FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

YES! I earn $1.00 for every word I write, so this is a wonderful source of income.

Okay, if you’re new to blogs or don’t immediately get my sarcastic sense of humor, let me emphasize that is not true. As of now I have no income whatsoever from this blog. Maybe that will change someday when a publisher sees what a wonderful, creative writer I am (there goes the sarcasm again), but no, right now I actually have to pay out of my own pocket to publish Bob’s Blog. Not a lot, fortunately, but there are costs — paying for a domain (bergey.net), website hosting space and bandwidth (hostingdirect.com — oooh, there’s an affiliate link — if you click it and sign up for your own website, I might actually make a couple of dollars!), a nice WordPress theme (I use Magazine Pro from StudioPress — yay, another affiliate link!), and time. A lot of time. This began during the infamous COVID-19 pandemic with most of us locked in our homes, so my time was more freely available. Once everything is set up and rolling, the amount of time it takes to keep up with this will be relatively minimal.

Well, first of all, I love writing. I’m not a great writer, but I don’t think I’m too bad, either. And writing is more fun when you have some way to make it available to others who might like to read it, or who would at least have the opportunity to read it. It’s a good way for me to exercise my writing skills. Even if no one reads this, there is still the possibility that someone might read it, and that’s enough for me.

It’s also a good way for me to practice my web design skills. I do everything around here — the writing, the web design and maintenance, graphics, photography, etc. — all the parts that are needed for a proper website. I enjoy all of it. There is always more to learn, and I am a life-long learner, if nothing else.

On this site, not very long — I just started Bob’s Blog in April, 2020. But I’ve had numerous blogs over the years, starting all the way back in 1995 when I started one for my business website. True confession: I’ve not been good at keeping them going over the long term. So who knows how long this one will last. I think I know myself better these days and am differently motivated, so maybe this blog will last a while longer. Only time will tell.

Yeah, I’m old. And the internet did exist back then! It was just getting started — I was a pioneer (sarcasm again, although there may be a grain of truth there). I registered the domain, bergey.net, in 1995. I had intended to register bergey.com, but another entrepreneur, Bill Bergey in Norman, Oklahoma, beat me to it by literally two weeks. (Check out his site sometime — NOT NOW — his company sells windmills, the kind used to generate electricity, all over the world — fascinating). So I settled for the dot net version, almost as good.

For those cynics out there who are going to do a WHOIS check on the bergey.net domain, yes, it says I registered it in 1999, not 1995. I foolishly allowed the registration to lapse for just a day or two in 1999 and had to re-register it. Fortunately I was able to snag it again before anyone else noticed. I’ve been more careful since then. But I did originally register it in December 1995. You’ll just have to take my word on that.

I will admit I’m a bit of a nerdy writer. Technology — software and hardware — figure into my motivation to write in a major way. If I had to use pencil on paper, I doubt you’d ever see a word I’ve written.

Hardware-wise, as you probably know by now, I’m an Apple guy. I’ve written about Apple products before, and there’s lots more to come. They just make it easy to write (and do lots of other “stuff”). I bought my first Macintosh computer back in 1985, and I’m still writing on a Mac today. When I’m at my desk (either in my home studio or on the steering wheel when I’m parked in my motorcoach) I’m writing on my 15″ MacBook Pro. It’s four years old but still more than up to the task. I also do a fair amount of writing on my iPad Pro (11″, first generation). Perhaps most surprisingly, I do almost as much writing on my iPhone 11 Pro Max as I do on the others combined! My phone is always with me, so anytime I have a moment to write, that’s what I use. Makes sense, right?

Software-wise — and this is key for me — I absolutely LOVE writing with the Ulysses app. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a writer’s dream come true. It’s only available on Apple devices (obviously not a problem for me), and it’s available on ALL of Apple’s devices: I have it installed on my MacBook Pro, my iPad, and my iPhone. Because Apple’s ecosystem is so tight and Ulysses’ integration so complete, at any time I can pick up any one of my Apple devices and continue from right where I left off. Saving is automatic and continuous, and everything is backed up on iCloud as well as locally. It’s a writer’s dream come true. Not just that, but the software gets out of my way when I’m writing. By default I write on a clear screen — no menus, no toolbars, absolutely nothing to distract me — although they’re just a click away anytime if I need them. The app works almost identically no matter which device I’m using. I usually have multiple projects going at once — I currently have three books I’m working on, I write my blog posts in Ulysses, and I write scripts and promo pieces for each of my podcasts in Ulysses. It keeps everything organized, safely backed up, and in its place.

I have to mention WordPress, the foundation of this website. WordPress has been around a long time, and I’ve used it for more than a decade on most of my websites. It has never, ever been better than it is right now. It has matured into a wonderful publishing medium for writers and others. I just read today that 35% of all websites today are built on WordPress and for good reason. Although it started in life as a blogging tool, it’s become so much more — there is almost nothing anymore that can’t be done on a website with WordPress. It’s still the best for writers and bloggers, in my opinion. I can publish posts and articles to my WordPress websites from anywhere with any of my devices. You don’t have to know everything about it to use it, either — I’m still learning after all these years. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but you can learn the basics very quickly and get online if you choose to do so. Do it.

Haha — I thought you might pick up on that. Well, one is a memoir — it will most likely never see the light of day, but it’s very cathartic for me, not only a way of capturing my history but understanding myself, at least as much as that is possible. The other two are how-to books — one for motorcoach drivers, and another for podcasters just getting started. I have no publisher or editor to push me on any of them, so there are no deadlines and who knows if anyone will ever see any of them! But I’m enjoying writing them anyway. Writing for my blog, however, is the most enjoyable of all the writing I do.

There is no set schedule. Sometimes twice a day, sometimes once a week or even longer. I write when I have something to say or feel the need to write. My intention is to publish several times a week, but I’m not holding myself to that too tightly. You get what you get.

No, not the instrument. It’s a website tool in WordPress. But you know how an accordion works, right? The bellows expanding and contracting, blowing air through the reeds to make music? Well, in this case, it’s the design element used on this page to expand and contract on each question in the FAQ. You only need to view the text for one particular question at a time if you wish. Click the question a second time and it contracts again. Kinda cool, don’t you think?