I am a big big fan of Wordpress but I am working on a project where I want to set up a blog quickly and add lots of posts quickly.  I will work on a more detailed blog set up a later.  So the two options I am looking at are Posterous and Tumblr – each has some great features for quickly adding posts here is a comparison of some of the features I think are useful.

Mashable wrote a nice comparison of Posterous and Tumblr in June 2009 but didn’t list out some of the specific features I was interested in.  After looking at both Tumblr and Posterous – I decided to add Wordpress.com to the comparison.

I like the features of both Tumblr and Posterous but I decided to use Wordpress.comso that I would know I would be able to move my entire project to a self hosted Wordpress blog if I wanted to in the future.  I did want to use Disqus for comments but I know that I can import my Wordpress comments into Disqus in the future.

Some related blog posts on Tumblr and Posterous:

• Tumblr and Posterous (scripting.com)
• 4 Ways to Share Content Stinkin’ Quick, The Best and How They’ll Totally Advance CAD/PLM (solidsmack.com)
• Why Tumblr is kicking Posterous (YCS08)’s ass (pegontech.wordpress.com)

I have yet to find a beginners guide or intro to WordpressMU but here are some of the blogs I have found with information on WordpressMU.

• WPMU Tutorials
• WPMU Dev
• wordpressmu.org
• wpmu.org

If you know of other helpful Wordpress MU resources please share a link in the comments below.

A friend suggested Disqus as a solution. Disqus is a service outside of Wordpress that allows people to create a profile which can be used whenever they leave comments on a blog that has Disqus – you don’t have to have a Disqus plugin to leave a comment on a blog with Disqus.

How to add Disqus to Your Blog

Disqus is super easy to set up. Just create a profile at Disqus.com and add the Disqus plugin to your blog. You can use the Install Plugins page to add the Disqus Comment System plugin.

*As of 10/2/09 Wordpress is saying that the Discus Plugin 2.11.4349 is only compatible with Wordpress 2.7 – I have installed it on Wordpress 2.8 with out any problems.

Screen shot of Install Plugin Page

1. Create an account at Disqus
2. Install the Discuss Comment System Plugin
3. Activate the plugin
4. Set up the plug under Settings -> Disqus
5. On the Disqus Settings page – click “Advanced Settings” and you can import your existing comments into your Disqus account (This may take a little bit to complete)

Before Disqus

Here is what my comments section looked like before I added Disqus:

Comments before adding Disqus

Here is what the comments section looks like after Disqus has been added:

Comments after adding Disqus

Here are some of the advantages to Disqus:

• Threaded Comments
• Commenters can login with Facebook or Twitter Accounts as well as others like Open ID, Yahoo and more
• Widget for displaying most popular posts and latest comments on the sidebar – offers more options than default recent comments widget. (To get widget code – login to Discuss and click on Tools)
• Comment Moderation by Email – Discus sends you an email when someone leaves a comment. You can post a reply to the comment or delete the comment by replying to the email.
• Disqus can also keep track of Trackbacks and Tweetbacks

A better solution for Twitter/Facebook Integration

A few months ago I blogged about using the plugin TwitTip ID to add the ability for people to leave their Twitter name with their comment. While I like the idea of TwitTip Id – it was not at all easy to set up with existing themes.
More Comment Plugins Wpazo has a link to the blog post from First Web Designer 33 Wordpress Plugins to Power Up Your Comments Section - Disqus is number 1 on the list but there are some other plugins that look promising too. What plugin comments have you found most helpful.

Some additional blog posts about comments and Disqus…

• Disqus Forks Into Two Products, Launches Revamped Real-Time Comment System (techcrunch.com)
• Disqus V3 Launches: Publishers and Commenters Get Their Own Services (mashable.com)
• Using Disqus for Blog Comments (onemanandhisblog.com)
• Disqus updates blog comments plugin, user tools (downloadsquad.com)
• Why Comments Matter (avc.com)
• Disqus – Why 95% Of Bloggers Should Switch (andybeard.eu)

Name Boy

One of the hardest parts about setting up a business or a blog is choosing a name. Here are a few websites that can help you find a name for your new project. I have used NameBoy before – it is a great way to quickly see what domains for key words are available.

