1. On the Blog Watch or Blog List page, enter your search criteria in the Search For field, and click Search. You must be following at least one blog in order to search from Blog Watch.
2. Click the Show Search Options link for more search options:
   • Search For Enter the word or portion of text to search for.
   • Search In Select where to search for specified text.
   • Search Users Select which users to search.
   • Latest Entry Created Between the Dates Of Select a date range to restrict the search by.

Note On the Blog List page, you can also search for Total Entries and Total Comments to find blogs with greater than or less than a specified number of entries or comments.

To clear the search, click the Clear Search link or empty the Search For field and click Search.

Add peers, friends, and acquaintances to your Blog Watch to keep current on topics and events that interest them.

The Blog Watch list is empty by default. You must first add blogs to watch from the Blog List to populate your Blog Watch.

Add users to your Blog Watch

1. On the My Blog page, click Blog List.
2. You can then either:
   • Enter any portion of the first or last name of the user you want to add in the Search For field. Click the Show Search Options link for more options.
   • Navigate the entire list of users. You can sort the table by clicking on any of the column names. If you go to a new page, you lose the users you selected on the previous page.
3. Select the check box beside any user you want to watch.
4. Click Add at the top or bottom of the list.

View blogs you follow

Click Blog Watch from the tool navigation to see recent posts from the blogs you follow.

Delete users from your Blog Watch

1. On the My Blog page, click Blog List.
2. Select the users you want to delete.
3. Click Remove at the top or bottom of the list.

The blog tool provides a means to publish your blog as an RSS feed, which any external news reader (RSS aggregator) can read.

Note You might not have permission to use the RSS feed functionality.

Understanding RSS feeds

The RSS file format provides summaries of content on a website and links to the full version of the content. This information is in an XML file known as an RSS feed. A program known as an RSS aggregator, or news reader, reads the RSS feed and displays any new (updated) content that it finds on the website.

This is useful for frequent readers to track updates on the site. For the Blog tool, it enables readers to track new entries and comments on a blog without logging in to Learning Environment.

Generate an RSS feed

1. Click  Settings, then select Publish your blog as an RSS feed.
2. Give your feed a title, and if you want, a description.
3. Click Save.
4. Send the External URL to users you want to share your blog with.

Share your blog with friends, family, and acquaintances that are not a part of your Learning Environment by providing them with the permanent URL for your blog.

Share your blog with other users

1. On the My Blog page, click Preview Blog.
2. Copy the URL from the Permalink field set under your blog's name.
3. Share the URL with the people you want to read your blog.

Note You can also find your blog's permanent URL by clicking  Settings on the My Blog and Blog Watch pages.