Orbit - jQuery Image Slider Plugin For Blogger

Today I'm sharing with you another beautiful image slider for Blogger / BlogSpot made with jQuery and, of course, with HTML and CSS. This slider called Orbit is a lightweight jQuery plugin for displaying multiple images in a limited space using navigation arrows (previous-next buttons). On the upper left of the Orbit slideshow, we have some bullet icons indicating the current image that we are viewing and on the upper right side is the pause option and a timer letting the user know when the next image will be displayed.

blogger slideshow, blogger image slider

The HTML markup is pretty clean, just an element that wraps multiple images where the captions are generated from the title tags of these images.




How to add the Orbit Image Slider to Blogger

Step 1. From your Blogger Dashboard, go to Template > Edit HTML > click anywhere and press the CTRL + F keys to open the blogger search box. Paste or type the </head> tag inside the search box and hit Enter to find it.

Step 2. Just above the </head> tag, add the following scripts:

<script src='http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.4.2/jquery.min.js' type='text/javascript'/>

<!--[if IE]>
<style type="text/css">
.timer { display: none !important; }
div.caption { background:transparent; filter:progid:DXImageTransform.Microsoft.gradient(startColorstr=#99000000,endColorstr=#99000000);zoom: 1; }
</style>
<![endif]-->

<script type='text/javascript'>
$(window).load(function() {
$(&#39;#featured&#39;).orbit({
advanceSpeed: 5000,
&#39;bullets&#39;: true,
&#39;timer&#39; : true,
&#39;animation&#39; : &#39;horizontal-slide&#39;
});
});
</script>

<script type='text/javascript'>
//<![CDATA[
/*
* jQuery Orbit Plugin 1.1
* www.ZURB.com/playground
* Copyright 2010, ZURB
* Free to use under the MIT license.
* http://www.opensource.org/licenses/mit-license.php
*/

(function(e){e.fn.orbit=function(a){a=e.extend({animation:"fade",animationSpeed:800,advanceSpeed:4E3,startClockOnMouseOut:true,startClockOnMouseOutAfter:3E3,directionalNav:true,captions:true,captionAnimationSpeed:800,timer:false,bullets:false},a);return this.each(function(){function m(c){function g(){f.eq(h).css({"z-index":1});s=false}var h=b,k=c;if(h==k)return false;if(!s){s=true;if(c=="next"){b++;if(b==n)b=0}else if(c=="prev"){b--;if(b<0)b=n-1}else{b=c;if(h<b)k="next";else if(h>b)k="prev"}a.bullets&&
x();if(a.animation=="fade"){f.eq(h).css({"z-index":2});f.eq(b).css({opacity:0,"z-index":3}).animate({opacity:1},a.animationSpeed,g);a.captions&&o()}if(a.animation=="horizontal-slide"){f.eq(h).css({"z-index":2});k=="next"&&f.eq(b).css({left:t,"z-index":3}).animate({left:0},a.animationSpeed,g);k=="prev"&&f.eq(b).css({left:-t,"z-index":3}).animate({left:0},a.animationSpeed,g);a.captions&&o()}if(a.animation=="vertical-slide"){f.eq(h).css({"z-index":2});k=="prev"&&f.eq(b).css({top:u,"z-index":3}).animate({top:0},
a.animationSpeed,g);k=="next"&&f.eq(b).css({top:-u,"z-index":3}).animate({top:0},a.animationSpeed,g);a.captions&&o()}}}var b=0,n=0,t,u,s,d=e(this).addClass("orbit"),f=d.find("img, a img");f.each(function(){var c=e(this),g=c.width();c=c.height();d.width(g);t=d.width();d.height(c);u=d.height();n++});f.eq(b).css({"z-index":3});if(a.timer){d.append('<div class="timer"><span class="mask"><span class="rotator"></span></span><span class="pause"></span></div>');var j=e("div.timer"),p;if(j.length!=0){var C=
a.advanceSpeed/180,v=e("div.timer span.rotator"),y=e("div.timer span.mask"),z=e("div.timer span.pause"),l=0,A,w=function(){p=true;z.removeClass("active");A=setInterval(function(){var c="rotate("+l+"deg)";l+=2;v.css({"-webkit-transform":c,"-moz-transform":c,"-o-transform":c});if(l>180){v.addClass("move");y.addClass("move")}if(l>360){v.removeClass("move");y.removeClass("move");l=0;m("next")}},C)},q=function(){p=false;clearInterval(A);z.addClass("active")};w();j.click(function(){p?q():w()});if(a.startClockOnMouseOut){var B;
d.mouseleave(function(){B=setTimeout(function(){p||w()},a.startClockOnMouseOutAfter)});d.mouseenter(function(){clearTimeout(B)})}}}if(a.captions){d.append('<div class="caption"><span class="orbit-caption"></span></div>');var r=d.children("div.caption").children("span").addClass("orbit-caption").show(),o=function(){var c=f.eq(b).attr("rel"),g=e("#"+c).html(),h=r.height()+20;r.attr("id","#"+c).html(g);g?r.parent().stop().animate({bottom:0},a.captionAnimationSpeed):r.parent().stop().animate({bottom:-h},
a.captionAnimationSpeed)};o()}if(a.directionalNav){d.append('<div class="slider-nav"><span class="right">Right</span><span class="left">Left</span></div>');j=d.children("div.slider-nav").children("span.left");var D=d.children("div.slider-nav").children("span.right");j.click(function(){a.timer&&q();m("prev")});D.click(function(){a.timer&&q();m("next")})}if(a.bullets){d.append('<ul class="orbit-bullets"></ul>');var E=e("ul.orbit-bullets");for(i=0;i<n;i++){j=e("<li>"+i+"</li>");e("ul.orbit-bullets").append(j);
j.data("index",i);j.click(function(){a.timer&&q();m(e(this).data("index"))})}var x=function(){E.children("li").removeClass("active").eq(b).addClass("active")};x()}})}})(jQuery);
//]]>
</script>

Note: You can change the transitions speed between each image by modifying the 5000 value from the line in blue - a higher number will make the pictures stay longer between each transition.

Important! If you have already a version of jQuery in your template, remove the line in red, otherwise the slideshow might not work.

