Géneral

1. Frequently Asked Questions

   1. Logging in

      1. How do I change my login ID?

         In order to change your login ID, go to My Profile > Connection Details then fill in the "Login" field. Enter your current password to confirm the change. You will be sent an e-mail to verify your e-mail address. You may also change your password ...

      2. I forgot my ID/password. How do I log in?

         Your e-mail address is invalid but you still remember your password: Although your e-mail address is invalid, it can be used to log in to OverBlog. To change e-mail address, go to your administration > Profile > Log-in details. You forgot your ...

      3. How do I upgrade my browser or my tools?

         Before configuring your browser settings, please ensure you have the most recent version of your chosen browser. Use these links to update: Internet Explorer http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/ie/default.mspx Firefox ...

      4. How can I configure my cookies?

         In order to enable cookies, please follow these steps according to your web browser: Internet Explorer: Tools > Internet Options > Privacy. (Selecting "Medium" security level allows you to log in safely) Mozilla Firefox: Tools > Options > Privacy ...

      5. I get the message "A pop-up window has been blocked". What should I do?

         Browser settings New web browsers, be it Internet Explorer or Firefox have built-in pop-up blockers which identify some OverBlog administration windows as pop-ups. To resolve the problem you need to enable pop-ups, at least when you are using ...

   2. General

      1. Sign up on OverBlog

         Valid email Indicate your email address, which will be your connection and contact email (for your visitors and for OverBlog). Legally we require that you provide a valid email address. Password Choose a password that isn’t too easy to guess. We ...

      2. Blog's level

         There is three kinds of blogs : Trust For newly created blogs, we offer all the functionality to publish ideas and images, without any technical knowledge. Privilege For blogs that have already proven themselves by their quality, regularity, and ...

      3. How do I publish my first article, my first images?

         It's quite easy to post an article, add a picture or a video: Go to your administration page, click on "Publish" then "Articles". Select "Add new post" and once you are finished with your article, click on "Publish post". Your article will be ...

      4. How do I publish a new post in a community?

         All you need to do is go to your administration page, select "Publish" and choose your community. For more details, go to: Publish within a community

      5. How do I change the title or the address of my blog?

         Once you have selected the address of your OverBlog blog, you cannot edit it. However, you can either: Delete this blog, start a new one and copy/paste the whole content or Subscribe to thePremium Pack which will allow you to choose your domain ...

      6. Why is it that my blog is not indexed by search engines?

         You have recently created your blog and you noticed that it is still not indexed on Google (or any other search engine): No need to worry: indexing is not that quick. OverBlog indexing is quite good but indexing won't be effective before a few ...

      7. Why am I not receiving emails I should receive?

         Some webmail providers sometimes consider emails sent by OverBlog as spam and can block them. Please check your "Spam" or "Junk" section regularly and mark our emails as safe. You may also contact your webmail provider and ask them why emails are ...

      8. Why are my pages not displayed?

         In order to display your pages, go to Settings > Page set-up. Drag-and-drop the "Pages" module into the module column. Click the hammer pictogram and select the page categories to display in the module. You can display several "Pages" modules if ...

      9. How do I add a banner on top of my blog?

         Go to Settings > Page Set-up, then click the hammer pictogramm from the "Header" module. When you select "Graphic banner", you can send a picture. The picture should be saved in jpeg, png or gif format and be under 100 Kb. Beyond 1200 pixels ...

      10. How do I change the order of my articles?

          Go to Settings > Page Set-up and click the hammer pictogram from the main zone. Select the order you prefer: recent to older or older to recent and validate.

      11. How do I delete my blog?

          To delete your blog, go to Settings > Global Options > Advanced Settings and click the "Delete my account" button. You will then receive an email with a link that will allow you to validate your choice. Attention, your blog will be disable. This ...

      12. How do I download Word documents, PDF documents, MP3 files?

          You can store all types of files in Administration > Documents thanks to the Premium Pack. Add a link and make all your files available to your visitors.

      13. Do I have the right to sell my creations on my blog? What do I need to do?

          Professionnals: As a professional you are willing to sell hardware, CDs/DVDs, books, clothes, etc. on your blog: you need to subscribe to OverBlog Premium Pack. Individuals: As an individual you are willing to sell your own creations on a regular ...

