How I moved my Blogger Blog to WordPress!

As promised, I am letting you all know how I moved from Blogger to WordPress, and what I did to make the move as painless as possible! So without further adieu…

Moving from Blogger to WordPress: A Step by Step Guide

 

 (These instructions assume you have your own domain already. If you don’t own a domain name you can purchase one when you purchase hosting. You can also skip step 4.)

Step 1: Purchase hosting.

I purchased hosting from SiteGround for my new WordPress blog. Although you can purchase hosting at whichever host provider you prefer. I chose SiteGround because I already have an account with them, and they have been good to me! Plus they have a one-click WordPress installation. No uploading files through your FTP Manager, no creating document roots, no complicated instructions at all. I just had to click install, change a few simple settings and it was done for me! How convenient is that?! You can view Siteground’s installation tutorial here to see just how easy it is! I would also recommend GoDaddy as well. I have previously used GoDaddy’s hosting service and didn’t find it too terribly difficult to navigate.

Step 2: Install WordPress.

Once you have secured hosting, I recommend installing WordPress on your site at this point. Don’t worry this WILL NOT effect your current blog. It will still be visible on Blogger until you redirect your domain to your new blog. (I recommend doing this now because once the redirect is processed your WordPress site will be seen by visitors versus a landing page from the host provider.)

Step 3: Export your Blogger content.

From your Blogger Dashboard, click “Settings” >> Click “Other” >> Click “Export Blog” >> Click “Download Blog“

Again, don’t worry this WILL NOT delete your blog or your content. It simply downloads all your content (posts, comments and pages) into a file for safe keeping should something go wrong while importing to WordPress.

Step 4: Redirect your domain.

You need to update your “Nameservers” for your domain in order to redirect your domain to your new WordPress site. I purchased my domain through Blogger so I will give instructions here on how to update your “Nameservers” if you purchased your domain through Blogger.

You will need to access the cPanel for your domain, to do that you need to go to:

http://google.com/a/cpanel/yourdomain.com

Changing “yourdomain.com” to your own domain. You will be directed to log into Google Apps. If you do not have an administrator account set up, it usually defaults to bloggeradmin@yourdomain.com. If for some reason you cannot log in, follow the steps to recovery your log in information, which will be sent to the email address used when you purchased your domain.

Now that you are logged in, click the “Domain Settings” Tab >> Click “Domain Names” >> Click “Advanced DNS Settings“

Here you will be given your log in information to change your DNS Settings. Domains purchased through Blogger are usually through GoDaddy or Enom.

Click “Sign in to DNS console“, and use the information provided to log in so you can update your “Nameservers”. I am not sure how the Enom console is set up, but for GoDaddy you need to click “Set Nameservers“.

You will need the Nameservers for your hosting provider. Usually this information can be found in the sidebar of your hosting account’s cPanel. Nameservers will vary from host provider to host provider, but the SiteGround Nameservers look like this:

NS1.SITEGROUND205.COM
NS2.SITEGROUND205.COM

Make sure you select “I have specific nameservers for my domain.” You just need to delete the Nameservers that currently exist, and replace them with the Nameservers for your host provider, then click “OK“. Congrats! Your nameservers have been updated. Propagation can take anywhere from 2 hours to 48 hours, while usually NOT that long, just be patient for the redirect to process.

Step 5: Import your content.

Once the redirect is processed and you can see your new WordPress site when visiting your URL, you are ready to import your content! There are TWO ways to do this, and I will give you the instructions for both. They are equally simple but either way has it’s “cons“.

→ Use the Blogger Importer. You can use the Blogger Importer by clicking “Tools” on your WordPress Admin Sidebar >> Click “Import” >> Click “Blogger“. Note: If you use the Blogger Importer you will need to be logged into the Google Account in which you manage your Blogger blog.

You will be asked to install the Blogger Importer plugin before proceeding. So go ahead and install the plugin and then return to the Import section.

Once you run the Blogger Importer, you will be prompted to grant WordPress access to your Google Account. You will need to grant access so the Importer can import your content. After granting access you will be redirected to a page listing your blog, the number of posts and the number of comments to be imported. Click “Import“. If you manage more than one Blogger blog under your Google Account, make sure you import the correct one!

Depending on how much content you have, will depend on the length of time it takes to import.

CONS OF USING THE BLOGGER IMPORTER:

#The Blogger Importer does not handle Blogger Static Pages. So if you have Static Pages on your Blogger blog, you will need to manually create them again, in WordPress. This could be as easy as copying and pasting from your Blogger Pages to your new WordPress Pages.

#The Blogger Importer removes the formatting for ALL of your posts, making your nice, neat paragraphs one big paragraph.

PROS OF USING THE BLOGGER IMPORTER:

#Quick and easy.

# All of your Blogger labels are uploaded automatically as Categories.

→ Convert your Blogger file into a compatible WordPress file.