Step 3. Now it is time to add the CSS... find this tag:
 ]]></b:skin>
Step 4. Just above ]]></b:skin> add this code:
#featured {height: 1px; width: 1px; overflow: hidden;}
div.orbit {
width: 1px;
height: 1px;
position: relative;
overflow: hidden;
}

div.orbit img {
position: absolute;
top: 0;
left: 0;
}
div.orbit a img {border: none;}

div.timer {
width: 40px;
height: 40px;
overflow: hidden;
position: absolute;
top: 10px;
right:10px;
opacity: .6;
cursor: pointer;
z-index: 1001;
}

span.rotator {
display: block;
width: 40px;
height: 40px;
position: absolute;
top: 0;
left: -20px;
background: url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5OinIlv7GtUiSlXQZels05HhSgiaCUz_4mKerRqjAp37uUkgImYBsLS6hidMEsFWjcVpSoBas0813EsmsjbyzMR69gtoDP0_H9bYABqX2i-nVDY0gkbx_eGngQanM8z6ZUrCHClVphtCq/s1600/timer-icon.png);
background-repeat: no-repeat;
z-index: 3;
}

span.mask {
display: block;
width: 20px;
height: 40px;
position: absolute;
top: 0;
right: 0;
z-index: 2;
overflow: hidden;
}

span.rotator.move {left: 0;}
span.mask.move {
width: 40px;
left: 0;
background: url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU37f9Qy9AcrpUfO1Faq46XdnOA7uAwsfmNhLVfcUyu_cyVDXroq_S_I4PfHEv-x9J4T2W9Xq2r_ULtIt_243y9S3yD1EQSF4amKpGhD9pGihyjiLFQCzdlSkuucG1b2fp8OM59kaYSQR_/s1600/timer-right.png);
background-repeat: repeat;
background-position: 0px 0px;
}

span.pause {
display: block;
width: 40px;
height: 40px;
position: absolute;
top: 0;
left: 0px;
background-image: url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihpV1xzsrcD6uO7EhegCDEvmGNkOlQ6KSXkQ_moq3jf6TpVEtYKV7XQB3GTA5XF_I5keUZ_zft8-yw3n02BJqTYEL97Y1lc0dqayHEvQVKe8IFx7FZr1HL5f2ejBn6KcI4FpQ_S8gH_DiP/s1600/pause-icon.png);
background-repeat: no-repeat;
z-index: 4;
opacity: 0;
}

div.timer:hover span.pause,
span.pause.active,
div.timer:hover span.pause.active { opacity: 1; }

div.caption {
background: #000;
background: rgba(0,0,0,.6);
width: 100%;
z-index: 1000;
position: absolute;
bottom:-100px;
color: #fff;
padding: 8px 0;
text-align: center;
}

div.caption span {
padding: 0 10px;
font-size: 14px;
text-shadow: 0px 1px 0px rgba(0,0,0,.8);
margin: 0;
}
.orbit-caption { display: none; }

div.orbit:hover div.slider-nav { display: block; }
div.slider-nav { display: none; }
div.slider-nav span {
width: 33px;
height: 33px;
text-indent: -9999px;
position: absolute;
z-index: 1000;
top: 43%;
cursor: pointer;
}

div.slider-nav span.right {
background-image: url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0EKfy3u8btpd3d23Y4AvBDpTzDa_Wl6GOTvoDyyQY0zs2UnJwEycTeoITTtoKk7Je8XdoE751xvair4ebntcBQcxRTpBJPq5XTyOAXDBRlpY2SY935O7MwATA65VS7h7CZ6aVhXGqM6vy/s1600/arrow-right.png);
right: 10px;
}
div.slider-nav span.left {
background-image: url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM38PPwpUiibdKTOmOtSjsE4nQQewXiOon-oxdmkmn1lClJ7rxyDyoKAvdgZzfGOZMaSTUD2W8FYE9Os1WtyaOJIyyqSWry5HJRiTf7ZCwzkqi4I3CIhggxZpSUue_HPKOgvq8hN5YANH6/s1600/arrow-left.png);
left: 10px;
}

.orbit-bullets {
position: absolute;
z-index: 1000;
list-style: none;
top: 10px;
left: 7px;
margin: 0;
padding: 0;
}

.orbit-bullets li {
float: left;
margin-left: 5px;
cursor: pointer;
color: #999;
text-indent: -9999px;
background-image: url(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWlvsLl0LAf1kLBBZzuKYVNxKbABpx8u-B4nD27GPfwlerKtI6jE5sRGQ1w99_tEp2zQdZNFSltpruFed1HbvZSh_8NkvxdL6pFPgD3a0zLvqVqLKGn4x0uE_2z9TXGVh8fwAndlddv5DD/s1600/bullets.png);
background-repeat: no-repeat;
background-position: 0 0;
width: 7px;
height: 7px;
overflow: hidden;
}
.orbit-bullets li.active { color: #222; background-position: -7px 0; }
Step 5. Click on the Save template button to save the changes.

Finally, we will use the code that displays the images. We have the option to add the slider either inside one of our posts/pages, or display it as a gadget on the blog sidebar or below the header.

Add a Custom jQuery Lightbox To Blogger

If you are not satisfied with the default lightbox set up by Blogger, here's another amazing way to show off your images. I have already shown you in one of my previous tutorials how to customize the Blogger lightbox by changing the background color, borders or text color, but this tutorial will show you how to replace it entirely with a really cool jQuery Lightbox plugin that is very popular among bloggers.

What this lightbox does is to display larger versions of the images that will pop up into a larger box when we click on them and lets us to easily navigate through a set of images using the previous and next buttons.

jquery lightbox, blogger plugins


Adding jQuery Lightbox to Blogger
Step 1. From your Blogger Dashboard, click on Template > Edit HTML 

blogger edit html

Step 2. Click anywhere on the code area and press the CTRL + F keys to open the search box.
Paste the following tag inside the search box and hit Enter to find it:
]]></b:skin>
Step 3. Choose a style from below and just above the ]]></b:skin> tag, paste the CSS code:

Lightbox with white background:

jquery lightbox white
#jquery-overlay{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;z-index:90;width:100%;height:500px;}
#jquery-lightbox{position:absolute;top:10%;left:0;width:100%;z-index:100;text-align:center;line-height:0;}
#jquery-lightbox a,#jquery-lightbox a:hover{border:none;}
#jquery-lightbox a img{border:none;}
#lightbox-container-image-box{position:relative;background-color:#fff;max-width: 960px;max-height: 560px;margin:0 auto;}
#lightbox-container-image{padding:10px;}
img#lightbox-image {max-height: 540px;max-width: 940px;}
#lightbox-loading{position:absolute;top:40%;left:0%;height:25%;width:100%;text-align:center;line-height:0;}
#lightbox-nav{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;height:100%;width: 100%;z-index:10;}
#lightbox-container-image-box > #lightbox-nav{left:0;}
#lightbox-nav a{outline:none;}
#lightbox-nav-btnPrev,#lightbox-nav-btnNext{width:49%;height:100%;zoom:1;display:block;}
#lightbox-nav-btnPrev{left:10%;float:left;}
#lightbox-nav-btnNext{right:10%;float:right;}
#lightbox-container-image-data-box{font:10px Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif;background-color:#fff;margin:0 auto;line-height:1.4em;overflow:auto;max-width: 940px;;padding:0 10px 0;}
#lightbox-container-image-data{padding:0 10px;color:#555;}
#lightbox-container-image-data #lightbox-image-details{width:70%;float:left;text-align:left;}
#lightbox-image-details-caption{font-weight:bold;}
#lightbox-image-details-currentNumber{display:block;clear:left;padding-bottom:1.0em;}
#lightbox-secNav-btnClose{width:66px;float:right;padding-bottom:0.7em;}
Lightbox with dark background:

jquery lightbox dark
#jquery-overlay{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;z-index:90;width:100%;height:500px;}
#jquery-lightbox{position:absolute;top:10%;left:0;width:100%;z-index:100;text-align:center;line-height:0}
#jquery-lightbox a,#jquery-lightbox a:hover{border:none}
#jquery-lightbox a img{border:none;}
#lightbox-container-image-box{position:relative;background-color:#000;max-width: 960px;max-height: 560px;margin:0 auto}
#lightbox-container-image{padding:10px;}
img#lightbox-image {max-height: 540px;max-width: 940px;}
#lightbox-loading{position:absolute;top:40%;left:0%;height:25%;width:100%;text-align:center;line-height:0}
#lightbox-nav{position:absolute;top:0;left:0;height:100%;width: 100%;z-index:10}
#lightbox-container-image-box > #lightbox-nav{left:0;}
#lightbox-nav a{outline:none}
#lightbox-nav-btnPrev,#lightbox-nav-btnNext{width:49%;height:100%;zoom:1;display:block}
#lightbox-nav-btnPrev{left:10%;float:left}
#lightbox-nav-btnNext{right:10%;float:right}
#lightbox-container-image-data-box{font:10px Verdana,Helvetica,sans-serif;background-color:#000;margin:0 auto;line-height:1.4em;overflow:auto;max-width: 940px;;padding:0 10px 0}
#lightbox-container-image-data{padding:0 10px;color:#fff}
#lightbox-container-image-data #lightbox-image-details{width:70%;float:left;text-align:left}
#lightbox-image-details-caption{font-weight:bold}
#lightbox-image-details-currentNumber{display:block;clear:left;padding-bottom:1.0em}
#lightbox-secNav-btnClose{width:66px;float:right;padding-bottom:0.7em}
Step 4. Now find the </head> tag and just above it, add the following scripts:

Lightbox with white background:
   <script src='http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1/jquery.min.js' type='text/javascript'/>
    <script src='http://helplogger.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/custom-lightbox-for-blogger.js' type='text/javascript'/>
Lightbox with dark background:
<script src='http://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1/jquery.min.js' type='text/javascript'/>
    <script src='http://helplogger.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/custom-lightbox-for-blogger-black.js' type='text/javascript'/>
Step 5. Click on the Save template button.

Now we need to disable the original Blogger lightbox so that it doesn't interfere with this one that we just added. Go to Settings > Posts and comments and on the right side you will see the "Showcase images with Lightbox" section. Select "No" and click on the Save settings button on the upper right side.

disable blogger lightbox

Now view your blog and click on any image to see the lightbox in action.

How To Add Related Posts Widget To Blogger with Thumbnails

Now here is a wonderful hack for displaying related posts beneath each of your blog posts, along with thumbnails. The related articles are chosen from other posts in that same category/label/tag. With this hack many of your readers will remain on your site for longer periods of time when they see related posts of interest.


Steps adding the Related Posts Widget to Blogger/Blogspot

Step 1. Go To Blogger Dashboard >> Template >>Edit HTML

Step 2. Click anywhere inside the template's code and press the CTRL + F keys

Step 3. Search for this piece of code by typing it inside the search box:
</head>
Step 4. Copy and paste the below code just before/above </head>
<!--Related Posts with thumbnails Scripts and Styles Start-->
<!-- remove --><b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>
<style type='text/css'>
#related-posts{float:left;width:auto;}
#related-posts a{border-right: 1px dotted #eaeaea;}
#related-posts a:hover{background: #f2f2f2;}
#related-posts h2{margin-top: 10px;background:none;font:18px Oswald;padding:3px;color:#999999; text-transform:uppercase;}
#related-posts .related_img {margin:5px;border:4px solid #f2f2f2;width:100px;height:100px;transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;-webkit-transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;-moz-transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;-o-transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;-ms-transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;}
#related-title {color:#222;text-align:center;padding: 0 10px;font-size:14px Oswald; line-height:16px;text-shadow:0 2px 2px #fff;height:28px;width:100px;}
#related-posts .related_img:hover{border:4px solid #E8E8E8;opacity:.7;filter:alpha(opacity=70);-moz-opacity:.7;-khtml-opacity:.7}</style>
<script type='text/javascript' src='http://helplogger.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/relatedposts.js' />
<!-- remove --></b:if>
<!--Related Posts with thumbnails Scripts and Styles End-->
Note:
- to change the width and height of thumbnails, modify the 100px value in red
- to change the color and size of related posts titles, change the value in blue
- remove the line in violet if you want the related posts to be displayed in homepage too

