I’ve spoken out quite a few times about the foibles of using Blogger as a blog-hosting platform. I started out on Blogger, way back when they were Blogspot before Google took over… and it was OK, having a free blogging platform to work with. But I quickly learned that Blogger is extremely limited, and, now that Google had got ahold of it, rather controlled. I still have a few Blogger blogs skulking around, but I am most happy with my self-hosted WordPress blogs.
I’m bringing this up again because of a recent spat with Blogger over the weekend. For about three days, when I tried to visit Blogger blogs, I got the following page:
Gosh, for a day or two, I thought there was actually something wrong with my router or my computer! I did a virus scan and found nothing. I rebooted the router, changed the IP address, and tried again. The same error message. Slowly I began to realize that it was Google/Blogger’s fault, not mine. And just think– all those Blogger blogs that were unavailable, and that were inaccessible! :-p Very poor.
So once again, if you are serious about blogging, or think that someday you may be– I am enthusiastically recommending that you go with your own hosted blog. It’s not hard to set up. Sure, there’s a learning curve, but WOW it’s the difference between night and day. And I do recommend Hostgator for web hosting. I have tried several web hosting companies, and no one comes close to Hostgator in reliability, service, and professionalism. I’ve helped quite a few people get established on Hostgator with their own WordPress blogs, and I could certainly offer you some help if you need it. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. If you want to get serious about blogging, ditch the Blogger and get your own space!
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So that’s why my traffic dropped way off. As soon as I make enough from my affiliate links, I plan to jump ship as well. I have been poking around WordPress.com to try and get used to it. Question: do I have to pay for it, if I am using my own hosting? Also, I’m going to have to change my domain name, is there a way to do that without losing page rank? I have been with Blogger from the beginning, so I am very new to this.
The best move I ever made
I use WordPress, but have had the same error message several times recently. I didn’t notice if it was when I tried to drop on a Blogger site, but I will make a point of checking if it happens again. Thanks for the info.
I had the same problem that Friday. I thought I had done something wrong. I told my cable company rep on Twitter, who was trying to help me figure out if it was me, that this might be the final kick in the butt I need to switch to WordPress. Once I realized it wasn’t me, I got mad because Google could have had the decency to tell us that the DDOS attack was why we were being blocked from the get go, not hours later when the Blogger forums and Twitter were being bombarded with people questioning why they couldn’t get to their blogs. I even wrote a similar post to yours today about it.
I’ve not had any trouble with blogger, I like that it’s free and I don’t feel that it’s limiting. What things did you find limiting? I’m always anxious to learn new things, how and why etc. Why do you think google has made it worse? Beyond this one error message, I’d like to know what I should be keeping an eye open to/for. The only thing I’ve noticed is the way friends changed when it became associated with google friends. I did prefer the previous blogger/blogspot friends thing; but that’s not much really.
Thanks
Sandy
Thanks for your comments, everyone.
Sandy– the things I don’t like about Blogger:
1. You can’t access your blog’s database. This makes it slightly more secure than WordPress blogs, but Blogger blogs can still be hacked. And you don’t have the ability to tinker, alter, and change anythingin your database.
2. You can’t easily save your Blogger posts. Not through Blogger. I’ve tried various third-party software, but nothing did a very good job of saving all my posts.
3. Templates are limited (and ugly, in my opinion).
4. If you want to monetize your blog, you will be hard-pressed to find advertisers who want to do business with Blogger bloggers.
5. Google has been known to delete blogs. Without informing the bloggers. As Staci mentioned, Google never even notified the bloggers of the DDOS attack and server denials.
6. There is NO SUPPORT from Google, ever. Good luck on the forums, which were created after I left Blogger. When I had my blogs, I was on my own.
7. Google knows all, sees all, has its hands in all. I just don’t like that.
I guess I could compare the difference between the two like comparing a trolley car to a Mercedes-Benz. The trolley car will get you where you want to go, plain and simple, if you abide by the trolley’s schedule and stick to the trolley’s destinations. But the Mercedes will take you anywhere you want to go, as fast as you want. Not to mention you can earn $$ on the side, too.
Certainly not everyone is suited for WordPress and self-hosting. Casual hobbyists usually prefer Blogger’s no-nonsense and easy interface. But there is still the threat of blog deletion and losing posts. That made me nervous enough to leave Blogger.
I wish all the best to you!
I have been with WordPress from the beginning and have always been happy with it. I envy those who can be their own web host. We have someone we know doing it and he’s very patient and good. It’s good to know that there are web hosting companies out there. I’d be lost without our guy.
I also started out on blogger.com. It only took me a few months to decide to make the jump to a self hosted WordPress site. I have never regretted the decision. You have so much more flexibility, and you are in control of the site. WordPress has gotten to the point where anyone, and I mean anyone, can set up and maintain their own site. I still get problems when I try to post comments on some blogger blogs. It is disappointing that the service has not improved dramatically over the years.
This is something that I would love to do. My own domain, my own space, control over my own blog. I dont like feeling like this: :stoop: Heh.
New Blogger importer handles the latest version of Google’s Blogger product and seamlessly imports posts and comments with just your login.
I started blogging with WordPress from start. I love it and the learning part doesn’t take that long. It is straight forward. One thing I don’t like on blogger.com is that with some of the blogs you can’t leave a comment if you have your own URL. I assume it’s personal choice but I had to just give up on some blogs (good ones) that I liked to leave a comment and have an idea of their content but wasn’t able too.
I think own hosting is great choice and blogspot hosting are waisting of time
Great post and comments. I was thinking of moving over to WordPress in the next 3-4 months.
I have a question. WordPress.com has free blog hosting, what’s the difference between hosting yourself and just doing it with wordpress.com?