How to Add Font Awesome Social Icons in Blogger

It's near impossible to find a blog or site these days without at least one social media account to their name. Be it Twitter or Facebook, <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/09/how-to-add-instagram-widget-in-blogger.html">Instagram</a> or <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/08/pinterest-pin-it-mouseover-button-for-blogger-images.html">Pinterest</a>, or all of those for that matter, what's become increasingly clear is that social media helps increase your online presence.<br /><br />Gone are the days when you used to rely on good old search engine results alone. These days, maybe you don't rank well in results for your keyword on Google or any other search engine, but you can launch a social media campaign that can hopefully give you the results that you want.<br /><br />Essentially, your site and social media need to co-exist. One cannot live without the other, if you want another way of putting it. Social media is one of the best drivers of traffic on the internet, and if you want to increase your chances of being seen, then you have got to get an account on one or more platforms as long as it fits with your brand's identity.<br /><br /><div class="ssmainhide" style="clear: both;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ22AAVcQx0_jQr380pOybxfxjTk12T7Kop7qroxzr2dH8bWpj1PblQQFS6ukECbTk1DWegVVdjxPGoPDBqKNPaNIYlUOJDVhl7N-6QnrLtcKW0gL-83JyIhtQ42dppLgSXxTjBUBq_1-P/s1600/font-awesome-social-icons.png" title="How to Add Font Awesome Social Icons in Blogger" /></div><h4>Spreading Awareness of Your Social Media Presence</h4>Once you've set up your social media accounts, you don't just leave it there to be discovered. Sure, you can <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2015/07/best-hashtag-instagram-widget.html">make use of hashtags</a> and communicate with industry leaders, but that's not enough to bring awareness to your customers. To let them know you have a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vine or Pinterest, you have to make use of the real estate on your website.<br /><br />How exactly do you do that, you ask? Well, by means of social icons.<br /><br />Social icons are those little images you see that represent a symbol associated with a particular social network. For example, social icons for Twitter usually feature a blue bird. If not that, then a lowercase letter T.<br /><br />The presence of these images remind your viewers that they have other ways of being up to date with whatever you put out. Social media use is pretty high these days thanks to the immediacy of the medium as well as the fun factor. And more likely than not, your audience would want to know whether you're on any social network.<br /><br />If you're on the Blogger platform, you can add these social media representations through <b>Font Awesome social icons</b>.<br /><br /><h2>What is Font Awesome?</h2>Font Awesome "gives you scalable vector icons that can instantly be customized - size, color, drop shadow, and anything that can be done with the power of CSS". In essence, it functions as a toolkit where you get access to more than 500 icons for use on your site - free of charge.<br /><br />Now, if you've used social media icons before, you know that there are non-vector varieties. But those offered by Font Awesome are scalable vector icons, and in the long run, they are the better option for your site.<br /><br />Why is that the case?<br /><br />Well, a very good reason would be that <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/07/blogger-seo-image-optimization.html">images take time to load</a>. Yes, these images are tiny but the point still stands. Plus, images tend to lose their quality as computer resolution increases. In other words, if you want your icons to load faster and have a nice, crisp and clean look, then you're better off with using the collection of Font Awesome. Also, the chance to customize your icons accordingly is definitely an attractive factor too.<br /><br /><h2>Why you should start using Font Awesome?</h2>Of the many providers out there, why stick with Font Awesome?<br /><ul><li><b>Large collection of icons</b>. You'll not only find social media icons here, but other traditional icons as well. </li><li><b>CSS support</b>. With CSS, you can adjust the icons according to what suits your site best. You can tinker with the colors, size, shadows and other components. This is something sorely lacking with non-vector images because you're stuck with the icon you chose.</li><li><b>Speed</b>. Vector images are lightweight and therefore load faster.</li><li><b>Free</b>. You don't have to pay a single thing when you use Font Awesome.</li></ul>So now you know the importance of icons on your site, it's time to learn <b>how to add Font Awesome icons in Blogger</b>.<br /><br /><h2>Adding Font Awesome Social Icons in Blogger</h2>The adding of icons to your Blogger isn't rocket science. In fact, the process is pretty straightforward.<br />Here's what you have to do:<br /><br /><h3>Add Font Awesome Stylesheet into Blogger</h3>Follow the steps below to get Font Awesome working with your blog:<br /><br />1. Open your Blogger dashboard, go to Template and press the Edit HTML button.<br />2. Click anywhere inside the code area and press CTRL + F keys to open the search box.<br />3. Type the <span style="background-color: yellow;"><head></span> tag inside the search box and press Enter to find it.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome stylesheet" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKs-oykRW5fOJ45oqi9BCfnT5wxH5Xa0wEtyLLq3bC1p4RtiJkSBkIO-Yp_kwt64k4jDnBGOBKY56y_nClIDlE0b_soOdGG6niYmFWFjlxRVXUuZnhrFNMs4uxE6-Y5AoctgD2ixtXU-a6/s1600/add-font-awesome-stylesheet-to-blogger.png" title="How to Add Font Awesome Stylesheet to Blogger" /></div><br />4. Add the following line of code referencing the location of the font-awesome.min.css stylesheet just below the <span style="background-color: yellow;"><head></span> tag:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><link rel="stylesheet" href="https://maxcdn.bootstrapcdn.com/font-awesome/4.7.0/css/font-awesome.min.css" /></blockquote><br />5. Click the 'Save template' button to save the changes and start playing with Font Awesome!<br /><br /><h3>Using the Font Awesome Icons</h3>After you get the steps in the previous section done, you're now ready to use Font Awesome in your blog. The first thing you need to do is add the social icons links to the HTML and delete the icons that you don't need anymore. This is a sample HTML that you can add:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div id="fawesomeicons"><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Facebook" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-facebook"></i></b></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Google Plus" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-google-plus"></i></b></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Twitter" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-twitter"></i></b></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Pinterest" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-pinterest"></i></b></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Instagram" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-instagram"></i></b></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Bloglovin" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-heart"></i></b></a> <br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Tumblr" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-tumblr"></i></b></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="RSS" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><b><i class="fa fa-rss"></i></b></a><br /></div></blockquote>In the above HTML code, we can see 8 separate social icons which can be recognized by looking at the link title attribute. For example, the first one is for Facebook.<br /><br />To use the social icons, paste your URL where it says URL-HERE for each social icon you want to include. Put the link between the quotes and make sure to not remove any of the quotation marks.<br /><br />If you want to remove a social icon, just delete that line of code starting with "<a href" and ending with "</a>".<br /><br />Now, keep in mind that Font Awesome works anywhere with the <b><i></b> tag as it was designed to work with inline elements. Although you can use <span>, official documentation prefers the <b><i></b> option for brevity.<br /><br />Font Awesome icons can be placed anywhere using the CSS prefix <b>fa</b> together with the name of the icon. For a <a href="http://fontawesome.io/icons/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">list of social media icon names</a>, you can refer to the official website of Font Awesome.<br /><br />Let's say that you want to display a Youtube icon so you can link it to your official account on the platform. Find the Youtube icon on the list and click on it:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome icon" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwPL8EuKl6T23pC-WF-MMuHQc-vUHkEUQAThoVtL_78Fuw6TZLbXWIFet9ZzsQoToevdtSreAmeimlQr9I3OjboQHitoCY1kTY23E_KJUAYPTJ1ai_1QuFwaYR_kvvmElQNV_I-uoMeP7J/s1600/youtube-font-awesome-icon.png" title="How to Add Font Awesome Social Icons" /></div><br />That will bring you to a page for Youtube where you will see this code:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8zzXwjN3JNj4h67sh41E5GBKZqvbS8F6yLXohE6QJ8-slXwZ3s7q0Icz0vM7FqJukYzEO8AXeKPvVQZCSMB6zBoRXrQZSHpRpbmFfNUUghrlHej-Ga5815X_fk8EhnA6ZQDrt4_gFxA3/s1600/font-awesome-icon-youtube.png" title="Add Font Awesome Youtube Icon" /></div><br />To include the icon within the list, copy any line starting with "<a href" and ending with "</a> from the code above, paste where you want it to appear and replace the code starting with "<i class="fa " and ending with "</i>" with that of your chosen icon.<br /><br />Finally, after adding the icon, the list will look like this: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div id="fawesomeicons"><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Facebook" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-facebook"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Google Plus" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-google-plus"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Twitter" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-twitter"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Pinterest" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-pinterest"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Instagram" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-instagram"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Bloglovin" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-heart"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="Tumblr" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-tumblr"></i></a><br /><a href="URL-HERE" title="RSS" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-rss"></i></a><br /><b><a href="URL-HERE" title="Youtube" target="_blank" rel="nofollow"><i class="fa fa-youtube"></i></a></b><br /></div></blockquote>Note: don't forget to change the title and add your URL between the quotes.<br /><br />Once you've finished editing the icons, insert the code into a HTML/Javascript gadget by going to "Layout" and click on the "Add a gadget" link. If you're using WordPress, paste it in a Text widget.<br /><br /><h3>Customize the Font Awesome Icons Using CSS</h3>Suppose you want to make the icons a lot bigger than they currently are. That task is made simple with the use of CSS. Here's a sample code:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons a {<br />    font-size: 16px;<br />    width: 30px;<br />    height: 30px;<br />    line-height: 30px;<br />}</blockquote>To change the font size, increase or decrease the 16px value. Below are the values (30px) for the container's width and height which should always match. Increasing/decreasing these values, will increase/decrease the size of the container where is the font.<br /><br />Here are some different styles for the font awesome social icons. In the CSS, look for the <b>#background-color</b>, <b>#border-color</b>, <b>#font-color</b> and <b>#hover-color</b> text so that you can know here to put the color codes. You can use this tool to generate the color code: <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2012/02/color-code-generator.html">Color Code Generator</a>. If you don't know how to add CSS, follow <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/03/how-to-add-css-to-blogger-via-template-designer.html">this tutorial</a>.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQxS7QGWHXJ_vUlT455lN3jGvcfIZagtVEy2PKVl52movyTMJgvQdRfGgSY6hk94XC5VbKx_1HYEJnqTO7l8N0t54A47UPn4lZrq7MFJqk10DChvyLZbvRc0o0n-J_RewS1X3dGlZ55_n/s1600/font-awesome-social-icons-square.png" title="Font Awesome Social Icons for Blogger 1" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons {<br />text-align: center;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />display: inline-block;<br />font-size: 16px;<br />width: 30px;<br />height: 30px;<br />line-height: 30px;<br />margin: 0 1px 6px;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a:hover{<br />background: <b>#hover-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjcH2bnp3q2icAl_MU4Y7u7e5DvDNrd0-6bQrxVWfLg2dwx3y-tFgNU0s7khCa9wM8u-AO4DPv7rXWIb_1miw1V-zUI3hKxVz7S9BxY2NrDjyNIz8a7OwpB-4nbeLYqZjzBYyfo3ptwfL/s1600/font-awesome-social-icons-rounded-icons.png" title="Font Awesome Social Icons for Blogger 2" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons {<br />text-align: center;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />display: inline-block;<br />font-size: 16px;<br />width: 30px;<br />height: 30px;<br />line-height: 30px;<br />margin: 0 1px 6px;<br />-webkit-border-radius: 100%;<br />-moz-border-radius: 100%;<br />border-radius: 100%;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a:hover{<br />background: <b>#hover-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaAPUpigIFVuKm6weZGyq6xqawxcMs8IQYROJg0uLfQKi4wtd6Dx2hYzraf5qc2JyMVsBedo_w0KP8U5nicoDJkGyFBBGBlz3D_gUsUIY-zB3hYH-_DKIW-PcBMgFCDi_hWZI1au62je0X/s1600/font-awesome-social-icons-square-border.png" title="Font Awesome Social Icons for Blogger 3" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons {<br />text-align: center;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a {<br />border: 1px solid <b>#border-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />display: inline-block;<br />font-size: 16px;<br />width: 30px;<br />height: 30px;<br />line-height: 30px;<br />margin: 0 1px 6px;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a:hover{<br />background: <b>#hover-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvLjGdzRbtxTfzj13MK7Z6x0n5Py-F6FgQ-DcEPvB5LvRyJXxIAfz8MgN-jEDAsIdhuiuaB1DenMyyFPOg4h8MzmMf6yBsuUyxsASrcvvlRxHU5kDHClmGzLaREtP8I-YluOw9OTuwSczA/s1600/font-awesome-social-icons-rounded-border.png" title="Font Awesome Social Icons for Blogger 4" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons {<br />text-align: center;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a {<br />border: 1px solid <b>#border-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />display: inline-block;<br />font-size: 16px;<br />width: 30px;<br />height: 30px;<br />line-height: 30px;<br />margin: 0 1px 6px;<br />-webkit-border-radius: 100%;<br />-moz-border-radius: 100%;<br />border-radius: 100%;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a:hover{<br />background: <b>#hover-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="font awesome social icons" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpgcGCPK7jPkchS372vcDbl3sOExApDShM-CGDFAduAV7JC6juqavIphNGxgRRVcIaI0PuZdRAL5b9DTtbdqx4BlltQM8tnltwYPdHZa6v_Ll342LmFKxtZcPfd1xje0mL6VP_yN_z07Q3/s1600/font-awesome-social-icons-font-color.png" title="Font Awesome Social Icons for Blogger 5" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons {<br />text-align: center;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a {<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />display: inline-block;<br />font-size: 23px;<br />margin: 0 6px 6px;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a:hover{<br />background: <b>#hover-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote><br />Now, what if we want to change the background or font color of a specific icon? First, we need to identify the icon class which is just after the <i class="fa ..." and add it like this:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons<b> a .<span style="color: red;">fa-facebook</span></b> {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote>Here, we can change the background and color for the Facebook icon but we can do it for any icon you want. For example, let's add another rule for the twitter icon:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons<b> a .<span style="color: red;">fa-facebook</span></b> {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />}<br /> #fawesomeicons a .<span style="color: #e06666;"><b>fa-twitter</b></span> {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote>To make the fonts bigger, we can add the CSS code like this:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">#fawesomeicons {<br />text-align: center;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons a .fa{<br />display: inline-block;<br />font-size: 16px;<br />width: 30px;<br />height: 30px;<br />line-height: 30px;<br />}<br />#fawesomeicons<b> a .<span style="color: red;">fa-facebook</span></b> {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />}<br /> #fawesomeicons a .<span style="color: #e06666;"><b>fa-twitter</b></span> {<br />background: <b>#background-color</b>;<br />color: <b>#font-color</b>;<br />}</blockquote>To apply, copy the code above and add the CSS rule with the icon class that you wish to change.<br /><br />Important: When adding the class for your icon, always put a dot (.) in front of it as you can see in the example above, otherwise it won't work.<br /><br />And that's it! Hopefully, this tutorial helped you to add Font Awesome social icons in Blogger. If you're still in trouble adding them, please take a look at <a href="http://fontawesome.io/examples/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Examples page</a>.