Step 5. Now find the following code (you might find it twice, stop at the second one):
<div class='post-footer'>
Step 6. And just above it, copy and paste the below code:
<!-- Related Posts with Thumbnails Code Start-->
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>
<div id='related-posts'>
<b:loop values='data:post.labels' var='label'>
<b:if cond='data:label.isLast != &quot;true&quot;'>
</b:if>
<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == &quot;item&quot;'>
<script expr:src='&quot;/feeds/posts/default/-/&quot; + data:label.name + &quot;?alt=json-in-script&amp;callback=related_results_labels_thumbs&amp;max-results=5&quot;' type='text/javascript'/></b:if></b:loop>
<script type='text/javascript'>
var currentposturl=&quot;<data:post.url/>&quot;;
var maxresults=5;
var relatedpoststitle=&quot;<b>Related Posts:</b>&quot;;
removeRelatedDuplicates_thumbs();
printRelatedLabels_thumbs();
</script>
</div><div class='clear'/>
</b:if>
<b:if cond='data:blog.url == data:blog.homepageUrl'><b:if cond='data:post.isFirstPost'>
<a href='http://helplogger.blogspot.com'><img alt='Blogger Tricks' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9sdKNqppW5dX4RrozptFRH-Zm1y5KArvcPtL-1MRM9FgrZWr-l0k_WFSmQnffPl6sT4a6rEyLj3hTbiMYuVMc95DGhjEdoBZE_nLF3jVRa0pJQ0U6weqeC0IJ4-L5yLiIXfpBulirAhK5/s1600/best+blogger+tips.png'/></a>
</b:if></b:if><!-- Related Posts with Thumbnails Code End-->
Note:
- change the 5 value from max-results=5 with the number of posts you want to be displayed
- if you want the related posts to be displayed on homepage too, then remove the lines in violet

Step 7. Save the Template

Enjoy :)

Recent Comments Widget v3 for Blogger

ello folks, I am back with yet another remake of a widget and this time its the Popular Posts widget originally coded by Danish Harish and later edited by many fellow bloggers. Just like them I have too made a minute change in the widget and added hover animation in it.

Adding the Widget

To add this widget in your blog firstly go to Blog Title → Layout → Add Widget → HTML/JavaScript. Add the below given code.

<style type="text/css" scoped>
ul.allbloggertricks_recent{list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0;}
.allbloggertricks_recent li{background:none!important;display:block;clear:both;overflow:hidden;list-style:none;border:1px solid transparent;border-radius:9px;max-height:100px;-webkit-transition-duration:.5s;-moz-transition-duration:.5s;-o-transition-duration:.5s;transition-duration:.5s;-webkit-transition-property:0;-moz-transition-property:0;-o-transition-property:0;transition-property:transform;margin:0 0 6px!important;padding:3px!important}
.allbloggertricks_recent li:hover{border:1px solid #ddd;
-webkit-transform:rotate(6deg);-moz-transform:rotate(6deg);-o-transform:rotate(6deg) }
.allbloggertricks_recent a {text-decoration:none;}
.avatarImage{padding:3px;background:#fefefe;-webkit-box-shadow:0 1px 1px #ccc;-moz-box-shadow:0 1px 1px #ccc;box-shadow:0 1px 1px
#ccc;float:left;margin:0 6px 0 0;position:relative;overflow:hidden}
.avatarRound{-webkit-border-radius:100px;-moz-border-radius:100px;border-radius:100px;width:35px;height:35px}
.allbloggertricks_recent li span{margin-top:4px;color: #222;display: block;font-size: 12px;line-height: 1.4;}

</style>
<script type="text/javascript">
//<![CDATA[
    var
 numComments  = 5,
 showAvatar  = true,
 avatarSize  = 35,
 roundAvatar = true,
 characters  = 40,
 defaultAvatar  = "http://www.gravatar.com/avatar/?d=mm",
 hideCredits = true;
 maxfeeds=50,
 adminBlog='Your Name';
//]]>
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/76401970/All%20Blogger%20Tricks/abt-recent-commentsv3.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="/feeds/comments/default?alt=json&amp;callback=allbloggertricks_recent&amp;&amp;max-results=50">
</script>

Add the above code and follow the below instructions.

Setting up the Widget


After adding the code check the configuration of the widget.

numComments - Shows the maximum number of comments to show in the widget.
showAvatar - Change to false if you want to hide avatar in the widgets.
avatarSize - The size of the avatars in the widget measured in pixels.
roundAvatar - Change to false if you do not want the avatar to be round in shape.
characters - No. of characters to show in the comment.
defaultAvatar - The picture to be used when a comment has no avatar.
adminBlog - Replace Your Name with the admin's name so his comments can be hidden.

After making all the changes save the template. You are done now. Now you and your visitors can see this awesome recent comments widget on your blogger blog.

Lastly here comes the update notes of this widget.

v.1 - 11.01.2012
  • Released
  • Script by Harish Dasari
v.2 - 14.05.2012
  • Script modified by Asep
  • Admin removed Comments
v.3 - 09/15/2013
  • Script modified by Afandi Kusuma
  • Expanded clickable area
  • Fixed HTML5 validation issues by Kang Ismet
  • Added animation on hover by AllBloggerTricks
 More work and the expansion of this widget by fellow bloggers will be encouraged.

3 Ways to easily Backup your Blogger blogs


First of all Happy Diwali to all the readers of All Blogger Tricks. May this Diwali bring lot of brightness and happiness in your life.
Today I am going to tell you how you can easily backup your blogger blogs in 3 different ways. Backing a blog is a thing which must be practiced by every blogger. Though Blogger is owned by Google and is one of the most secured platform and can't be hacked easily still we never know if our password gets stolen or we by mistake delete a post.
A blogger must backup his blog periodically and to make this task easier I am going to tell you how you can do this by 3 different methods. So here they are - 

Method 1 : The Traditional Way

This is certainly the most common method and many of you out here may know it. In this method we Import the blog posts and download the blog's template from Blogger.com itself. A detailed post on the same can be find on the below link which I have wrote earlier.

Method 2 : Downloading Data from Google Dashboard

This is probably the easiest method to backup all your blog's template and posts with just few clicks. So to make backup from this method follow the steps below -
1. First of all go to Google Dashboard. You would be asked to login there.

2. After logging in, click "Download Your Data" link which will be on the left sidebar.

3. Click on Create an Archive Button.

4. A list of many Google Products will come, from the list select Blogger. After Selecting click on the button "Create Archive" which will be at the top of the list.

Backup Blogger  blogs
 5. After clicking a Progress Bar will show the status of your archive being created. After few seconds a download button will appear. Clicking that you will again be prompted to Sign in for security reasons.

