All Things in Moderation

No, sorry. I meant, this post will be repeatedly updated. I’ll probably stick a link to it in the sidebar while things are still in “flux”, as it were. Currently (updates are posted up top):

Everybody currently signed up is an administrator now. Scott added the links gadget, and lots of people have contributed links now, so good.

QuarterBack discovered how folks using IE 7 can post a comment. Anyone who doesn’t see their comment box can log out, and log back in, and uncheck the “stay signed in” option when logging back in. This apparently fixes the comment box problem.

I only have one technical project, which is getting a custom URL. I’ve set suekzoo to purchase a custom domain which, once purchased, I will link to the website. This should bypass various net nanny filters that block blogger, but the proof will be in the pudding.

Otherwise, it’s just a matter of getting people signed up, and having people contribute to the threads. 


2:12 PM Central, 9-14-2011

Visited links have been changed to be the color of regular links. If this bothers anybody, let me know, but the current gray was too light and distracting for me. Every post I’d read, even administrative pages, turned light gray. I don’t like that, so I changed it.

I’ve looked a little into the gadgets. Once we take the blog public again, we will be able to do a few extra things, like have the search box I added work (it doesn’t work, apparently, if the blog is private). More to the point, I should be able to add a gadget that lists the most recent comments. If you’ve never been on a blog that deploys these, these are very useful for keeping track of comments, and can help encourage a comment on and old post, because if you stop and check the sidebar, you’ll see the recent comments. I believe this depends on the RSS feed, however, which isn’t generated with the blog is private. And we’ll also be able to offer a working RSS feed, and email subscriptions. Not entirely sure how that will work, but . . . there it is.

I also added a news gadget to run down the side of the blog. Considering we are topical, this seemed appropriate. If anybody finds it too distracting, we can take it out.

Also, added a popular posts link. Not as useful as latest comments, but it works. Although it’s not terrible relevant, as there are about as many posts now as there are slots for popular posts. But soon, my friends. Very soon . . .

More as this story develops.

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Oh, that was easy. This time it just worked.

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If you are unknown, make yourself known! Click on your unknown self under “Contributors”, then click on the button labeled “Edit Profile” and update your display name. Also, add an avatar while you’re at it.

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Bob Turner (R) wins in New York, a seat previously assumed to belong exclusively to the Democrats.

The GOP should be thanking Anthony Weiner. Good job!

Of course, as someone who won a solid victory in the face of what was once considered a guaranteed Democratic win could have learned from his opponents earlier, apparently unfounded, sanguinity.

We have lit one candle today. It’s going to be a bonfire pretty soon.

Is it just me, or are massive political sea changes predicted more often than they actually happen? Anyhoo, what do we think? Is this a bellwether for 2012? And if so, for who? Obama (don’t make me dig out my statistics on the difficulty of beating an incumbent president), or senate Democrats, several of whom could potentially be vulnerable?

More at the Gothamist:

http://gothamist.com/2011/09/14/bob_turner_wins_weiners_district_fo.php

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A couple of things: right now, the blog is public and listed on search engines. Do we want to let anybody benefit from our wisdom, or make it private?

I’m making both of you admins, so you can do anything to the blog and change any setting. I’m thinking all the Founding Fathers and Mothers of this blog ought to be able to edit anything–change the description, the design, etc. If someone ever wants to set up a way to earn money (a little premature for that, I’ve had blogs with moderate traffic for years, before abandoning them, and they never earned a penny, but you never know). Point being, we are all admins, and if someone wants to edit the look or change it so all comments are moderated, they can. I expect our Founding Mothers and Fathers to be judicious and fair. 🙂

Update (see picture): Just keep in mind, that you’re a little bit country, and I’m a little bit rock ‘n’ roll. Or vice-versa.

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The goal is thoughtful discussion. I think rules can be overdone, but I suggest one: always use the person’s name, or handle, when referring to them, either directly or indirectly. That way, name calling is much more difficult.

For example, if I might feel like calling someone a hippy, but instead, I must call them Margaret, it helps inform the tone. That’s what I’m thinking.

We’re just starting this. How we decide to allow comments (no anonymous comments) and what kind of moderation we decide to allow or process comments (from those not participating in the actual blog) have not yet been decided. This is the most basic template in Blogger (Blogspot) and we may end up adjust graphics, etc, over time.

For those of us blogging, this format does offer numerous advantages. One, it works for everybody, pretty much. Some places do block blogger and blogspot (even our system has, in the past, but complaints from schools ended up forcing them to relent, because it blocked so many education and technology bloggers). However, if that happens, we can pony up a minor amount for a custom URL, and that should solve that problem.

Two, we can more easily embed links and images. It makes sharing certain things easier, which is nice. Also, we have formatting options, so we can truly format and underline until our hearts are content.

Three, having a main post with comments can help keep discussions organized. I’m sure there are others.

Finally, all members founding members of the blog will be given full administration privileges.

Let the discussion commence!

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