Are there other websites you have used to help you name your business or blog?

• NameBoy (affiliate link)
• Dot-O-Mator
• Snap it Now

The PhotoJojo Newsletter recently had a great post on naming your photography business – they have some good tips on what works and what to avoid that are applicable to all types of names. (PhotoJoJo is a weekly newsletter and shop with some great creative ideas on doing more with digital photography – the shop has some fun gifts for displaying photos – the site is worth a look.)

Some related reading about names and domain names…

• World’s First: Street Named After a Twitter Account (thenextweb.com)
• DeletedDomains.com: Find the latest deleted and on-hold domains (netwala.blogspot.com)
• Domize: The World’s Fastest Doman Name Search Engine! (netwala.blogspot.com)
• Oldest domain name on the internet symbolics.com is finally sold (telegraph.co.uk)

The Whuffie Factor: Using the Power of Social Networks to Build Your Business by Tara Hunt

I am reading this right now and I can’t stop talking about this book. I think Tara Hunt has done an excellent job of explaining how social media can be used to build social capital. I am especially fond of this book because I think it is written in a style and tone that anyone can understand, you don’t need to have a twitter account to know what she is talking about.

Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan and and Julien Smith

I first met Chris at Podcamp Pittsburgh a few years ago and I enjoy reading his blog (ChrisBrogan.com) on a daily basis. I am looking forward to reading more of his thoughts on the subject of using online tools to build trust – I think this might be a great follow up read to The Whuffie Factor.

Crush It!: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passionby Gary Vaynerchuk

Chris Brogan has posted a video review of this book here. Tara Hunt discusses Gary Vaynerchuk and his social media successes in The Whuffie Factor and I am eager to read more.

Full Disclosure: The links on the page are Amazon Affiliate Links – which means if you click the link and order something we get a small percentage of the sale. Feel free to buy these books from your favorite book store too.

I found Busted Carbon blog from a post on Urban Velo – a great magazine/blog about cycling.  Busted Carbon is a blog that is dedicated to broken carbon bicycle parts.  Blogger Figbug has been posting photos of roken carbon for over a year now.  Some are just submitted photos and others are submitted with stories and photos.

Blog Name: Busted Carbon

Post Worth a Look: Another Garage Incident – while no cyclists were injured in this one – it is still sad.

On Twitter: sadly no broken carbon on Twitter

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From my experience – GoDaddy is the easiest place to register a domain name. I agree that their interface can be a little confusing but their tech support – and phone support is great and I have always been able to get a quick answer to a question.

Whois.net is a tool that allows you to see who has registered a specfic domain name.

What info do I want to share on the whois.net info page for my domain? That depends – if you are a business – you probably want to include a phone number and email where people can reach you. If you are registering a domain name for a website or blog that you want to keep anonymous – then you might want to keep the who is info private.

From the GoDaddy FAQ:

Can I hide my personal information in the Whois directory?

We must make the contact information you listed for your domain public, per our registrar’s agreement with ICANN (the international governing body of domain names). Using false information violates the registration agreement and leads to the termination of your domain registration.

However, we do offer our private domain registration services to help protect your privacy. You can purchase our private domain registration services, and we will list the Domains By Proxy name, postal address, and phone number on the Whois directory. Although Domains By Proxy is the name on the registration, you retain the full benefits of domain registration. You can:

• Cancel, sell, or transfer your domain registration.
• Revert the registrant listing for your domain registration back to you.
• Renew your domain registration when it expires.
• Designate the nameservers for your domain.
• Resolve claims arising out of a dispute involving your domain registration.

If you don’t want your name, address and contact information to be displayed when you can add private domain registration to your domain name – this usually costs about $10/year.

Some related blog posts about domain registration

• Domain Names, Steps To Choose And Register Your Own (ronmedlin.com)
• Registrars Still Ignoring ICANN Rules (tech.slashdot.org)
• IMPORTANT: Share Your Opinion On Domain Expiry (blacknight.com)