by Maureen Cutajar

Created on: December 14, 2010   Last Updated: December 17, 2010

Blog widgets are frequently used on several personal and commercial blogs. Widgets are small boxes strategically placed on blog pages that feature additional information about the blog. A search on the internet about blog widgets will yield several results about different kinds of widgets that can be used for your blog. Widgets can be used to feature almost anything from visitor counters, featured links, recent posts published, most popular posts, related posts, Twitter posts and Facebook links to weather forecasts and advertising space.

Widgets are often created by using HTML or JavaScript. However, the great thing about widgets is that they can be tweaked by the blog administrator to display almost anything and no advanced knowledge of HTML or JavaScript is required. To add a widget to your blog you can easily search the Internet to find what you need. There are several websites which provide widgets for free. All that is required from your end is to copy the code graciously provided and paste it on your blog.

If you are feeling more adventurous, however, you can also attempt to create you own personalized widget for your blog. Here are the instructions that explain how to create a simple widget that you can personalize for your blog. 

How to Make a Blog Widget in Blogger

1. Log in to your Blogger account and click on the Design Tab. From the Design Section select the Page Elements Tab.
2. The Page Elements Tab shows the template of your blog. From here you can find all the widgets already added to your blog.
3. To create a new widget click on one of the Add a Gadget slots which are found in various sections of the page elements shown.
4. A window with a list of all available widgets will be displayed. All these can be added to your blog.
5. Locate the Text Widget in the list and a pop up window will appear that will let you add text or HTML code.
6. Enter the text or HTML code in the text box and click OK. Check your blog to check how your newly created widget appears on your blog.

How to Make a Blog Widget in Wordpress

1. Log in to your Wordpress account and locate the Appearance section on the left-hand menu found under the administrative section of your blog.
2. Click on the Appearance section and select Widgets from its sub menu.
3. The Widgets section will display all the available widgets for your Wordpress blog. From here drag the Text widget into an available widget slot in your blog template.
4. Enter the text or HTML code in the text box and click OK. Check your blog to check how your newly created widget appears on your blog.

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