MyBlogLog is a favourite website of mine and they have just introduced a new Wordpress widget called “Just For You“.

The concept behind it is that when a MyBlogLog-registered visitor turns up at your blog, Just For You (assuming it is installed on your blog) will scan the visitor’s MBL tags and see what their interests are.   The widget will then scan your blog archives, match the person’s MBL tags to your archives and bring back suggested stories from your archives for the person to read.

Quite an interesting idea - if you have space on your blog sidebar for another widget.

Just for You Personalizes Your WordPress Blog

Technorati Tags: blogging, mybloglog, tags, widget, Wordpress, Yahoo

There’s an interesting post over at Search Engine Journal about why you shouldn’t use Blogger to blog.    In fact, I think it’s a good argument overall about why you shouldn’t use any blog service’s own blogging space.

Right back when I started blogging for the first time (this must be late 2004 I guess), I went to Blogger like everyone else and I had my blog hosted on Blogspot like everyone else.    Most beginners get their blogs hosted on Blogspot because they don’t know any different and because it’s easy.   It’s like everything else in life - if you’re starting out with something for the first time, you want the learning curve to be quick and easy.

But eventually, I learned through friends that eventually the best way to deal with a blog was to get it off Blogspot and have it moved to a domain where I could control it.     As the Search Engine Journal post points out, if you are using the server space on Blogspot or Wordpress, you are subject to their whims and rules.    They can delete you at any time, lock you out at any time, whatever.   I mean, who actually reads all the small print of their Terms of Service?   So it’s much better to move everything over to your own domain where you alone control it.

Now of course I don’t use Blogger.   Last year, after many false starts, I finally managed to get a Wordpress blog installed and I haven’t looked back.    Wordpress is the King of blogging platforms.    But for beginners, a Blogspot platform is good to get a feel for things and to get a basic grounding in blogging.    Once you get going and you know what you are doing though, moving to a self-hosted Wordpress blog is a wise choice.   I’ve never regretted it and I am blessed to have friends who have pointed me in the right direction.

That’s not to say though that Blogger blogs have no value.   They do.   I like Blogger for the simple fact that they empower people to set up a blog.   Anyone, regardless of their technical knowledge, can set up a blog.    Even my mother can set one up.   You can’t help but admire that.  Blogger single-handedly defined blogging on the web and despite everyone trashing Blogger now, you still have to thank them for what they have done for blogging.

Thank you Blogger!

Technorati Tags: Blogger, blogging, Google, search engine journal, Wordpress

photo credit: Oyvind Solstad

I may decide to implement a few of these on my site.

read more | digg story

Technorati Tags: blog, blogging, Digg

I’m sitting here infuriated by Matt Richtel’s hatchet job on bloggers in the New York Times. The death of two bloggers has prompted Richtel to conclude that blogging is detrimental to a person’s health and that the stress of it all is likely to lead you to an early death. I was so pissed that I fired off a rather sour email to Mr Richtel in which I told him that I didn’t appreciate the negative light he had cast on the bloggers of the world.

I mean, people die all the time, regardless of their occupation. People over-work all the time, regardless of their occupation. But suddenly, with the untimely tragic death of two bloggers, we’ve suddenly got to write “death by blogging” on death certificates? Come on, give me a break.

Although I was reminded by this guy that we probably haven’t seen the worst of it yet.

Technorati Tags: blog, Blogger, blogging, death, New York Times, Richtel

I’ve often scratched my head and wondered why Craigslist didn’t have a blog.    I mean, everyone else had one, even the spotty kid down the street with his skateboard and Star Wars trading card collection.   But not Craigslist.   Even when the crap hit the fan over hookers advertising their wares on the site and a blog would have been the perfect platform with which to respond, did they go ahead and set a blog up?   Like hell they did.

But now someone seems to have told Craigslist that this is the 21st century and a blog has duly been set up.    But now here’s the kicker - they forgot to include a RSS feed!      What the hell is going on?   Is this amateur hour or something?   Couldn’t they have set the thing up on Blogger or Wordpress or something?

But don’t worry, ReadWriteWeb cobbled together a Feedburner feed so you can have the Craigslist posts sent to your RSS reader.   It isn’t perfect but it’s better than nothing.    Meanwhile, Craigslist, why don’t you fire your 10 year old blog designer and hire someone half-competent?

Technorati Tags: blog, craigslist, RSS

This is a test post using Windows Live Writer. I just want to see how it turns out. Just ignore this.

Nothing to see here people, move along to the next post!