Brad, widgets Rock...I never knew of Rich's obsession with these things.  the SEO will definitely rock!

Time to go play with widgets!  Thanks  Brad!

Is there a 12 step program for the widget obsessed?

Check out the ActiveRainGuide.com manual now, it is 100% functional with search capabilities and category searches. I am totally stoked at the job our TEAM has done with this.  Jorgen, Mike, and Diego are to be commended and deserve all the kudos for a stellar upgrade to ActiveBlogs last night!  :-)  Thanks Guys.

Something else to learn.....but I'll take a look, thanks.

Wow! yet more great information...  I'm on Active Rain overload!

Brad - Thanks for the update. I've been reluctant to add back all of my widgets after the losing them. Maybe it's time to start back on the widget train.

Definite AR overload happening! But, I love learning new things. Thanks!

Is something wrong with me? I'm not into those thingies....should I be?

Jeremy - I was just projecting! lol~

Lesley - you're gonna love these and what they'll do for your new Blog.

Donna - I'm the founder!!  haha hehe

Karen - they're so easy to use, there's really nothing to learn. :-)

Zilkia - better overloaded than underachieved. (wink wink)

Larry - these only affect the new outside blogs.  It's nothing like adding them to your AR blog.

Steve - I prefer the word improvement or enhancement versus overload.  And it's easy to learn and do. :-))

These look incredible.  I am hoping to get an outside blog going in the next few weeks.

Fantastic! I'll add that to my list of 4,375 things to do thanks to AR. Thanks Brad!

These are definitely some powerful upgrades and very useful tools. 

There are some other enhancements that are already in place from last nights update.  I'm still waiting to see if any members notice or comment about it.  If you are the first to find it and comment here, I'll see that you get 1000 bonus points from the point hamsters.  (hint: The enhancement has nothing to do with widgets)

Joan - just let me know, we're getting those Blogs setup in record time now.  Let me know if you need any assistance.  Give yourself about 3 minutes if you already have a good domain name picked out.  Otherwise give yourself an hour to come up with a name that is available. (LOL~)  We'll do all the rest.  :-))

Kim - 4375?  What are you doing?  Looking at every single group on AR?  (haha)  Now that you've read this post, there's only 4374 to-do's left to go.  Just eat the elephant to-do's one bite at a time.  :-)

I guess it is time for me to seriously take a look at the outside blogs!

Brad, I am having a problem with my outside blog feeding my widget, my widget lost all my posts back to Oct 08.  My widget will not update anymore, I checked the setting on the widget, it is correct.  If you goto http://nchomesforsaleblog.com/rss , it is out of date.  I really need assistance from activerain.

Thanks Brad for the work on the widgets.  I always look forward to the widget posts.

Brad - Thanks for always sharing such great information.  I really appreciate it!  :)

Kristi - I just looked at your Blog, it is seriously time.  This is a perfect opportunity for someone like yourself.  Start driving traffic and SEO right out the gate.  Let me know when you're ready, I can help.  :-)

Brad - it was great finally meeting and getting to talk to you.  Hopefully what we discussed will work, if not, just call me back.  The RSS feeds might not be working properly on the subdomain free blogs, I'll have to check.  The work around should be ok.  Have fun with your "widget" gizmo gadget what-ya-macallit.  :-))

Widgets... SEO Upgrades... you guys are incredible!  Thanks for all you do- we appreciate it and are looking forward to the fruit from it all!!  Go AR!

Ok - I get it except for Apture - I loaded the code and have an account but can not for the life of me figure out how to insert links.  I think I will need an Apture Tutorial for AR :)

Jo - you know how I hate writing tutorials! LOL!~ 

I was just over adding some of these to my Outside Blog (ActiveBradsBlog.com) when I realized I could just comment from the outside Blog. 

I think being more active directly from the outside blogs can't hurt the SEO and activity levels. :-O   I call that a BFO - Blinding flash of the Obvious!  haha

I'm not pushy at all, just anxious to see the SEO results.  I'll get the apture thing going in a bit.  :-)

widget wodget wouldgew watchit? we are having SO MUCH FUN!!! Thank you, elfinmagic and Santa... hahaha hohoho!