6. One you sign in again, you can download the backup of all the blog you have in your blogger account with their template and posts. The backup is now saved in your local disk.

Method 3 : Backup via Software

The third method is also quite easy. In this method we will use a third party software which is Blogger Backup Utility. This software helps you download the posts of your blogger blog (no template backup) easily with the help of the blog's feed. You get various options to workout with the software. To make a backup from Blogger Backup Utility follow the below steps - 
1. Download Blogger Backup Utility from HERE. Extract and Install the Software.
2. From the available blogs dropdown select Add/Update/Remove Blogs option.
3. Enter your Blogger ID and password and wait for the blogs list to be fetched. 
4. Once the process is completed select the desired blog from the dropdown and get a look at the below options such as as save post in individual or single file etc.
Backup blogs software
5.  Lastly click on Backup Posts button and the backup will be saved in the folder selected. Thats it. Your posts are now backed up and saved in your local disk.
I hope these methods will help you in making your blog more secure. Thanks for visiting ABT.

How to do Directory Submission in SEO?

In my previous post, I shared a trick to check keywords ranking on Google and said to discuss about an amazing tip to build do follow backlinks to improve SERP position. Post Penguin Update, there are many ways you can follow to get quality backlinks for your blog like blog commenting, guest posting, social bookmarking etc. Except these, you can also do Directory Submission to gain quality dofollow backlinks. Using Directory Submission post penguin comes under the safest way to increase link building popularity of blog. Many newbie bloggers find it difficult to understand how to do directory submission for SEO. That’s why today I bring a tutorial to help all those bloggers so that they can learn about directory submission process. But before starting the process, let’s discuss something about web directories and their benefits for SEO.


What are Web Directories?

Before search engines, internet users used to search relevant information on web directories. Directories provide categorized information with best relevancy. But today we have great search engines like Google to search everything in a fast and quick manner.

What is Directory Submission in SEO?

Directory submission is a method to submit blog or website into web directories. It involves steps of adding website URL with site details into most appropriate category.

What is the Use of Directory Submission in SEO?

Directory submission is used to increase website indexing by gaining backlinks from top web directories. Quality backlinks improves our keyword ranking in search engines and help us to increase our blog traffic and page rank.

How to do Directory Submission for SEO?

Doing Directory Submission is not so tough job. Only you have to do is follow below steps one by one.
  1. Go to this Directory Submission Sites List.

  2. Open any site to start doing submission for example Jayde.com.

  3. Choose relevant category for your blog according to your blog niche.

  4. Directory Submission

  5. There are many sub-categories also. So, go in deep as much as possible.

  6. Once you find the most appropriate category for your blog, click on Submit Your Site link at the top right corner.

  7. Submit Your Site

  8. A form will appear to fill. Fill all the details and information about your site like Title, Description, your Email ID etc and submit the form.


  9. You are done!

Final Words

This was the basic process to do directory submission. As same as Social Bookmarking Tips, there are tips for directory submission also. You must care about them to do better SEO for your blog or website. I will discuss those tips into my next tutorial but only when I receive positive response from you and share on social media sites for this post. Stay tuned for part-2 of this tutorial. Happy Blogging.

Facebook Slide Out Share Button for Blogger


It has been long time since I have not posted a new widget so here is a much awaited Facebook Slide Out Share button for Blogger blogs.

This widget has many features such as -

  • Lightweight Size
  • Compact Design
  • Supports all Major Browsers
  • Attractive and Elegant
  • Made with CSS3 and beautiful transitions.
  • Shown only on Post pages

Method 1 : One Click Installation


You can add this slide out share button to your blogger blog with the click of a button. To add this widget just click the below button and choose the blog in which you want to add this widget.



Save the layout and you are done. The slide out share button will be on your blog and would be shown on all the post pages.

Method 2 : Adding Manually


Many people would like to add and customize the code on their own. If so, you can copy the below code and paste it in the HTML/JavaScript widget.

<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'>
<style>
/* Widget by AllBloggerTricks.com */
#fixed-share {background: none repeat scroll 0 0 #4C6699;border-bottom: 3px solid #30476F;bottom: 60px;box-shadow: 0 8px 8px #888888;font-family: Arial;font-size: 16px;padding: 15px 30px 15px 15px;position: fixed;right: -147px;text-align: left;text-transform: uppercase;transition: all 1s ease 0s;z-index: 10;}
#fixed-share:hover {right: 0}
#fixed-share:hover > #share-box {right: 147px}
#share-box {background: none repeat scroll 0 0 #4C6699;bottom: 72px;box-shadow: 0 8px 8px #888888;height: 40px;position: fixed;right: 1px;text-align: center;transition: all 1s ease 0s;width: 40px;}
</style>
 <div id="fixed-share">
 <div id="share-box">
<img src="http://s10.postimg.org/s1a8ghl6t/Fb_Logo.png" />
</div>
<span>Support Us<br/> <script>(function(d){ var js, id =
'facebook-jssdk'; if (d.getElementById(id)) {return;} js =
d.createElement('script'); js.id = id; js.async = true; js.src =
"//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1";
d.getElementsByTagName('head')[0].appendChild(js);
}(document));</script>  <fb:share-button expr:href='data:post.url'
type='button_count'/> </fb:share-button>
</span></div>
<!-- Widget  by AllBloggerTricks.com -->
</b:if>

After adding, save the widget and template.

You are done now. Now you and your visitors can see this awesome Facebook Share button on your blogger blog.

Make Your Blog Visitors Happy And Returning


Making a blog with user friendly design is very essential for making it successful. But that is not the only thing a blogger should be concerned about. A blogger who understands his visitors, I mean readers, and who satisfies them, will always find success. But what’s happening today? Many bloggers are unable to accomplish their pre-set goals and therefore giving up their blogging career. Where do you think the mistake lies? Let’s find out.
Returning Blog Visitors

What should you look for – Visitors or Readers?