      14. Advertisement due to blog inactivity

          If your blog has been inactive for more than 45 days, an advertisement will be displayed. OverBlog is a free platform and a blog which is inactive has to be profitable. You just need to update your blog (eg post/edit an article) and the ...

2. Profile

   1. Public profile

      In Profile > Public profile you can display your pseudo, surname and/or first name, photo and fill in information about your location, centre of interest, keywords related to your profile (tags), ... Pseudonym The pseudonyme you have selected ...

   2. Private information

      Private information is confidential and Overblog will require this information only if you choose to subscribe to the Premium Pack(What is the Premium Pack?), or to the Royalty Partnership (What is the Royalty Partnership?). Beware: Fill in the ...

   3. Notifications

      Manage your subscription to OverBlog newsletter and choose whether you would like to receive news regarding OverBlog, its portal and its partners.

   4. Login details

      Update your email address. You can also change your password. Beware: You will be asked your password to validate each change. Be sure to click "save" to validate your changes. You can only make one change at a time

3. Article publication, comment moderation and newsletters

   1. Publish articles/pages

      1. Write a post or page

         Write the content of an article In "Publish" select "Articles" and click the "Add new post" button. You can write your article thanks to a standard toolbar (just like in a word-processing software): font, size, underline, Italic... In case ...

      2. Post an article

         Save as draft, draft recovery, publishing Below the typing field, click the "Display all publishing options" button. The option "Save as draft" is the best way to save an article and post it later. Once saved, the article remains available ...

      3. Post articles on social networks

         Send a newsletter Once the newsletter module is installed, every time you post an article, an Email is automatically sent to all the persons that have subscribed to your blog. This Email contains a short excerpt of the article, and a link to ...

      4. Manage your articles

         search field The search field displayed in the right-hand corner at the top of the article list makes it easier to edit an old article. You can make a search by title (but not by content). search by title/category/community/date/comment In ...

      5. Manage your categories

         Create a category Click on the "Manage categories" button found at the left-hand side of the article list. You can then enter the name of the category you wish to create and validate by clicking the "Create a category" button. Modify the ...

   2. Manage your comments

      1. Authorize visitors’ comments

         On your blog, comments are activated by default. That means visitors can comment on your posts without restriction. Once you have clicked on the "Settings" section, the "Global options" tab and finally "Moderation", you can: Moderate the ...

      2. Manage your comments

         To view your list of comments, click on the "Publish" button, then on the "Comments" tab. Your comments are arranged in chronological order, with the most recent posts first. For each comment are displayed: the first words it contains the ...

      3. Search for a comment

         In the comment list, you can sort the comments by date, author or article commented on. You can click on the down/up arrows at the top of the columns. In order to limit the number of comments displayed on the page, you can either choose to ...

   3. Newsletter

      Your visitors subscribe to your newsletter and receive emails when new posts are published. This is done automatically. You can also publish your own newsletter by clicking on "Newsletter".

      1. Install the newsletter module

         In order that your visitors subscribe to your newsletter, you need to add the newsletter module in the "Settings" section of your administration. In this module, your visitors can enter their e-mail address.

      2. Write a newsletter

         To write your first newsletter, click on the "Publish" section, "Newsletter" tab and then on the "Create a new newsletter" button. The steps are the same as for an post or a page. Finally, click on the "Save and send the newsletter". Your ...

      3. Subscribers

         Visitors subscribe to your newsletter from the Newsletter module. They simply need to enter their email address and click the link contained in the validation email. To view the list of your subscribers go to your Administration > Publish > ...

4. Blog configuration

   The blog configuration allows you to change the order and options of all modules. You can customize this configuration.
   Some options are only available with the premium pack or the "priviledge" status.

   1. Page set-up

      1. Presentation of the configuration panel

         The "Settings" section consists in all options you need to customize your blog, classified in 3 tabs: Page set-up General options Advanced mode The "Page set-up" section gives you a schematic view of your blog. First of all, choose the ...

