« Chutzpah | Main | Advice: FAQ Scripts »

Question for My Readers

Besides all the other things I have to do--launch another site, for one--I was considering a significant site redesign, perhaps including an upgrade to MoveableType 3.0. (Actually, I wish I could just pay the 3.0 fees in order to be legal, and keep using 2.6.) And as part of that, one thing I was considering was implementing BlogAds.

This isn't so much because I'd make any money off of it. I'm not Glenn Reynolds, and it might actually be embarassing to see that I have no advertisers. But implementing another piece of code and playing with something new would make me happy. Then again, I try not to make site changes that annoy my readership. So:

a) What is your opinion on implementing BlogAds?
b) Is there anything about the site, site design, etc. that you'd like to see changed in upcoming days?

Comments

i'm a huge fan of your site, and i don't think blog ads will contribute positively to the overall 'feel' of the site. i also don't think you need to change much about the site except that maybe a little bit of color could be a good idea =) cheers
There is a free version of 3.0. It's just not as flexible as the full version. i.e. one and only one author is allowed. I think I'm going to go to 3.0 later, but I'm not happy about losing my multiple authors ability.
Luke: Believe me, one and only one author is not what I need for MT. (I host a couple of other blogs, and every once in a while like to make a "play" blog that no one sees, in order to have a place to test things out.) The free version just won't fit my needs. Still, 2.6 has various stability advantages, and I keep reading about the upgrading nightmares that other folks are having. Jess: That's one vote against BlogAds, then. ;)
I do think BlogAds would detract a bit from the vibe of your site. That said if it's tasteful and if they aren't the first things I see when I log on then it'd be cool...of course that would defeat the whole idea of the ads... Ok, I'm not helping, I'll shut up now!
Acually, I do have one think. It's probalby just a pet peeve of mine, but the drop down menus sometimes get in the way when I come to the site. It probably has to do with where my cursor is (somewhere at the top of the screen) when I visit.
T: Yeah, that's high on my list to resolve. It's a problem with how the javascript works, and the table structure. If you take a look at the code, you'll see just how useless the javascript on it is. (I can't figure out how to make it cross-platform, though I can get better versions to work in IE.)
No problem with ads, as far as I'm concerned. I check the site through Bloglines most times, but visit the full entries regularly. I could care less. I like MT3 a lot, but I hesitated because of the licensing cost. I also run multiple blogs, have guest authors, and tool around with things that wouldn't be legit for the free version. I ended up changing to a host that included full MT licensing in the fee (and is still reasonable). The new host is fantastic. I don't know your hosting situation, but if changing is an option, drop me a line and I'll pass on the details.
I just did the 2.6 to 3.15 upgrade and I can't believe I waited so long. My favorite feature: making it VASTLY more efficient to manage comments and trackbacks. Deleting the spams now takes only a fraction of the time it used to. The upgrading itself was pretty straight forward, although there were a few kinks that they hadn't talked about in the documentation. But the support board over at MT has suggestions for solving them, and I don't think people ran into too many showstoppers. I should admit however that both the original installation and the upgrade were done with the kind assistance of friends who are more UNIX savvy than I... (Although if I'd had to do it myself I think I could have.)

Post a comment

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)

NOTICE TO SPAMMERS, COMMENT ROBOTS, TRACKBACK SPAMMERS AND OTHER NON-HUMAN VISITORS: No comment or trackback left via a robot is ever welcome at Three Years of Hell. Your interference imposes significant costs upon me and my legitimate users. The owner, user or affiliate who advertises using non-human visitors and leaves a comment or trackback on this site therefore agrees to the following: (a) they will pay fifty cents (US$0.50) to Anthony Rickey (hereinafter, the "Host") for every spam trackback or comment processed through any blogs hosted on threeyearsofhell.com, morgrave.com or housevirgo.com, irrespective of whether that comment or trackback is actually posted on the publicly-accessible site, such fees to cover Host's costs of hosting and bandwidth, time in tending to your comment or trackback and costs of enforcement; (b) if such comment or trackback is published on the publicly-accessible site, an additional fee of one dollar (US$1.00) per day per URL included in the comment or trackback for every day the comment or trackback remains publicly available, such fee to represent the value of publicity and search-engine placement advantages.

Giving The Devil His Due

And like that... he is gone (8)
Bateleur wrote: I tip my hat to you - not only for ... [more]

Law Firm Technology (5)
Len Cleavelin wrote: I find it extremely difficult to be... [more]

Post Exam Rant (9)
Tony the Pony wrote: Humbug. Allowing computers already... [more]

Symbols, Shame, and A Number of Reasons that Billy Idol is Wrong (11)
Adam wrote: Well, here's a spin on the theory o... [more]

I've Always Wanted to Say This: What Do You Want? (14)
gcr wrote: a nice cozy victorian in west phill... [more]

Choose Stylesheet

What I'm Reading

cover
D.C. Noir

My city. But darker.
cover
A Clockwork Orange

About time I read this...


Shopping

Projects I've Been Involved With

A Round-the-World Travel Blog: Devil May Care (A new round-the-world travel blog, co-written with my wife)
Parents for Inclusive Education (From my Clinic)

Syndicated from other sites

The Columbia Continuum
Other Blogs by CLS students