How to Add Font Awesome Social Icons in Blogger

It's near impossible to find a blog or site these days without at least one social media account to their name. Be it Twitter or Faceboo...

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Building a List/Grid View Switcher in Blogger with Auto Read More

A list of posts in grid or list view provides a more defined canvas with which a blogger or website owner can use as a guide in creating content. This concept has extended to visitors, where they can have control on whether or not they wish to <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2015/03/masonry-grid-layouts-for-blogger-posts.html">display posts in list or grid view</a>. While custom modification codes are shared by some blogging sites, others are not. Some that are shared, however, can be complex even to bloggers themselves, such as JQuery. <br /><br />The good news is there are lightweight codes available, including the <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2012/03/auto-read-more-with-thumbnail-for.html">Auto Read More in Blogger</a>. Through it, a blogger can add two buttons that will enable visitors to switch between grid view and list view, depending on what they prefer. These buttons, however, are only visible on limited pages - homepage, label page and archive page. Nonetheless, it is better than not having this particular feature at all.<br /><br />Unlike JQuery, the Auto Read More uses HTML, CSS and JavaScript. To view posts in a list view, two sets of CSS codes are added as one. Another set is added to view posts in grid view. Other combination of codes is used to enable easy switch between views, particularly at a click of a button. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXi-HiIrGsLKvHU4B0_kXUgtVJmhsRLakP5C810bCtP1nLa7wEudepS2LYJN40VrhU3kdpq2__JNN7DPjDCZfhBx6ROApuNfhbfGmK7QtKwo7tNuMRQGdJvq_9gmte9_tn6L5tbhjDS0v/s1600/grid-list-view-switcher-for-blogger-posts.png" width="400" /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a class="demo-link" href="https://grid-list-view.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Live Demo</a></div><br /><h2>How to Add a List/Grid View Switcher in Blogger</h2>Step 1. Log into your <a href="http://www.blogger.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Blogger dashboard</a> and select your blog, then go to "Template" > press the "Edit HTML" button.<br /><br />Step 2. Click anywhere inside the code area and press the CTRL + F keys to open the search box. Type this tag below inside the box and hit Enter to find it:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"></head></blockquote>Step 3. Just above the <span style="background-color: yellow;"></head></span> tag, copy and paste the following CSS style and scripts:<br /><div class="code1"><script type='text/javascript'><br />function list_view(){<br />if(document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post&quot;)) {elementArray = document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post&quot;); while (elementArray.length) {elementArray[0].className = &quot;post-grid-view&quot;;}}<br />if(document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post-title&quot;)) {elementArray = document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post-title&quot;); while (elementArray.length) {elementArray[0].className = &quot;post-title-grid&quot;;}}<br />}<br />function grid_view(){<br />if(document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post-grid-view&quot;)) {elementArray = document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post-grid-view&quot;); while (elementArray.length) {elementArray[0].className = &quot;post&quot;;}}<br />if(document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post-title-grid&quot;)) {elementArray = document.getElementsByClassName(&quot;post-title-grid&quot;); while (elementArray.length) {elementArray[0].className = &quot;post-title&quot;;}}<br />}<br /></script><br /> <script type='text/javascript'><br />posts_no_thumb_sum = 100;<br />posts_thumb_sum = 350;<br /></script><br /><br /><script type='text/javascript'><br />//<![CDATA[<br />function removeHtmlTag(strx,chop){<br />if(strx.indexOf("<")!=-1)<br />{<br />var s = strx.split("<");<br />for(var i=0;i<s.length;i++){<br />if(s[i].indexOf(">")!=-1){<br />s[i] = s[i].substring(s[i].indexOf(">")+1,s[i].length);<br />}<br />}<br />strx = s.join("");<br />}<br />chop = (chop < strx.length-1) ? chop : strx.length-2;<br />while(strx.charAt(chop-1)!=' ' && strx.indexOf(' ',chop)!=-1) chop++;<br />strx = strx.substring(0,chop-1);<br />return strx+'...';<br />}<br />function createSummaryAndThumb(pID, pURL, pTITLE){<br />var div = document.getElementById(pID);<br />var imgtag = "";<br />var img = div.getElementsByTagName("img");<br />var summ = posts_no_thumb_sum;<br />if(img.length>=1) {<br />imgtag = '<span class="posts-thumb" style="float:left; margin-right: 10px;"><a href="'+ pURL +'"><img src="'+img[0].src+'" /></a></span>';<br />summ = posts_thumb_sum;<br />}<br /><br />else {<br />imgtag = '<span class="posts-thumb" style="float:left; margin-right: 10px;"><a href="'+ pURL +'" title="'+ pTITLE+'"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE1X1Zd52szrWNwHVqkPrnBk4fQgBUI_xvtxmsiC7rzDHQTE6IBgMr2xa6D5ws4-cTwI8dpSWentln4wCy7GRY3J6EmOYKyHOFNPgaHrKdE51f2agQO8skomXOLHtOHPAdlC2Per16bMFm/s1600/sorry-image-not-available.png" style="margin-top: -30px;" /></a></span>';<br />summ = posts_thumb_sum;<br />}<br /><br />var summary = imgtag + '<a href="'+ pURL +'"><div class="post-summary-text">' + removeHtmlTag(div.innerHTML,summ) + '</div></a>';<br />div.innerHTML = summary;<br />}<br />//]]><br /></script><br /><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType!= &quot;item&quot;'><br /><style><br />#list-view-button {font-family: Verdana; text-align:left;cursor:pointer;font-size: 14px;border-bottom: 5px solid #eaeaea;text-decoration: none;}<br />#list-view-button a{text-decoration: none; color: #666;}<br />.grid-view-button {background-color:#efefef;color:#666;padding:5px 10px;border-radius: 5px;font-size: 12px;}<br />.list-view-button {background-color:#efefef;color:#000;padding:5px 10px;border-radius: 5px;font-size: 12px;}<br />.post-grid-view {width:100%;height:250px;overflow: hidden;float:left;margin:0px 0px 20px !important;position:relative;display: block; -webkit-transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; -moz-transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; -o-transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; }<br />.post-grid-view .posts-thumb {width:40% !important;height:250px !important;float:left;margin:0px;position:relative;border-top: 0px solid transparent !important;overflow: hidden;}<br />.post-grid-view .post-header {display: none;}<br />.post-grid-view .post-body img {min-width: 300px !important; min-height: 250px !important;display:block;width:100%!important;height:auto!important;max-width:800px!important;max-height:400px!important;border:none;outline:none;position:relative;margin: 0px;padding:0;}<br />.post-grid-view .post-summary-text {opacity: 1; background: none; width: 58%;font-size: 120% !important;clear: none !important; display: inline-block !important; padding: 80px 0px !important; color: #666 !important; text-shadow: none !important; float: right !important; text-align: left; position: relative !important; font-family: &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;, sans-serif;}<br />.post-grid-view .post-body {height: 250px;background:#f5f5f5; box-shadow: none !important;}<br />.post-title-grid a { font-size:170%;color: #777;font-family: &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;, sans-serif;}<br />.post-title-grid { position: absolute; left: 42%; top: 5%; z-index: 1;}<br />.post-grid-view .post-footer {left: 41%; display:block;position: absolute; bottom: 2%;font-size: 120%; background: transparent !important; border: 0px solid transparent !important;font-family: &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;, sans-serif;}<br />.post-grid-view .post-footer a{color: #128EC9;}<br />.post-grid-view a.comment-bubble {display: none;}<br />.main-inner .column-center-inner .section {margin: 0px !important;}<br />.post { -webkit-transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; -moz-transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; -o-transition:all 0.5s ease 0s; transition:all 0.5s ease 0s;}<br /><br />#blog-pager {clear:both;}<br />.post {height:auto;width:32.2%;display:inline-block;text-decoration:none;float:left;margin:0 1% 1% 0%;overflow: hidden;padding:0!important;}<br />.date-header {display: none;}<br />h3.post-title a {font-size:90%;font-family: &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;, sans-serif;text-transform:uppercase;color:#fff;text-shadow: 1px 1px 0 rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1);font-weight: bold;}<br />h3.post-title {text-align: center; position:absolute;top:0;width:100%;overflow:hidden;margin:0px !important;padding-top: 30%; background-color: rgba(50, 126, 213, 0.8);transform: scale(1);opacity: 0;z-index: 10;height: 100%;transition: all 300ms ease-out 0s;}<br />h3.post-title:hover {opacity: 1;}<br />.posts-thumb {width:100%!important;height:200px!important;overflow:hidden;clear:both;}<br />.post-body {border-radius:2px;box-shadow:0 5px 4px 1px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);position:relative;overflow: hidden;}<br />.post-body a {text-decoration: none;}<br />.post-body img {display:block;width:100%!important;height:auto!important;max-width:800px!important;max-height:400px!important;min-width:200px!important;min-height:200px!important;border:none;outline:none;position:relative;margin: 0px;padding:0;}<br />.post-summary-text {display: none;}<br />a.comment-bubble {color:#fff;text-decoration:none;font-size:100%;width: 100%;text-align: center;position:absolute;top:175px;left: 0px;text-shadow:1px 2px 1px #333;font-family: &#39;Pacifico&#39;, cursive;z-index: 122;}<br />a.comment-bubble:before { content: &quot;Comments: &quot; url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX1kzH6eUo6zY0NEofkWtjV_6wme2WYOAADG9d9P4F26VbHxlYa04LZa10uYo7H9dqSds3X_tgFX6wJZU-5Tnw4aAkoZSjDRgBv1g4ZhBtT6ZH1wV3YTLDuVOBO5BUCHEWeqr7I7HHfWed/s1600/heart-active.png);}<br />.post-header,.post-footer {display:none;}<br /></style></b:if></b:if><br /><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Open+Sans+Condensed:300' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/><br /><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Pacifico' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/></div><br />Step 4. Next, search for the following line:<br /><blockquote><b:section class='main' id='main' name='Main' showaddelement='no'></blockquote>...in case you can't find it, search for this one instead:<br /><blockquote><b:section class='main' id='main' name='Main' showaddelement='yes'></blockquote>Step 5. Just above this line, add the following code:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType!= &quot;item&quot;'><br /><div id='list-view-button'><a class='grid-view-button' onclick='grid_view()'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkd8nmIuwVzGiSv9VX5cSslYceAEwlFlcDbL9uNQy9rL-mO6e8wEmrolA48ai2nrQxOx7YX0c1dmfDmnVlxaaCjvpjfs8pPs_W42mLhCHyT-Q9friVkoS8a8w9EZUs-48XrRyavp9t363V/s1600/search-grid-icon.png' style='margin: -8px 1px -3px -6px;width: 16px;'/> Grid View</a> <a class='list-view-button' onclick='list_view()'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07ufQcADH4PJloEE2sABM8gDhguM8ZMx9C-4yleHcI6_1dXNjsDuhIi-8Zs16O6wHdvC1vATr80esmWF33prBZWF03qVNOw2byt3WQ7iyex-Fa1bHym-3_zmDJuj8_Vk55-T0DqAEnBT9/s1600/icon-list-view.png' style='margin: -8px 1px -3px -6px;width: 16px;'/> List View</a></div><br /></b:if></b:if></blockquote>Step 6. Now, search the tag below:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><data:post.body/></blockquote>Step 7. You will find 3 occurrences of this code... replace only the second and third one with this one below:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"> <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br />    <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;item&quot;'><br />        <div expr:id='&quot;summary&quot; + data:post.id'><br />            <data:post.body/><br />        </div><br />        <script type='text/javascript'>createSummaryAndThumb(&quot;summary<data:post.id/>&quot;,&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;);</script><br />        <b:if cond='data:post.allowComments'><br />            <a class='comment-bubble' expr:href='data:post.addCommentUrl' expr:onclick='data:post.addCommentOnclick'><br />                <data:post.numComments/><br />            </a><br />        </b:if><br />    </b:if><br /></b:if><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'><br />    <data:post.body/><br /></b:if><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;static_page&quot;'><br />    <data:post.body/><br /></b:if></blockquote><br />Important: if you already added the auto read more script, remove the previous one in order to make this work.<br /><br />Step 8. Finally, click "Preview" to see if everything looks good and press the 'Save Template' button to save the changes... <br /><br /><h4>That's it!</h4>Adding a dynamic view switcher on a blog will make viewing content a lot easier for visitors. Whether using a list or grid view, a more compressed list of posts will eliminate the need to click on the next page, which could take time if loading takes a while to complete. For a blog archive, using the Auto Read More codes in Blogger will surely make everyone's viewing experience very convenient. <br /><br />Considering the ease with which the codes can be customized, building a list/grid view switcher would be completed in no time. A real bonus is that Auto Read More works on all platforms, with cross-browser support as well.

