Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
6
A Simple Sample Text Widget
You can create Text widgets when you add the Text widget to your blog. Here's an example of cre-
ating a Text widget; the one shown here combines text, graphics, and simple HTML:
1.
In the Administration area, click the Appearance header, and then click Widgets. The Widgets
page appears, as shown in Chapter 3.
2.
Drag the Text widget from the Available Widgets in the center of the screen to the Sidebar on
the right. The Text widget opens up.
3.
Enter a title for the widget. This is important; a poor or confusing choice of title might annoy
people every time they see any page of your blog.
We've titled the example widget ANDROID-RELATED POSTS, in reference to Google's Android
operating system for mobile phones. (Widget titles always display in UPPERCASE.)
4.
To add a graphic to the widget, upload it to the Media Library, as described in Chapter 8. Then
copy the URL into the Text widget, using the
img
tag.
5.
To add text and HTML to the widget, enter it in free-form fashion. Be sure to click the
Automatically Add Paragraphs check box, unless you want to add a lot of
<p>
and
</p>
tags
yourself.
For our sample site, a typical entry contains the name of a post, surrounded by code to link it to
its permalink. The result looks like this:
<a href=”http://gvdaily.com/2009/04/24/dialing-international-who-needs-mobile-
minutes/”>Dialing International: Who Needs Mobile Minutes?</a>
6.
Click the Save button regularly to save your work.
7.
When you're finished, click Save one last time, and then click Visit Site.
Our sample Text widget's code along with the resulting widget are shown in Figure 6.9.
When you're done, always review your work, note what works well, and consider how to
improve it.
For the Text widget described here, for instance, here are the things we like:
•
A nice, distinctive image—easy to find for repeat visitors
•
A good location—the main keyword, Android, is right at the front of the widget title
•
A clear, simple topic
