How to Secure a Private Blog- Free of Charge

http://family.jot.com/ Is one of the child projects of Jot.com, a wiki application company that serves major businesses such as Ebay, Symantec, Intel and more.

While some of the site's services rightfully require a fee, the family wiki is completely free, thanks to the non-intrusive (and ad-blockable) text advertisements present on its pages.

Our family being scattered all over the world, we finally figured it would be nice to have a group blog. My sister secured a Blogspot.com address, but I was bothered by the fact that millions of people could see our pictures and family matters.

Along came Big Brother who, with the help of Google, created a JotSpot family wiki.

Once a URL is created, the site allows the administrator to invite members via email. The members may then do some recruitment of their own. Each invited member logs in with his/her own email and created password, thus enabling the blog to be completely PRIVATE.

True to wiki spirit, every page has 'Edit' options, and it's possible to rename pictures or blog entries at any given moment.

A nifty Family Directory allows members to enter their names and addresses, thus automatically enabling a map of their location to be shown next to their information.

The Family Calendar is accessible by all members, allowing them to add events. Birthdays listed in 'Family Birthdays' can be found on the calendar.

I've taken advantage of the 'Family Recipes', posting my favorites to share with the gang.

'Family Blog' is of course, the highlight of the site. Members can post entries, comment and edit any entry at any given time. (Yes, on a wiki pranksters have the ability to edit other members' posts)!

'Family Photos' has forced my mom to give in to the era of the internet. She now clicks on that link, anxious to view photos of her children and grandchildren.

This guide has provided quick and easy information on the Family Jot wiki. Go ahead and try it yourself!