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Posted on September 14, 2006
Blogging Tools: Don't Build Your Own
BY JASON CORMIER
On Sept. 11, PR pro Simon Collister shared his recent experience with a client whose web designers decided to build their own blogging tool. However, a quick conversation revealed that this tool lacked key functionality.
He wrote: "...It turns out the designers [had] just built their own blogging platform which they would happily set up for the client.
"...I asked some basic questions such as, does the platform have RSS feeds and does it support trackback links? At this point the main designer looked blank, turned to his colleague and said: 'Do you know what he's talking about?'
"Luckily he did. But neither of them seemed to understand the importance of [these features]."
With such a broad variety of blogging tools available these days for free or for license, and given the speed at which blogging evolves, it amazes me that any organization would consider building their own blogging tool. Especially when the people building it obviously lack familiarity with crucial features that support public conversations and findability.
If your organization is considering building its own blogging tool: Stop! Trust me, you'll be much better off examining existing popular tools and choosing one to integrate into your site.
Why? Because then you can take advantage of updates that the people who really live and breathe blogging every day build into those tools. You won't be forever playing catch-up. Ultimately, you'll be able to converse more easily online without having to worry about tools getting in your way.
TIP: If your blog is currently supported by a custom tool, it's time to take a look at third-party options and consider migrating. I've worked with several custom-built content management systems, some of which have had blogging tools tacked on as an afterthought, and they're always far more trouble and far less flexible than third-party or open-source solutions such as Movable Type, WordPress, or Drupal.
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Posted on September 13, 2006
Tip: Organize Your Feeds by Task
BY JASON CORMIER
Last weekend, I realized that the way I had been using feeds (RSS) had become unworkable. When I first got into feeds a few years ago, I thought the best way to organize them was by topic. Since I have very wide-ranging interests, I ended up with a sprawling collection comprised of more than 25 topic-based folders (science, media, environment, etc.) -- some of which contained 30 or more feeds.
The result? I rarely checked my feeds. What was meant to save me time ended up creating drastic information overload.
The nasty side effect of this was that I wasn't keeping up with online conversations as well as I like. To me, online conversations are very important. They're the lifeblood of my networking, R&D, and marketing. They're also important to my personal life.
So I took the drastic step of reorganizing my feeds by task, switching to a new feed reader, and dumping about 80% of my feed subscriptions.
And I'm so much happier! Especially because I once again am comfortably in the flow of conversations that intrigue and inspire me. Also, it's now so much easier to follow and participate in conversations on behalf of my clients.
So here's the quick version of how I did it...
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