WordPress.com is a free blog-hosting site with roughly half the features of .org. The general idea here is less maintenance for you, but less control of the blog. Get a .wordpress domain name like “dearblogger.wordpress.com” or pay to use your own domain name. Need a niche? WordPress.com sees 100,000 posts published each day so you’ll surely find like-minded thinkers. Not a full company website but a loyal companion for one. Write posts, try a free theme, set up social media buttons and learn blogging at WordPress.com
3. Blogger
About:
Blogger is Google’s free blog-hosting site. More popular at the turn of the millenium, Blogger still offers a great service but the designs are a bit elementary. Login and publish your first post for free with only a Gmail account. Try Adsense “monetization”, design a new layout and even edit your first piece of code.
About:
At a time when WordPress and Blogger were neck-and-neck for new users, Tumblr showed up as the 3rd guy to the party. They received lots of sign-ups from users wanting a totally refreshing take on blogging, and have grown ever since. Tumblr was recently bought by Yahoo, who has interesting plans for the whole blog advertising thing.
5. SquareSpace
About:
All over television with beautiful and encouraging ads, SquareSpace offers a nice solution for the business owner in need of a web presence. Get online quickly with a free trial, setup a cool design and start attracting clients – that’s the motto. If a more complex blogging platform were snowboarding, SquareSpace would be skiing, in the pie wedge stance.
6. Google+
About:
If you need a guide on how to use Google Plus we’ve got you covered, because we’ve been trying to dominate it for a year now. Fun features like the badge make getting followers easier. Google Plus brings you instant community + audience – two things any blogger wants more of. Make sure to share publicly if you want to build any sort of following.
7. Wix
About:
Wix is a cloub-based web development platform whose brand name stresses originality, simplicity and above all, free. For this reason the platform is popular among musicians, photographers, entrepreneurs and other small business owners who want a quick-fix website on a very low budget. The catch with Wix is the premium features, which of course cost money, which you’ll almost definitely need as you expand your website. The main difference here between a Wix and a WordPress is with Wix you enter for free and pay more as you go, and with WordPress you enter for a cost (domain name and hosting) and afterwards all resources are free.
8. Hubpages
About:
Hubpages started as an article network, the kind of place where you were rewarded for publishing lots of articles on any one topic like cooking, travel or home-improvement. Today, it boasts millions of informative articles and guides. However, a by-product of mass publishing is slightly lesser quality. You may find articles at Hubpages you’d wonder why anyone would ever publish. Or, you may find the best home for your blogging and writing needs.
9. Joomla
About:
Joomla is an advanced CMS used by developers to publish some of the websites we visits each day. Written in PHP, it uses many of the same structures as a WordPress site does. For whatever reason, developers have flocked elsewhere, but Joomla remains one of the web’s oldest and savviest places to run a blog or website.
10. Medium
Probably won’t reach the development status of WordPress.org but definitely chomping at the heels of Blogger, Tumblr and even Twitter as it borrows several of their services, like topic searches and nostalgic photo shares from the founders themselves.
The .org version of WordPress provides many of the same features as its .com counterpart, but it also provides additional customization features for any blogger. This WordPress option works out well for folks who want to have complete control over the customization of their blog, but it is not a platform that is easy for beginners to use effectively but there are lots of free and paid options to learn WordPress.
WordPress.org lets you install your own custom plugins and themes to make your blog look exactly how you want. To use this platform for your blog, you will have to find your own web host, perform routine backups and maintain the blog on your own.
Ghost is an open source blogging platform that provides a simple, clean interface that makes it very easy to use. It also provides a live preview of your post while you are writing it, so you can easily correct any writing or coding mistakes as you go along. This platform can be great for beginners because of its ease of use, but expert bloggers may also prefer it because of its interface compared to other blogging services. The downside to Ghost is that it can be difficult to install at first but once it is, it can be a great tool for any blogger.
Drupal is a great option for blogs associated with businesses because it is not just a blogging platform, but a complete content management system. This means that along with your blog, web pages and other online content can be created and organized within this platform. Drupal does not host blogs for users, so bloggers using this platform will have to find their own host someplace else. Drupal is also not a platform that readily accommodates beginners, so it is better for those upgrading from a free blogging platform rather than for the blogger just starting out.
If you are looking for a full content management system, Joomla is another great option for bloggers. In terms of the ease of use, Joomla may have more of a learning curve than WordPress, but can be much easier to use than Drupal. Many businesses and large corporations prefer this type of platform because it can give you flexibility with a wide range of content options.
Joomla, however, can be expensive. While the first month is free, after that a blogger can be charged anywhere from $20-$100 per month depending on the options and upgrades they want. For many novice bloggers, this can be a high cost unless the blog is attached to an existing business that already generates a profit.