Brad,

I think I've just reached OVERLOAD!!!!  I can't keep up with all the new gadgets/gidgets/widgets that  pop-up as I sleep!

Good work!

Kathy Opatka Re/Mx OCEAN CITY,MARYLAND

Thanks, I will check out your recommendations.

Aloha,

Keahi

Mike - you can add them to your outside Blogs really easy.  I've added them now to both group and individual blogs and it's a breeze!  :-)

Sally - yes you should be, at least the one's we're talking about here?  Look what they've done for the ActiveRainGuide. Blog.  The search functionality is the coolest.  :-)

Debi - no problem.  I actually wrote this post Blind with screen shots, but it turned out exactly like our guys said it would.  I call it Blogging by "Faith!"  These guys behind the scenes rock and deserve all the credit on this one.  I'll pass your appreciation on to them.  Thanks. :-)

Widgets... SEO Upgrades... you guys are incredible!  Thanks for all you do- we appreciate it and are looking forward to the fruit from it all!!  Go AR!

JB - the seeds are planted, we're watering and fertilizing Blogs now for the harvest soon to come.  You're fortunate...no, we're ALL fortunate to be a part of it.  Thanks.  :-)

Mara - hahaha!  I mean hohoho to you as well.  Enjoy!!

Kathy - I have an easy solution for you.... never sleep again! lol~

Keahi - check it out, these are the "no ka oi" of widgets.  Did I say that right? :-)  Aloha my friend.

OMG!  I love widgets - I better go study up!

Courtney - these widgets are the bomb.  Have fun.  :-)

Brad - So when you mentioned REAL SOON in your email yesterday, you really meant that night itself. Glad to hear that. I've been waiting for the Feedburner widget for my prospects and clients.

Brad, Thanks for your help over the phone with this. I really appreciate it. How long does it take for the widget to appear on my site? I also had some trouble dragging them to put them in the order that I want.  Help!! and thanks again.

Thanks for the info Brad.

Question for you:  I tried using bligets and I implemented their recent blog posts widget as a flash plugin and found this widget caused an extra 5-10 second delay in page loading versus it not being there, and that was just unacceptable so I removed it.  I've noticed on other AR members blog page that have it there is the same kind of general delay.

Has AR tested the performance of these widgets for outside AR use beyond their great functionality?  Does it add to the loading time of the page? 

Brad - HELP! I want to install the Subscribe via Email feedburner widget but it looks like it it s FeedCount of Feedburner. Can I get the Subscribe via Email feature on my outside blog? Did I do something wrong?

Brad, since sliced bread is a term I heard from another tech recently, thanks for all your help with this stuff, drives me nuts, I think I got this widget thing right for a change, thanks to your great instructions, you rock!

Brad, I see the categories so neatly displayed, or raindexed, and the RSS feed, that is the only difference that I have noticed.

BTW - I think you have more widgets than Rich.  :)

I want to play with the widgets too!! But my computer does not like internet 7 and won't finish downloading it....   ~~sniffle~~sniffle~~~It goes all the way through it and says it didn't complete...~~sniffle sniffle~~~....   :-(

 hopefully I can figure it out soon since I got this great new individual blog now! 

I need help as well. Brad, there are not enough hours in the day!

I am SO looking forward to your visit to my office. I hope to catch 10 minutes with you before or after.

Thanks for sharing the tips. I am going to sign up for the outside blog real soon. thank you also for the rain radio special about the blog.

Wow Brad - very cool. I LOVE widgets, but to drag and drop - waaaay cool. ;-) Thanks, by the way for her call. Great help. ;-)

OK Brad I can't believe you are accusing Rich of being addicted to widgets!!!! I think at one time you had close to 200 of them in your side bar. Wasn't it your blog that shut down the Internet for 2 hours back in 2007?

Congrats on the new widgets.

Brad: You are always on top of things here in the rain.. Shall we call you or Rich Widget Man ?