      2. Presentation of the different modules

         Presentation module With this module, you can choose to display the name, avatar, tags, description and creation date of your blog, a link to the homepage and a link allowing your visitors to recommend your blog. Drag and drop the elements ...

      3. OverBlog toolbar

         The OverBlog bar on your blogs are designed to make your blog more visible and more accessible thanks to its navigation functionalities. It makes it possible, for you and your visitors, to surf with and around your blog, while also keeping a ...

      4. Customized menu

         You can add another menu to your blog that you will customize according to the design you have selected. Go to Administration > Settings > Page set-up. Click on the "hammer" pictogram to configure your customized menu. You can insert up to six ...

   2. Global Options

      1. Blog description

         Blog name When a user browses the web, the first result given by a search engine is the name of a website, blog, etc. Blog description This description appears in the Presentation module. It is compulsory in order to be displayed on ...

      2. Security

         Allows you to restrict access to your blog to users of your choice only. The access remains protected by a username and a password. This option is for Premium users only.

      3. Search engine optimization

         You can: Choose to have your new articles automatically listed to Technorati and weblogs Prevent your blog from being indexed by the search engines (in case of a private blog) Prevent your blog from being placed in temporary storage by cache ...

      4. Moderation

         You can: Enable comments about your articles, Activate comment moderation (cf Comments) Prevent your visitors to leave comments. Customize links to your comments. Warning: You can use the keyword "@@nbComm@@" to show the number of ...

      5. Advanced settings

         Apply my custom style sheet (design) in the processor You will get a better view of what your article will look like once published. Use the onlining wizard Active the onlining wizard Block the right mouse button This option prevents ...

   3. Widgets

      1. What is a widget?

         A widget is a tool designed to enhance interactive experience on a blog. The most popular widgets include forecast, counters and trackers, clocks... The imagination of the sites where they can be downloaded from has no limit.

      2. How do I add a widget ?

         Permanent widgets These widgets are shown on all pages of the blog: counter, clock, logo, forecast... Go to Settings > Page set-up. Drag the "Free text" module from the available modules area and drop it into the area of your choice. Click the ...

      3. Which widgets are available?

         Les widgets contenant du javascript, des iframe ou des formulaires ne sont pas autorisés sur les blogs confiance. Certains scripts de certains sites sont également autorisés en confiance. Dailymotion Del.icio.us Flickr Friendfeed Google Analytics ...

   4. Advanced mode

      Switching to advanced / basic mode In « Settings », click on the tab "Advanced Mode", then on the button "Switch to Advanced mode". If you feel that the advanced mode is too complicated, you can switch back to the basic mode whenever you ...

   5. MetaWeblog API

      Metaweblog API est le nom d'une interface logicielle qui permet d'utiliser le service d'OverBlog sur des logiciels ou des sites externes. On peut ainsi publier un article depuis un site de vidéo, etc... Une fois le service choisi, il faut saisir ...

5. Document

   By clicking on the section 'Documents', you can store pictures, videos... These documents will form a database that you will be able to use in order to illustrate and enrich your blog.
   With OverBlog, you will get:

   • 4GB for trust or priviledge blogs
   • 30GB for premium blogs.

   1. Managing pictures

      Create a new directory In order to avoid slowdowns and to allow you to easily find your pictures, the best thing to do is to create directories. To create a directory, click on "Add a directory". Enter a name and submit. Warning: you will ...

   2. Managing documents

      Création de dossier Pour éviter des ralentissements sur votre espace de gestion de documents et vous permettre de retrouver plus facilement vos fichiers, nous vous conseillons de créer des dossiers pour les organiser. Pour créer un dossier, ...

6. Managing design

   1. Choose a default design

      Make your choice from 50 themes. Some of them have different versions (colours). To select a theme, go to the "Design" page. Once the theme has been selected, click on "Select theme".

   2. Customizing a theme

      You can customize your theme without using CSS code. Go to "Design" and click on the "Customize my theme" link. Each element of the list can be customized. For instance, you can edit the colour of the titles, the background picture... Some themes ...