Many bloggers live in a misconception that getting more traffic makes them rank high and earn more money. Certainly, the more traffic you get the more revenue you can generate. But when you depend upon fresh and anonymous traffic every day, you’ll surely find a black day when all your traffic almost disappears.
I’m serious, even Darren Rowse had a day when he almost lost his business long back in 2004. He then realized not to place all his eggs in one basket i.e. depending completely on Google for traffic and revenue.
So, what should you look for? Both are important for a blogger to earn and rank his blog.
“A visitor is a temporary reader and a reader is a permanent visitor”
Both can benefit you and help you raise your income. But that’s not what we should consider now, one should be more concerned about “giving more to them.”
Relationship Management
Just like CRM, you should be more concerned about maintaining a long term relationship with your visitors. That’s what builds your readership. Treat your visitors as customers and try to respect them and make them your loyal readers. But the strategies to be applied will be entirely different here, because you will not have a direct contact with them. So, how can you implement it?
Tips for newbies:
Since you’ll have very less or almost zero traffic in the very beginning, it’s a little tough task for you to build readership. Hey! It’s not that difficult if you really capable. You shouldn’t just concentrate on writing for robots (search engines). I agree that it’s really hard to drive traffic to your blog via search engines. So, it’s better to drive them from other blogs. Confused?
You’ve not started a blog just for someone who is new to web. People who need your content were already active on the web somewhere in social sites or other blogs. Now your duty is to just make them know that you have the content that they’re looking for.
Tips For Bloggers
Attracting visitors is easier than retaining them. You might be having anywhere between 1K to 100K readers i.e. followers and visitors. Have you ever worried about them? If not, it is the time to act to benefit them and get benefited from them.
  1. Don’t post what you know, give them what they need
  2. Don’t go straight into the topic & don’t end it the same way
  3. Let them know that you have all what they are looking for
  4. Show your visitors that you’re really caring them
  5. It’s better to offer them incentives through giveaways
People want something especially prepared for them; all you have to do is, use direct speech. This makes them feel that you’re talking to them directly. Also, ask them some questions related to the post they are reading.
What happens when you ask a question? They come up with an answer and interact through comments to your post. By doing this you can’t expect everyone to comment, but at least you’ll see a spike in comments.
There is nothing great than story telling when you want to express something. That even works for bloggers. I don’t mean that you should always tell stories; include some real life examples in your posts. If your post is theory, the example you mentioned will be a proof to it.
For you, it is a Blog and for your readers it should be a ‘Brand’. What is the difference? If you create a brand image for your blog in their minds, they’ll trust you. You know what; such readers even help your blog to reach their friends by sharing on social media.
Whether it is referral, direct or search traffic, a visitor lands on your web pages to find a solution to his/her problem. If your posts just solve such issues, he may not look back at you again. So, how to make them stick to your blog every day?
As said in the above tips, just notify him that he has more content on your blog that boosts his cognizance. Let me give an example to you.
If your post is Tips to Increase Facebook Fan Page Likes you can include a related post like ‘3 Creepy Myths about ‘Buying’ Facebook Likes Nobody Wants to Tell You‘. Yes, you’re right it’s ON Page SEO and you should never forget it.

Final Word

Once you achieve loyal readers, don’t neglect them. Try to implement the fifth point I quoted in the above list i.e. Giveaways. Since the giveaways are shared on social sites, you get more visitors at no extra cost.
A few days back a Giveaway on ShoutMeLoud has got more than 4000 entries. If I’m right, SML should have got 4000+ FB shares plus tweets. What else do you want by spending just a few dollars?
In their attempt to gain readership, some bloggers prefer black hat techniques. For example, consider Rap Genius, it got penalized by Google (when Matt Cutts saw its story on Hacker News) because it spammed to rank better. However, they later contacted Google (via open letter) and cleaned up the spam.
They say that ‘Content is King’, that’s fine and of course true. But who is a visitor (or a reader) then? Don’t miss them at any cost and now everything is up to you. Help them and make them happy and returning to your blog.

How to Add Adsense Ads In the Middle or Anywhere inside Blogger Posts

 
In a previous post we saw how and where we can place Adsense ads on our blog; however, these methods would only work when we place the ads on predetermined and fixed locations. For posts area, the most common places are below the title, at the beginning of the post or at the end of the post.

But what if we want to display an AdSense ad in the middle of a post?

We can manipulate the location of the ads to be displayed by adding a script inside the template, then using a label inside our post to where we want the AdSense ad to appear. Once added, we can place the ads anywhere, be it between paragraphs or in the middle of the content etc.
Manually inserting Adsense ads in the middle of posts in Blogger is pretty simple, just follow these steps below:

Before proceeding, it is recommended do backup your template (go to Template > click on the Backup/restore button)

Step 1. First thing we need to do is to "parse" the AdSense code, in other words, convert it to plain text. Then go to Template, click on the Edit HTML button, click anywhere inside the code area and look for this tag (CTRL + F):
<data:post.body/>
Note: you may find it several times, but we need to stop at the second one or if you can't see any changes, test the third one

Screenshot
Step 2. Replace the <data:post.body/> tag with this code:
<div expr:id='"adsmiddle1" + data:post.id'></div>
<div style="clear:both; margin:10px 0">
<!-- Add here the code of your ad -->
</div>
<div expr:id='"adsmiddle2" + data:post.id'>
<data:post.body/>
</div>
<script type="text/javascript">
var obj0=document.getElementById("adsmiddle1<data:post.id/>");
var obj1=document.getElementById("adsmiddle2<data:post.id/>");
var s=obj1.innerHTML;
var r=s.search(/\x3C!-- adsense --\x3E/igm);
if(r>0) {obj0.innerHTML=s.substr(0,r);obj1.innerHTML=s.substr(r+16);}
</script>
Step 3. Put the converted Adsense code to where you see the <!-- Add here the code of your ad --> annotation, then save the changes by clicking on the Save template button

Step 4. When you create a New Post, add this tag inside the HTML section in the exact location where you want the Google AdSense ads to appear:
<!-- adsense -->
For example:
<div>This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text.</div>
<!-- adsense --><div>This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text.</div>

Screenshot
Note: If you don't add the label to bring up the ad then the ad appears below the title by default.

This method doesn't violate Google's Terms of Service because you are not changing the structure of the ad.

How to Add an Admin Control Panel in Blogger

A while ago I've posted some tutorials on how you can remove the Blogger Navbar or add a Peek A Boo Effect so that it would show only when we mouse over on top of our page.

