I’d like to thank Bruce for inspiring this blog.
MySpace
I signed up for MySpace in December of 2006, not sure what all the hype was about. I browsed forums, viewed profiles, sent friend requests, and wondered, “What am I missing?” Then I stumbled upon THE BLOGS. That was it! Entertainment, photos, opinions, it was all here for my enjoyment! I lurked, I commented, and I cared about my new friends. Before long, I posted my first blog.
Nearly 3 years later, with 279 blogs under my belt, I have a couple hundred readers, and subscribe to over 100 blogs. There is such a feeling of community! We read each other’s blogs, comment and pimp.
Pros:
1) Sense of community.
2) The Manage Blog feature allows you to view your blog hits and your readers.
3) Your subscriptions [can] appear in the left column of your blog.
Cons:
1) 2,000,000 kudos can be given, launching blogs into the top categories.
Thanks, Amanda! You’re so right! MySpace allows for so much creativity. Facebook’s 1 photo per note maximum is so minimal, and WordPress charges an annual fee for Video hosting.
As with anything new, I jumped in and said, “Now what?” When you create your Facebook account, it will ask permission to access your email address book. Once it has processed the information, it will suggest you add the friends it has found. You can also manually search for friends, family, co-workers, former classmates, etc. Most likely, their profiles will be set to private. You will be allowed to view their thumbnail avatar and possibly thumbnails of their friends. You must be friends with them to view their profile, otherwise known as their Wall.
Those looking to blog may be disappointed. In lieu of blogs, Facebook has Notes. Type your note, insert up to 1 photo, tag your friends, and post your note.
Thanks, Sherri! You’ll have to show me how to do that.
Pros/Cons:
1) There is a limit to how many friends you can tag. I’m thinking it’s 20 (correct me if I’m wrong). Those friends will be notified of your post.
Update: It’s 30. Thanks Laurie aka BrownSugar!
2) Your note may appear in a live feed which is constantly updated on your friends’ home page. So, even if you have not tagged them, they may eventually discover your note.
3) There is no Note community.
4) Notes are not ranked.
5) Your note may receive a comment or a thumbs up from your friends.
Blogger
I created a Blogger profile in May of 2009. I have averaged 10 profile views per month.
Pros:
1) You can sign up for AdSense to get paid for clicks of ads that appear on your page.
2) There is a link at the top of the blogs labeled Next Blog. Clicking on it will lead you to the most recent content posted on Blogger.
3) You can add other Blogger-hosted sites to your Blogroll (list of subscriptions.)
Cons:
1) There can be explicit content on Blogger. You can report or flag a blog, but I do not know what steps are taken by Blogger about the content.
2) There is no Blogger-wide search feature.
3) There is no way to know who has read or subscribed unless they comment or inform you of their subscription.
WordPress.com
I also established my WordPress blog in May. The Dashboard displays Page Hits (my avg = 250/mo), your Top Posts, Search Engine Terms (words used to find your blog), Referrers (links people clicked to get to your page), and more. Here is a screenshot of my Dashboard Stats.
Dashboard Stats
Pros:
1) The Dashboard! (See above.)
2) There is a site-wide search feature.
3) There is also a link at the top of the blogs labeled Next Blog. Clicking on it leads you to the most recent content posted on WordPress.
4) There’s a nifty option called Tag Surfer. Specify key words, and when new blogs are posted with these tags, they appear in your Tag Surfer tab.
5) If a site has been flagged “Mature” (adult content), you will be given the choice to enter.
6) There is lots of help through the Forums and Support.
7) There is a list of Hot 100 Blogs for VIPs (such as CNN and People) and the WordPress Community.
8) You can add WordPress-hosted blogs to your Blogroll (list of subscriptions).
9) Through Widgets (add ons), non-Wordpress links can appear on your profile.
Cons:
1) While using the Next Blog feature, you may find adult content that has not been flagged. (You can report it.)
2) You will not be made aware of subscribers to your site.
LOL! Lee, how could I have forgotten to mention blogging’s addictive side! They should come with a warning.
• What is your take on blog-hosting sites?
• Which is your favorite, and why?
• Which is your least favorite, and why?
Thanks for reading!
Tags: Blog, Blogger, Cons, facebook, MySpace, Pros, Wordpress