Loreena - we had to let the programmer go home this morning and sleep.  We got the half of feedburner up that does the count, but we were remiss in getting up the subscribe part of it. (LOL)  He'll know when he wakes up that we had a minor oversight on that particular widget.  No worries, it'll get corrected and more widgets are coming...we just had to let him get some rest after a long and productive night.  :-)

Is there a way to add other widgets beyond those listed in the drop down list? There are a few other third party widgets I would like to add if possible.  BTW - incredible ease of use on this.  It is amazing what you guys put together.  You actually make people like me look like I know what I'm doing.

My outside blog is not functioning well this evening.....perhaps the widgets have toasted the outside blog server ????   Great Info post on the widgets, but I am just too tired to start putting widgets on my OUTSIDE blog today. 

Thanks Brad!

UPDATE......ok I lied.....I just got my widgets done!!! WOOHOO!

Brad - Rock on !!!  This is another homework assignment for The Somers Team !

Brad- As soon as we have returned all the calls for short sale listings that we get from just our AR blog this week, I will get right on this. I wanted to be activeblog live on the 26th when we could move our domains over. First things first, and just getting better! I love that SEO sitemap, google loves that! The spiders will be happily munching away! Widgets, love them!

Brad, I am convinced I will forever lag behind....but I want to get my outside blog up and do think it's going to be one terrific source of business.  I must have every ONE of your blogs bookmarked--and it's a good thing, I'll be needing them!

It isn't nice to deploy all of the groovy junk and leave us freeloaders out in the cold...

I'm having dificulty just writing and posting, but i will try this out.

Drag and drop? I can do that! Thanks Brad and all you great AR guys for constantly keeping us on the edge of our Web 2.0 seats!

I'm loving this Brad..this will speed up my widget creativity....:) Thanks you guys..MWA

Brad my love...

After just getting back on AR, I can't even get my custom blog set up again.  Why did you have to go change everything while I was laid up?????  So you love Rich more than me, OK I think I can live with that...maybe.

Just come on down here to Katy TX and help me out till I'm back in top form, OK?  Then all is forgiven!!  + a guy passed me by in points and knocked me from 2 down to 3.  Now that is something we need to remedy ASAP.

I got the 2nd arrangement for y'all, it is so pretty and makes me smile every time I walk by...and thank of you...oooooh.  Bib Hug, Liz

Barb - I knew if I didn't comment or call you right away, you'd figure it out.  Sometimes that's really the best way to learn.  Glad it's all working out for you now.  Looking forward to your posts.  :-)

Thanks for the info Brad.

Question for you:  I tried using bligets and I implemented their recent blog posts widget as a flash plugin and found this widget caused an extra 5-10 second delay in page loading versus it not being there, and that was just unacceptable so I removed it.  I've noticed on other AR members blog page that have it there is the same kind of general delay.

Has AR tested the performance of these widgets for outside AR use beyond their great functionality?  Does it add to the loading time of the page?

Chris - great question.  I never used a Blidget before so I'm not the guy to give an experienced answer, but I do know that some widgets can slow up a page load, especially for users with Internet Explorer, dial up modems, old operating systems, and even low memory video cards.  There are too many variables to simply blame it all on a widget, blidget, or whatchawhosit. 

Yes, our widgets have all been tested and approved by our programmers and developers.  You won't see any of those types of blidgets on our list.  :-)  These are for outside blogs only.

Steve - it was great getting to talk with you the other day, you're just in time to try some of these on your new Blog.  Let me know what you think or if you need any assistance at all.  I still love that photo you took of the Hay Bails and the cows!  :-))

Virginia - Rich only deleted all his because he saw this post before I could make it public.  I'm surprised he hasn't dropped in here to defend himself or give some smart @$$ comment.  (he always gives me a bad time) He must be really busy. 

You will see the difference on your Blog only when you start adding some of these widgets to your sidebar.  You can remove any or all of your sidebar including categories, and local posts.  You get to choose what you want and what you don't.  :-)

Valerie - easy answer and solution.  Use Firefox, and now you know why.  :-)

Vickie - looking forward to my visit at your office next week.  I will try and set a few minutes aside after so we can meet.  Thanks for inviting me, it should be a great class.

Eileen - let me know when you're ready, your Blog awaits you.