Building a List/Grid View Switcher in Blogger with Auto Read More

A list of posts in grid or list view provides a more defined canvas with which a blogger or website owner can use as a guide in creating con...

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Add Masonry, Grid Layouts to Blogger Posts with CSS and Javascript

How a website's content is displayed can spell the difference between being popular and obscure. Anything that looks chaotic or hardly readable is never going to be anyone's favorite. This is why content must be displayed in an organized, easy to follow and straightforward manner. Nothing works better than a structured grid, in this case.<br /><br /><a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2015/03/list-grid-view-switcher-for-blogger.html">Posts listed in grid view</a> provide an excellent viewing experience for both the blogger or website owner and the visitors. This is especially true if the grid comes with images that would play with a person's visual inclination. What is great about grids is the seamless and smooth layout, complemented with a structured yet simple architecture. This makes it easier to navigate through a blog archive or product page. The style also enables a website owner to present posts in a more artistic and informative manner, without delving into the details. Suffice to say that a grid view demands creativity to be effortlessly mixed with functionality.<br /><br />How views can be switched depends on a number of changes in a blog's codes. Some are fairly easy to implement, while others can be a little complex. Not to worry, as there are guides that will be provided. Grid styles also come in huge varieties, with each one designed to cater to a specific audience. Now, are you ready to go on the grid?<br /><br /><h3>Features</h3><h4>What features can you expect from a grid style post in Blogger?</h4><ul><li>All the posts will follow the grid style when switching to grid view.</li><li>While the codes are being customized, the posts are left untouched. Their length, however, could be changed accordingly.</li><li>Auto Read More will be applied on all posts.</li><li>Thumbnails are automatically added based on the first picture found in each post.</li><li>Code is secure and is used across the board. In fact, 99% of bloggers are using a similar code to enable grid style posts in blogger.</li></ul><h4>What are the benefits of grid style?</h4><ul><li>Quick loading time of posts. Since only the snippets are loaded in certain pages, or a thumbnail and a caption, pulling up a blog archive would be quicker. When loading time is decreased, user experience is greatly enhanced.</li><li>Professional-looking blog. Without the chaos and concerns on readability, a website can look really clean and professional. Combined with the right colors and images, it can also leave a visual impact.</li><li>Improved website ranking. Because visitors have to click in order to view the rest of the post, page views of a site will significantly increase. This makes for a better SEO strategy.</li></ul>Although changes to the CSS codes have to be made to implement the grid style view and make it compatible with a blog's template, all the work will be worth it once it is up and running.<br /><br /><b>Important:</b><br />Before anything make sure that you backup your Blogger template! If have encounter any problems with your edits, you can revert the template back to its previous condition by restoring it from your backup. For this, go to 'Template' in the left menu > click on the 'Backup/Restore' button in the upper right corner and press the 'Download Full Template' button - choose where you want to save the file on your computer and click the 'Save' button.<br /><br />Now we can safely proceed with editing our Blogger template. If you run into problems, just revert back to your saved template.<br /><br /><h3>How to Create Masonry, Grid Style Posts in Blogger</h3>Step 1. Log into your <a href="http://www.blogger.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Blogger dashboard</a> and click on the blog where you want to apply the grid style.<br /><br />Step 2. Go to "Template" located on the left side of the screen and press the "Edit HTML" button.<br /><br />Step 3. Click anywhere inside the code area and press the CTRL+F keys to open the search box, then type the following tag inside the box (hit Enter to find it):<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"></head> </blockquote>Step 4. Now copy the script below and paste it just before the <span style="background-color: yellow;"></head></span> tag:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><script type='text/javascript'><br />posts_no_thumb_sum = 100;<br />posts_thumb_sum = 100;<br /></script><br /><script type='text/javascript'><br />//<![CDATA[<br />function removeHtmlTag(a,b){if(a.indexOf("<")!=-1){for(var c=a.split("<"),d=0;d<c.length;d++)c[d].indexOf(">")!=-1&&(c[d]=c[d].substring(c[d].indexOf(">")+1,c[d].length));a=c.join("")}for(b=b<a.length-1?b:a.length-2;" "!=a.charAt(b-1)&&a.indexOf(" ",b)!=-1;)b++;return a=a.substring(0,b-1),a+"..."}function createSummaryAndThumb(a,b,c){var d=document.getElementById(a),e="",f=d.getElementsByTagName("img"),g=posts_no_thumb_sum;f.length>=1?(e='<div class="posts-thumb" style="float:left;"><a href="'+b+'"><img src="'+f[0].src+'" /></a></div>',g=posts_thumb_sum):(e='<div class="posts-thumb" style="float:left;"><a href="'+b+'" title="'+c+'"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE1X1Zd52szrWNwHVqkPrnBk4fQgBUI_xvtxmsiC7rzDHQTE6IBgMr2xa6D5ws4-cTwI8dpSWentln4wCy7GRY3J6EmOYKyHOFNPgaHrKdE51f2agQO8skomXOLHtOHPAdlC2Per16bMFm/s1600/sorry-image-not-available.png" /></a></div>',g=posts_thumb_sum);var h=e+'<div class="post-summary-text">'+removeHtmlTag(d.innerHTML,g)+"</div>";d.innerHTML=h}<br />//]]><br /></script></blockquote>Step 5. Find the following code snippet using CTRL+F or Command + F:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><data:post.body/></blockquote>Step 6. After pressing the "Enter" key on your keyboard, you may find three occurrences of the above code, replace only the second and the third one with this code below:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br />    <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;item&quot;'><br />        <div expr:id='&quot;summary&quot; + data:post.id'><br />            <data:post.body/><br />        </div><br />        <script type='text/javascript'>createSummaryAndThumb(&quot;summary<data:post.id/>&quot;,&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;);</script><br />        <b:if cond='data:post.allowComments'><br />            <a class='comment-bubble' expr:href='data:post.addCommentUrl' expr:onclick='data:post.addCommentOnclick'><br />                <data:post.numComments/><br />            </a><br />        </b:if><br />    </b:if><br /></b:if><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'><br />    <data:post.body/><br /></b:if><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;static_page&quot;'><br />    <data:post.body/><br /></b:if></blockquote><br />Step 7. Now choose one of the styles below, copy the code provided and paste it just above the <span style="background-color: yellow;"></head></span> tag:<br /><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Simple Grid Design</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAC28flnXxcspXLAEkyMVdv1_bsWhXTblue2np6rYVNdcXxexy6FUE7pTLOJha4Voxjur9_lztsMyXSX5PjL6C1f6z_7URk7L52FrHKcJJ-C7qSYOmS7z5rP-np0RgidHkS_YSf258hnJ6/s1600/grid-style-with-thumbnail-summary.png" width="321" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType!= &quot;item&quot;'><br /><style type="text/css"><br />#blog-pager{clear:both}.post{height:auto;width:30.8%;overflow:hidden;display:inline-block;text-decoration:none;float:left;margin:0 1.1% 2%;padding:0!important}h3.post-title a{font-size:75%;font-family:&#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;text-transform:uppercase;padding:0;color:#444}h3.post-title{height:26px;text-align:center;width:100%;margin:0!important;padding-bottom:4%}.date-header{display:none}.post-body a{text-decoration:none}.posts-thumb{width:100%;height:190px;overflow:hidden;position:relative}.posts-thumb img{position:absolute;left:-100%;right:-100%;top:-100%;bottom:-100%;margin:auto;width:auto;max-width:340px;height:auto;padding:0;border:none;outline:none;}.post-summary-text{color:#777;font-size:100%!important;font-family:&#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;text-align:center;clear:both;overflow:hidden;margin:5px 0 0;padding:7% 10%}a.comment-bubble{color:#fff;text-decoration:none;font-size:100%;font-weight:700;right:10px;position:absolute;top:165px;text-shadow:1px 2px 1px #333;font-family:&#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;}a.comment-bubble:before{content:&quot;Comments: &quot;;}.post-header,.post-footer{display:none}<br /></style></b:if></b:if><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Open+Sans+Condensed:300' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/></blockquote><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Grid Layout with Post Summary and Thumbnail</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="grid layout for blogger" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBHQKiWXnzB0xBCMrtQ9HsvCQaw5QeQFX1U0wFTUktiiYWXCllrVgmIawmtk70rvD6DiTUU-RP5sud0chNkHasWgWfrNvu28thXxNByfI5FkHSRAkv7zPmXKmJrpJ3wqqi9s8rV4vuGgIx/s1600/grid-layout-for-blogger.png" title="Create Masonry, Grid Layouts for Blogger Posts" width="320" /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a class="demo-link" href="http://blogger-grid-layouts.