Looks Like Fancy Commenting Systems Don’t Rule

Over the past week I have been running a poll asking what WordPress commenting systems people like. The options were Disqus, IntenseDebate, Native – built in, or None. Here is how it broke down:

• 59% of respondents preferred native commenting to a third party system.
• 25% of respondents preferred Disqus.
• 16% of respondents preferred IntenseDebate.

These are completely un-scientific results. I’ll continue to run the poll to see if I can get more results, and I’ll update this post, or if the overall results change, I’ll write up something new.

What I find interesting is those who answered picked the native commenting system. Some of the things I would like to know is why? With the third party commenting systems providing log-ins for Facebook, Twitter, OpenID and others, the appeal to use these Social Network links doesn’t seem to be a draw.

I don’t particularly care one way or the other what commenting systems people use. I have Disqus installed on this blog, if for no other reason than I like being able to track and manage my comments on this and other sites who use Disqus.

Here’s a thought though. It would be cool to use a Gravatar type system, where your comments are tied to your email address, pinged back to a service, and then you can manage and track your comments on a wider range of sites.

My friend Scott Lemon (@humancell) also suggested another commenting system called Echo, you get more information on it here http://js-kit.com/.

If you would like to participate in my poll, please check it out here http://ow.ly/Hxj1.

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Vooks Will Crush eBooks

I paid for and downloaded my first Vook, Crush It!, an ebook with embeded digital media, like videos.

The funny thing is I already own the physical Crush It! book, and have read it twice. But the added value of watching videos from Gary Vanerchuk, which gives the book enormous value.

I would really like to see Vooks available for all mobile platforms. You can buy a Vook for the computer desktop, which is still pretty cool, and watching the videos is much nicer on a large screen.

Vooks will crush eBooks. Once authors and publishers see the possibilities Vooks have over eBooks, value will increase for the reader and drive more profits to the author and publisher.

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WordPress Releases New iPhone App

This post is really a test using the new WordPress iPhone App, http://iphone.wordpress.org, version 2.1. I really want to test the picture upload feature.

You do have the ability to manage comments, but if you use a comment plugin system like Disqus, you can't moderate those comments.

I do like that you can create pages with this tool. I also like that I can manage multiple blogs.

I don't like that I can't insert a place holder god a photo, so I have no idea how the format will look. And how do create a linked word? Doesn't seem exist.

This is a great tool for creating quick, non-complicated posts.

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Two New Features I Love In Windows 7

I’ve been using Windows 7 for a few months, and I’ve come to enjoy two features not seen in Windows XP or Windows Vista.

The first is a fast list that is shown when you click on an item in the task bar and move the mouse up just slightly, this menu below will show up. It doesn’t work for every application, but for applications like browsers, you can quickly selected a web page you’ve visited recently. Kind of cool.

The next neat feature I really like, and in fact, one that ups the coolness factor, is the built in search. When you click on the start button, the expanding menu now includes a search box. If you’re looking for an application or document, start typing the name or key word, and a list of files or applications meeting your criteria show up. This has given me an increase in productivity when it comes to finding the application and documents I want to open.

I’m still not a Windows fan boy, but Windows 7 has been a lot easier to use than previous versions.

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5 Step Web Hosting Disaster Recovery Plan

In light of a recent web hosting snafu at MediaTemple, I wanted to share 5 things you can do to recover from a web hosting disaster. Most of these require some time to set up and your vigilance. But if followed, you can rebound from a disaster in a short amount of time.

1. Create your disaster recovery plan. The easiest part of a disaster recovery plan is to actually have a plan.This plan should include:

• A list of the sites you maintain
• A list of user names and passwords for your sites
• The databases names, server addresses or IP, user names and passwords, that are used for your list of sites
• FTP user names and passwords for each of your sites
• Your web hosts tech support number
• Have a backup web host decided in case for some reason you need to move quickly
• Know how to get into your domain registrar so you can change Name Servers if needed
• Name, number, email of a web professional that may be able to help restore your systems if needed

I recommend having it on paper, and online. Use Google Docs if you don’t have a word processor.

2. Create an automated backup of your site. This one step is vital to a disaster recovery plan. If you don’t have a complete backup, database and disk files, recovery is not in the cards. There are plenty of options available, and most hosting companies provide a backup mechanism. Automate if you can. At the very least complete a manual backup.

A word of caution here. Make sure you understand what your web host will and won’t back up for you. I found out the hard way when a previous host revealed they hadn’t been backing up my sites because I had to many files. Defeats the purpose of backing up.

3. Test your backups as least once a week. When you get your backups, whether they are in archived format or not, make sure the files are readable and can be use if and when the time comes. This is an advanced procedure, the longer between tests put you at greater risk for having a problem. For example, if for some reason you are unable to open the archives that hold your database SQL files, you would not be able to restore them again. This could be disastrous.

4. Put backups in multiple locations. If you keep all of your backups on the web server your sites are on, and it goes down, how will you get to your backups? I recommend you keep them in several locations.

• GMail is a great storage place for backups. Create a new account just to hold your backups.
• Copy your backups to a local hard drive.
• Keep a copy on another web site or service like Amazon S3.

5. At least once a month practice a recovery. If you run a critical web site, or you host sites for others, I would highly recommend you practice a complete recovery at least once a month, at the very least once a quarter. Using your plan to recover from you local backups, knowing how the restore process works with a database and FTP program to move files is important. Don’t wait until the something has happened just to find out you don’t have everything.

Technology fails. People fail. Both of these things can cost you time and money. You can never be too prepared. It doesn’t take much to get your plan in place. I’m sure there is more you can do, so by all means, add that to your plan. What else would you recommend?

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