However, customizing or removing the Blogger Navbar also has its downside because the admin links for "New post", "Customize" and "Log Out" will be no longer visible and navigating through the blog functions could be really frustrating sometimes. When the navbar is visible, blog administrators can easily create a new post or customize their template with just one click; however, when the navbar is hidden, many more clicks are required to access the Blogger dashboard panel again.

So in this tutorial, we'll see how to add an "Admin Control Panel" menu with many cool additions such as:

- access to the Blogger's Homepage
- create a New Page or Post
- view all your posts
- read your comments
- access the Blog's layout to add or rearrange gadgets
- edit the HTML of your Template
- refresh current page or post
- open a new tab with your blog's homepage
- access the blog' settings
- view your stats
- ...and finally, log out

We will put all these options on the top of your page as a menu and we will make it visible only to the administrator of the blog, so our blog visitors will not be able to see it.

The result will be something like this:

admin control panel for blogger

Getting the Blog ID 

The first thing we need to do is get the ID of our blog by clicking on any option from our Blog Dashboard, for example Settings. Once we have clicked there, take a look at the address bar in your browser:

blogger id number

Within the URL you will notice a string like this:
blogID=XXXXXXXXX
Where XXXXXXXXX is the unique identifier (ID) for your blog.

Copy the ID for the blog you wish to work with so we can add this in the links for your admin control panel.

Adding the admin control panel to Blogger template


The Admin Control Panel will only be visible when the blog author is logged in. It is invisible to blog readers, similar to the Edit post/widget pencil icons which are only visible to you while you are logged in.

To add the control panel to your Blogger template, follow the steps below:

Step 1. Go to Template and click on the Edit HTML button:


Step 2. Click anywhere inside the code area and press the CTRL + F keys to open the Blogger' search box

Step 3. Paste this line inside the search box then hit Enter to find it:
<body expr:class='&quot;loading&quot; + data:blog.mobileClass'>
Note: if you can't find this line, try to find the <body> tag.

Step 4. Just below this line, add the following code:
<span class='item-control blog-admin'>
<style>
.control-panel ul{z-index: 20; position: absolute; margin: 0px auto; background-color: #F6F6F6; width: 100%; }
.control-panel ul li{display: inline-block; float: left; padding: 7px 0px;}
.control-panel ul li a {color:#686868;padding: 7px 15px;border-right: 1px solid #E3E3E3;font-weight: bold;font-size: 13px;}
.control-panel a:hover {text-decoration:none; color:#FC8F44;}
</style>
<div class='control-panel'>
<ul>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/home'>My Blogs</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#editor/src=sidebar'>New Post</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#editor/target=page'>New Page</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#posts'>All Posts</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#comments'>Comments</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#pageelements'>Layout</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#templatehtml'>Edit HTML</a></li>
<li><a href='#' onclick='location.reload(true); return false;'>Refresh</a></li>
<li><a href='/' target='_blank'>New Tab</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#basicsettings'>Settings</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=XXXXXXXXXXXXX#overviewstats'>Stats</a></li>
<li><a href='http://www.blogger.com/logout.g'>Logout</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
</span>
Change XXXXXXXXXXXXX with your unique Blog ID previously copied, and be careful not to delete anything, like quote or any other character.

Step 4. Click on the Save template button to save the changes.

Now take a look at your blog. While you are logged in to Blogger, you should notice your control panel appear on top of your blog. Enjoy!

With this admin control panel for Blogger you can easily access the functions of the blog and you will not have to always open your blog page and the Blogger homepage at the same time.

How to Add Adsense Ads In the Middle or Anywhere inside Blogger Posts

In a previous post we saw how and where we can place Adsense ads on our blog; however, these methods would only work when we place the ads on predetermined and fixed locations. For posts area, the most common places are below the title, at the beginning of the post or at the end of the post.

But what if we want to display an AdSense ad in the middle of a post?

We can manipulate the location of the ads to be displayed by adding a script inside the template, then using a label inside our post to where we want the AdSense ad to appear. Once added, we can place the ads anywhere, be it between paragraphs or in the middle of the content etc.
Manually inserting Adsense ads in the middle of posts in Blogger is pretty simple, just follow these steps below:

Before proceeding, it is recommended do backup your template (go to Template > click on the Backup/restore button)

Step 1. First thing we need to do is to "parse" the AdSense code, in other words, convert it to plain text. Then go to Template, click on the Edit HTML button, click anywhere inside the code area and look for this tag (CTRL + F):
<data:post.body/>
Note: you may find it several times, but we need to stop at the second one or if you can't see any changes, test the third one

Screenshot
Step 2. Replace the <data:post.body/> tag with this code:
<div expr:id='"adsmiddle1" + data:post.id'></div>
<div style="clear:both; margin:10px 0">
<!-- Add here the code of your ad -->
</div>
<div expr:id='"adsmiddle2" + data:post.id'>
<data:post.body/>
</div>
<script type="text/javascript">
var obj0=document.getElementById("adsmiddle1<data:post.id/>");
var obj1=document.getElementById("adsmiddle2<data:post.id/>");
var s=obj1.innerHTML;
var r=s.search(/\x3C!-- adsense --\x3E/igm);
if(r>0) {obj0.innerHTML=s.substr(0,r);obj1.innerHTML=s.substr(r+16);}
</script>
Step 3. Put the converted Adsense code to where you see the <!-- Add here the code of your ad --> annotation, then save the changes by clicking on the Save template button

Step 4. When you create a New Post, add this tag inside the HTML section in the exact location where you want the Google AdSense ads to appear:
<!-- adsense -->
For example:
<div>This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text.</div>
<!-- adsense --><div>This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text. This is a demo text.</div>

Screenshot
Note: If you don't add the label to bring up the ad then the ad appears below the title by default.

This method doesn't violate Google's Terms of Service because you are not changing the structure of the ad.

Recent Rotating Post Gadget with Excerpt For Blogger

This Javascript code will display the latest posts of any feed with the distinction of having two parts that can be used individually or combined. At the top this widget will show a single post along with the title (link), author, date and a brief summary of its content. In addition, this post will rotate automatically within a list whose number of elements will be decided by us. At the bottom, we'll find a full list with chosen posts that will change the post above when we mouse over them, thus breaking the automatic cycle.
Before installing anything, let's see it in action to decide if it does what we want.


Loading...

How to Add Recent Rotating Posts Widget to Blogger


Step 1. Go to Layout > click on Add a Gadget link.