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2015-03-01T05:57:00-08:00&max-results=9" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Demo</a></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType!= &quot;item&quot;'><br /><style type="text/css"><br />#blog-pager{clear:both}.post{height:auto;width:31%;display:inline-block;text-decoration:none;float:left;margin:0 1.1% 2%;padding:0!important}h3.post-title a{font:75% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;text-transform:uppercase;color:#111;padding:0}h3.post-title{text-align:center;height:22px;position:absolute;bottom:23%;width:100%;z-index:101;overflow:hidden;margin:0!important;padding:10px 0 13px}.date-header{visibility:hidden;height:0!important;width:0!important;margin:0!important;padding:0!important}.posts-thumb{width:100%;height:190px;position:relative;overflow:hidden;clear:both;border-bottom:3px solid #00C8BD;border-top:3px solid #558ABB}.posts-thumb:hover{border-top:3px solid #FF664E;border-bottom:3px solid #FEBE36}.post-body{position:relative;height:auto}.post-body a{text-decoration:none}.posts-thumb img{position:absolute;left:-100%;right:-100%;top:-100%;bottom:-100%;margin:auto;width:auto;max-width:340px;height:auto;padding:0;border:none;outline:none}.post-summary-text{color:#555;background:#f5f5f5 url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqgik-OdloEhdXxCkgYifPdi37ZdrqQrabfYPOwUG8UEiyES4zK71YmuHQrMbhONm0-qISwOCkVi9mHiFZKd-3QKSuHJzvCYoPz3UY_w-EsXB_9MeffxGSttpP7yjCF1iOH8hMSAo4BV8L/s1600/blueprint.png);font:100% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;text-align:center;clear:both;overflow:hidden;margin:5px 0 0;padding:17% 10% 6%}a.comment-bubble{color:#fff;text-decoration:none;right:10px;position:absolute;top:165px;text-shadow:1px 2px 1px #333;font:110% &#39;Pacifico&#39;,cursive;}a.comment-bubble:before{content:&quot;Comments: &quot; url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX1kzH6eUo6zY0NEofkWtjV_6wme2WYOAADG9d9P4F26VbHxlYa04LZa10uYo7H9dqSds3X_tgFX6wJZU-5Tnw4aAkoZSjDRgBv1g4ZhBtT6ZH1wV3YTLDuVOBO5BUCHEWeqr7I7HHfWed/s1600/heart-active.png);}.post-header,.post-footer{display:none}<br /></style></b:if></b:if><br /><link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Open+Sans+Condensed:300' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/><br /><link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Pacifico' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/></blockquote><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Grid Layout with Text Snippet on Hover</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="blogger posts" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLHaWV-CEpfO6zv5v9xv663RPQd0cpfouhRr-_AHLsmRUuQubu7l2aSz51qa9ukznxFOVaItfNRKgznhSvbyD90I0E8OpRK88LbtOZEeoCOeyCdj2rBMrXZFHiOgfrdtF-w-8RDE-syehu/s1600/grid-layout-summary-on-hover-for-blogger.png" title="Create Masonry, Grid Layouts for Blogger Posts 2" width="400" /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a class="demo-link" href="http://blogger-grid-layouts.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2015-02-25T08:37:00-08:00&max-results=9&start=9&by-date=false" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Demo</a></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType!= &quot;item&quot;'><br /><style type="text/css"><br />#blog-pager{clear:both}.post{height:auto;width:31%;display:inline-block;text-decoration:none;float:left;margin:0 1.1% 2%;padding:0!important;}h3.post-title a{font:95% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;text-transform:uppercase;color:#fff;padding:0;text-shadow:2px 2px 3px #222}h3.post-title{height:22px;text-align:center;position:absolute;top:1%;width:100%;z-index:101;overflow:hidden;margin:0!important;padding:10px 0}.date-header{visibility:hidden;height:0!important;width:0!important;margin:0!important;padding:0!important;}.posts-thumb{width:100%;height:190px;overflow:hidden;position:relative;}.post-body{position:relative;overflow:hidden}.post-body a{text-decoration:none;}.posts-thumb img{position:absolute;left:-100%;right:-100%;top:-100%;bottom:-100%;margin:auto;width:auto;max-width:340px;height:auto;padding:0;border:none;outline:none;}.post-summary-text{cursor:pointer;background-color:rgba(44,77,163,0.8);color:#fff;font:108% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;overflow:hidden;padding:45px 10px 0;left:0;position:absolute;text-align:center;text-shadow:1px 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.1);top:0;opacity:0;height:100%;transition:all 300ms ease-out 0s;}.post-summary-text:hover{opacity:1;z-index:10;}a.comment-bubble{color:#fff;text-decoration:none;font:104% &#39;Pacifico&#39;,cursive;width:100%;text-align:center;position:absolute;top:160px;left:0;text-shadow:1px 2px 1px #333;z-index:11;}a.comment-bubble:before{content:&quot;Comments: &quot;}.post-header,.post-footer{display:none}<br /></style></b:if></b:if><br /><link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Open+Sans+Condensed:300' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/><br /><link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Pacifico' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/></blockquote><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Masonry Layout (Pinterest Like Grid)</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="masonry layout for blogger" border="0" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiik3CprEV5TbXmYQqk5sJpAMBsYYwBoW4ZrBF_-eB15xFrXnlJnsB5jIxWkElEorRwwlJd-ya8CNDVMNge9T-QFdPJV4yXJpo_3nWI5D0MgjmpFVoi5qT2MmHfJy1MbjRmOL-oNX1F5aKZ/s1600/masonry-grid-layout-for-blogger.png" title="Create Masonry, Grid Layouts for Blogger Posts 3" width="400" /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a class="demo-link" href="http://blogger-grid-layouts.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">DEMO</a></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType != &quot;static_page&quot;'><br /><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType!= &quot;item&quot;'><br /><style type="text/css"><br />#blog-pager{clear:both;position:absolute;bottom:0;left:0}.blog-feeds{display:none}.post{height:auto;width:100%;padding:0!important;margin:0 0 30px;display:inline-block;text-decoration:none}h3.post-title a{font:bold 95% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;text-transform:uppercase;padding:0;color:#fff;text-shadow:3px 2px 2px #222;}h3.post-title,.comments h4{margin:0!important;text-align:center;padding:10px 0;position:absolute;top:10px;width:100%;z-index:200}.post-header{display:none}.date-header{visibility:hidden;height:0!important;width:0!important;padding:0!important;margin:0!important}.posts-thumb{width:100%;height:auto;overflow:hidden;clear:both}.post-body{overflow:hidden;position:relative}.post-body a{text-decoration:none}.post-body img{display:block;width:auto;height:auto;max-width:100%;max-height:none;min-width:100%;min-height:auto;margin:0;padding:0;border:none;outline:none;position:relative}.post-summary-text{cursor:pointer;background-color:rgba(44,77,163,0.8);color:#fff;font:120% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;padding:84px 10% 0;left:0;position:absolute;text-align:center;vertical-align:bottom;text-shadow:1px 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.1);top:0;opacity:0;z-index:10;height:100%;transition:all 300ms ease-out 0s;}.post-summary-text:hover{opacity:1}.post-footer{display:none}a.comment-bubble{color:#fff;text-decoration:none;font:120% &#39;Open Sans Condensed&#39;,sans-serif;right:5px;z-index:222;position:absolute;top:5px;text-shadow:1px 2px 1px #333;}a.comment-bubble:before{content:url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX1kzH6eUo6zY0NEofkWtjV_6wme2WYOAADG9d9P4F26VbHxlYa04LZa10uYo7H9dqSds3X_tgFX6wJZU-5Tnw4aAkoZSjDRgBv1g4ZhBtT6ZH1wV3YTLDuVOBO5BUCHEWeqr7I7HHfWed/s1600/heart-active.png);}.main-inner .column-center-inner{-moz-column-count:3;-moz-column-gap:1px;-webkit-column-count:3;-webkit-column-gap:1px;column-count:3;column-gap:1px;width:100%;padding:0!important}<br /></style></b:if></b:if><br /><link href='https://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Open+Sans+Condensed:300' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/></blockquote><br />Please note that the masonry layout might not work if you have a customized template, also older posts will appear vertically (from top to bottom) instead of left to right.<br /><br />Step 8. Click "Preview" and if everything looks fine, press the "Save Template" button.<br /><br /><h5>That's it!</h5>Implementing a grid style view has its pros and cons, but the benefits clearly outweigh the disadvantages. The fact that a website will look visually appealing and professional when set in grid style, is already enough to boost its online reputation. An increase in page views is just the beginning. With the right images and content, a blog will also have better SEO. Most importantly, implementing the changes is not as complex as some might think. With a step-by-step guide available, adding a dynamic view switcher would be completed in no time.

Add Masonry, Grid Layouts to Blogger Posts with CSS and Javascript

How a website's content is displayed can spell the difference between being popular and obscure. Anything that looks chaotic or hardly r...