Trust me it is A LOT easier than it sounds… There’s an App for that! You can use this Blogger to WordPress Conversion Utility, and all you need to do is upload your Blogger file that you obtained in Step 3, and the Conversion Utility will convert and download a WordPress compatible file for you!

Then you would use the WordPress Importer (instead of the Blogger Importer) to upload your new file to WordPress.

CONS OF CONVERTING YOUR FILE AND USING THE WORDPRESS IMPORTER:

#Your Blogger labels do not upload  as Categories and all posts are left “Uncategorized”.

#The WordPress Importer deletes formatting on SOME of your posts, versus the Blogger Importer, which removes formatting on ALL your posts.

PROS OF USING THE WORDPRESS IMPORTER:

#Quick and easy.

#Converting your file, and uploading keeps your pages in tact. So it will import your Blogger static pages!

So as you can see both options are simple, but the real decision is: do you want to create all new static pages for your site, OR do you want to re-categorize all your posts? I am a stickler for formatting, I like nice clean breaks, justified text and organized paragraphs, so I chose the latter. I thought it would be easier to re-categorize all my posts versus re-formatting them all! (I did have to re-format some but not all, and I am sure there are some that I missed, but I will get to it eventually!) I used a Bulk Category Creator, to create categories for all the labels I had over at Blogger. I just copied all of my labels and pasted them in the plugin, and voila! I used the Quick Edit feature on each post from the “All Posts” screen to re-add the posts’ categories. It was a lot of work, but better than having to re-format all my posts!

CONGRATS you are done with your move from Blogger to WordPress! Here are some other things to consider:

→ Design. You can peruse the internet for free WordPress themes, or you can purchase premium themes like Genesis Framework and Child Themes from StudioPress, or The Thesis Theme from DIY Themes. If you aren’t savvy with coding or just can’t seem to find a theme you like, you can hire a professional like me to create custom design for you!

→ Feeds. You will need to update your feeds such as your RSS feed, your email subscription feed, Networked Blogs, etc. After all, you will want all of your loyal followers and readers to come with you! …and those GFC Followers, they won’t miss too much, you will still appear in their Google Reader (if you already had a domain – if you had a blogspot domain, I am not sure, but I don’t think you will. {sad face}

→ Sidebar. Unfortunately, you don’t get to “bring” your Blogger sidebar with you to your new WordPress blog, so you will want to add all of your sidebar goodies from your Blogger blog to your new WordPress blog.

I think that’s all folks! My perfectly imperfect Blogger to WordPress Step by Step Guide. I hope you enjoyed and that this assists you in completing your own Blogger to WordPress Migration!

Cheers!

Don’t forget to share the love! ↓

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HTC Android Smartphones and Tablets!

A Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer, HTC has produced a large number of Android phones including the Droid Incredible, HTC Sensation and HTC Evo, as well as Android tablets like the HTC Flyer and HTC Jetstream.

In addition to manufacturing handsets and tablets, HTC customizes the Android operating system on their devices by using their HTC Sense user interface.

HTC was the first company to build a Nexus device. Released on January 5, 2010, the Nexus One was a flagship Google phone that utilized a version of Android that was not loaded with the HTC's Sense interface. 

HISTORY

HTC was founded in 1997 by Cher Wang, HT Cho, and Peter Chou. Initially a manufacturer of notebook computers, HTC began designing some of the world's first touch and wireless hand-held devices in 1998. The company has a rich heritage of many "firsts", including creating the first Microsoft-powered smartphone (2002) and the first Microsoft 3G phone (2005). Their first major product was made in 2000 and was one of the world's first touch screen smartphones. The Palm Treo 650 and the iPAQ were created by HTC. They started producing 3G-capable phones in early 2005 and made the world's first Android phone in 2008, the HTC Dream (also marketed as the T-Mobile G1). It was first released in the United States for pre-order through T-Mobile USA on September 23, 2008, and became available in U.S. T-Mobile stores on October 22, 2008.The G1 was available in the UK several days after its USA launch, and has since been introduced in many countries including Australia and Singapore. In 2009, the company launched the HTC Sense interface for the platform with the HTC Hero.
In March 2010, Apple Inc. filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission claiming infringement of 20 of its patents covering aspects of the iPhone user interface and hardware. HTC disagreed with Apple's actions and reiterated its commitment to creating innovative smartphones.HTC also filed a complaint against Apple for infringing on 5 of its patents and sought to ban Apple products imported into the US from manufacturing facilities in Asia. Apple expanded its original complaint by adding two more patents.

In June 2010, the company launched the HTC Evo 4G, the first 4G-capable phone in the United States.In July 2010, HTC announced it would begin selling smartphones in China under its own brand name in a partnership with China Mobile. In 2010, HTC sold over 24.6 million handsets, up 111% over 2009.

