Blogger goof up and tutorial---3WW

Absent
Notebook
Persuade

The words for this 3WW are perfect for this post. I only needed to add the words. Sorry, folks no poetry this time but a rant! Please contribute!!

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Are you listening, Google/Blogger? Thanks to you, I am losing all my non-Blogger user friends. Linking should have been made easy, you just made it difficult. You suck!!!

I am not getting any email notifications of the comments either. Now what?

I WANT THAT "OTHER" OPTION BACK!

**Update: Click on New feature:OpenID commenting and don't forget to rant there about this blogger high handedness.

As most have noticed by now, Blogger has taken down the "other" option in the comment sections. It was very useful for non-Blogger users as they could leave their direct link, using that option. Even I used to do that, preferring to leave my direct link.

It has come to notice that Blogger is testing for open id, whatever that means. Now, it is in the draft stage. You can find out more by logging in to http://draft.blogger.com/

So blogger users, get ready to make your comment section user friendly for those bloggers who use other blog platforms. That is the only way we can persuade our dear friends not to leave us in our hours of need. At present they come, visit and don't leave any comments. After a while they will stop doing that. We will twiddle our thumbs if they stay absent. Take down your notebooks and follow my instructions. Your time starts now..:-)

Log on in at http://draft.blogger.com/ After signing in on your blog, go to settings---->comments---->

Who Can Comment?

Anyone - includes Anonymous Users
Registered Users - includes OpenID
Users with Google Accounts
Only members of this blog

After choosing the option Anyone, don't forget to save it. I repeat, save it.

View blog, come to the comment section, you will see something like the following:

This makes easier to choose any id, you are using. For example, if your are signed on to WordPress, you don't have sign in with Google/Blogger account again to comment here. Choose WordPress from the drop down menu, type your blog name, you are linked!

**** Friends, don't be confused. Read and re-read it. Go slow****

For the more daring ones: (it can be skipped for now. Come back later for it)

By opening an account at MyOpenId, blogger users, that is those with blogspot URLs, can leave their links too.

Before, Blogger gets to be an OpenId provider, you can do it NOW. There are several free, open websites to get an OpenID, which you can use anywhere that supports it. MyOpenID is one,which takes just a minute to sign up. After signing up, you need to add a code to your template head.

After much researching, I found OpenID Delegation , which gives the code that can be added to your blogspot template so it can function as your OpenID url. This is specific to MyOpenId. However, other OpenID providers would be similar.

Copy and paste the stuff given in the box here after changing the username to yours anywhere above < /head > of your template. And save your template. For better tutorial, visit here.

Now, if I choose Any OpenID from the drop down, I can put in
http://firmlyrooted.blogspot.com as the url. It will then show as the link in the comment. By clicking
it, anyone can go to my page directly instead of the profile page.

Have fun exploring. I don't think you are going to have any problem. As I have taken that option,
feel free to comment here. You can test-comment too! Please don't forget to give me feedback on the tutorial.

However, I don't like this situation at all. Until blogger does it right, we have to grin and bear it!