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5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger

For bloggers that pride themselves on always staying up-to-date with new content, a <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2012/05/recent-posts-widget-with-thumbnails-for.html">recent post widget for Blogger</a> can be an invaluable tool. A recent posts widget for blogger is in many ways similar to a 'breaking news alert' that journalists love to use during their reports, providing the most recent and relevant posts that you have to offer.<br /><br />Adding a recent post widget for Blogger helps to reduce the dependency on email marketing, because you don't have to send out an email just to let people know you made a new post. Instead, it updates automatically for everyone to see. You can then use this information to design scheduled email newsletters, and take advantage of what's often referred to as the 'Twitter effect' where audiences will regularly check back on your site for the possibility that new posts are available. Without this, you force people to do run their own search for information and content, increasing the likelihood that they'll leave the site and hurt your bounce rate.<br /><br />Once you've managed to attract visitors to one of your posts using the <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2012/04/recent-posts-widget-for-bloggerblogspot.html">recent post widget for Blogger</a>, it will continue to act as an accessible secondary resource to navigate around your site. That way, you can avoid having them sifting through old content that might be outdated. If you'd rather show off some of your best posts instead of your most recent posts, you can do that instead, or add that feature to the bar with just a few alterations.<br /><br />Apart from looking great and taking up minimal space, there are too many benefits for you not to have a recent post widget for Blogger. The best part about these add-ons is that they come in a wide variety of designs that will fit any theme. If you're interested in adding a widget to your site, here are 5 cool recent post widgets that might catch your eye and fit perfectly with your Blogger template:<br /><div class="ssmainhide" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="recent posts for blogger, cool widgets" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAS8obENhEP2e_8JMlz0t175Mc1xmdYs_HCAQsDCvTn3DfG0LkHMKEDgI1eBSxmD7N_Sh6Osu1tw3SnUbALcntMnqQdh6tCSd1silphZZsqGUskyqFUZjCVuoCRw05rINyw4cZG3rM4XO_/s1600/recent-posts-gadget-blogger.png" title="5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger" /></div><br /><h4 style="text-align:center;">Recent Posts Style #1</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="rainbow widget, recent posts" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJHjzWUQiMqDTqAdd5OqEIeYoDI-0puAhdWaV_OcOtAw-TcTex5JXmzEuQQBRBgncW2HN_evn9wdEfj7rsDEo66oVyK4XhkSH_jpw4SBofkrcVu-7ZrHUSJ_QCRx765CVkVTSnS085SSxB/s1600/rainbow-colorful-recent-posts-widget-for-blogger.png" title="5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger" /></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><script type="text/javascript"><br />function showlatestpostswiththumbs(t){document.write('<ul class="recent-posts-container">');for(var e=0;e<posts_no;e++){var r,n=t.feed.entry[e],i=n.title.$t;if(e==t.feed.entry.length)break;for(var o=0;o<n.link.length;o++){if("replies"==n.link[o].rel&&"text/html"==n.link[o].type)var l=n.link[o].title,m=n.link[o].href;if("alternate"==n.link[o].rel){r=n.link[o].href;break}}var u;try{u=n.media$thumbnail.url}catch(h){s=n.content.$t,a=s.indexOf("<img"),b=s.indexOf('src="',a),c=s.indexOf('"',b+5),d=s.substr(b+5,c-b-5),u=-1!=a&&-1!=b&&-1!=c&&""!=d?d:"https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfnHMAb2RHYlxUtarwNRWwFlPGHgfj839uHEmw0KG2FoLpC-Q_TeOU99ru39j7apZo6qzeIJNxP4YE9etEhij6YXrOCr0ys6Ia5haIpu9rcw6VQLR_-daj9rFPQlOM7nCNwzi_pkvPV3b/s1600/no-thumb.png"}var p=n.published.$t,f=p.substring(0,4),g=p.substring(5,7),v=p.substring(8,10),w=new Array;if(w[1]="Jan",w[2]="Feb",w[3]="Mar",w[4]="Apr",w[5]="May",w[6]="Jun",w[7]="Jul",w[8]="Aug",w[9]="Sep",w[10]="Oct",w[11]="Nov",w[12]="Dec",document.write('<li class="recent-posts-list">'),1==showpoststhumbs&&document.write('<a href="'+r+'"><img class="recent-post-thumb" src="'+u+'"/></a>'),document.write('<div class="recent-post-title"><a href="'+r+'" target ="_top">'+i+"</a></div>"),"content"in n)var A=n.content.$t;else if("summary"in n)var A=n.summary.$t;else var A="";var k=/<\S[^>]*>/g;if(A=A.replace(k,""),1==post_summary)if(A.length<summary_chars)document.write(A);else{A=A.substring(0,summary_chars);var y=A.lastIndexOf(" ");A=A.substring(0,y),document.write(A+"...")}var _="",$=0;document.write('<br><div class="recent-posts-details">'),1==posts_date&&(_=_+w[parseInt(g,10)]+" "+v+" "+f,$=1),1==readmorelink&&(1==$&&(_+=" | "),_=_+'<a href="'+r+'" class="url" target ="_top">Read more</a>',$=1),1==showcommentslink&&(1==$&&(_+=" <br> "),"1 Comments"==l&&(l="1 Comment"),"0 Comments"==l&&(l="No Comments"),l='<a href="'+m+'" target ="_top">'+l+"</a>",_+=l,$=1),document.write(_),document.write("</div>"),document.write("</li>")}document.write("</ul>")}<br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br />var posts_no = 5;<br />var showpoststhumbs = true;<br />var readmorelink = true;<br />var showcommentslink = false;<br />var posts_date = true;<br />var post_summary = true;<br />var summary_chars = 70;<br /></script><br /><script src="/feeds/posts/default?orderby=published&alt=json-in-script&callback=showlatestpostswiththumbs"></script><br /><a style="font-size: 9px; color: #CECECE; margin-top: 10px;" href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/11/5-cool-recent-post-widgets-for-blogger.html" rel="nofollow">Recent Posts Widget</a><br /><noscript>Your browser does not support JavaScript!</noscript><br /><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Ubuntu+Condensed' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' /><br /><style type="text/css"><br />img.recent-post-thumb{width:50px;height:50px;float:right;margin:5px -5px 0px 0px;-webkit-border-radius:50%;-moz-border-radius:50%;border-radius:50%;padding:3px;background: #fff}<br />ul.recent-posts-container {list-style-type: none; background: #fff;padding: 0px;font:12px 'Ubuntu Condensed', sans-serif;margin: 5px 0px 5px 0px;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:nth-child(1n+0) {background: #F49A9A; width: 100%}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:nth-child(2n+0) {background: #FCD092; width: 95%}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:nth-child(3n+0) {background: #FFF59E; width: 90%;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:nth-child(4n+0) {background: #E1EFA0; width: 85%;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:nth-child(5n+0) {background: #B1DAEF; width: 80%;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li {padding:5px 10px;list-style-type: none; margin: 0 0 -5px; color: #777;}<br />.recent-posts-container a { text-decoration:none; }<br />.recent-posts-container a:hover { color: #222;}<br />.post-date {color:#e0c0c6; font-size: 11px; }<br />.recent-post-title a {font-size: 14px;color: #444; font-weight: bold;}<br />.recent-post-title {padding: 6px 0px;}<br />.recent-posts-details a{ color: #222;}<br />.recent-posts-details {padding: 5px 0px 5px; }<br /></style></blockquote><h4 style="text-align:center;">Recent Posts Style #2</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="recent posts widget for blogger" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRKE4ttMSjBP9RgMYZcqu2Anv4e3xPRAwCU6t2d5NGUVfJkB0RP0MoKyaW7xXyI-aZnbHsUAYVTJtH8pJFPvcFR3HmJQfUDj_T9gftBjM_CHeMW82ftKd6SxKJ0aePwRyWBvwBVkU4Bvtb/s1600/recent-posts-widget-for-blogger.png" title="5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger" /></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><div class="recentpoststyle"><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br />function showlatestposts(e){for(var t=0;t<posts_no;t++){var r,s=e.feed.entry[t],n=s.title.$t;if(t==e.feed.entry.length)break;for(var a=0;a<s.link.length;a++)if("alternate"==s.link[a].rel){r=s.link[a].href;break}n=n.link(r);var i="... read more";i=i.link(r);var l=s.published.$t,o=l.substring(0,4),u=l.substring(5,7),c=l.substring(8,10),m=new Array;if(m[1]="Jan",m[2]="Feb",m[3]="Mar",m[4]="Apr",m[5]="May",m[6]="Jun",m[7]="Jul",m[8]="Aug",m[9]="Sep",m[10]="Oct",m[11]="Nov",m[12]="Dec","content"in s)var d=s.content.$t;else if("summary"in s)var d=s.summary.$t;else var d="";var v=/<\S[^>]*>/g;if(d=d.replace(v,""),document.write('<li class="recent-post-title">'),document.write(n),document.write('</li><div class="recent-post-summ">'),1==post_summary)if(d.length<summary_chars)document.write(d);else{d=d.substring(0,summary_chars);var f=d.lastIndexOf(" ");d=d.substring(0,f),document.write(d+" "+i)}document.write("</div>"),1==posts_date&&document.write('<div class="post-date">'+m[parseInt(u,10)]+" "+c+" "+o+"</div>")}}<br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br />var posts_no = 5;var posts_date = true;var post_summary = true;var summary_chars = 80;</script><br /><script src="/feeds/posts/default?orderby=published&amp;alt=json-in-script&amp;callback=showlatestposts"><br /></script><a style="font-size: 9px; color: #CECECE;margin-top:10px;" href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/11/5-cool-recent-post-widgets-for-blogger.html" rel="nofollow">Recent Posts Widget</a><br /><noscript>Your browser does not support JavaScript!</noscript><br /><style type="text/css"><br />.recentpoststyle {counter-reset: countposts;list-style-type: none;}<br />.recentpoststyle a {text-decoration: none;color: #49A8D1;}<br />.recentpoststyle a:hover {color: #000;}<br />.recentpoststyle li:before {content: counter(countposts,decimal);counter-increment: countposts;float: left;z-index: 1;position:relative;font-size: 15px;font-weight: bold;color:#fff;background:#69B7E2; margin:13px 5px 0px -6px;line-height:30px;width:30px;height:30px;text-align:center;-webkit-border-radius:50%;-moz-border-radius:50%;border-radius:50%;}li.recent-post-title{margin-bottom: 5px;padding: 0;}<br />.recent-post-title a {color: #444;text-decoration: none;font: bold 13px "Avant Garde",Avantgarde,"Century Gothic",CenturyGothic,AppleGothic,sans-serif;}<br />.post-date {font-size: 11px;color: #999;margin:5px 0px 15px 32px;}<br />.recent-post-summ {border-left:1px solid #69B7E2; color: #777; padding: 0px 5px 0px 20px; margin-left: 10px; font: 15px Garamond,Baskerville,"Baskerville Old Face","Hoefler Text","Times New Roman",serif;}<br /></style></div></blockquote><h4 style="text-align:center;">Recent Posts Style #3</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="recent posts gadget" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJPmN1cFPAXqtQraWqofLiiJUdS8N5F0eRxPdvZ1ePxLoyYfnOF3QUBzrhx_l9u_rutchO_2NHDA5DAPkL-IJa2_rJClEac4Y3PF5Q9jEexFPPmEk4UUN9c72OFKY1L5cA4cM52-RvznLS/s1600/recent-posts-widget-with-comments-count.png" title="5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger" /></div><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><script type="text/javascript"><br />function showlatestpostswiththumbs(t){document.write('<ul class="recent-posts-container">');for(var e=0;e<posts_no;e++){var r,n=t.feed.entry[e],i=n.title.$t;if(e==t.feed.entry.length)break;for(var o=0;o<n.link.length;o++){if("replies"==n.link[o].rel&&"text/html"==n.link[o].type)var l=n.link[o].title,m=n.link[o].href;if("alternate"==n.link[o].rel){r=n.link[o].href;break}}var u;try{u=n.media$thumbnail.url}catch(h){s=n.content.$t,a=s.indexOf("<img"),b=s.indexOf('src="',a),c=s.indexOf('"',b+5),d=s.substr(b+5,c-b-5),u=-1!=a&&-1!=b&&-1!=c&&""!=d?d:"https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfnHMAb2RHYlxUtarwNRWwFlPGHgfj839uHEmw0KG2FoLpC-Q_TeOU99ru39j7apZo6qzeIJNxP4YE9etEhij6YXrOCr0ys6Ia5haIpu9rcw6VQLR_-daj9rFPQlOM7nCNwzi_pkvPV3b/s1600/no-thumb.png"}var p=n.published.$t,f=p.substring(0,4),g=p.substring(5,7),v=p.substring(8,10),w=new Array;if(w[1]="Jan",w[2]="Feb",w[3]="Mar",w[4]="Apr",w[5]="May",w[6]="Jun",w[7]="Jul",w[8]="Aug",w[9]="Sep",w[10]="Oct",w[11]="Nov",w[12]="Dec",document.write('<li class="recent-posts-list">'),1==showpoststhumbs&&document.write('<a href="'+r+'"><img class="recent-post-thumb" src="'+u+'"/></a>'),document.write('<div class="recent-post-title"><a href="'+r+'" target ="_top">'+i+"</a></div>"),"content"in n)var A=n.content.$t;else if("summary"in n)var A=n.summary.$t;else var A="";var k=/<\S[^>]*>/g;if(A=A.replace(k,""),1==post_summary)if(A.length<summary_chars)document.write(A);else{A=A.substring(0,summary_chars);var y=A.lastIndexOf(" ");A=A.substring(0,y),document.write(A+"...")