About

TheOctopus is a new social network bringing blogs and media together to form communities by feeding (or “aggregating”) blog posts from members into a large social stream. One or more people can form a blog into an online community and if you choose, you can feed that post into TheOctopus.com for extra visibility. Sign up for a free blog on TheOctopus and you can invite your friends and colleagues to contribute to your blog with you, and you can also “geocode” your blog posts (place them in a specific location on a map). Geocoded blog posts allow visitors to your blog to see your content in the standard blog format, or on our unique map found nowhere else. You can even categorize your blog posts to use different icons on the map to give an even better experience for your visitors.

How do I join?

Step 1: Click “Sign Up” at the top of TheOctopus.com

Step 2: Fill out the quick and easy user form.

Step 3: Click the confirmation link in your email.

How do I create a blog?

Step 1: Login to TheOctopus using the “Login” button in the grey bar at the top. You must already be registered for TheOctopus and have activated your account using the instructions above.

Step 2: From the “My Blogs” menu, click “Create a Blog” and fill out the short form to get going. Your blog will have and address like YOURBLOG.theoctopus.com.

How do I write a blog post?

Step 1: Login to your Blog Admin tool by visiting: http://YOURBLOG.theoctopus.com/wp-admin/ and login (using the username you chose and the password that was emailed to you in the second email after you clicked the activation link in the first email from TheOctopus.)

Step 2: Click “Add New” from the Posts menu on the left hand side. You can also click “New Post” from the quick menu at the top of the page.

Step 3: Enter the title of this blog post and fill in the main content area. The main content can include images and media if you click the “Add Media” button (it appears as a gray star shape), and you may also use the familiar toolbar buttons to create rich text in your post. Once your content is entered, check the Syndication box if you would like this post to be included on the main TheOctopus.com homepage and community. Any post that does not have this box checked will only be shown on your blog. If this post has a location, enter the location into the field and click the “Map Location” link. Blog posts with a saved location are “geocoded” onto your blog map. The location field is optional as are the categories and tags. Once you have written, located, and categorized your post, click the “Publish” button to save this entry right to your blog.