I’ve been blogging for more than a year now and I still consider myself as an amateur blogger. I’m not even sure if I can call myself as a “Pro-blogger” someday, but who knows?

Although I’m just an amateur, I can say that I already have a lot of experience in blogging and I also tried using different tools to improve my blogging skills. There are some software that can really make your blogging experience more fun, easy and exciting and I will share it here with you.

1. Windows Live Writer (Blogging Software)

For me, WLW is really a must-have for all the bloggers that use Windows. It’s one of the best blogging software that you can find and it really makes the life of a blogger easier and more convenient! It feels like I’m just using MS Word whenever I’m using it. WLW can add pictures, videos, maps, tables, and you can also install some add-ons to increase its capabilities. You can use WLW with almost all the blogging platforms like Blogger, WordPress, TypePad, Windows Live, Live Journal, and many more! The best thing is that it’s free!

Download Windows Live Writer

2. Snagit by TechSmith (Screen Capture Tool)

It is common for bloggers to include a screenshot on their posts especially if they offer tutorials or give reviews to a website or software like my blog and my best partner for taking screenshots is Snagit. Actually, Snagit is not a freeware, it costs $49.95 if you buy it but it’s really worth it! After taking screenshots, I can easily edit it in Snagit Editor, put lines, boxes, drawings, texts, and almost anything that I want.

It can also convert images, add special effects, record screen video and other amazing things!

You can get the free trial of Snagit* and buy it afterwards if you liked it.

* The Snagit trial is fully-functional and runs for 30 days after installation.

You can also check out some of the best alternatives for Snagit.

 3. PngOptimizer (Image Optimizer)

If you are a good blogger, you know how important it is to speed up the loading time of your blog. If you have a lot of pictures on your blog or on your posts, make sure that you optimize each images so that it will load faster. On my previous posts, I’ve already shown you some of the best “Online Image Optimizers” and “Image Optimizer Freeware”, but my favorite and the one that I use often is PngOptimizer. I use this to optimize my PNG images before I post it on my blog. The interface is so simple and no need to install anything, just download it, open the program, and use it!

Aside from the simple interface, it’s so easy to use that’s why I like it. Just drag and drop the images to PngOptimizer window and it will start crunching your images and make it smaller that’s perfect for your blog.

Download PngOptimizer

* It works on Windows (2000/XP/Vista)

4. Mozilla Firefox (Web Browser)

I can’t imaginw a blogger who can survive without using a web browser. Almost all the information we need are on the internet and the best way to surf the web is by using a great web browser like Firefox. I personally recommend it to all my readers because Firefox has a lot of add-ons that can definitely increase its functions and capabilities and it makes the browsing experience of its users a lot more fun and convenient.

Aside from Firefox, there are also other great browsers that you can use like Google Chrome, Safari, Opera, and Internet Explorer.

Download Mozilla Firefox

5. FileZilla (FTP Client)

Before, when I was still using Blogger, I’m really not familiar with FTP or FTP Clients because I don’t use it but when I transferred to WordPress, I started to learn new things and one of them is the importance of FTP.

I use FileZilla to upload new plugins, themes, and sometimes images. I like using it because it’s so simple and even an amateur like me can use it easily!

Download FileZilla

Aside from the 5 software listed above, I also use Adobe Photoshop to edit some pictures I put in my posts (to make it look “more” presentable for my readers) but I didn’t include it on the list because it isn’t really essential tool for bloggers.

So that’s it! If you’re planning to create your own blog, make sure that you have those tools and I’m sure that you’ll enjoy blogging even more!

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