WordPress is one of the most popular blogging platforms on the Internet. Millions of users like the options it provides for simple blog creation and maintenance. The platform is free and offers services such as hosting, the ability to have a custom domain, integrating your blog with social media and popular features such as comments and polls are available without installing plugins. A number of paid upgrades are also available. The biggest issue with this version of WordPress is that options such as custom themes, plugins and editing HTML are not available. However, WordPress.com also has a sister site, WordPress.org that provides many more customization options.
There are many great platforms out there for starting your own blog. They include sites with customizable HTML and CSS for those with more advanced skills. Medium is a place to share your thoughts and writing with a wide audience. Unlike some of the other blogging platforms, Medium has a built-in audience, which makes it often debatable whether it’s a publisher or a platform.
When it comes to customization, Squarespace is a platform that offers a wide variety of options. The best part about customizing your blog on this platform is that you can change everything without knowing how to code. It is also a platform that lets your expand your services which is a great option if you are using your blog for your business. The downside to Squarespace for bloggers is that theme and plugin support is not a great as it could be. If you want these options on Squarespace, knowledge of code will be necessary.
Another blogging platform that is great for businesses who want to maintain a blog on their website is Weebly. This platform provides a wide range of easy-to-use features, including drag and drop options for those who do not want to learn coding to make simply changes. Since Weebly can be used for blogging and web building, business owners find this platform a lot easier to use than other platforms where blogs and websites are created separately. Expert coding options are also not available on this platform. If you are a blogger who wants to be able to change and customize HTML or CSS on the blog, this Weebly makes it difficult to do so because it focuses its services on those who want to quickly create and update a blog without a lot of hassle.
Typepad is a blogging platform that provides an easy-to-use interface for beginning and experience bloggers. The platform provides a wide range of themes to choose from as well as plugins so you can make your blog your own. A key drawback to using Typepad is that all of the blogs are hosting by them on their server, so you do not have the option to use the platform with your own blog host. It is also a platform that makes editing code difficult because it is geared towards bloggers who may not be as confident in editing HTML code for example.
If there is one platform that is easy for beginners to use, it is Blogger. This is a free blogging platform that is simple to use for anyone just starting out with a blog. With this platform a user can just type their content, add photos and publish. Blogger also lets users edit HTML and add widgets to blog, which many blogging sites for beginners do not offer. Blogger is a Google service, so users will have to have a Google account and may find the Google-related add-ons redundant or useless for their blog. It is also one of the blogging platforms that many bloggers grow out of once they learn more about blogging since it does not have any upgrade options. Here’s a more detailed comparison of Blogger versus WordPress.
It’s free to start a blog here, and you’ll be able to choose from several gorgeous themes. You can also upgrade to their premium package and receive your own domain name.
Perhaps one of the most well-known platforms, Blogger is backed by Google, so it’s trustworthy and reliable. It’s incredibly simple to start using Blogger as the site takes you step-by-step through creating your site. There are a lot of customization options and you can purchase templates through outside website as well.
Founded in 2012 by Evan Williams (Twitter, Blogger) and Biz Stone (Twitter), this platform offers a distinct story-telling feel.
Penzu is loved because of it’s versatility: There are three different types of journals you can start when you sign up for the site: Daily Diary (public), Expressive Journal (private), and Travel Journal (great if you’re going on a trip). You can also try the site out before you sign up for it as well.
Defintiely the most creative, modern and professional of the 10 platforms, SquareSpace is the only pricey option but will surely deliver the best results. Amazing for photographers, store owners, bloggers, musicians and business owners, this platform features tons of templates that will keep your blog looking polished and professional.
A super-slick and modern platform, Svbtle feels more like a doodle pad.
Tumblr is easily the best of the 10 platforms when it comes to visuals. Images, videos, music—it’s all really easy to display on your tumblr profile. And, there are tons of creative ways that you can showcase them. People can also “reblog” your posts leaving you with more followers and a larger fanbase.
This is a great platform to use if you’re looking to create more of a professional environment for your readers. You can drag and drop elements around your site for the ultimate customized page. The site also featured an ecommerce feature—great if you’re trying to sell a product.
Weebly features tons of unique and modern themes to start you blog off looking fresh. It also offers ecommerce, an iPhone app for posting on the go, and easy linking to your social media. This site is surely dummy-free and makes it as easy as possible for you to dive right into the blogging scene.
Another hugely popular platform, WordPress is super-flexible for anyone whether you’re a blogger who writes or a photographer who wants to show their portfolio. You can also upgrade and get your own domain name. Like Tumblr, other WordPress users can like, see, and reblog your posts leaving you with the potential for more followers and readers.