}var _="",$=0;document.write('<br><div class="recent-posts-details">'),1==posts_date&&(_=_+w[parseInt(g,10)]+" "+v+" "+f,$=1),1==readmorelink&&(1==$&&(_+=" | "),_=_+'<a href="'+r+'" class="url" target ="_top">Read more</a>',$=1),1==showcommentslink&&(1==$&&(_+=" <br> "),"1 Comments"==l&&(l="1 Comment"),"0 Comments"==l&&(l="No Comments"),l='<a href="'+m+'" target ="_top">'+l+"</a>",_+=l,$=1),document.write(_),document.write("</div>"),document.write("</li>")}document.write("</ul>")}<br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br />var posts_no = 5;<br />var showpoststhumbs = true;<br />var readmorelink = true;<br />var showcommentslink = true;<br />var posts_date = true;<br />var post_summary = true;<br />var summary_chars = 40;</script><br /><script src="/feeds/posts/default?orderby=published&alt=json-in-script&callback=showlatestpostswiththumbs"></script><br /><a style="font-size: 9px; color: #CECECE; margin-top: 10px;" href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/11/5-cool-recent-post-widgets-for-blogger.html" rel="nofollow">Recent Posts Widget</a><br /><noscript>Your browser does not support JavaScript!</noscript><br /><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Oswald' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/><br /><style type="text/css"><br />img.recent-post-thumb{padding:2px;width:65px;height:65px;float:left;margin:0px 10px 10px;border: 1px solid #69B7E2;}<br />.recent-posts-container {font-family:'Oswald', sans-serif;font-size:12px;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li{list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 10px;font-size:12px;float:left;width:100%}<br />ul.recent-posts-container {counter-reset: countposts;list-style-type:none;padding:0;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:before {content: counter(countposts,decimal);counter-increment: countposts;z-index: 1;position:absolute; left: 0px; font-size: 13px;font-weight: bold;color: #fff;background: #69B7E2;line-height:25px;height:25px;width:25px;text-align:center;-webkit-border-radius: 50%;-moz-border-radius: 50%;border-radius: 50%;}<br />.recent-posts-container a{text-decoration:none;}<br />.recent-post-title {margin-bottom:5px;}<br />.recent-post-title a {font-size:12px; text-transform: uppercase; color: #2aace3;}<br />.recent-posts-details {margin: 5px 0px 0px 92px;font-size:11px;}<br />.recent-posts-details a{color: #777;}<br /></style></blockquote><h4 style="text-align:center;">Recent Posts Style #4</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="recent posts for blogger, cool widgets" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAS8obENhEP2e_8JMlz0t175Mc1xmdYs_HCAQsDCvTn3DfG0LkHMKEDgI1eBSxmD7N_Sh6Osu1tw3SnUbALcntMnqQdh6tCSd1silphZZsqGUskyqFUZjCVuoCRw05rINyw4cZG3rM4XO_/s1600/recent-posts-gadget-blogger.png" title="5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger" /></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><script type="text/javascript"><br />function showlatestpostswiththumbs(t){document.write('<ul class="recent-posts-container">');for(var e=0;e<posts_no;e++){var r,n=t.feed.entry[e],i=n.title.$t;if(e==t.feed.entry.length)break;for(var o=0;o<n.link.length;o++){if("replies"==n.link[o].rel&&"text/html"==n.link[o].type)var l=n.link[o].title,m=n.link[o].href;if("alternate"==n.link[o].rel){r=n.link[o].href;break}}var u;try{u=n.media$thumbnail.url}catch(p){s=n.content.$t,a=s.indexOf("<img"),b=s.indexOf('src="',a),c=s.indexOf('"',b+5),d=s.substr(b+5,c-b-5),u=-1!=a&&-1!=b&&-1!=c&&""!=d?d:"https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfnHMAb2RHYlxUtarwNRWwFlPGHgfj839uHEmw0KG2FoLpC-Q_TeOU99ru39j7apZo6qzeIJNxP4YE9etEhij6YXrOCr0ys6Ia5haIpu9rcw6VQLR_-daj9rFPQlOM7nCNwzi_pkvPV3b/s1600/no-thumb.png"}var h=n.published.$t,f=h.substring(0,4),w=h.substring(5,7),v=h.substring(8,10),A=new Array;A[1]="Jan",A[2]="Feb",A[3]="Mar",A[4]="Apr",A[5]="May",A[6]="Jun",A[7]="Jul",A[8]="Aug",A[9]="Sep",A[10]="Oct",A[11]="Nov",A[12]="Dec",document.write('<li class="recent-posts-list">'),1==posts_date&&document.write('<div class="post-date">'+A[parseInt(w,10)]+" "+v+" "+f+"</div>"),1==showpoststhumbs&&document.write('<a href="'+r+'"><img class="recent-post-thumb" src="'+u+'"/></a>'),document.write('<div class="recent-post-title"><a href="'+r+'" target ="_top">'+i+"</a></div>");var g="",k=0;document.write('<div class="recent-posts-details">'),1==showcommentslink&&(1==k&&(g+=" <br> "),"1 Comments"==l&&(l="1 Comment"),"0 Comments"==l&&(l="No Comments"),l='<a href="'+m+'" target ="_top">'+l+"</a>",g+=l,k=1),1==readmorelink&&(1==k&&(g+=" | "),g=g+'<a class="readmorelink" href="'+r+'" class="url" target ="_top">Read more</a>',k=1),document.write(g),document.write("</div>"),document.write("</li>")}document.write("</ul>")}<br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br />var posts_no = 5;<br />var showpoststhumbs = false;<br />var readmorelink = true;<br />var showcommentslink = true;<br />var posts_date = true;<br /></script><br /><script src="/feeds/posts/default?orderby=published&alt=json-in-script&callback=showlatestpostswiththumbs"></script><br /><a style="font-size: 9px; color: #CECECE; float: right; margin-top: 5px;" href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/11/5-cool-recent-post-widgets-for-blogger.html">Recent Posts Widget</a><br /><noscript>Your browser does not support JavaScript!</noscript><br /><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Oswald' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css'/><br /><style type="text/css"><br />img.recent-post-thumb {padding: 2px; width:35px;height:35px;float:right;margin: -14px 0px 0px 5px; border: 1px solid #cea5ac; border-radius: 10%;}<br />.recent-posts-container {font-family: 'Oswald', sans-serif;  float: left;width: 100%;min-height: 70px;margin: 5px 0px 5px 0px;padding: 0;font-size:12px;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li {padding:5px 0px;min-height:65px; list-style-type: none; margin: 0px 10px 5px 35px;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container {counter-reset: countposts;list-style-type: none;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:before {content: counter(countposts,decimal);counter-increment: countposts;z-index: 2;position:absolute; left: 5px; font-size: 16px;color: #4D4D4D;background: #F7F7F7;padding: 9px 14px; border: 1px solid #efefef;}<br />.recent-posts-container a { text-decoration:none; }<br />.recent-posts-container a:hover{color: #4DACE3;}<br />.post-date {color:#e0c0c6; font-size: 11px; }<br />.recent-post-title a {font-size: 13px; text-transform: uppercase; color: #5C4D4D;}<br />.recent-post-title { margin: 5px 0px; }<br />.recent-posts-details {border-top: 4px solid #AC707A; margin-top: 5px; padding-top: 5px;}<br />.recent-posts-details a{ color: #888;}<br />a.readmorelink {color: #4DACE3;}<br /></style></blockquote><h4 style="text-align:center;">Recent Post Style #5</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="recent posts, blogger gadget" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4FOCjuHDl_Sk6IRECHMtbZiLB7uYDVMMOZquoG41mMIe3etsOYDOpAHpC5Qol76j_jRckuBnkqauj56ABThljG0VIFRFkhfy_sBjo-YbXz5mQl-8Nr21VLJhvbem6HqtLWppH6HYavmjN/s1600/recent-posts-widget-blogger-count.png" title="5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger" /></div><blockquote class="tr_bq"><script type="text/javascript"><br />function showlatestpostswiththumbs(t){document.write('<ul class="recent-posts-container">');for(var e=0;e<posts_no;e++){var r,n=t.feed.entry[e],i=n.title.$t;if(e==t.feed.entry.length)break;for(var o=0;o<n.link.length;o++){if("replies"==n.link[o].rel&&"text/html"==n.link[o].type)var l=n.link[o].title,m=n.link[o].href;if("alternate"==n.link[o].rel){r=n.link[o].href;break}}var u;try{u=n.media$thumbnail.url}catch(p){s=n.content.$t,a=s.indexOf("<img"),b=s.indexOf('src="',a),c=s.indexOf('"',b+5),d=s.substr(b+5,c-b-5),u=-1!=a&&-1!=b&&-1!=c&&""!=d?d:"https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLfnHMAb2RHYlxUtarwNRWwFlPGHgfj839uHEmw0KG2FoLpC-Q_TeOU99ru39j7apZo6qzeIJNxP4YE9etEhij6YXrOCr0ys6Ia5haIpu9rcw6VQLR_-daj9rFPQlOM7nCNwzi_pkvPV3b/s1600/no-thumb.png"}var h=n.published.$t,f=h.substring(0,4),w=h.substring(5,7),v=h.substring(8,10),A=new Array;A[1]="Jan",A[2]="Feb",A[3]="Mar",A[4]="Apr",A[5]="May",A[6]="Jun",A[7]="Jul",A[8]="Aug",A[9]="Sep",A[10]="Oct",A[11]="Nov",A[12]="Dec",document.write('<li class="recent-posts-list">'),1==posts_date&&document.write('<div class="post-date">'+A[parseInt(w,10)]+" "+v+" "+f+"</div>"),1==showpoststhumbs&&document.write('<a href="'+r+'"><img class="recent-post-thumb" src="'+u+'"/></a>'),document.write('<div class="recent-post-title"><a href="'+r+'" target ="_top">'+i+"</a></div>");var g="",k=0;document.write('<div class="recent-posts-details">'),1==showcommentslink&&(1==k&&(g+=" <br> "),"1 Comments"==l&&(l="1 Comment"),"0 Comments"==l&&(l="No Comments"),l='<a href="'+m+'" target ="_top">'+l+"</a>",g+=l,k=1),1==readmorelink&&(1==k&&(g+=" | "),g=g+'<a class="readmorelink" href="'+r+'" class="url" target ="_top">Read more</a>',k=1),document.write(g),document.write("</div>"),document.write("</li>")}document.write("</ul>")}<br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"><br />var posts_no = 5;<br />var showpoststhumbs = true;<br />var readmorelink = true;<br />var showcommentslink = true;<br />var posts_date = true;<br /></script><br /><script src="/feeds/posts/default?orderby=published&alt=json-in-script&callback=showlatestpostswiththumbs" rel="nofollow"></script><br /><a style="font-size: 9px; color: #CECECE; float: right; margin-top: 5px;" href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/11/5-cool-recent-post-widgets-for-blogger.html" rel="nofollow">Recent Posts Widget</a><br /><noscript>Your browser does not support JavaScript!</noscript><br /><link href='http://fonts.googleapis.com/css?family=Lobster|Gloria+Hallelujah' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' /><br /><style type="text/css"><br />img.recent-post-thumb {width:50px;height:50px;float:right;margin: -4px -35px 0px 0px; border: 4px solid #FCD6CB; border-radius: 100%;}<br />.recent-posts-container {font-family: 'Gloria Hallelujah', cursive;  float: left;width: 100%;min-height: 55px;margin: 5px 0px 5px 0px;padding: 0;font-size:12px;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container {counter-reset: countposts;list-style-type: none; background: #fff; }<br />ul.recent-posts-container li:before {content: counter(countposts,decimal);counter-increment: countposts;z-index: 2;position:absolute; left: -20px; font-size: 16px;color: #616662;background: #FCD6CB;padding: 9px 14px; border-radius: 100%; margin-top: 15px;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container li {padding:5px 0px;min-height:50px; list-style-type: none; margin: -2px 5px 5px 5px;  border-top: 2px solid #FCD6CB;}<br />ul.recent-posts-container {border: 2px solid #FCD6CB; }<br />.recent-posts-container a { text-decoration:none; }<br />.recent-posts-container a:hover { color: #222;}<br />.post-date {color:#e0c0c6; font-size: 11px; }<br />.recent-post-title a {font-size: 14px;color: #616662;}<br />.recent-post-title {padding: 6px 0px;}<br />.recent-posts-details a{ color: #888;}<br />.recent-posts-details {padding-bottom: 5px;}<br />a.readmorelink {color: #4DACE3;}<br /></style></blockquote><br /><h2>How to Add Recent Posts Widget on Blogger</h2>Want to add one of the styles above? Just follow the following steps below:<br /><br />Step 1. Log into your Blogger dashboard and click on your blog<br />Step 2. Go to "Layout" and click the "Add a gadget" link on the right side<br />Step 3. From the pop-up window, scroll down and select the "HTML/JavaScript" gadget:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZsEGw6BF_jYmWP0FD1F0zWbGVe6G0qTM9BHbApWC2yrxZUWQJwWs6J-PLlzN83imZkhjOl8j_-905Z8bfTM92o2JdPHXmw_vTNlwQkJuJMCZMAGn7vxjh8pVswVQPvH33RFtF5pzkyE4x/s1600/add-html-javascript-gadget-blogger.png" width="640" /></div><br />Step 4. Paste the code of the chosen widget found below it.<br />Step 5. Hit the "Save" button... and you're done!<br /><br /><h3>Keep Your Blog Updated</h3>Using a recent post widget for Blogger can truly benefit you and improve your skill as a blogger. As you can see, these designs can look great on Blogger sites, but they do act a little bit like a progress report for the author. If you start to fall behind, the dates on your recent post widget will definitely give you away.<br /><br /><a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2016/09/how-to-hide-posts-from-blogger-homepage.html">Set a schedule</a> and make sure that you are making regular posts on the blog. These posts will be automatically updated on your widget and readers can view this information whenever they want. Add your recent post widget for Blogger on the every page of the blog or in your template so that these posts can encourage others to continue reading, thus increasing the total time spent on your site.

