Use a Header with Penn State Logo

The minimum visual standard for each blog is to display a banner graphic/header that contains the Penn State mark. Please keep in mind that the header should not be so large that it overpowers the content on your blog or pushes the content too far down on the page.

The Ag Communications group will assist bloggers in developing a banner/header. You can contact Steve Williams  (sfw3@psu.edu) or Chris More (cjm49@psu.edu) to request help creating a header.

Subscribe Via RSS

You should allow your readers the ability to subscribe to your blog via RSS and email subscriptions. To allow readers to subscribe via RSS, you will need to add the "Subscription Links" gadget.

Subscribe Via Email

You should allow your readers the ability to subscribe to your blog via RSS and email subscriptions. Follow these instructions to add a gadget to your blog that will allow readers to subscribe via email.

1. Go to http://feedburner.google.com/
2. Log in with your Google Account
3. Below “Burn a feed right this instance” enter your blog URL
4. Click Next
5. On the Identify Feed Source page, choose the RSS option
6. Click Next
7. Click Next
8. Click Next
9. Click Next
10. Click the Publicize tab
11. On the left, click “Email Subscriptions”
12. Click Activate
13. Copy the code shown
14. Go to your Blog in Blogger
15. Go to Layout tab
16. Select the Page Elements option
17. Add a Gadget
18. Choose the HTML/Javascript Gadget
19. Enter a title, such as Subscribe Via Email
20. Paste the code into the Content area
21. Click Save

Standard Links

In order to enhance the possibility of increased traffic to other blogs and to Penn State sites, each blog should have the following links displayed/listed:

• College of Ag Sciences (agsci.psu.edu)
• Penn State (http://www.psu.edu/)
• Your department, program or Cooperative Extension home page
• The Dean's Desk (agsci.psu.edu/dean/blog)
• Possible other college blogs

Facebook Link

Each blog should have a link to the College's fan page on Facebook.

• Use the Link List gadget
• Use this name: Ag Sciences Facebook
• Use this link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/University-Park-PA/College-of-Agricultural-Sciences-Penn-State-University/53789486293

Sociable

This cool gadget allows your viewers to quickly take your post and add it to their social media applications such as Delicious, FaceBook and Twitter.

To add this functionality to your blog, you will need to add the "Sociable" gadget.

Twitter Feeds/Updates

If you, the author maintains a relevant Twitter account, you can include it on your blog. If you don't tweet, you could use a departmental tweet, a program team tweet, a county tweet or the Dean's tweets (twitter name:MEDFLYGENES).

You will need to add an HTML/Javascript gadget and copy and paste the following code into the gadget.  Once it is pasted, you will replace our twitter name (AGITTRAINING) with your twitter name in the two locations shown.

<div id="twitter_div" style="border: 1px solid #cccccc; padding: 0px 10px 0px 2px;"><ul id="twitter_update_list"></ul>
<a id="twitter-link" style="display:block;text-align:right;" href="http://twitter.com/AGITTRAINING">follow me on Twitter</a>
</div>
<script src="http://twitter.com/javascripts/blogger.js" type="text/javascript"></script>
<script src="http://twitter.com/statuses/user_timeline/AGITTRAINING.json?callback=twitterCallback2&count=5" type="text/javascript"></script>