Country Redirect override by entering the URL using the regular Blogspot.com address and adding <kbd>/ncr</kbd> after <kbd>.com</kbd>.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://support.google.com/blogger/answer/2402711?hl=en|title=My blog redirects to a country-specific URL (ccTLD)}}</ref> In May 2018, Blogger stopped redirecting to ccTLDs and country-specific URLs would now redirect to the default Blogspot.com addresses.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://blogger.googleblog.com/2018/05/its-spring-cleaning-time-for-blogger.html|title=It's spring cleaning time for Blogger|publisher=Blogger team|date=May 15, 2018|access-date=August 1, 2018}}</ref>

==Available designs==
Blogger allows its users to choose from multiple templates and then customize them. Users may also choose to create their own templates using [[CSS]]. The new design template, known as "Dynamic View", was introduced on 31 August 2011<ref>{{cite web|url=http://buzz.blogger.com/2011/08/bloggers-fresh-new-look.html |title=Blogger's fresh new look |publisher=blogger.com |date=August 31, 2011 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref> with Dynamic Views being introduced on 27 September 2011.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://googleblog.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/dynamic-views-seven-new-ways-to-share.html |title=Dynamic Views: seven new ways to share your blog with the world |publisher=blogger.com |date=September 27, 2011 |access-date=September 20, 2014}}</ref> It is built with [[Ajax (programming)|AJAX]], [[HTML5]], and [[CSS3]]. The time for loading is 40 percent shorter than traditional templates, and allows user to present blog in seven different ways: classic, flipcard, magazine, mosaic, sidebar, snapshot, and timeslide. Readers still have the option to choose preferable views when the blog owner has set a default view.<ref>[https://support.google.com/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=1229061 "All about Dynamic Views for Readers""] Google. November 6, 2012,.</ref> Some of the widgets (e.g., Labels, Profile, Link List, Subscription Links, Followers and Blog Archive etc.) are available for Dynamic Views; other templates are chosen by the blogger.

In April 2013, Blogger updated its HTML template editor that has some improvements to make it easy for the users to edit the blog's source code. The editor was updated with syntax highlight, number line and jump-to-widget button for ease of editing the code.

==Integration==
* "Blogger for Word" is an add-in for [[Microsoft Word]] which allows users to save a Microsoft Word document directly to a Blogger blog, as well as edit their posts both on- and offline. {{As of|2007|01}}, Google says "Blogger for Word is not currently compatible with the new version of Blogger", and they state no decision has been made about supporting it with the new Blogger.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://support.google.com/blogger/?hl=en#topic=3339243|title=Blogger Help}}</ref> However, [[Microsoft Office 2007]] adds native support for a variety of blogging systems, including Blogger.<ref name="register-live-writer">{{cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/12/11/microsoft_open_sources_windows_live_writer/|title=Microsoft releases Windows Live Writer as open source|access-date=October 22, 2019}}</ref>
* Blogger also started integration with [[Amazon.com|Amazon]] Associates in December 2009, as a service to generate revenue.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://buzz.blogger.com/2009/12/blogger-integrates-with-amazon.html |title=Buzz.blogger.com |publisher=Buzz.blogger.com |access-date=December 25, 2011}}</ref> It was not publicly announced, but by September 2011 it appeared that all integration options had been removed and that the partnership had ended.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blogger-hints-and-tips.blogspot.com/2011/09/blogger-amazon-integration-is-finished.html|title=Blogger / Amazon integration is finished – what are our options now? |date=September 23, 2011 |work=Amazon Integration is Over – what are our options now?|access-date=September 21, 2012}}</ref>
* [[Open Live Writer]] (formerly [[Windows Live Writer]], originally part of the [[Windows Live]] suite) can publish directly to Blogger.<ref name="register-live-writer"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/microsoft-volunteers-open-source-live-writer-blogging-tool/|title=Microsoft volunteers open source Live Writer blogging tool|access-date=October 22, 2019}}</ref>

==Blogger on mobile devices==
{{More citations needed section|date=December 2012}}
Blogger has launched mobile applications for users with mobile devices. Users can post and edit blogs, and also share photos and links on Blogger through their mobile devices. Not only advanced mobile devices, such as smartphones, are being considered, since users can also post blogs via traditional cell phones by SMS and [[Multimedia Messaging Service|MMS]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blogger.com/mobile-start.g|title=Blogger Features}}</ref>

The major two [[mobile operating system]]s that Blogger focuses on are [[Android (operating system)|Android]] and [[iOS]].<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://buzz.blogger.com/2012/11/new-and-improved-blogger-mobile-apps.html |title = New and improved Blogger mobile apps}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://googlemobileads.blogspot.nl/|title=Google Mobile Ads Blog|website=googlemobileads.blogspot.nl}}</ref> Blogger allow users to edit blogs anywhere through the app and either publish the blogs or save them as drafts. Quick navigation from posts and drafts is accessible from a list. Users can attach photos by taking a picture with a Blogger app or selecting pictures from their photo galleries. Sharing current locations on posts is also possible by tabbing My Location bar and adding locations. Users can also share photos and links directly to Blogger.

Blogger also provides dynamic mobile views for the blogging compatibility with mobile devices and smartphones. They enhance the readability accuracy on these smart devices, but editing a blog on the blogger app remains an open issue for the users.

