The most common questions I’m asked and problems I have to deal with daily always relates to emails. To help with your email frustrations, let me explain the answers one at a time.

Do students need to use an email address?

It depends.

If you only want your students to write comments on the posts, you can change your settings so an email isn’t required. Simple as unselecting ‘Comment author must fill out name and e-mail in Settings > Discussion.

On your posts the comment may still show author and email required but with these settings changed they definitely aren’t!

An email address is needed when:

1. You want to add students to a class blog so they can write posts
2. Your blog is private i.e. only visible to logged in users or logged in registered subscribers
3. You want students to have their own blogs

Why is an email address required?

To create usernames or blogs you need to use a ‘real’ email address because:

1. When you use the Edublogs signup page an email with a link to activate your username or blog is sent to your email address. If you don’t click on that link the account isn’t created.
2. To reset your password when you forget it.
3. To receive email notifications of new comments and any comments held in moderations.
4. When you delete a blog you’re sent an email to the address attached to the blog URL; you can’t delete the blog without clicking on the link in that email.

Each username needs its own unique email address whereas you can have lots of blogs attached to the same email address.

It won’t allow you to create several usernames with the same email address because the system resets your password based on email address. But you can trick it using the gmail+ method.

Please Note: Don’t ask me to delete blogs; I won’t! Deleted blogs can’t be undeleted.

Do students need to use their own email addresses?

No! You can trick the system by using the gmail+ method.

How it works is Gmail ignores anything in the first half of an email address after a plus sign so if you create each email with the format username+studentname@gmail.com all emails will be sent to the inbox of username@gmail.com .

This also means that if you want to moderate comments on all student blogs they will be sent to your one email address.

Just remember if you use this method:

1. You must first create a ‘gmail account.’
2. All aspects of managing that blog and/or username is attached to that email address including password resets.

TIP: The gmail+ method can be used for creating accounts on most websites.

I signed up for a blog but I haven’t received the activation email!

The activation email is sent when you sign up using the Edublogs signup page. It normally arrives within 30 minutes and includes a link which you use to activate your username/blog.

The username and blog won’t exist in the system until you click on that link to activate the account. You have 48 hours to activate otherwise you need to reset up your account.

Unfortunately spam filters, especially strict ones for education email addresses, often block these activation emails. Try checking your spam folder. If it doesn’t arrive you will need to create a new account using a free web based email such as gmail, hotmail or yahoo.

Please note:

1. When you create blogs using the Blog & User creator the accounts are automatically created i.e. doesn’t need activating.
2. Make sure you test your email system before creating a large number of usernames/blogs to ensure your spam filter doesn’t block the emails
3. Don’t ask me to send you the password and blog URL if you don’t receive the activation email — I can’t help you — your account doesn’t exist in our system

When I click the link for “Lost my password” I don’t receive my new password!

Unfortunately spam filters, especially strict ones for education email addresses, often block the password emails. Occasionally people will receive an email with the link to reset the password but not the second email with the new password.

If this happens you will need to contact us at Edublogs support (support[at]edublogs[dot]org) with your username and blog URL so we can manually re-set your password.

Once we’ve changed your password you will need to:

1. Re-set it to a better password
2. Change your email address to a free web based email such as gmail, hotmail or yahoo (Users > Your Profile)

I’ve sent an email to Edublogs Support and got no response!

Erm we do respond to emails but if you have used a school email address there’s a good chance your email filters are blocking all of our different emails.

Where possible don’t use a school email address unless you know it won’t block our emails!

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