   3. Editing CSS

      CSS is a code which defines the layout and design of your blog.
      OverBlog allows you to customize the theme of your blog thanks to CSS.
      Editing CSS and risks In order to edit the CSS of your blog, select the section "Design" and click on the tab "Advanced Mode / CSS". In a new page, you will see a grey box containing the CSS of your blog. Editing CSS step-by-step In order ...

   4. Tips & tricks

      Visitors love clear, sharp, fast, well-ventilated blogs, where the navigation is easy. The templates are created in regard of the most common use of a blog. Here is some advice to optimize the loading of your blog, increase its visibility, its ...

7. Search Engine Optimization

   Your blog already has several publications, and is enjoyed by your relatives, to which you communicated your address. But today you wish to go further. So… How do you grow your audience? How do you turn it into a renown and essential reference?

   1. What must be done once for all

      Address of the blog Your blog’s URL has an influence on the traffic coming to your blog: most search engines favor the sites and blogs whose URL is composed of keywords searched by the Internet user. If your blog is hosted on ...

   2. A reflection on each new article

      Publish regularly The more often you publish, the better. An article a day would be ideal, if possible. More content means more traffic to your blog and not just in the short term. Try creating yourself a content plan to follow and get organised! ...

   3. Blogging: a day-to-day activity

      Votre blog est peut-être une œuvre incroyable qui mérite de rencontrer un grand succès ... mais il restera dans l'anonymat le plus complet si vous ne le faites pas connaître. Faites-vous connaître, démarquez-vous des autres blogs en trouvant des ...

   4. Sitemap

      Google offers tools to help the search engine ranking of a site based on the sitemaps on the page: https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/, by clicking on “Access the Google webmaster tools". Once connected on a Google account, you can add a ...

8. Communities

   Communities allow bloggers interested in the same topics to bring articles of their blogs together and increase their visibility.

   1. Create a community

      Rendez vous dans votre administration, sur le tableau de bord. Dans la colonne de gauche, cliquez sur le bouton « Créer une communauté ». Vous pouvez alors choisir un nom et saisir une description. Ce nom ne pourra pas être modifié.

   2. Sign up to a community

      Il vous faudra au préalable vous connecter à l'administration de votre blog. Sur le portail d'OverBlog, cliquez sur l'onglet « communautés » et choisissez la communauté à laquelle vous voulez participer. Une fois sur la page de la communauté, ...

   3. Published within a community

      Lorsque vous rédigez un article que vous voulez publier dans une de vos communautés, en bas de la page de rédaction vous trouvez l'option : communauté.

   4. Forum of a community

      The forum of a community constitutes a new place for expression, more practical and designed to discuss and to share your experiences. How to create a community’s forum? In the list of your communities, on your dashboard, click on “Manage the ...

9. Statistics

   1. Traffic history

      In your administration, click the "Statistics" section. You will be given: The unique visitors per day. Counting each visitor only once a day. The page views per day. Total of pages viewed by visitors per day. Summary of your stats since the ...

   2. Audience breakdown

      On this page, you are shown which articles have been most viewed the day before, the week before or the month before.

   3. Traffic sources

      Direct referrals: visitors who type the blog URL directly in their browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox ...), or use a bookmark. Referral sites: list of websites/blogs which display a link to your blog. Search engines: the main keywords which ...

   4. Blog Rank Evolution

      Blog Rank – aka BR – is a quality barometer which is calculated every night using a complex algorythm. It consists in a number between 0 and 100 and represents a blog's activity and interest level. A high blog rank indicates the blog has been ...

10. Legal information

    1. Blogger responsibilities

       Blogging goes with certain rules and regulations you are bound to respect as an author and as a user. Blog content: As an author, you are entirely responsible for the content of your blog and you agree to be bound by our General Terms of Use ...

    2. Report an abuse

       Every author of a blog hosted by OverBlog agreed to be bound by our general Terms of Use when they created their blog. Every blog page has a link "Report abuse" so that any user may inform us about illicit contents. Once you click the link, ...

    3. More about legal terms and policies

       All the sets of rules governing French law as well as most of legal decisions are available at www.legifrance.gouv.fr . (also available in English) OverBlog is an online software developed by JFG Networks, company duly authorized to act as a ...