2. A position paper on what blogging site should the students use based on the research I made.
In the past two decades the rapidly growing world trend has been toward globalization. With the emergence of the internet as a means of communication and the increasing accessibility of international trade physical barriers are not the only barriers withering away. Protective tariffs are plummeting and free trade agreements are becoming more prevalent. Philippines appreciates that globalization creates favorable situations for expansion of commercial as well as economic assets. It has also been reported that in the PH, as of January 2014, there were 37.6 million Internet users, of which 34 million were on Facebook. Thus, one in every three Filipinos were on Facebook. Social media is also making various information available to us in various formats. Videos on YouTube are teaching us everything: from how to cook to why you need to study Statistics. However, there are also many Filipinos who are interested with blogging. Based on the research I made, I figured out that these following blogs are the best in starting to get into blogging. These blogging sites have different features with great qualities.
Wordpress.org is a self-hosted WordPress blog that uses the WordPress software on a third-party server. With it, you can install plugins, edit your HTML code, and more, giving you full control over your website while making it look more professional. A self-hosted WordPress blog is usually the best way to go for anyone willing to invest a couple of dollars per month. It’s ideal for business owners, professional brand builders, and any blogger looking to expand their site’s functionality and professional appearance. It is user-friendly with full control and customization options; can access to over 1,500 free themes and 20,000 free plugins; and has search engine friendly options. However, hosting on a third-party server can require some technical knowledge, but most hosts (like Bluehost or iPage) offer quality technical support. Due to its popularity, WordPress is vulnerable to security threats.
Another one is the WordPress.com. It stores your site’s content for free on their servers. However, this means users receive a limited version of the WordPress software. Still, it’s a nice choice for hobby bloggers who don’t want to invest money. It’s also a good option for people who plan to upgrade to a self-hosted WordPress blog in the future. It has No set-up costs, simple to use; no coding or design knowledge required and has Hundreds of themes to choose from. Even though it is that easy to use, its functionality is limited unless you pay for upgrades, It looks less professional, you do not technically own your blog, which means you have little control over advertising revenue. It also means WordPress can suspend your site at any time and your site comes with .wordpress in the domain.
The last one that I could suggest is the Blogger. Since Blogger is owned by Google, you’ll have access to Google tools like AdSense, Analytics, etc.
However, Blogger is not nearly as flexible as WordPress.org. This platform is great for hobby bloggers and brand builders who don’t want to invest any money but may want to make some money through ads. Since it is easy to use, it is also a great platform for beginner bloggers just learning the ropes. It has many good features too. It is Completely free and easy to use, can place AdSense ads and can access to HTML code, so there are more customization options. But it has fewer themes and storage space than WordPress.com. You cannot self-host, so your blog is dependent completely on Blogger’s current offerings and your site will have .blogspot in the title.
3. Research the impact of ICT in the society especially education, economics, and social reforms.
In the last ten years the continuous growth of internet penetration and the wider palette for spreading ICT tools have changed the availability and quantity of information, communications methods and the learning processes. ICT tools are already extensively used in education and we have reached the turning point when, after the era of PCs and laptops, e-learning based on internet connected tablet PCs is here. ICT is an enabler of change, an essential element of new developments, and a major contributor to globalization woven into the fabric of daily life. Its impact is extensive, affecting individuals, businesses, industry sectors, communities and governments. It changes the way daily activities are accomplished and processes are executed and in doing so it also impacts social and economic development of countries and regions.
Around the world, applications of information and communications technologies (ICT) are making dramatic changes in economic and social development. These changes go beyond a mere increase in the number of computers appearing in work places, homes, and schools to more fundamental changes in the foundations of economic growth and its relatoinship to human capital. These tectonic economic and social changes have been characterized by terms such as “knowledge economy” and learning society”, conveying the notion that knowledge and learning are now at the core od economic productivity and social development.
Education is, of course, at the core of the knowledge economy and learning society. Correspondingly, the role of ICT in schools is shifting dramatically. The traditional role of ICT has been that of a minor curricular subject, sometimes called informatics, computer literacy, or keyboarding. Alternatively, it has been used as an instructional aid (I.e., computer-assisted instruction) to help students learn other subjects, such as math or science. Furthermore, ICT altered fundamental methodologies of doing activities and gave rise to e-services in communication, trade, employment, education, government, and health. Recently we witnessed the increase of social media and mobile devices usage as they facilitate the interaction between citizens and their participation in decision-making processes. Today with the rise of knowledge societies and knowledge-based economies, the focus falls on value-added products and processes, placing more demands on ICT development, industry and government.
This analysis indicates that ICT has a positive impact on growth in developing
countries, both socially and economically. Furthermore this analysis concluded that in order for such benefits to follow from ICT, developing countries must invest in both education and infrastructure; that without such investment ICT will not have the benefits it has the potential to deliver to such countries.