HTC was named the "Device Manufacturer of the Year" for 2011 by the GSMA at the Mobile World Congress on 16 February 2011. In April 2011, the company's market value surpassed that of Nokia to become the third largest smartphone maker in the world, behind only Apple and Samsung.

On July 6, 2011 it was announced that HTC would buy VIA Technologies' stake in S3 Graphics, thus becoming the majority owner of S3. On August 6 2011, HTC acquired Dashwire for $18.5M. In August 2011, HTC confirmed that HTC will be entering a strategic partnership with Beats Electronics by acquiring 51 percent of Beat's shares.

In the 2011 Best Global Brands rankings released by Interbrand, HTC was listed at #98 and valued at $3.6 billion.
Based on researcher Canalys, in Q3 2011 HTC Corporation became the largest smartphone vendor in the U.S. by 24 percent, ahead of Samsung's 21 percent, Apple by 20 percent and Blackberry just 9 percent. HTC Corporation made different models for each operator.

 

HTC Android Smartphones:

    HTC One
    HTC One X
    HTC One S
    HTC One V
    HTC DNA
    HTC Evo 4G
    HTC EVO Shift 4G
    HTC EVO 3D
    Droid Incredible
    Droid Incredible 2
    Droid Incredible 4G
    HTC Amaze
    HTC Thunderbolt
    HTC Rezound
    HTC Sensation
    HTC Sensation XE
    HTC Sensation XL
    Inspire 4G
    HTC Merge
    Google Nexus One
    myTouch 4G
    myTouch 4G Slide
    myTouch 3G
    myTouch 3G Slide
    Holiday
    HTC Aria
    HTC ChaCha
    HTC Desire
    HTC Desire s
    HTC Droid Eris
    HTC Hero
    HTC Legend
    HTC Rhyme
    HTC Salsa
    HTC Wildfire S
    G1
    G2
    Hero S
    Wildfire S
    HTC Vivid

HTC Android Tablets:

    HTC Flyer
    HTC Jetstream

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10 Ways to Keep Hard Drives from Failing!

Takeaway: with a little proactive care, you can extend hard drive life, squeezing more value from your company’s equipment investments, reducing user downtime, and preventing catastrophic loss of data.

Hardware prices have dropped considerably over the last decade, but it’s irresponsible not to care for the hardware installed on machines. This is especially true for hard drives. Hard drives are precious commodities that hold the data employees use to do their jobs, so they should be given the best of care. Inevitably, those drives will die. But you can take steps to prevent a premature hard disk death. Let’s examine 10 such steps to care for the health of your drives.

1,Run chkdsk

Hard disks are eventually going to contain errors. These errors can come in the shape of physical problems, software issues, partition table issues, and more. The Windows chkdsk program will attempt to handle any problems, such as bad sectors, lost clusters, cross-linked files, and/or directory errors. These errors can quickly lead to an unbootable drive, which will lead to downtime for the end user. The best way I have found to take advantage of chkdsk is to have it run at next boot with the command chkdsk X: /f where X is the drive you want to check. This command will inform you the disk is locked and will ask you if you want to run chkdsk the next time the system restarts. Select Y to allow this action.

2,Add a monitor

Plenty of applications out there will monitor the health of your drives. These monitors offer a host of features that run the gamut. In my opinion, one of the best choices is the Acronis Drive Monitor, a free tool that will monitor everything from hard drive temperature to percentage of free space (and everything in between). ADM can be set up to send out email alerts if something is amiss on the drive being monitored. Getting these alerts is a simple way to remain proactive in the fight against drive failure.

3,Separate OS install from user data

With the Linux operating system, I almost always separate the user’s home directories (~/) from the OS installation onto different drives. Doing this ensures the drive the OS is installed upon will enjoy less reading/writing because so much of the I/O will happen on the user’s home drive. Doing this will easily extend the life of the drive the OS is installed on, as well as allow you to transfer the user data easily should an OS drive fail.

4,Be careful about the surrounding environment

Although this seems like it should go without saying, it often doesn’t. On a daily basis, I see PCs stuck in tiny cabinets with zero circulation. Obviously, those machines always run hot, thus shortening the lifespan of the internal components. Instead of shoving those machines into tight, unventilated spaces, give them plenty of breathing room. If you must cram a machine into a tight space, at least give it ventilation and even add a fan to pull out that stale, warm air generated by the PC. There’s a reason why so much time and money have gone into PC cooling and why we have things like liquid cooling and powerful cooling systems for data centers.

5,Watch out for static

Here’s another issue that should go without saying. Static electricity is the enemy of computer components. When you handle them, make sure you ground yourself first. This is especially true in the winter months or in areas of drier air. If you seem to get shocked every time you touch something, that’s a good sign that you must use extra caution when handling those drives. This also goes for where you set those drives down. I have actually witnessed users placing drives on stereo speakers, TVs, and other appliances/devices that can give off an electromagnetic wave. Granted, most of these appliances have magnets that are not strong enough to erase a drive. But it’s a chance no one should take.

