One of the greatest parts about blogging is that there are dozens of different options for blogging software solutions and scripts, so you can easily create a blog which is custom tailored for your needs, and has all of the options that you need in order to best utilize everything that your blog has to offer. Potentially one of the most difficult decisions to make is which script to use, or which blogging community to join. The following is a small selection of the more popular options for you to utilize.
Livejournal -- Livejournal is a blogging community, which means that all of the blogs in the community are actually hosted on www.Livejournal.com rather than on individual webpages. Livejournal has more than thirteen million members, and has been going strong since 1999. Livejournal is great for networking, as it hosts many communities based on industries and niches, allowing businesses to network and for business people to meet new clients and colleagues. However, Livejournal is most ideal for the 18-24 crowd as a social networking blogging community and therefore is less than ideal for most business blogs.
Movable Type -- Movable Type is actually an elder sibling to Type Pad, which is available at www.movabletype.org, which was created almost exclusively for business use. The Movable Type platform is one which can be uploaded onto your server and customized from start to finish in order to work seamlessly with your already existing website. The Movable Type interface is not quite as friendly to users as the TypePad interface is, as it does require at lest a basic understanding of HTML. Using the platform requires a one time licensing fee, which varies slightly depending on the type of use and how many people will be making use of it.
Nucleus CMS -- Nucleus CMS is a open source content management solution, which means that the script that makes the software work is free for anyone to use. Using Nucleus CMS, you can actually set up several different web logs in the same directory, and can even show several different blogs on the same webpage if you so choose. Blogs can also be set up to accommodate several different writers, with different security levels determining whether a blogger can only write, or will also have control of the blog's settings as well. Nucleus CMS is fully customizable if you have a basic understanding of HTML and CSS, or you can download one of many interesting and exciting templates which are available all over the internet.
TypePad -- Although TypePad was originally intended more for personal use than for business use, the TypePad platform actually provides a great deal of versatility which will make it extremely useful for any platform, regardless of whether the intended goal for the blog is business or personal in nature. TypePad contains all of the blogging platform components that you would expect, including the capability for comments, various categories and even track backs. TypePad has an editing interface which is WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) in nature which makes it extremely friendly for all users, even if they have no knowledge of HTML before hand. On the other hand, if you have a good working knowledge of HTML and want to use it to edit your blog, the option is available. TypePad also allows users to set up photo albums which can be incorporated right into the blog, which is a feature that is not available through any other blog provider at current. The only downside to TypePad is that there is typically a monthly fee required in order to use it, and this fee can range from anywhere between $5.00 and $15.00. For additional savings, however, you can pay on a yearly basis rather than a monthly one.
WordPress -- WordPress is an open source blogging system which is available in two different ways. You can obtain a membership on WordPress's website (www.wordpress.org) where you can write in a blog hosted on the website, or you can download the open source free software for use on your own website, which may possibly require the most sophisticated level of technical related knowledge out of all the blog systems listed above. WordPress is free to use and comes with many features for customization, and once it is implemented properly on your website, it is one of the easier blogging systems to use.
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