Step 2. From the pop-up windows, choose the HTML/Javascript gadget


Step 3. Paste this code inside the empty box:
<style>
.gfg-root {
width: 100%;
height : auto;
position : relative;
overflow : hidden;
margin: 0 auto;
text-align : center;
font-size: 12px;
border: 1px solid #DBDBDB;
}
.gfg-title {
font-size: 16px;
font-weight : bold;
color : #6B6B6B;
background:#F3F3F3;
background-repeat: repeat;
line-height : 1.4em;
overflow : hidden;
white-space : nowrap;
padding: 5px;
text-shadow: 0px 2px #fff;
}
.gfg-entry {
background-color: #FFFFFF;
width : 100%;
height : 9.2em;
position : relative;
overflow : hidden;
text-align : left;
margin-top : 3px;
}
.gf-title a {
text-transform: capitalize;
color: #0000ff;
font-size: 14px;
}
.gfg-subtitle {
display: none;
}
.gfg-list {
position : relative;
overflow : hidden;
text-align : left;
}
.gfg-listentry {
line-height : 1.5em;
overflow : hidden;
white-space : nowrap;
text-overflow : ellipsis;
padding-left : 15px;
padding-right : 5px;
}
.gfg-listentry-odd {
background-color : #F3F3F3;
border-bottom : 1px dotted #CCCCCC;
padding: 5px;
}
.gfg-listentry-even {
background-color : #F3F3F3;
border-bottom : 1px dotted #CCCCCC;
padding: 5px;
}
.gfg-listentry-odd a{
color: #595959;
padding: 0 0px 0 10px;
}
.gfg-listentry-even a{
color: #242424;
padding: 0 0px 0 10px;
}
.gfg-listentry-highlight {
background: #FFFFFF;
}
.gfg-listentry-highlight:before {
position: absolute;
left: 0;
content: '\25BA ';
font-size: 14px;
color: #DBDBDB;
}
.gfg-listentry-highlight a {
color: #242424;
}
.gfg-root .gfg-entry .gf-result {
position : relative;
background-color: #ffffff;
width : auto;
height : 100%;
padding-left : 20px;
padding-right : 5px;
}
.gfg-root .gfg-entry .gf-result .gf-title {
font-size: 14px;
line-height : 1.2em;
overflow : hidden;
white-space : nowrap;
text-overflow : ellipsis;
margin-bottom : 2px;
margin-top: 5px;
}
.gfg-root .gfg-entry .gf-result .gf-snippet {
height : 3.8em;
color: #000000;
margin-top : 3px;
}
.clearFloat {
clear : both;}</style>
<script src="http://www.google.com/jsapi" type="text/javascript"></script><script src="http://www.google.com/uds/solutions/dynamicfeed/gfdynamicfeedcontrol.js" type="text/javascript"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
function showGadget() {var feeds = [{title:'List',url:'http://helplogger.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?redirect=false&start-index=1&max-results=10'},];
new GFdynamicFeedControl(feeds, 'feedGadget',{title: 'Latest Posts', numResults : 10, displayTime : 5000, hoverTime : 500});} google.load("feeds", "1");
google.setOnLoadCallback(showGadget);
</script>
<div id="feedGadget">Loading...</div>

Customizations:

The url in blue is the feed address. Obviously, the http://helplogger.blogspot.com address should be replaced with yours.

Next is start-index=1. This number indicates which post will appear first on the list. By default it is the latest post published on our blog, so if we want to begin displaying older posts, we need to change the 1 value.

max-results=10 indicates the maximum number of posts that we will be reading from the feed, beginning from the one that we have set up before in the start-index=1. This number always needs to be equal or greater to what we should see later and its purpose is to set the number of posts that will be shown in the gadget. The easy thing would be to put 500 in order not to fail, but the higher the number is, the longer the gadget will take to load, so it's better to adjust to what we need to show.

Finally here are some other parameters of the script:

title: 'Latest Posts', is the widget's title that appears on top.
numResults: 10, number of posts that will show in the list
displayTime: 5000, the delay time between posts in the rotator (in milliseconds)
hoverTime: 500, minimum time for an item in the list to be displayed at the top.

If you want to hide the list and show only the posts, then change this part:
.gfg-list {
position : relative;
overflow : hidden;
text-align : left;
}
 to :
.gfg-list {
display:none;
}
and if you want to display only the list, then change this part:
.gfg-entry {
background-color: #FFFFFF;
width : 100%;
height : 9.2em;
position : relative;
overflow : hidden;
text-align : left;
margin-top : 3px;
}
to:
.gfg-entry {
display: none; }

Step 4. Save the gadget and you're done. Enjoy!

Filter out your visits to your blog from Google Analytics traffic statistics

The results of daily visits in the web hit counters always have a margin of error. In most of them, this margin is very high, therefore the statistics shown are not even a bit closer to the actual visits we have. Google Analytics has a very short margin of error, which makes it more reliable, so that we have a better idea of how many people visit us.

However, if you visit your own website, either to check if everything works well, to review comments, to answer them, to see if anyone is online, or just because you need to enter, then your visit will also be registered in the counter. This implies that the margin of error is larger again, because those visits are not our actual visits and we are not interested in knowing how many times we are coming back to our site, but how many people from elsewhere are visiting.
Therefore what we can do is to filter our IP so that we won't be registered in the statistics and thus to get "cleaner" results on the total number of visits and page views.
  1. The first thing is to find out what is your IP address. Just type "what is my ip address" on google and above all of the results it will say "Your public IP address is..." or you can use an online service that shows your IP. There are many of these sites, one of them being http://whatismyipaddress.com... just go to the site and it will automatically show your IP.
  2. Login to your Google Analytics account and click Admin in the orage bar on the right side. This will take you to the account administration screen 
  3. On the left is the Account section and below you'll find a tab called All Filters, just click the "+NEW FILTER" button.
  4. Give the filter any name you'd like. Filter Type is "Predefined filter", "Exclude", choose "traffic from the IP addresses" and "that are equal to" then enter your four numbered IP address you looked up in step 1.  Check whether it's IPv6 or not (if you don't know leave it unchecked).
  5. Save the changes.
Screenshot:

google analytics filters


You can add as many IP as you want, depending on how many different computers you use to access your site. And that's it. Now you can browse your site without registering a click in the Google Analytics metrics.