Teri - you'll have an idea of how cool this is when you see it live on your own site.  You'll love this.  :-)

OK Brad I can't believe you are accusing Rich of being addicted to widgets!!!! I think at one time you had close to 200 of them in your side bar. Wasn't it your blog that shut down the Internet for 2 hours back in 2007?

Broker Bryant - yes it was me!  lol~  I remember when TLW commented and said she was never coming back to my Blog because I kept locking up her Internet Browser.  haha~  Thank goodness I got rid of a bunch of widgets.  I only have 180 now.  :-) 

Tell her hi for me and keep a howdy for yourself.  It's always nice to see you.

Castellum - (Victor) thanks!  :-)

Roland - truth is, Rich follows after me.  LOL~  I have the cooler stuff on my Blog... but I have to be careful, he can go into my Blog and wipe me out if he wants.  He's been around the inner-workings of AR longer than I have. :-))

Christine - you're messin with me....   :-)

Brad- As soon as we have returned all the calls for short sale listings that we get from just our AR blog this week, I will get right on this. I wanted to be activeblog live on the 26th when we could move our domains over. First things first, and just getting better! I love that SEO sitemap, google loves that! The spiders will be happily munching away! Widgets, love them!

Katerina - make sure you call me when you're ready, I want to show you a few things.   :-)

This is one of the best non-infomercial commercial for the outside blogs I've seen so far. I'm on the verge of giving in. Just one more week.

Brad, how many ways are there to say...COOL!  I love them widgets and will admit I am total geek for gadgets!  Take care and keep a rocking and a blogging!

Brad,

Very good stuff. You guys keep adding all these new features.

More, more , more..... I am trying to learn this stuff as fast as I can and you give us MORE!!! Keep it coming, I love it.

Brad - Love those widgets and new features!  Thanks so much for your easy-to-learn instructions.

Mary

ANNOUNCEMENT!!!

We've added the FeedBurner E-mail Subscription widget to the ActiveBlog platform. YEAH!!  :-)

Brad, I am convinced I will forever lag behind....but I want to get my outside blog up and do think it's going to be one terrific source of business.  I must have every ONE of your blogs bookmarked--and it's a good thing, I'll be needing them!

Carole - no worries, you always got me here to help.   I'm honored that you would bookmark any of my posts, I'll have to share an idea with you that might make it easier.   Just fyi...you are not lagging behind at all, you're way ahead of the pack if you ask me.  :-)

Lane - I never really looked at it that way, but if the shoe fits.... lol~   You know that's NOT it at all....

I am waiting to see you get an OB for the "Racing Lane" site you know you want.  You should call me, I got a few killer ideas for ya...  :-)

Brian - just let me know where you are having any difficulties and I'll direct you to the right posts and members that can help.  There's nothing that hasn't been written about multiple times on AR, including any challenges you may be having.  Just let me know....

Frank & Sharon - Yep!  Drag and drop is as easy as it gets. 

Wish writing these posts and commenting was that easy.  haha!!   :-)

Laura - you are already one of the most creative people on the planet!!  BTW - It was great talking to you the other day, we need to do that more often, I just need more hours in the day like everyone else!  MWA!  :-)

Liz - you have been missed big time!  I am glad to see you at least back commenting with enough spunk to get riled up over another member passing you up.  Just remember dear, those points may move your picture on the page, but they will never move you any further from your relationships.  Your readers and friends don't care about your picture and placement, they care about you. 

Glad you are back and feeling a bit better!!  :-)  We luv ya...

Amber - I've marked my calendar.  :-))

Jason - there is only one way to say cool....  COOL! 

Shuki - you bet we will, you can count on that.

Keith - it'll keep coming for sure, and it just keeps getting better and better...  just wait!

Mary - I'm always happy to help out others if I can, it's very rewarding contributing to others successes.  :-)

Brad - it looks like after a good night sleep, tech support did their wonders. I am so excited that I can tell them all about it now.

OK, when are you releasing more templates?  There's one template for small boutique companies and no way to personalize it...

