sarahintampa - Latest Comments in General

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

Karoli — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 17:17:52 -0000

I'm curious to know what you think of the app. I'd definitely be interested in installing this to my blackberry, since email blogging on wordpress is still pretty kludgy.

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

SquidLord — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 08:23:17 -0000

I would like to point out that aside from offering a distinction that's not a distinction, you may have missed the fact that all but the least of the bloggers and journalists do a lot more fact-checking than what passes for reporting in the mainstream media, if only because of the ease of and pressure to do something that used to be core to a good and important story: attributions.

TV reporters don't often attribute sources or references at all. Newspaper reporters only seem to do so erratically and with a definite air of "I know better than you what you need to know." But even the personal journalists are not only not shy but eager to cross-link to people they talk about, images they see, stories they're commenting on and so on. Hardcore bloggers generally won't be caught dead without footnoting the likes of which any 18th century correspondent would be jealous of, and any interested reader can chase those links all day long. If they do and come up with a different conclusion or a new source, they can immediately respond with and/or blog the new thing themselves.

In that and largely in the more traditional senses, bloggers / journalists are far seperated from the bulk of what traditional media think of as reporting, so much so that it seems overly divisive to not recognize that both actually do REPORTING better than the traditional media-imbued writers.

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

sarahintampa — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:30:44 -0000

Thanks. I will certainly do so. :)

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

sarahintampa — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:29:48 -0000

Thank you.

I think the reason that WordPress is the best (and I mean WordPress.org - not WordPress.com) is that there is an entire ecosystem filled with plugins for your blog! Plus, you can really get down and dirty with customizing your site and making it your own. If that doesn't sound like something you would enjoy, you can find plenty of people to help you out - the WordPress community is huge. It's a powerful, extendable platform for those that want more control over their site.

Blogger's OK, I suppose - it is easy, but there's just so much more you can do with WordPress.

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

sarahintampa — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:25:13 -0000

For a journaler to transition to blogger, the quality of the writing needs to be very high...and the posts need to be interesting! If a journaler wants to be a blogger, then I would ask them: What kind of blogger? What's the subject matter for the blog? How's it categorized? What will make your blog stand out? What's your audience like? Who do you want to appeal to?

Because blogs are not just random, personal ramblings...that's sort of the defining difference between journaling and blogging. Even some mommy bloggers are pushing out quality content these days. Note that mommy bloggers aren't just randomly posting - their blogs have the central theme of modern motherhood. You still need a core theme to make a successful blog work. IMHO.

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

sarahintampa — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:13:01 -0000

You're right - Feedburner definitely needs a competitor!

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

sarahintampa — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:12:09 -0000

Well, I appreciate that! :)

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

sarahintampa — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:10:12 -0000

That's what Android's for.

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

waferboard — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 04:01:26 -0000

There is a semantic shift underway, something that involves that venerable institution, journalism. The earliest journalists were called correspondents, and still are in products like the Economist (best publication in the world). Diarists of the 18th and 19th Century wrote privately, but their works were then circulated, presumably after they had shuffled out of this mortal coil. Their stuff often reads like like a personal citizen journalist's blog. This word "blogger" is redefining the public/private sphere with journals, "amateur" journalism, commentary and hard-core journalism itself. I look forward to your future posts and thoughts on the subject!

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

sharnatlanta — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 03:24:56 -0000

This is a very interesting topic that I've seen discussed online quite a bit lately. You definitely captured the distinctions as well as made several good points. Most people forget when they make recommendations it shouldn't necessarily be about what they need, but about the needs of the person asking. As a side note (and somewhat unrelated), I wonder why you think WordPress is the best? ;) I know that seems to be a hot topic of debate on occasion, but I've used both now in the last few weeks and I don't understand what the big deal is about WordPress. Blogger seems to be able to do a lot of the same things (and makes it easier) so I can't help but wonder what I'm missing. I feel like asking for directions in a new city that has a great reputation. What am I missing?

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

mattb4rd — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 00:52:31 -0000

What advice would you offer the "journaler" that wants to venture into the blogosphere? Keep the personal blog as just that and start a "real" blog or just allow the personalized web presence to morph over time into a blog? Can a writer who is used to a random posting style "make it" as a blogger?

Re: Are You Blogging or Journaling?

MarkDykeman — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 00:19:12 -0000

I liked this and I think there's a good point here. Depending on your interests, journaling is a good solution for self-publishing. It tends to be forgotten by some given the rise of Blogger and Wordpress, but there's certainly nothing wrong with journaling. It's also very community oriented.

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

jgarten — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 23:52:08 -0000

Ooof. Sorry about that. There's something uniquely frustrating about knowing that there is an easy solution, if only _someone_ at the company would pay attention.

But, as others have pointed out, you don't have to worry about losing your loyal readers!

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

John — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 17:46:19 -0000

That IS a truth that I have neglected, isn't it?
Still, isn't it curious T-Mobile hasn't launched a touch-PDA like it's competitors have, as an answer to the iPhone? I believe they have rights to it (the iPhone) in Europe but here in the States?

Re: Hide The Awful YouTube Comments, Keep the Good Ones

John — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 17:42:53 -0000

"interesting" or "insults to the English Language"?
Regardless, very useful plugin.

Re: sarah @ on10

Rafael Alvarez Frigerio — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 02:34:33 -0000

Hi Sarah I was reading your article in channel 10 about Freepath and I think is good for me but Im, not shure. Could you help me? Do you speak spanish?. Thanks a lot, Rafael

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

sarahintampa — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 02:22:15 -0000

Considering the problems with the iPhone, consider yourself lucky :)

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

sarahintampa — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 02:21:26 -0000

Sure thing, I can do that. Stay tuned :)

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

mattb4rd — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 01:23:38 -0000

Please post an update on your ipod touch. I am seriously considering one. They're looking good on eBay right now :)

Re: Hide The Awful YouTube Comments, Keep the Good Ones

jeffisageek — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 16:18:26 -0000

must say that is a pretty useful extension. some of those comments can be interesting.

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

smperris — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 12:17:53 -0000

I don't think you would have lost many, if any, RSS subscribers. I think most people who use RSS have a 'set and forget' mentality. I'm guessing they don't unsubscribe when a feed goes dormant, they just realise one day 'Hey, that site hasn't pushed out an update in a while. Huh.' I think your RSS readers are almost all still with you through all of this. Hopefully that's some sort of comfort :)

It's a pity that Feedburner has no competition because the way they collect numbers provides really flaky, inconsistent results.

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

btocher — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 11:54:08 -0000

Welcome back, Sarah. I've never had a problem with BlueHost, and I'd certainly recommend them to anyone looking for hosting.

Re: Blogging From the Blackberry?

John — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 03:23:37 -0000

You are not the only one still using the Blackberry. And the hoops that AT&T Wireless expect me to jump through to get a data only plan with the iPhone, it would seem I'll be the only one using a Blackberry soon enough... So any new Blackberry app reports are appreciated... As well as suggestions on getting a Curve or an 8800 to replace my 8700

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

sarahintampa — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 22:30:07 -0000

Thanks!

Re: And We’re Back…Sorta

sarahintampa — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 22:29:58 -0000

No kidding! My last day on vacay was totally stressful! :(