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I've switched my comment section from haloscan to blogger.
Blogger's commenting, as far as I know, has no word limit at all.
I've switched my comment section from haloscan to blogger.
Blogger's commenting, as far as I know, has no word limit at all.
posted by trawlerman at 5:17 PM
5 Comments:
At last!
Why were you using Holoscan previously, anyhow?
Did a little further looking . . . the old comments didn't convert smoothly. All previous formatting was lost so all my careful use of italics is now for naught.
I also wonder why the word "Gravatar" was inserted at various points in our long comments.
However, such problems are well worth the ability to comment at longer length than 3000 characters!
Also, I don't know if this was intentional but your superman painting that floats behind the blog body makes it impossible to read your blog.
I'm using Firefox on Linux for my browser.
Rundy,
I was using Haloscan because it "popped up" and that's the only reason. I didn't like (and still don't like) that blogger must take you to the post's page before you can comment.
Maybe some day I'll make the switch to MovableType or WordPress. Who are you using to host your blog, anyhow? I refuse to pay any money, otherwise I'd be elsewhere.
Yeah, I know that the formatting is gone. I went through all of the old comments and simply gave them a cut and paste job. Many of my text links from much earlier posts now do not link to anywhere at all. It's not perfect, but at least I salvaged the old comments with minimal effort on my part.
I'm not sure why the word "gravatar" was inserted at various points, due to my cutting and pasting, but I do find it rather humorous.
The superman painting is not there on purpose. I'm fooling around with changing my blogger template, and Abigail had to use the computer while I was in the middle of tinkering. I may fix it tonight and I may not.
I'm glad that you're using Linux. I'm thinking about making the switch, but I'm not fully ready to commit. Alright, now Abigail has to get back on the computer (she's editing papers for her brother Andrew).
John,
Not sure what you mean by distinguishing Holoscans "pop up" from blogger comments. For me both blogger and holoscan comments opens a new window. From my end both holoscan and blogger comments seem to function in the same way.
About blogging software . . . I sympathize with not wanting to pay anything. There are a lot of different types of free blogging software out there but all of them require "hosting" by someone . . . which costs money (unless you have your own server and can host yourself.) I've used Movabletype but just recently switched to Wordpress. In usabilty MT is fine but I am personally unhappy with their change in licensing (though I can understand it from a business perspective, even if I don't agree).
If I were going to advise anyone on a alternative to Blogger I would say Wordpress . . . though it wouldn't be bad to check out Textpattern and others.
But, given the fact that you're not in the position to spend money on this hobby, your best solution is the one you already have.
In my case, and with my Mom also, we are being generously hosted by my Mom's brother. Thus both me and my mom can use Wordpress because we have access to full hosting features at no cost to us. (Thank you, Robert!)
If you can afford it, paying for the hosting of your own blog is worth it, I think. There is a lot more freedom and options beyond just a blog. You can create forums, e-mail accounts, etc.
Of course, there is also a lot more work. Great fun if you like puttering around with computers and websites . . . but blogger is good and sufficent for a lot of people.
If you ever get rich and famous and decide to host your own blog I would suggest you look at www.totalchoicehosting.com. That is where my uncle Robert gets his hosting and I have in general been very happy with their service. If you look at the features and price for the starter service plan it is a good deal for $44.00 for an entire year of hosting. (Of course, some of us don't have $44 just laying around to spend on hosting!)
But, for example, if you bought the domain "owen.com" (I'm sure it's actually taken by someone) you could consolidate yours and Abigails blogs into one location. For example you could make it so that your blog was at http://john.owen.com and abigail was at http://abigail.owen.com. (Or whatever, if you prefer to use trawlerman.)
Also, you could have email address like John@owen.com or whatever. Not particularly important, but some people prefer being able to have email accounts at their own domain rather than a weird named account at some big company like yahoo or hotmail.
Buy anyhow . . . that is all neither here nor there. If sometime you decide to get a domain and host yourself feel free to send me an e-mail if you have any questions about the whole process.
Regarding linux--I've been happy with it. When I first installed linux I was surprised how "mature" the operating system felt. The interface has a pleasent apperance. However, there is a learning curve. I didn't find it a bad learning curve, but I don't mind puttering around with a computer and learning things.
The thing is not to put all one's eggs into the Linux basket until you have experience with the operating system and can make an informed decision. Installing linux on an old machine or else creating a dual boot on your single computer is the way to reach that informed decision.
One can make the argument that moving to Linux is good for security reasons. That may be a reasonable argument, but really the only big reason to switch is a matter of principle/protest against the draconian EULA's that have infested the world.
I'm running Mandrake 9.1 Linux.
My primary source for help with linux is at www.linuxquestions.com, in the forum there. At that location I am known as Rundi, but I don't post a lot.
Okay, that is enough for the tech post for today . . .
"From my end both holoscan and blogger comments seem to function in the same way."
They do now. 'twas not always so.
Blogger just recently added pop-up functionality not too many months ago. They've tweaked their comments in a few other ways, too. I thought about switching back to blogger comments when they made the changes, but I didn't feel like losing or transfering all of my Haloscan comments. Then last month I found out that Haloscan automatically deletes old comments after they've aged a certain number of months. So I've made the switch.
As far as hosting goes, maybe someday if I have the extra wealth.
As far as Linux goes, maybe this summer, maybe after I'm finished with school next year. As you say, it requires some getting used to, and I'm not sure if I'm ready to put the effort into it just now.
Just yesterday, though, we dug up an old ('97 Toshiba) laptop, so that Abby could do some editing work while I was off with the new laptop doing schoolwork.
The coincidence of bringing out the old laptop and reading your words, "Installing linux on an old machine," may be enough to convince me to give it a trial run this summer.
Right now I am happy with Windows XP, but I am a supporter of open source projects.
If you're running Linux, then you're probably already aware of most of these, but you can find some great applications here:
TheOpenCD.org
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