This post is the first of many reviewing software. I thought it would be appropriate to review blogging applications since I'm getting back into blogging again.
I want an application that allows me to easily and quickly post to my blog without having to use my blog provider's WYSIWYG posting mechanism. Here are the points I used as a basis for my review:
- Ease of setup and installation
- Quality User Interface
- Ability to easily add media to posts
- Local draft saving
- Ability to edit saved drafts
The tools I'm going to review are either Mac OSX applications or browser based applications. I don't use a PC so I don't have the ability nor the desire to review any Microsoft applications. This post is being published through the blogger online post editor initially. Each of the bullet points below will be edited by the software in question. Here goes:
- Mars Edit - 30 day trial - $29.95 to purchase - This is a good looking piece of software. It was a breeze to setup and super easy to download my posts and access my blog. I had some problems initially when I attempted to edit this post but after restarting the app I was able to edit without a problem. Unfortunately, there isn't a WYSIWIG editor so if you're not comfortable editing HTML this isn't the app for you. If you're the type that maintains multiple blogs Mars Edit makes it a snap. There is a sidebar that contains all of your blogs so editing and posting to several different blogs can be achieved from one unified interface.
- Ecto - $17.95 - Again, a great piece of software. This application seems to have it all. The post editor is where this blogging tool really shines. You get both HTML and WYSIWIG editing modes, a media import tool, trackback integration and word counting functionality. It imported the tags into a nice sidebar with the ability to add/remove tags as you go. I really like Ecto as I'm using it more and, for the price, it is impressive. Multiple blogs are also supported with setup being a minimalistic process.
- Qmana - Freeware - The interface is a bit clunky on this app but it is the first freeware blogging tool in this review. You get multiple blog support, sweet editing with dual views. Tag inserting is supported as well. Nothing to complain of here and, since I'm a big fan of open source software, it is slowly inching up the list despite some of its shortcomings.
- Scribefire - Firefox extension - This is the first of the browser based blogging tools to be reviewed. This extension is what the performancing extension has grown into. For a browser based solution (free, portable, cross-platform) Scribefire rules. Depending on your window size the interface can seem a little cluttered but that's because of how many options you have. Multiple blog support. Dual view. Most of your standard blogging tool functionality is here. You also get the ability to store notes along with posts and category support (tags). Trackbacks, Technorati & del.icio.us integration, timestamp manipulation, pings and ftp support round out this tool and makes it really stand out. [edit - WOW. After editing this review I minimized the right sidebar and revealed a wealth of media integration possibilities (images, flickr, youtube). Very nice.]
- Dashblog - Firefox extension - I didn't really like this tool at first because of the lack of features. It isn't really a full-fledged blogging tool though. It is more of a content poster with the ability to post videos, images, text/quotes, songs. I really like the screenshot function though allowing you to screenshot an entire page or a selection. I might actually end up using this to post quick content that I come across. I had to finish up the editing in Blogger though so it is a one trick pony (with a pretty good trick). The image at the end of this post is the result of a screenshot of the extensions own page.
- Deepest Sender - Firefox Extension - This one of the oldest Firefox blogging extensions. After using the tools above I was pretty disappointed with this tool. First off, the post editor opens in a new window, not within the browser, effectively covering the page I was using for reference. The interface is bland but it does have Normal, Source, and Preview tabs and the normal text formatting options. Not until choosing the menu option "Post History" could I access the other posts on my blog. Again, not terrible but another pop-up window was the last thing I wanted to see. I already have 15 windows on my screen! This tool serves its purpose but I was expecting more from one of the more established tools in this arena. [edit - I tried to edit the original post and the application failed with an ugly javascript error. Final nail.] -- [edit MAJOR - I even tried to post this entry as a draft and received the same error. Not being able to post puts this blogging tool officially in the uninstall queue. Screenshot attached.]
- Flock - built in browser blogging - The Flock browser is geared towards the social / community driven web. It has built in support for several social networking platforms and their ilk. Since it has a built in blogging component I decided to throw it in for review. Again, I was unable to edit the original post so it doesn't make for a very portable solution. Standard WYSIWIG and source editing. Nothing flashy. Nothing new. It is your standard browser window application. (New window I mean...grrrr.) If you already use Flock then this could come in handy since there's nothing to download, install, or pay for. Not my tool of choice but it might be yours. [edit - couldn't post this as a draft so it went live to my blog immediately. Not cool.]
Did I miss any? Have an app you prefer? Let me know in the comments. I have some more ideas for blog related software reviews but they'll have to wait. I've got programming to do...
[edit - scribefire continues to surprise me. It's even able to edit your posts on the fly from your blog page and add photos, videos, quoted text and a few other things. Sick.]
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment