Should I Go to WordPress?
As you can see, I grabbed a slot there in January of 2008. Would this be better because of the trolls at Blogger? It would be a lot of work to figure out how to use this. Is it worth it?
If I were to do this, does anyone who knows how to set up such a site care to help make the switch?
If I were to do this, does anyone who knows how to set up such a site care to help make the switch?
18 comments:
Having recently tried Blogger, Wordpress has much more functionality.
And, If I recall correctly, the latest version of Wordpress includes a way to automagically import content from blogger.
Plus it's easier to post photos, etc.
While I wouldn't have time to be the administrator going forward, I could provide some assistance with the initial setup.
Can I automatically ban trolls? Click on my name Scott, and email me if you would.
I'm going to import the posts at DC to see.
Why not get your own domain name, like www.debunkingchristianity.com? You could still use a wordpress installation from wordpress.org.
Yes. Go to WordPress. Make the fundies work to be trolls; make them work at being the very thing their faith forbids.
I agree on the getting your own domain as well as moving to wordpress. I can't tell you how many times I have gone to debunkingchristianity.com only to remember that your site is not there.
There are tons of options and plugins with wordpress that are free or really cheap which can help you dramatically.
I think trolls will always be a problem though as you can't automatically ban their posts as they are not spam posts which can be filtered against. It may just take having a team of volunteers who can cover shifts and help to screen out bad posters.
Although I am no expert, I have built and managed a few blogs with wordpress and would be more than willing to help you out if you need it both with the site setup and management as well as the comment management.
I have a little webpage building experience. I built my two websites using templates. Let me know.
I have experimented with both Blogger and Wordpress -- I like WP much more.
However, I haven't tried to do advertising on my site. Does anyone know if WP allows adds like Blogger does.
I've been using Blogger for quite a while now and I recently caved in and got myself a WordPress account.
The learning curve was quite a steep climb and I spend at least a solid 2 hours completely confused. Once I got the hang of it, though, I realized just how much more powerful WP is than Blogger.
I'd say that you should definitely make the switch. The additional pages functionality alone makes it completely worthwhile.
I've looked it over and will keep that WordPress site but I don't think I'm willing to go there permanently yet. Thanks for your suggestions.
You have good traffic here, John. I wouldn't jinx it. Trolls are everywhere. But I understand the temptation to start up new stuff! I fall prey to it all the time!
(JH)
What's the matter, John? Scared of a good debate? You banning people that merely disagree with you shows that you don't really want to hear from the other team. Could it be that you want just a bunch of yes men to parrot what you think? That's no fun. Rather, it's boring. You can only flex your debate muscles if you can engage in some healthy discussions with perspectives from both sides of the fence. Also, automatically import content from bloggers? Does that mean you would have access to personal information that they weren't willing to give you? I hope not.
My advice, John, is for you not to turn into the David Koresh of atheists and not hole up in some sort of secluded compound away from those not like minded. People might think you've become a zealot.
Blue, you're banned for being an idiot if you think I'm scared of of a respectful and honest debate.
Go away.
Bravo, John ! Civility and common sense are indeed important to dialogue.
John, I do like the idea of switching to a format that gives you more control. However, so much is tied to the current URL that unless you can have some type of redirector to send surfers to the new site, you may (at least for a time) lose visibility.
Blue,
Do you actually think about what you write before posting it? Or are you always reactionary?
First, John just doesn't ban people because they disagree, there are a number of Christians on this blog who continue to post without any issues. People like Dennis Collis get baned because they become trolls, they don't bring anything to the discussion, they are more interested in either preaching or disturbing the peace (which is what Andrew keeps doing).
Secondly, he would not be importing people's personal blogger information. He would be rather importing the content from the Debunking Christianity blog to the new one.
Thirdly, you need to start engaging people with actual arguments, rather than replying just to be replying which you have done with Sconnor and most other people on this blog.
Fourthly, not really wanting to change the subject, but if you want people to continue to engage you, then present your "new" apologetic, enough with the "I leading you into it..." crap, either put up or shut up. No one is interested in being led by you into anything.
Lastly, we know that Dennis Collis was DenCol, savedbygrace, DRC, Tyler, etc. because of the way he argued and because he usually admitted it once people realized it was him.
Just went to your WordPress site. Obviously you were successful in importing your topics / posts. You may want to consider putting on your short list updating the theme or creating a unique one to help brand yourself.
John I'm in the website development business and I just don't see a downside to migrating to WP. As mentioned in a previous topic you are ready for the big time now. After it is all said and done you are going to have much more control and options compared to Blogger. That very much includes handling trolls or moving off-topic posts to another thread, etc. Also you will have an entity that can be truly jotted down as an "asset" on the balance sheet, literally. The ability to monetize the site without alienating your customer base is quite flexible. Traffic = $$ and you will forever be limited with what you can do with Blogger.
As with all things there is a wrong way, a right way, and the best way to do things and a potential migration is no exception. PROTECT your search engine status at all costs! Running parallel for awhile making sure all the bugs are out and you are comfortable with the new format sounds is a sound plan. When it comes time to do a re-direct from your Blogger site to your WP site seek professional advice and make sure it jives with many sources. If done correctly you should be able to keep the good will earned with the search engines and have it transferred to your new site. There should be no reason for your site to be down or drop off the search engines if done correctly.
Further more you will not have to farm out updates or changes to a third party if you want to keep a total hands on approach. Especially after you get past the introductory phase. No reason you cannot maintain the site yourself without it taking up too much of your time. If you do decide you want someone else to help out with site maintenance then the cost could easily be covered by offering them a small link at the bottom of the page acknowledging that persons help. Traffic is indeed worth something.
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John,
If you switch to WordPress, don't get it hosted on WordPress.com. There are serious limitations on what you can do with the WordPress software there. If you switch to WordPress, do your own install. I use WordPress as a platform and mediatemple as a host. But then you have to pay. Blogger is free hosting, right? Blogger is probably the best free hosting, since all the free WordPress hosts are seriously limited in bandwidth allowance and software features.
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