5 Cool Recent Post Widgets for Blogger

For bloggers that pride themselves on always staying up-to-date with new content, a recent post widget for Blogger can be an invaluable too...

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Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures

Blogger is a fantastic tool for amateur and professional writers that have a passion for publishing online content. Unlike WordPress or hosting companies that require you to design your site before ever getting started, Blogger is a ready to go service right out of the box that will allow you to start writing for yourself or others on day one. The effort required to sign up for an account is minimal, and you can really get as creative as you want, whenever you want.<br /><br />Even if you aren't familiar with web development or design, that's okay. Blogger is a place for everyone. Thanks to the overwhelming support of the Blogger and creative communities, there are plenty of free to use resources out there to make your site look great and keep you focused on what you love best. Here are some of the top sites for acquiring blogger backgrounds that won't cost you a dime and will look incredible.<br /><br /><div class="ssmainhide" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="free blogger backgrounds and textures" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_J82Z_YDUEcVB__kS8jb8mlNt_G589m4t5BzJcX4PFcFdGf03Vr2ySKeKcPkR_mQoszH5519r-yTpwUbseIyMUN_OH5Nw7LOypNI8s7Ml1KL1raw0nuVq_uUfJsMpwMzXNpkV6M2nHVhY/s1600/free-blogger-backgrounds-3.png" width="173" /></div><h4>Shabby Blogs</h4>Shabby blogs offers some unique texture and graphic rendered Blogger backgrounds to choose from. All of the designs that they have are created to be standard width so you don't get a lot of flexibility to choose from; however, there are guides out there that can teach you how to extend the sidebars, header, and footer of your screen if you find one you love and this is something important to you. In addition to offering Blogger backgrounds Shabby blogs also has a section for cute little buttons that you can add to your site to give it an extra special touch.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.shabbyblogs.com/backgrounds.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="shabby blogs backgrounds" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QYlbXseJnSr7P-ynLCEiRMqwkKBg4CX2MQfNsH41AySKLAGhbJ0bawikOyf6IzG65C9Vc3PZJAm-S9pkw_LCu4OgbO6b-6ImbRF632FLmdt0-8-TNjPzUGJ2MhX4S6VCApGj8k0M5_MV/s1600/AtTheBeachShabby.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://www.shabbyblogs.com/backgrounds.html" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw87RWb3VTZw6f00Dr6ANfTrdEfsWNMoemPjY06fKLFbnkvIacoq41zRF5bOnSPGVeK9Kro6d6CWXDX4wuv6nLTE8UhYG0ijz2p3f7zz3Eemo3ngCdRK9hM6YvjefYk9mYAkrOWgH334Zl/s1600/DelucaMShabby.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://www.shabbyblogs.com/backgrounds.html" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjwNoeTCP8xqoilwDXUNb1zLLebvZJGfY-GJBpFf2y2EgtbyIn02yJCeAXuJJ6dhLNKnLZ4V7N57gj2UEXGnB-nHGa9ReYPEh36l5Qey4XMz1qQv6M_scBMCF9whi2sjgbdAhQ6T58jy1_/s1600/OwlBeThereMShabby.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://www.shabbyblogs.com/backgrounds.html" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM7e9yFjnnTzHt5kpKWueAnRLE-z0F12akyF2eOcovmXu5P-QYSeMrhfYSILTuslcfuEQUjMU6NiMmS7lQEFc-mdDqBxnwV8hDbZ6JhTYYCCfnY14MPO6vNCkDQRRO4GfQmCbwp6Cj7WsX/s1600/WorldOnFireMShabby.png" width="173" /></a><br /><br /><h4>Hot Bliggity Blog</h4>Aside from having one of the coolest and creative names to say out loud, Hot Bliggity Blog has a wide selection of patterned-based blogs for your site. You can choose between different color schemes, and they also offer three different sizes to pick from, standard, widened, and full width. Best of all, they are really easy to install. All you have to do is click on the install link underneath the image. From there it will copy the code for you into your clipboard and give you instructions on where to paste it.<br /><br /><a href="http://hotbliggityblog.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="hot bliggity blog backgrounds" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieqbiXRWO4NMz2W5ubC5lKoTG1v9GOY6oiPqVrboLWbSCHI4lqc9EhdxUBmT4hdlEt5eta7ZBowDgubkFOB2tSCYzWV12mBuZqhe3wzoxSpCQrrsa4HB_8Du_ONhpIDQtf_rmfUGIdyFze/s1600/free-blogger-backgrounds-1.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://hotbliggityblog.com/" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_J82Z_YDUEcVB__kS8jb8mlNt_G589m4t5BzJcX4PFcFdGf03Vr2ySKeKcPkR_mQoszH5519r-yTpwUbseIyMUN_OH5Nw7LOypNI8s7Ml1KL1raw0nuVq_uUfJsMpwMzXNpkV6M2nHVhY/s1600/free-blogger-backgrounds-3.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://hotbliggityblog.com/" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitwtsD0PKOREknpOwBZg52NjUPl8eutZ-695b7Kq_F7StTTipfaDFASloTa3ifgrVfJxVsQJCpMZz60micxuW112V2v2wrQ1R0sf4mRceKmv49x6jMIs_EhFusr4L2VAKi1xY_Xaso1LK4/s1600/free-blogger-backgrounds.png" width="173" /><img border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim_zOteeB6PhdWD5uxURKV5NDU_K2cwIbQPkFmo6eJhOAp3ugT8EemnBCd9rjdGMSsfoR8SoFfjSXWJVwGoEifFGItVyMqRkkH-0bYSTy9yJ9lPH1LDld8kCcNlPHk5chml53qRMTY8vV3/s1600/rRraoXU.png" width="173" /></a><br /><br /><h4>Dotty Dot Dot</h4>Dotty Dot is the place to go if you like geometric type backgrounds that are heavy on squares, plaid, circles, and of course dots. The website is a little bit hard to navigate, but they have a sidebar with a bunch of tags to help you sort through all the available templates and find something you like. Just about every color you can imagine is available if you plan on matching your Blogger backgrounds to your favorite color or font style. The widths of the most of the templates vary so some have heavy padded sidebars, whereas some are very skinny.<br /><br /><a href="http://dottydotdotdesign1.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="http://dottydotdotdesign1.blogspot.com/" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOUNAQSrZ33QC6VX13Pq_uGOtpsm0YsIyBQ5iNhW6Oq-VjKctwi9PhGa0heX0KdCIlM4_kQQ5xrO6w5zNHVDgDbvdd5s9ipxFNcjKYWO-I2U2IiA5_20yfdFkGLG27zSA-Eb0WAMj8Xu4X/s1600/Pink_Polka_2c_BACKGROUND.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://dottydotdotdesign1.blogspot.com/" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUfJ_4b4SzmAlbnrAODeBVXgcAWPAgIFokQGBYtM6Afs1MEUg2ECSajOtdv2XEaXiqNriRnZoJ2mtIjdYvJP8wKEXIS4kdP_sXYBYj0CnQVxjw7FfliQfpewvSHe9QCgiyGpF0VzHLdot5/s1600/Square_Buttons_3c_BACKGROUND.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://dottydotdotdesign1.blogspot.com/" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXUyGIrhX_Nyw11bQljJStdYR0NW4h8hEifUGQId21QSxOPBfdvR5ZrZcvNAooHG2VSzoQpaK9EAQOQi-U3z-lGfRQrleLwmd6zUpZsg-4mwem_wyGDflTHfhzidcHagbVqKy1BHxUWaI/s1600/The__80s._Squared.png" width="173" /><img alt="http://dottydotdotdesign1.blogspot.com/" border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIVZBRe8RFdIxcnyVmkUR9FubcAOT2MWOEFtnYj4a3KaO0HW50jmMh224i55KLXmFmFNtuhQIOL8tbUJkS_8a-WTx80QyhfkA4nukyT_eYsuLKddNfBM3k9QrTLx7np1HWbAK6XQUANAIR/s1600/Vroom_Zoom_BACKGROUND.png" width="173" /></a><br /><br /><h4>LeeLou Blogs</h4>Lee Lou Blogs offers Blogger backgrounds that look a lot like you would find in a scrapbook with a heavy dependency on small pictures and vector graphics. These free templates would go great with any home improvement blog or DIY arts and crafts writer. Most of the free backgrounds are standard size with the high padded sides, but like anything you can get access to more templates if you want to take advantage of any of his premium designs.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://leelou-blogs.com/type/blog-backgrounds?style&color" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="http://leelou-blogs.com/" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmn8VYqB3ExSbun3cvsVTW13vzSaW8PJUf7Wh4DIRzU8_0z5AVSyscBCqYfPHAVnyaUp-4qKuBsM0GWmCWLJtUO70yrxZM2iFXWHRkKMxBlldcvVVHP7iRLOllA34m5KdOfyQpLstDU0lf/s1600/leelou-blogs.png" /></a></div><br /><h4>CgTextures</h4>If you just want something basic real basic that won't distract customers from your content, you can head over to CgTextures. Their site is full of photos and textures that could be added as a background image with a reduced transparency. The blog would still look great and you wouldn't have to worry as much about trying to match your font style and color so that it fits in with the background. Instead you can draw more focus on what's important and less on the site's bells and whistles.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.cgtextures.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="cg textures for blogger backgrounds" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVn-plctqTneVnhDi_sOothSaWhTNR5rC8XdaJmnkEA-JM1m_FyEkW36v93W-nJkzdINfDVuaLkDE64VqvTrqj22ZEG1u6AVt3T88Fc8kejxtisJ7XxPL04GIdfW9uqNHYuj9U9TjXuDvA/s1600/cgtextures.png" /></a></div><br /><h4>Every Stock Photo</h4>Bloggers that want less of an 'artsy' look to their site and instead more of a serious appeal can get a picture from Every Stock Photo to use as the background image. You can also benefit by using some of the pictures offered through this site within your blog posts so that you aren't stuck buying things from premium image providers. There search bar and navigation panel makes it easy to find exactly what you are looking for to see a unique feel to every page.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://everystockphoto.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="every stock photo background image" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglgptEFXVV2P1vXrDz9SdpnhVCNNXXzqv_cdj3GIIaDcAlOIJrkejgzWpk549la6mV-lW28mXlPpB0p8FcXzhFoQYefZT9hyphenhyphenIgjId_v08M_q5tU7ilWMo-JeVN_g5qpE6HcZSdlzGnCcce/s1600/everystockphoto.png" /></a></div><br /><h4>Shizoo-Design</h4>Shizoo-Design is a German based design firm with about 554 different patterns to choose from. You can find everything from conservative shapes to abstract rainbows and splashes of color. All of the textures are provided in a range of size, anywhere from 1000x700 pixels to 1300x600 pixels so that they will comfortably fit your entire site's background and work with most browsers and computer screen sizes. Brushes and custom icons are also available from the site, free of charge.