This tip is for those of you just joining the Clubhouse, and especially to those who have not had to configure tags for use in the Clubhouse. If you use the Windows Live Writer and have never configured the Tags, you may find it a bit of a challenge. I know I did. That’s where this post comes in. This is a very short, simple explanation.
Configure Live Writer For Blog Access:
The best information that I found is on the page to configure Live Writer. This “How To” on the Clubhouse is a very good starting point.
Why use tags?
Tags are a way for you to categorize how to find your post. Ask yourself, “if I were looking for this information, what words would I use to search for this?” That’s what to start with. Then add other tags that may be helpful for someone that might not even know what to search for. For example, if someone doesn’t yet know what a Tag is, maybe they think it’s called a “label” or a “search term”.
Configure a Tag Provider:
For the Clubhouse tags, you have to have certain tags (required tags). The Clubhouse FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) answers this here. But before you know which tags you need, you have to have a Tag Provider (a service that indexes your blog post and allows it to be searched). This allows the Clubhouse to be able to index your blog post and allow people to find your article based on the search terms – Tags – you give it. To configure the Clubhouse Tag Provider in Live Writer, follow the instructions here.
The Clubhouse Tag Provider is relatively easy to set up. Where the instructions tell you to “Enter “Windows Live” in the Provider name textbox”, I entered “Clubhouse”. The next statement tells you to enter the long string that begins with “<a href=” and end with “</a>” in the HTML template for each tag textbox. To eliminate possible typing errors, I just highlighted all of the string between the double quotes, right-clicked, and selected “Copy”, and then pasted this string into the “Create New Tag Provider” window in the “HTML Template for each tag:” box. I also made sure that the only character in the “Separate the HTML for each tag using:” textbox contained only a comma and no other characters.
Placement of the tags:
The tags will be placed where the cursor is when you click on the Insert Tags icons; either one will do (see the red circles for the locations of the Insert Tags location). It is better to have the tags placed at the beginning or the end of the post. Putting tags in the middle is probably technically acceptable, but it makes for difficult reading. Also, if you want to use the Task Pane at the right side of the screen and its not there, press [F9] (or select View – Task Pane).
The Insert Tags window shows up…
Ensure that your Tag Provider is set correctly, and then begin adding Tags.
Once you’ve entered a Tag one time, it will start suggesting tags as you type. To accept the tag that’s being suggested, just press the comma [,] key and begin typing your next tag.
How Do I stop entering Tags?
It may seem like a silly question, but I looked for a “Done” button. There isn’t one. I found out that when you are finished entering the tags that you want, you just click in the Live Writer window somewhere away from the Tags area that’s being edited. The tags are automatically saved.
If you want to start entering tags again, you have one of two choices:
- If the Task Pane is visible, you click on the Provider Tag name (at the bottom of this article, my Tag Provider name is “Clubhouse Tags:”). The tags open up in the Task Pane and you can begin editing the tags there.
- If the Task Pane is not visible, when you click on the Provider Tag name, a small right-arrow appears at the end of the tags. Click that arrow and the Task Pane will open to allow you to begin editing Tags.
What tags to use:
For the Clubhouse, there are three Tags that are required: the word “clubhouse”, either the word “story” or the phrase “how-to” (depending on what you’re writing), and the product or service you’re writing about. After that, the tags are optional, but remember that the more tags you put in the article, the easier it will be for others to find your post. Remember, “if I were looking for this information, what words would I use to search with”.
Inserting multiple sets of tags:
How? Move the cursor to the next line and repeat the process. Too easy, I know.
Hope this helps.
A Blog-grass Festival 