Monday, February 6, 2006

Alternatives To Blogger, Part 1

BlogTipsBasil
Lately, I've been asking bloggers who left the Blogger platform why they left. Now, I should mention here that this little blog used to be on Blogger. Then we left.

But, I was wondering why others left. So, I asked what people didn't like about the Blogger platform.

We got several responses to our query. There were many of the same complaints in many different responses. The primary problem with Blogger seems to be service disruption. But there are many things different people don't like about the service.

The Primary Problems

Here's some of the reasons people left Blogger or don't like Blogger:
  • It's annoying to have to republish the entire blog for small edits
  • Not supporting categories
  • No built-in Trackback support
  • Not offering extended entry functionality ("More..." or "Click to continue...")
  • Lack of variety in Templates or Template selection is limited
  • Unhappy with the general appearance of Templates
  • Fixed width Templates
  • 300-post limit on the edit page
  • No ability to moderate (as opposed to delete) comments
  • Inability to schedule posts for future publishing
  • Difficulty for beginners to edit the Templates
  • Service disruptions
  • "Second class blog" stigma / must have a "blogspot.com" URL
  • No window-esque, drop-and-drag interface to use when creating a blog
Former Problems

Others left Blogger in the past for other reasons:
  • No hosted photos (functionality since added)
  • Must have a Blogger account to comment (no longer required)
  • No comment spam features (simple feature has now been added)
If you have have left Blogger, if you are still on Blogger but are dissatisfied, or if you looked at Blogger and passed because you didn't like something about it -- and if it's not already listed above -- leave a comment and let us know.

Requirements for Alternatives

We're going to look at other platforms that address one or more of these issues with Blogger. But there's a catch: They will have to be free.

The other platforms won't have to have all the same functionality as Blogger, but we're going to note where they don't have some of the same functionality.

Over the next few weeks, we're going to be addressing different free alternatives to Blogger. Not every day, to be sure. But once a week. Or twice sometimes.

Next time: WordPress.com

Questions?

If you have a question for phin or me, drop us a line. Or, if you have a free platform you'd like to make sure we check out, leave a comment or send us an e-mail. My email address is basil.thinks.he.is.so.smart@gmail.com

8 comments:

  1. Bingo on all counts here. But -- I think Blogger, like AOL, is a "blog with training wheels". It might help someone starting out to have a platform they can learn on and then move forward. Would I go back? Heck no!

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  2. I'm ready and I'm listening...well, reading. I have many of those complaints about blogger.

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  3. Thanks. I'm on Blogger and am wondering about the free alternatives, specifically wordpress. Look forward to that post when it comes out.

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  4. Blogsome is a good alternative for freebies. It is Wordpress based, and you can edit the css and index, up to a point. Can't do that with Wordpress.com. I did some interesting things last week while trying to learn some CSS
    \
    PS: tag, you're it: http://www.thepiratescove.us/2006/02/4_things_memera.html

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  5. Cap'n Teach:
    Blogsome is scheduled to be next, after WordPress.com

    Before this series is done, I'll have more blogs than anyone on Earth!

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  6. [...] Basil is seeking thoughts about the problems with Blogger. Well, where do I begin?? Actually it’s much better than it was a year ago, BUT…. [...]

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  7. I've heard it said that for bloggers who want to be taken seriously, a domain name is going to be a must. To have a .blogspot as your primary blog will someday be seen the same way as having a Website on Geocities.com

    There are a lot cooler engines out there. I'd say that not all the options are free, but some aren't too bad. I've got b2evolution, which itself is free, though I have to pay for hosting on my blog.

    My big problem with blogger and why I don't use it for primary blog anymore is just that I want my own space. I use it for my Podcast, because it'd cost a lot more than I'm willing to pay to host it on my own.

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  8. to the comment on domain names, the fare is like 15 bucks, I am not sure the 15 bucks or 30 bucks is going to make anybody take you seriously. if I thought that the domain name was a make or break deal, then 15 or 30 bucks is a no-brainer. I happen to think content and connections make or break you. I have a backup site on word press, and frankly find Word press to be far more restrictive with regards to design elements. I just finished designing two sites for my wife on blogger, and if you're willing to take the time, and you know your way around the coding, you can pretty much create any sort of design you'd like. with Word press, you are restricted quite a bit more, and pretty much have to stick with what ever the templates are. that said, the biggest problem of blogger, is the frequency of crashes, this includes the crashes of the comment boxes, but understand that's pretty much common thing with a lot of other comment services, I have noticed that haloscan hangs up quite a bit. you can moderate comments on blogger, matter fact, most of things that are complained about, there is a workaround, but the lack of track backs, and the inability to schedule posts(although if you're willing to set up some sort of Rube Goldberg scheme with your e-mail account, you can schedule publishing), these two problems are still a major bummer. I guess there is no perfect blogger world, although I have heard good things about blogssome, and will be looking into that.

    had to ask, who the heck is republishing their entire blog for a minor edit? is the minor edit on a sidebar that you wish to show up on every posted page? if that's the case I can understand. if not, try a little tiny button called republish index only. and if you're republishing the entire blog when you're just making a tiny edit on one single Post, please tell me you're not a pilot for major airline.

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