6,Defragment that drive

A fragmented drive is a drive being pushed to work harder than it should. All hard drives should be used in their most efficient states to avoid excess wear and tear. This includes defragmenting. To be on the safe side, set your PC(s) to automatically defrag on a weekly basis. This works to extend the life of your drive by keeping the file structure more compact, so the read heads are not moving as much or as often.

7,Go with a solid state drive

Solid state drives are, for all intents and purposes, just large flash drives, so they have no moving parts. Without moving parts, the life of the drive (as a whole) is naturally going to be longer than it would if the drive included read heads, platters, and bearings. Although these drives will cost more up front, they will save you money in the long run by offering a longer lifespan. That means less likelihood of drive failure, which will cause downtime as data is recovered and transferred.

8,Take advantage of power save

On nearly every OS, you can configure your hard drive to spin down after a given time. In some older iterations of operating systems, drives would spin 24/7 — which would drastically reduce the lifespan of a drive. By default, Windows 7 uses the Balanced Power Savings plan, which will turn off the hard drive after 20 minutes of inactivity. Even if you change that by a few minutes, you are adding life to your hard drive. Just make sure you don’t shrink that number to the point where your drive is going to sleep frequently throughout the day. If you are prone to take five- to 10-minute breaks often, consider lowering that time to no less than 15 minutes. When the drive goes to sleep, the drive is not spinning. When the drive is not spinning, entropy is not working on that drive as quickly.

9,Tighten those screws

Loose mounting screws (which secure the hard drive to the PC chassis) can cause excessive vibrations. Those vibrations can damage to the platters of a standard hard disk. If you hear vibrations coming from within your PC, open it and make sure the screws securing the drive to the mounting platform are tight. If they aren’t, tighten them. Keeping your hardware nice and tight will help extend the life of that hardware.

10,Back up

Eventually, that drive will fail. No matter how careful you are, no matter how many steps you take to prevent failure, the drive will, in the end, die a painful death. If you have solid backups, at least the transition from one drive to another will be painless. And by using a backup solution such as Acronis Universal Restore, you can transfer a machine image from one piece of hardware to another piece of hardware with very little issue.

Other suggestions?

Have you found any of the above steps to be especially helpful in extending the life of a hard drive? What other form of wisdom or magic keeps those disks from failing prematurely? Is there a brand you have found that lasts longer than others? Share your experiences with your fellow Aps Logo readers.

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Android: How to Change the Google Account without a Hard Reset!

This is quite an old trick but it is very very useful trick for them who changes their google id from GOOGLE PLAY STORE  Again and again so if you want to switch your google account in GOOGLE PLAY and if you do not want to RESET PHONE SETTINGS then you can follow this tip to add or change google account from GOOGLE PLAY.

Instructions:(You must have a rooted Phone)

1)Download ES FILE EXPLORER or ROOT EXPLORER from Market
 

2)then go to INTERNALMEMORY/data/system/ and Delete Accounts.db file
 

3)Restart your phone and Done.
 
Comment if you face any problem 
I have used it a number of times..

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Samsung Galaxy S4 Auto-Correct Fix Using Jelly Bean Keyboard!

The Samsung Galaxy S4 is a beautifully crafted smartphone and for the most part buyers have been pleased with Samsung’s new focus on software that can be used to interact with everyday life.

One area of concern for many users however has been the company’s implementation of auto-correct standards.

As a user types using the Galaxy S4 they are met with word suggestions that can break the flow of the users typing. On standard Google Android 4.2 Jelly Bean devices the auto-correct function is more well rounded and doesn’t affect the flow of a users typing.

Not happy about the current state of Samsung Galaxy S4 auto-correct a third-party developer is offering a way to receive better auto-correct support.

Android developer VLLWP has ported the Jelly Bean keyboard to the Galaxy S4 along with several improvements to the original design.

While there are various keyboard alternatives via the Google Play store the Jelly Bean Keyboard is free and offers the type of keyboard functionality we have come to expect from the stock version of Google Android Jelly Bean.

The keyboard features ads but only on the settings page. It also features various languages support, offers emoji icons, providers users with themes support and dives into advanced settings.

If you want even more out of your keyboard you can purchase the “Pro” version of the app which features no ads, more themes, better customization, more layout options, and gesture support.

Users can even add a row of numbers to the standard keyboard layout, a feature that is sorely missing on the Samsung Galaxy S4 Keyboard.

The Jelly Bean Keyboard Pro is modestly priced at $2.99.

Give the free version of the Jelly Bean Keyboard app a try and let us know what you think about the smartphone app.

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