==Blocking==

{{More citations needed section|date=December 2012}}
Blogger has been blocked for various periods of time in the following countries:
* [[Cuba]]
* [[Fiji]]
* [[India]] (some ISPs in 2012 blocking an IP address put into [[Federal List of Extremist Materials]] in 2011)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.news18.com/news/india/blogspot-blogs-blocked-in-india-360362.html |title=Blogspot blogs blocked in India? |date=July 27, 2012 |access-date=September 9, 2012}}</ref>
* [[Iran]]
* [[Kazakhstan]]
* [[Kyrgyzstan]]
* [[Pakistan]]<ref name="gatekeepers">{{cite news |first= Jeffrey|last= Rosen|title=Google’s Gatekeepers |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/magazine/30google-t.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss&pagewanted=all |quote=Over the past couple of years, Google and its various applications have been blocked, to different degrees, by 24 countries. Blogger is blocked in Pakistan, for example, and Orkut in Saudi Arabia. |work=[[The New York Times]] |year=2008 |access-date=December 1, 2008 }}</ref>
* [[China|People's Republic of China]]
* [[Russian Federation]] (some ISPs in 2012 blocking an IP address put into [[Federal List of Extremist Materials]] in 2011)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lenta.ru/articles/2012/07/27/lockedmashina/ |script-title=ru:Полосатый тормоз "Билайн" заблокировал сайт "Доброй машины правды" |publisher=Lenta.ru |language=ru |date=July 27, 2012 |access-date=September 9, 2012}}</ref>
* [[Syrian Arab Republic]]
* [[Turkey]]
* [[Vietnam]]
* [[Yemen]]

Blocking of *.blogspot.com domains by keyword-based Internet filtering systems is also encountered due to the domain [[Scunthorpe problem|containing the substring]] "[[G-spot|gspot]]"; however, this can be alleviated by excluding the "blogspot.com" section of the URL from the keyword-based Internet filtering whilst the *. section of the URL is exposed to keyword-based Internet filtering.

==Limitations==
Blogger has the following limitations on content storage and bandwidth, per user account:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=42348 |title=What are the limits on my Blogger account? |access-date=Jul 20, 2015}}</ref>
* Blog description – 500 characters max.
* Number of blogs – 100 blogs per account
* Number of labels – 5,000 unique labels per blog (an increase from the original 2,000), 20 unique labels per post (with at most 200 characters)
* Number of pictures – Ordinarily, up to 1 GB of total storage, shared with [[Picasa]] Web. If you've upgraded to [[Google+]], your photos will be stored in [[Google Photos]], where you have 15 GB of storage space shared with [[Gmail]] and [[Google Drive|Drive]]. However, if one has signed up for Google+ account, images less than 16 megapixels (4920 × 3264)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://support.google.com/photos/answer/6220791|title=Choose a storage size}}</ref> would not be counted to this storage limit. For users not signed up for Google+, 800 × 800 pixels and below images would not be included in this storage space.
* Number of posts – There is no limit on the number of posts one can have in one blog. However, a maximum of 100 posts can be created or published per day.{{citation needed|date=May 2016}}
* Size of pages – Individual pages (the main page of a blog or archive pages) are limited to 1 MB
* Size of pictures – If posted via Blogger Mobile, limited 250 KB per picture;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?answer=42448 |title=How does Blogger Mobile work?
|access-date=September 27, 2011}}</ref> posted pictures are scaled to 1600px{{citation needed|date=July 2015}}

* Number of pages – There is no limit on the number of pages you can have on one blog
* Team members (those who can write to a blog) – 100 invitations per blog
* [[Favicon]] – Any square image less than 100 KB
* Account suspension: if a site is violating any terms of service, it may be suspended by Blogger without any notice. Repeated violations may lead to Google account suspension.

On February 18, 2010,<ref>Vardhman Jain, "[http://buzz.blogger.com/2010/02/auto-pagination-on-blogger.html Auto Pagination on Blogger]", ''Blogger Buzz'', February 18, 2010.</ref> Blogger introduced "auto-pagination," which limited the number of posts that could be displayed on each page, often causing the number of posts on the main page to be less than that specified by the user and leading to a hostile response from some users.<ref>"[http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/blogger/thread?tid=211d87eb120a771a&hl=en Problem Rollup: Auto Pagination for blogs with Classic templates]", ''Blogger Help Forum'' (Retrieved March 1, 2010).</ref><ref>"[http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/blogger/thread?tid=33d7b281c3f27ad0&hl=en Problem Rollup: Auto Pagination for blogs with Layouts templates]", ''Blogger Help Forum'' (Retrieved March 1, 2010).</ref>

Private blogs are limited to only 100 members.

==Support==
The official support channel is the Blogger Product Forum.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!categories/blogger |title=Google Discussiegroepen |access-date=2013-01-31}}</ref> This online discussion forum, delivered using Google Groups, serves Blogger users of varying experience, and receives some monitoring from Google staff. "Product Experts," formerly known as "Top contributors," are community-members nominated by the Google staff who enjoy additional privileges including managing discussions and direct access to Google staff. There is likely to be a top contributor or other knowledgeable person reading the forum almost all the time.

A number of people, including some top contributors, run personal blogs where they offer advice and post information about common problems.

[[StackExchange]]'s Web Applications forum has a tag for "blogger", which is used for questions about various blogging platforms, including Blogger.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://webapps.stackexchange.com/|title=Web Applications Stack Exchange}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Internet}}
*[[List of Google products]]
*[[Niche blogging]]
*[[LiveJournal]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons|Blogger}}
* {{Official website}}
* {{Curlie|Computers/Internet/On_the_Web/Weblogs/Tools/Publishers/Blogger}}

{{Google LLC}}

[[Category:Blog hosting services]]
[[Category:Blog software]]
[[Category:Internet properties established in 1999]]
[[Category:Google acquisitions]]
[[Category:Google services|Blogger]]
[[Category:2003 mergers and acquisitions]]
[[Category:1999 establishments in California]]

Blogger - Revision history

Delinker at 12:48, 31 July 2023