Loreena - don't say that too loud, they might get jealous.  (Over the sleep that is....)   :-)

Amy - there are 2 non-branded themes you can use until we release more.  The new ones have to be created before we can release them. Elements of SEO (3-Column) and Legends (2-Column) are both custmizable and not branded.  Hang tight for more of a selection sometime in the near future.   :-)

Thanks Brad...I played with the widgets tonight and it does seem really easy to reorder them!  Thats great...I haven't figured what the purpose is of the other widgets....added my bloglog, but what is it telling me?  I'd be really interested in google analytics or something along those lines...is that a possibility?

Brad - You know I'm getting too bold when I ask alot. Is there anyway we could track stats using Google Analytics?

Is that too much to ask?

Brad, I have some ideas for me too...  Oh, but you were talking about on here...

Brad,

Absolutely, without question...brilliant, phenominal. etc., etc. Whistle, whistle...I'm off to see the Widget, the wonderful Widget Wizard of AR.

Thanks for sharing!  Widgets are on my "to do" list now that you've made such a compelling reason to use them.

Love it, can you tell me how to drag and drop. I mean I know how to do it just can't change the order.

So the widgets only work on the paid blogs?

Sonja and Loreena - we are working on the ability to add the GA widget to your outside blogs.  Should be available soon.  We will continually keep adding more to the options for our ActiveBlogs.  Thanks for being patient and understanding.  :-)

Missy - dick on the button that say Reorder Widgets, then just drag and drop them above or below the other widgets where you want them to appear on your Blog.  You can do it!  :-)  If you need some help or it's not working for you, let me know, I'll go in and do it for you.

Mike - these specific widgets are only for the New Outside ActiveBlogs, all other widgets for your standard AR Blog run separately and should all work fine.

Brad - How do you install a Snippet?  Thank you!

Brad - I figured out snippet,  but mybloglog is a mess.  I cannot figure out first, what the RSS is for the upgraded site www.destinrealestate-sells.com to put into bloglog.  Also, when I try to get a snippet from mybloglog, it puts all this other stuff about me onto the new site, not just the pictures of recent visitors like on my main AR site, where I can track sources, et.

Wendy - there is an RSS link on your toolbar of your outside Blog.  The link there is what you want.  The mybloglog you are trying to add is NOT the visitor tracking widget.  It is the personal mybloglog widget only.  We are adding more widgets once our programmers get some sleep! :-O 

Glad you figured out that a snippet is just the piece of HTML code required to install that particular widget. :-)

geeeez...this is addicting! Another great post, thanks.

Your blog is so informative it makes my head explode if I haven't kept up for a while.  THANK YOU so much for all the valuable information!!!!

Okay I am going now to check it out !! Thanks Brad !!

Gee, Brad, do you see what time it is? Too late to make any decisions, but I'm on the verge of upgrading. You are tempting me too much with the widgets, google juice, and now Feedburner? Good thing I had a closing today! Woo hoo!

thanks for the greta info on the wdigets - still learning about all this good stuff

I've just started with blogs and until I get that down pat, I'm not even thinking about outside blogs.  I feel like I'm a million years behind.  I tried installing a widget on one of posts but couldn't get it to work.  Now wouldn't your drag and drop system for outside blogs have been a lifesaver.  I'm feeling left out.

Lora - there are posts that will help you to install widgets on your AR Blog. Use the search tool at the top of any AR page and just type in the word "widgets" and you'll get many posts that members have created and contributed just to help you. 

That's just one of the things that makes this network and community so POWERFUL. I even wrote a post on how to do this: http://activerain.com/blogsview/170783/Widgets-How-to-Add-Them-to-Your-Blog I hope this will help.  :-)

Is this Widget advice only for the outside blogs? I have tried to update my AR blog with Widgets and I have been unsuccessful. Probably because I don't really know what I am doing.

Yes it is. We refer to outside blogs as ActiveBlogs on most occasions.  :-)

Helllo Brad!  Still working hard on my Blog and have a blast! So, now I learned the things I needed to learn before I learned them on my own...LOL

I have a question.  How did you get the different size fonts on your Blog? Are they word art.??

Thank You!

