OpenZine has now started a Blogging Platform called Ownzee, which seems to be similar to its magazine making platform. The problem from what I can see, is that there is a serious lack of documentation about ownzee. There is no ‘about’ section, no ‘how to’ section, etc. Have a look and see what you think.
Visit ownzee at:
http://www.ownzee.com/
I Rate My Day is a rather simple daily Blogging type tool. All it is is a simple way to let your friends and family know how your day is going. It is a simple micro-blogging site, with very brief notifications posted as to how the day is going for you. You can also link your ratings to your Facebook profile.
Visit at:
http://www.iratemyday.com/
Milshk is a start up web application – a Blogging platform in fact – that will be opening soon. I already have a number of Blogs (the total is now in double figures), yet I will be adding a mlkshk Blog to the mix as soon as I am able to do so. Why is that? Because mlkshk is different to the other Blogs I already have set up.
Mlkshk will allow its users to save images from all over the web and then share them with others. It would seem that it will work in a similar way to Tumblr and Posterous.
Register your interest at:
http://mlkshk.com/
After being through the dramas that occurred at Ning and now Grou.ps (see yesterday’s post), I have now moved by social networking activities over to Spruz. I did think that Grou.ps had a lot of potential, but having abandoned that platform I am trying out the Spruz platform. So far I am impressed. I think some of the themes could do with some work and the one I am using is fairly average I guess, but it does the job. Maybe I can tinker with it some more when I have a bit more time.
Without doubt I’d have to say that the platform at Spruz is far more stable and the outfit far more professional than what I was used to over at Grou.ps. So in short, thus far Spruz has my endorsement.
I haven’t posted for a few days on this Blog. Reason? I have been busy deactivating social networks and deleting information I have stored on the Grou.ps platform. I have also been advising members in these communities to do the same.
I was once an advocate for Grou.ps, despite the many problems that existed there, sure that the service was improving and there was great potential in the platform. Now I feel that I have been betrayed by a platform I defended and pushed. Why do I feel this? The service has decided to go premium – though there is a free option also. However, the free option removes the privacy and moderation that owners of Grou.ps communities were assured of. You can just imagine what will happen with spam and privacy under these circumstances. Added to that, the platform is plagued with performance issues and seemingly full of bugs (at least that has been my experience and that of many others in the support forums).
I will not be supporting Grou.ps and longer and withdraw all of my endorsements of their product. As someone in the support forum said, they don’t mind paying for a service that works. Neither do I, but there is also the issue of the bad taste left in my mouth as a result of the way Grou.ps has ‘betrayed’ their loyal members and users.
If you’re a Twitter user or use a similar type of Blogging platform, you will know that it can be difficult to fit large URLs into 140 characters or less. Google has now created a URL shortener application. URL shorteners are certainly not new and there are plenty about, but if you already use Google a lot (like me), it is very convenient to have Google do this for also.
Have a look at:
For today’s ‘daily’ I’m going to post about a new service from ‘Automattic,’ the guys behind WordPress.com. They have a new service called ‘Plinky.’
Basically, what this new service is all about is giving its members prompts for Blog posts. The service will ask you a question, which you then answer. This then becomes your Blog post, which can be added to your usual Blogging platform, such as WordPress (which is what I do). It can be shared direct from the site or embedded via a code that Plinky provides. I have been copying and pasting this code into my web editor in order to format the text as I would like it to appear in my Blog.
I think this is a great little service to help those just starting out in Blogs, as it will provide you with the basis for a daily post. It will also help those who struggle to come up with content for their Blogs.
Me? I just use it to supplement what I already post – to give my Blog a little more personal appeal.
Visit Plinky at:
I love WordPress and doubt very much that I would ever use any other platform or site. I also love Google and the many tools they offer freely in so many areas of online life and computing. As you would expect, Google also has a Blogging platform that is free to use and hosted for free.
Check out Google’s Blogger at:
Ning, the site that allows you to create your own social network, is going to discontinue its ‘free’ service and only have paying clients. I used to use Ning but changed to the Grou.ps platform about a year ago. I believe I made the right decision when I did so and now I really feel I made the right decision back then.
If you would like to visit Ning, click on the link below. However, I have a feeling that many social networks will be fleeing Ning and looking for alternatives.
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