BLOGGING GUIDE - MAKING YOUR VOICE HEARD

DISCLAIMER: We don't claim that these sources below are the best and only sources.

We are just sharing a selection of sites for our readers. If there is any other site you would recommend, please let us know.

Many revolutionary concepts that changed history were exchanged at coffee shops, night clubs and universities.

Now even greater possibilities await on an online forum that can span the globe.

FREE ONLINE BLOGGING SITES

If you want a substantial space to flesh out your ideas, a blog is the way to go. Especially if you are looking for something free.

You can say what you need to say in as many words as you like and alter the blog with the appropriate background and color scheme to match your ideas.

You also don't need to have knowledge of HTML in order to personalize your page. The blogs listed below are very intuitive and user friendly.

Blogs are also a great way to build a network among those who share your ideology.

They also have a "Facebook Share" button, so you can share your creations easily with your friends on Facebook.

WORDPRESS

Wordpress is one of the most commonly used blogging services.

Wordpress is not as easy to use as Blogger, but has more options in terms of customizing your site and using widgets.

With wordpress there are two options: wordpress.com and wordpress.org

The major difference between these two services is who's actually hosting your site.

Put simply, with wordpress.org you host your own site, whereas with wordpress.com, they host the website for you.

Wordpress.org

With this service, you'll find free open source software that you can download and use to manage your website and have more control. But you still have to pay for a domain and hosting.

Hosting services like GoDaddy and Network Solutions are plugged in to this service.

So with wordpress.org, you can host your own site, control the code and upload with an FTP client if you choose.

We recommend this service for people who are a bit more web savvy and want to have more control over the content and security of their site.

Wordpress.com

This is a blogging service that comes with free hosting. But you have to pay for add-ons, like more control over your site's appearance, theme and code.

We recommend this service for people who are beginners to web design, or people who may want something easier, something that is already set up for them.

WordPress.com vs WordPress.org

To read more about the differences between these two services, go here.

BLOGGER

Blogger is easy to use and it is free.

It is also owned by Google, which allows you to expand your audience to your Google + account if you have one.

BUY A DOMAIN NAME FOR YOUR BLOG

You can actually buy a web domain name for your blog, instead of having to start a whole new website.

START YOUR OWN WEBSITE

So you want to host your own website, but you don't know where to go? Check out the following hosting services below.

These services have low cost options. GoDaddy has packages starting as low as $3 a month. Network Solutions has a $10 a month option.

Going this route gives you more control over the content and code of your webpage than using a blogging service.

GoDaddy Inc. is an Internet domain registrar, web building and web hosting service.

Depending on the package you purchase, you can obtain web security, online marketing and email services for your website.

FTP SOFTWARE - YOUR WEBSITE'S FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL

For those who want more control over their website's code, we recommend using an FTP client.

This is for people who manage their website's design and code on Expression Web or Dreamweaver, and want a secure way to upload their site to the web.

An FTP (File Transfer Protocol) client allows you to upload files directly from your computer to your website.

With many blogging services, they take care of this for you and you do not need your own FTP client.

However, using an FTP client can make your site extra secure, and can boost productivity by connecting files across devices, network locations, and cloud services.

If you get your own website hosted on a service like GoDaddy, you can look into controlling the FTP of your website.

This is what we at World Future Fund do for our own website, which gives us more control.

In order to use FTP, you will need an FTP client which is a desktop app that connects your computer to your website's hosting account.

WinSCP is one of the most powerful and easy to use FTP client for Windows users.

CyberDuck is an extremely easy to use FTP client suitable for beginners as well as advanced users.

Free FTP by Coffee House is a popular FTP client among Windows users. It is very beginner friendly and quite easy to use.

Transmit is the most popular FTP client for Mac, particularly among web developers. It comes with an extremely powerful set of features like folder syncing, disk feature, and higher speeds.

It offers enterprise grade security with SSH, and 256-bit AES, FIPS 140-2 validated cryptography and OpenPGP file encryption for transfers.