4. Research also the current state of ICT in the Philippines and at least 3 member
state of South East Asia.
Information and communication technology (ICT) plays a vital role in teaching and learning. .We are Social, an agency that examines social media data, suggests that as of end of 2014, about 42% of the world’s population had access to the internet, and the online social networking application Facebook registered 1.4 billion active users.It has also been reported that in the Philippines (PH), as of January 2014, there were 37.6 million Internet users, of which 34 million were on Facebook. Thus, one in every three Filipinos were on Facebook. Social media is also making various information available to us in various formats. PH are drowning in a flood of data, with ICT providing us the means to transmit and exchange data in the form of sound, text, visual images, signals or any other form or any combination of those forms through the use of digital technology.
With the Philippines getting the attention in the world as one of Asia’s fastest growing economies, the presence of a reliable, accessible and affordable Philippine ICT infrastructure is necessary for our participation in the information economy. Without it, the Philippines will once again face the prospect of being marginalized in the global economy. With it, we stand the chance of becoming a cyber-tiger in the new economy.
The ITU showed that in 2013, the Philippines practically maintained its rank (103rdplace from 102nd in 2012) despite advances in the areas of access and use of ICT. The country’s ICT connectivity was further improved through the installation of the Boracay-Palawan Submarine Cable System completed in the second quarter of 2013. Out of all the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Philippines consistently ranked 6th since 2010, trailing behind Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam
Singapore's ICT market is quite mature and growth in most of the sectors has become stagnant. Internet of Things is one of the sectors which is still in the stage of infancy and has the potential to change the landscape of the overall Singapore ICT market.
One of the key drivers of the Singapore economic is the ICT industry.The industry accounts for more than USD 70 billion or CHF 55 billion and grows at more than 12% annually. The island state is well connected via both fixed and wireless networks. By earl 2012, the mobile penetration had passed 150%. In maintaining Singapore’s status as an ICT market leader, the government launched its plan for nationwide fibre-based broadband network known as the Next Generatoiin Broadband Network (NGNBN) and this is being rolled out in line with the government’s strategy.
At the same time Singapore’s mobile operators are already looking closely at the pre-4G long term evolution (LTE) platform for providing faster mobile broadband internet access into the future.
It is expected that by the next decade, Asian countries will be new economic powerhouse in the global economy. Thailand was the most dynamic country in Asia-Pacific, showing the greatest change in IDI ranking in the region, supported mainly by improvement in wireless broadband penetration. The country is ranked 74th out of 167 countries this year, up from 81st last year, according to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).
South Korea ranked first in the global IDI, followed by Denmark and Iceland, according to an annual report from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) entitled "Measuring the Information Society".The ITU is widely recognised as the repository for the world's most reliable and impartial global data and analyses on the state of global ICT development. This makes it a valuable tool for benchmarking the most important indicators for measuring the information society. According to Col Settapong Malisuwan, vice-chairman of the NBTC, having 4G service at affordable prices for the mass market will be a major factor in narrowing the digital divide and lifting the country's competitivenessHe called a high-speed wireless broadband network the most important telecommunications infrastructure for accommodating rapid growth in data demand, making an undeniable impact on social and economic development. He added that they strongly believe taht their IDI ranking for Thailand will improve to 60th by 2017, based on the fact that the 3G mobile network roll-out in 2012 resulted in a significant improvement in the ranking, to 81st in 2014 from 92nd in 2010. He also stated that Thailand's IDI ranking will be No.2 in Asean by 2017, behind only Singapore. He said the IDI not only reflected development of a country's infrastructure and ICT use but also represented a major factor attracting investment from international businesses including more global tech companies.
D. Vietnam
ICT is also widespread in Vietnam. This country is one in the process of transitioning from an agricultural economy to a knowledge economy and calling for greater investment in ICT infrastructure development to support this evolution. ICT made a big impact on their healthcare ecosystem, and electronic parent notification systems for their schools. Their major target is innovation and ICT played a big role on making the project of innovation accomplished. Fujitsu Security Evangelist Taishu Ota said that the FUJITSU Security Initiative is exploring ICT farming applications in Vietnam through initiatives such as the “Akisai” cloud, developed specifically for the food and agriculture sector in conjunction with FPT, Vietnam’s largest ICT firm. An agreement to develop projects in the field of smart agriculture has been reached and preparations are already underway.
According to Mr. Kiname, ICT has an increasingly important role to play in the key sectors of manufacturing, farming and healthcare. Fujitsu is committed to bringing together different industries and regions for the purpose of creating new forms of value and services, and also to working together with clients to drive innovation.
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