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.shizoo-design.de/textures.php" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="shizoo design textures,blogger backgrounds" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh89U7yfhtnnkTR2lGSb4PwGEm9DgeLDZ8ybLWq218lWnClLnkneynmjuklL_mfAPvYNpnztX9V0701y8LBbtYy9F4i_K7LAVxQHO2DlM9yVDqDAxZM2dyViC1otH_czbcijDdTJjR6Jnnv/s1600/shizoo-design.png" /></a></div><br /><h4>Patterns of Change</h4>Patterns of Changes offers Blogger backgrounds that are cartoon oriented and that can best be tiled across the screen. The site is perhaps one of the easiest to use compared to all the others on the screen, providing a simple navigation bar where you can choose what color you'd like the pattern to be. When you select one of the colors provided, it will come up with a bunch of different patterns usually associated with that color. For instance, when the color brown is selected, one of the choices ia brown cake. Blogger backgrounds for this site might not be the best choice for business professionals, but they certainly are fun.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.lizaphoenix.com/tiles/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"><img alt="patterns of change blogger backgrounds" border="0" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5AStJYrVZEtq04xbfLA4wZZAe10N84jiHAAyna5zDwiCbQ8QUvK06plaUfpLV1ffMJAwUXf4UaA-7VUt31WmX0yoh9CT2CB2xCCQHAz6c4axchq86H3n-0WnDbQReKS_y-nUuw3z9lTU1/s1600/patterns-of-change.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><h3>How to Add a Background Image using the Blogger Template Designer</h3>If you have a background image that you want to upload, then follow these steps:<br /><br />1. Log into your <a href="https://www.blogger.com/home" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Blogger account</a> and go to "Template", press the "Customize" button on the right side. Once the Blogger template designer has opened, you'll see the <b>Background</b> option on the left - click on it:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="change blogger background" border="0" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC1XVHoR3cHyLJZtFFNuZo2tnJxOCTz8eq3MRrQWM4VzDxz9tEt0kxOyzVY1Hn0nDOl6YkulcmREFQQcUZDQ9lXAsJVA5VNSP4nMy0uzw_O9ng9QmRyHv7q6LYMrEAL0UvcTlOAx8J3_tE/s1600/upload-background-image-on-blogger-template-designer.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 1" width="610" /></div><br />2. Now click on the box below the <b>Background image</b> title and it will open a window from where we can select a default background image. On the upper left side of this window, click <b>Upload Image</b> and select the image you would like to use from a location on your computer. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="upload background image" border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiupS4txCdtQaIe_2XX6pEuAq5PYjYwNOMcM7MAx_j7wzan1GCRZhOK4zLnrg4lIIxdfZxDe_Ebstf6AOrH1Hvcqcj8JbBhD71zACs11lGjRXt0PzRDkPEWdks-7LMaliqg0nRN0FpOKeF/s1600/upload-background-image-on-blogger.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 2" width="610" /></div><br />Note that you should use a JPG, GIF, or PNG image that is no more than 300k in size. If your image is too large, then you can use the <a href="http://kraken.io/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Kraken.io</a> image optimizer to <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2014/07/blogger-seo-image-optimization.html">make the image file smaller</a>.<br /><br />3. After you've uploaded your image, click 'Done' and you'll be taken back to the background menu. Here you will see additional options like: "Alignment", "Tile" and "Scroll with page":<br /><ul><li><b>Alignment</b>: change the position of the background image to start either horizontal (left, center, right) or vertical (top and bottom);</li><li><b>Tile (Repeat)</b>: if you want a small background image to fill the page, choose to repeat (tile) horizontally and/or vertically.</li><li><b>Scroll with page</b>: the box is checked by default, this means that the background scroll along with the page contents. If you want the background picture to not move as the page is scrolled and stay exactly where it is, uncheck this box.</li></ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="background image position" border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFQTNZgYrg6-NmOwBCVrbXDut0ch9CWB6PZfcfDyosocXq2s4K4TY-q2m8f8XTSB7oIgD_rbziirTLOdfEuYWNaAFPKokR3sKv_jKuprQxAvAJrWlsqD5W5w5g_KPR7NKH6Y7iN1KZArzu/s1600/background-image-scroll-with-page-blogger.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 3" width="510" /></div><br />4. For a background image with plain color in the middle for content, you might want to remove the main and header background. Navigate to "Advanced" > "Backgrounds" and type the word "transparent" inside the "Main Background" and "Header Background" box:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="change background color" border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1sTutzdL-glwqV-RX_Xx7QbNPcOqy7nqGFAhfBNYMUujAlwHQWkKjeyEpgZuNISl9CCIc-iVA_9e5zu3vOqYMyaPETNn6crRNNzNY4R9B3ybBaVTrpG5WkeHzLqzimlu2ToOf5LyC3tDH/s1600/transparent-background-blogger-advanced.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 4" width="510" /></div><br />5. If the background is smaller than the content area, we can fix this using CSS. Scroll down and click on the <b>Add CSS</b> option, then paste this CSS code inside the box:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">body {<br />background-size: <span style="color: red;">200%</span>;<br />}<br /><br />.body-fauxcolumn-outer .cap-top {<br />background: none;<br />}</blockquote>Note: to change the size of the background, modify the <span style="color: red;">200%</span> value in red.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="change background size" border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtTq3qXkjD7hYxEIyZ6OsDauM7kDQwlViypfT2KZiMPAr_5t1PUN7D2z_lTkqD3EQ8YXwkmrHmH0A1MlJGnSRWpwFZjiZ9G7YndA1mamPI_S7NX0j4TQGpquqJkbAPrbAWn4Dp2ycIIJqg/s1600/background-size-cover-blogger-designer.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 5" width="510" /></div><br />Once you're happy with the results, press the 'Apply to blog' button and enjoy the new background for your site.<br /><br /><h3>How to Change Background in a Custom Blogger Template</h3>Sometimes the above options might not appear in some custom Blogger templates if the body.background variable hasn't been defined. In this case, we will need to access the HTML of the template:<br /><br />1. Go to "Template" and click the "Edit HTML" button, then click anywhere inside the code area. Press the CTRL + F keys to open the Blogger search box:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="blogger template html" border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucBK6jsoFGvgq1f7-O8Bdg8vpE4x8JhIN44axFxgDjql6raTN_rLBIuzZG3Fk3KbDKgVyei_EhJgyx409mdCVpQ334ADoAxLNxFbMXkcRVUOp8DOmQsg-GWuiIHvhxtt9zPGFDVeGN-Uw/s1600/open-blogger-search-box-ctrl+f.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 6" width="505" /></div><br />2. Paste or type the following tag inside the search box and hit Enter to find it:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">]]></b:skin></blockquote>3. Immediately before the <span style="background-color: yellow;">]]></b:skin></span> tag, paste one of the following code snippets:<br /><br />For a large background image:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">body {<br />background-image: url(<span style="color: blue;">IMAGE-URL.png</span>) !important;<br />background-repeat: <span style="color: #6aa84f;">no-repeat</span>;<br />background-position: center top; <br />background-attachment: fixed;<br />background-size: <span style="color: red;">100%</span>; <br />}</blockquote>Note: the <span style="color: #6aa84f;">no-repeat</span> value prevents the image from repeating either vertically or horizontally. Use <span style="color: #6aa84f;">background-repeat: repeat-y</span> if you'd like the image to repeat vertically, or <span style="color: #6aa84f;">background-repeat: repeat-x</span> if you want it to repeat only horizontally. To increase the size of the background, change the <span style="color: red;">100%</span> value.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img alt="adding background in blogger" border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYb_cTZtU-AgppZlD57OaLiAUa_LZAmrYlzjQtPUuQMjkUr4m3z_no24apo7ZE2F-fjjMytyu-DVNqPkrC78ZHJbL7I820oKMdiQlidhgtJ1xBhyphenhyphendbuqeRT9inLmN7jFSeoQZQgDIACDTT/s1600/add-background-to-blogger-body.png" title="Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures 7" width="605" /></div><br />If using a repeating pattern, add this CSS code instead:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">body {<br />background-image: url(<span style="color: blue;">IMAGE-URL.png</span>) !important;<br />background-repeat: repeat;<br />background-position: center top; <br />background-attachment: fixed;<br />}</blockquote>4. Open a new tab and upload your background image to Blogger or an image hosting site, and copy the URL of your hosted image to your clipboard. If you don't know how to do it, please take a look at <a href="http://helplogger.blogspot.com/2013/09/upload-images-and-get-url-of-image.html">this tutorial</a>.<br /><br />After you copied it, replace the text highlighted in blue from above with your image url.<br /><br />5. Finally, Preview the template to ensure that the background image appears as you want, and press the "Save template" button to save your changes. That's it!<br /><br />Using the 8 sites listed above, you have a wide range to choose from when creating a site that really represents you. Given the right tools, designing you blog can be a fun hobby to enjoy that can spark your creativity and improve the quality of your writing. With such a large selection, the hardest part of setting up your new theme will be finding which one you like best.

Where To Find Free Blogger Backgrounds and Textures

Blogger is a fantastic tool for amateur and professional writers that have a passion for publishing online content. Unlike WordPress or host...

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