[WEB4LIB] Re: Blog: Open source vs. commercial

[Robin Boulton]

I looked at Typepad, Squarespace and Movable Type before finally settling on
Blogthing. My needs are simple and I have no experience doing web site
development, nor any particular incentive to learn anything so complex (I
know I would end up getting way, way deeper into it than I want or have time
to!). Blogthing uses WordPress and the whole thing is web hosted so there is
no installation and very little learning curve - all you need to do is
figure out how to switch between edit and view mode, and how to create
categories. It doesn't have some of the features of the others but for
general blogging purposes it seems fine, and free is always very attractive
for something that works so well.



> -----Original Message-----
> From: web4lib at webjunction.org [mailto:web4lib at webjunction.org]
> On Behalf Of K.G. Schneider
> Sent: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 10:53 AM
> To: Multiple recipients of list
> Subject: [WEB4LIB] Re: Blog: Open source vs. commercial
> 
> > I was a beta tester for TypePad and decided I'd rather spend the money
> on
> > hosting my own site rather than paying a near-equivalent amount for
> *just*
> > a
> > blog.
> 
> Very good point. My response there is that if you just need a blog, and
> you
> don't have the means or need to install your own, $150 a year for Typepad
> is
> a really good deal. Also, for many people, the blog is their website. I
> don't want libraries to feel that the technology is standing between them
> and a blog. A blog does require time and commitment, though libraries have
> a
> lot of ready-made content available to them--new books, programs, events,
> etc.
> 
> Karen G. Schneider
> kgs at bluehighways.com
>