You can use the CTRL+ 1-6 shortcut keys, or you can use scribefire.com.  That's what I use.  BTW - thanks for your great praise report below over on GetSatisfaction.com, I really appreciated you taking the time to do that, and then allowing me to share this with others!

You Rock!!  :-)

An artist starts with a clean white surface, or a fresh sheet of sketching parchment. And all along the way he/she has a vision in their head of the final product but along the path currents of inspiration and creativity shape the final product. Or should. Bloggers that have a vision of the final look and utility can hit the bull's eye. Ones that have widgets thrown here, different shaped elements, mismatched colors, font type and size explosion can be like a Christmas tree of ornaments and tinsel/garland heaved on in handfuls from across the room. The blogger gets an "A" for effort but the final product is Frankensteined and an
"oh my gosh" , "what happened here" experience. Easy does it.

Brad, as always enjoy your posts, and they are ones you leave thinking and returning to digest and implement the new tools being added to the toolbox. Time to get a larger toolbox though or maybe sort out some that work, from those that don't depending on particular market dynamics.

Andrew - Point made.  I have seen what you have seen many times over, read the book, and got the t-shirt.  I was even one of those who got the A for effort but created a frankenstein of a mess.  I have learned from my mistakes and still have not yet arrived, but hopefully we are on the right track by limiting the AR outside Blogs to widgets that do work, are non malicious, and have proven to be successful over time. 

It's a fine line we need to be careful crossing when we limit an individuals ability to start with that "Artists Clean White Surface" and their desired outcome they have for their art.  Being here to help them is the key, and with members like yourself assisting, it's truly what makes AR the powerful and supportive network that is is today. 

Thanks for the candid and always appreciated comment my friend, they're always welcomed. :-)

This is great stuff.

GREAT GREAT GREAT BLOG!!

Thanks for sharing the info Brad. So far I didn't get time to explore completely what AR is offering and make use of it. Hope will do soon.

Michelle - thanks. :-)

Stephen - I appreciate that, thanks.

Suma - I'm here to help you anytime you need it, just shoot me an email or give a call.

Here's a couple links that will give you a headstart.

http://activerain.com/blogsview/1142301/the-activerain-rainmaker-getting-results-

http://activerain.com/blogsview/1074552/top-10-activerain-tools-for-new-members-and-rainmakers

Brad, I have been trying to educate myself on widgets. However with so many out there, it is overwhelming.  What would be your top 3 widgets?

Hi Chris - they are all my babies, too hard to pick just 3.  I guess it really depends on your audience and what value you're trying to bring them.  Some are cool, some are fun, but the ones that make you drive to the bank to make deposits are best!!  :-))

OK I touched a Widget for the first time today!  I bought a trial packet to Active Rain three weeks ago and it included the outside blog.  I'm still wanting to add to the page but haven't done so yet.  When I click on the widget tab will I be able to drag the desired widget to anywhere on the page?  Sorry for my ignorance but when a visitor clicks on my widget is it automatically set up to take them somewhere or do I set this up for each widget?  Thanks for any response you give.  Margaret C.

Hi Margaret, yes, you can drag and drop any of the widgets onto any location of the sidebar you choose. They only appear on the sidebar of your outside blog, you can't just place them anywhere on the Blog, they all appear on the sidebar just as they do on the ActiveRain internal Blogs. Hope you have a great 2010 New Year!!  :-)

Thanks... This really helped me out..

I have so much to learn and relearn.  I did a widget about two months ago and have forgotten competely what I did.  Amazing.

This is great! I can't wait to use it!

Brad, your blog just keeps on giving! No wonder you are one of the top 50 most influential people - you deserve it! Brad for President!!! lol

Sharon

Hi Brad....I just started learning about widgets and actually installed my first one on a wordpress site I have.  There's so much I don't know!

Suzanne - you're in the right place to learn about a lot of this stuff!!  :-)

I am really glad that I found this and I really like the google search widget

Thanks Jeremy - it's hard to go wrong with "MOST" google tools out there!!   :-)

Brad, all roads lead back to you!  I was checking out ActiveRain tools and click on this link and it lead me right to you!  I love it.  Thank you for all you have done to educate us on how to market our business and have fun doing it.