Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is a photoblog?
A: Firstly, a blog is basically a web page consisting of posts organized in chronological order (usually with the most recent post first) and updated on a regular basis. Blogs are used for a variety of reasons from an artistic medium to an online journal to a corporate communications tool - the options are endless. Photoblogging is where we come in though. Photoblogs.org explains photoblogging the best: "Something is a photoblog if: it has photos, it's on the web, and it is a log of some sort. If any of these three pieces are missing, then it doesn't make sense to call something a photoblog."
Q: What if I like Expressions, but I don't want to be hosted with you?
A: The Expressions system must be hosted with us to allow us to implement upgrades seamlessly and ensure there are no installation issues, but that doesn't mean you can't use your own personalised domain name. (i.e: you don't have to direct viewers to your blog at http://myblog.my-expressions.com). Unfortunately, we do not offer domain registration or domain hosting, so you will need to register your own domain name (i.e.: http://myowndomain.com).
Q: Will there be a free version?
A: Since the Expressions system needs to be hosted by us (to allow seamless upgrades and ensure there are no installation issues) and because we want to offer you the best performance and account space, we can not provide a free version. Our cost is only $3.00 (USD) a month or $29.95 (USD) a year (almost a 20% discount if you pay yearly), which we think is extremely reasonable. However, we do understand the need to test a service to see if it is right for you without having to pay, so we offer the first 30 days free for you to give it a whirl.
Q: How do I pay for my account?
A: Currently all subscriptions, whether monthly or yearly, are paid via PayPal. If you do not have a PayPal account you will be able to create one through PayPal when you subscribe. You do not need to signup for PayPal for your 30 day free trial. If you have any questions about payment, please email us at . If you can not create a PayPal account, we can discuss other payment options via cheque or money order. Please note that payments via cheque or money order are only accepted for yearly subscriptions. For more information, please email us directly.
Q: PayPal is not offered in my country/I don't want to use PayPal. How can I sign up?
A: If you are unable to open a PayPal account, or do not wish to open a PayPal account, you can sign up to Expressions for a yearly subscription with a cheque or money order. For more information, please email us at . Please note subscriptions via money order or cheque are only for yearly subscriptions. We do not offer this for monthly subscriptions.
Q: Why do I get a message from PayPal saying my account is canceled when I update my credit card info?
A: PayPal automatically cancels your subscription to Expressions when you update your credit card as a security measure. This does not mean you have lost any of your account information though, nor does it mean that your account has been deactivated. We have a policy of keeping all account data (posts, comments etc.) for 3 months after an account has been canceled so you can always return.
If you ever do get a message from PayPal that your account has been canceled and you have not intended to do this, all you need to do is reactivate your account when your current subscription with us expires. To do this, simply go to this URL:
http://my-expressions.com/expressions/reactivate.cgi
Login as you usually would and follow all the steps, including the steps through PayPal. This will reactivate your account and create a new subscription with PayPal.If you are a yearly subscriber, then this means you will not need to reactivate your account until your year payment is up. So, if you subscribed in January with a yearly subscription, and you update your CC info after this and PayPal cancels the subscription, you won't need to reactivate your account until the following January. Your account will remain fully intact until then since you have already paid for that full year. For monthly subscribers this means not reactivating until one month after your last payment, which you can find within your PayPal account.
If you have any questions or concerns about this, please email us at .
Q: Do you offer a free trial?
A: Yes, indeed we do! You get a 30 day free trial when you sign up. The account will automatically cancel after 30 days and you won't be charged a thing! Or, if you like what you see, you can subscribe to Expressions by clicking on "Sign up" at the top right of your page when you are logged in. You will receive an email when your trial is up with information on how to subscribe as a full member if you wish.
Q: How much space do I get?
A: You will get 100MB of space with your account when you sign up (yes, 100MB for only $3.00). We are quite sure this will be more than enough space to get you started with your new photoblog. Please note: this is not 100MB of space per month. As an FYI, we have estimated that if someone posts 1 image per day at approximately 100K per image, they will be able to post an image for at least 2 years, so you have a lot of photoblogging to do before you max out your space!
Q: How many blog pages can I have and how many users?
A: Each account allows up to 5 users and 3 blog pages allowing you to have 3 completely separate blogs managed by up to 5 users. Your archive and gallery pages are not considered "Blog pages". Blog pages can be for entirely different blogs, or used for static pages such as a separate about page, links page or contact page.
Q: What if I need more space, users or blog pages?
A: You can upgrade your space allotment, users and blog pages at any time. You simply log into your account and go to "Account Prefs" under Main Menu where you will see options to add users, add pages and add space. Upgrading your space will increase your space allotment by 100MB for an extra $2.00 per month. For an additional $1.00 per month you can add another 3 blog pages to your account or another 5 users to your account. You can upgrade as often as you'd like and remove any upgrades via PayPal by cancelling your upgrade subscription(s).
Q. Can I change my username or account name?
A: Unfortunately not. We do not currently support the ability to change your username or account name once you have registered. When selecting your username and account name be sure to select something you will be happy with. You will be able to point your Expressions sub-domain (named after your account name) to your own domain if you wish, but this will require you purchasing and hosting your own domain name. We do not offer domain name registration or domain hosting.
Q. Where can I learn more about changes, news and features regarding Expressions?
A: Visit our news blog for how-tos, feature updates, Expressions news and other tidbits regarding blogging, photography and more. If you wish, you can subscribe to our news blog Atom feed and keep up-to-date on what's happening with Expressions.
Q. I'm an Expressions member and I have a support question. What do I do?
A: Firstly, be sure to check our Expressions Member FAQ and our Help Files in case the answer to your question is there. If not, post your question on our Expressions Discussion Group. If you have a billing or private question, please contact us directly: .
Q: What if you haven't answered my question?
A: Email us at or post your question on our Expressions Discussion Group. We are happy to answer any questions you may have!