Skip to main content

Confusion About Visibility Of Comments, With Blogs Using Google+ Comments

Along with confusion about ownership of comments, published using Google+ Comments, we see similar confusion about visibility of comments, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken.
I shared the URL of my post in Google+ - and now I see my Google+ post, displayed as a comment, on my blog!
and
My comments are showing up in other people's profiles, in Google+!!
and
I'm getting notifications, in Google+ - but the comments don't display, on the blog!!
Not all blog owners understand the relationship between Google+ comments, published to a Blogger blog - and posts, in Google+.

Comments on a Blogger blog are treated the same as Google+ posts, with a Blogger blog using Google+ Comments.

You may see a post shared publicly - or shared with you.

If somebody publishes a Google+ post, and shares the post to a circle that includes you, or shares a post publicly, you may see the post - if you are viewing a stream which includes them. Note that if you Block someone, their posts will never show up in your streams.

If somebody publishes a Google+ post, and shares the post to circle(s) that do not include you - even if the post references your blog - you won't see that post. If somebody publishes a Google+ comment against your blog, and shares the post to circle(s) that do not include you - even if the post references your blog - you won't see that comment.

If you share a post in your blog, you have a comment against that post.

If you share the URL of a post in your blog, in a Google+ post, that post becomes a Google+ comment against your blog post. With a Google+ post, you can choose to share to Public, or to any (or all) of your circles.

If you share the URL of a post in your blog to Public, everybody who is viewing a stream, which includes you, may see your Google+ post. If you share the URL to specific circles, everybody in those circles, and who is viewing a stream which includes you, may see your Google+ post.

If you publish a comment, and choose to share it, you have a stream post.

If you publish a Google+ comment to a post in your blog, and choose "Also share on Google+", that comment will become a Google+ post.

If you share a comment to Public, everybody who is viewing a Google+ stream, which includes you, may see your Google+ post. If you share a comment to specific circles, everybody in those circles, who is viewing a Google+ stream which includes you, may see your Google+ post.

When you view comments in your blog, you may view only Followers.

If you are viewing a post in your blog, you can select the "Circles" icon, and view all comments made by people in your circles, against that post, that you may see - or you can select the "World" icon, and view all comments made by everybody, against that post, that you may see. Anybody else, viewing a post in your blog, can do the same.

If you're publishing a comment against a post in your blog, you can choose to "Also share on Google+". Anybody else, viewing your blog, and publishing a comment, has the same choice.

Google+ shows all posts about your blog, on your blog.

The purpose of Google+ Comments, in Blogger, is to include Google+ posts, about your blog, on your blog.
For example, if there's a public Google+ discussion about one of your blog entries, those comments and replies will also appear on your Blogger blog.
If you do not want to include Google+ comments, about your blog, on your blog, you don't need to enable Google+ Comments.

If you do decide to use Google+ Comments on your blog, be aware of the known problems with Google+ Comments.

You can revert back to Blogger comments - but you won't see Google+ posts.

You can revert the blog back to Blogger Comments - but if you do this, no comments made using Google+ Comments will be visible on the blog, to anybody, from the blog.

We should also mention the issue of Blogger vs Google+ comments - and that you can choose one or the other, at any time. With the blog using Blogger Comments, it will not display any comments made under Google+ - and with the blog showing Google+ Comments, it will not display any comments made under Blogger. If you change back and forth, expect to lose comments.

Also, Google+ comments are based on the URL, not the blog. If you change the URL - as either a BlogSpot to BlogSpot change. or a custom domain publishing - you should also expect to lose comments. The comments will be out there - and with a properly setup custom domain, will direct to the blog - but the comments won't be visible against the blog posts.

Comments

Unknown said…
Hi, I'm not seeing this option anywhere: "If you are viewing a post in your blog, you can select the "Circles" icon, and view all comments made by people in your circles, against that post, that you may see - or you can select the "World" icon, and view all comments made by everybody, against that post, that you may see. Anybody else, viewing a post in your blog, can do the same." Could you please clarify where I would see this? For me, it's not on the blog itself or the G+ share either. Thanks much.
Nitecruzr said…
Suzette,

Does your blog use Google+ hosted comments - or Disqus?

Disqus hosted comments will not provide benefits of Google+ association.

http://blogging.nitecruzr.net/2013/04/consider-carefully-decision-to-use.html

Popular posts from this blog

What's The URL Of My Blog?

We see the plea for help, periodically I need the URL of my blog, so I can give it to my friends. Help! Who's buried in Grant's Tomb, after all? No Chuck, be polite. OK, OK. The title of this blog is "The Real Blogger Status", and the title of this post is "What's The URL Of My Blog?".

Add A Custom Redirect, If You Change A Post URL

When you rename a blog, the most that you can do, to keep the old URL useful, is to setup a stub post , with a clickable link to the new URL. Yo! The blog is now at xxxxxxx.blogspot.com!! Blogger forbids gateway blogs, and similar blog to blog redirections . When you rename a post, you can setup a custom redirect - and automatically redirect your readers to the post, under its new URL. You should take advantage of this option, if you change a post URL.

Adding A Link To Your Blog Post

Occasionally, you see a very odd, cryptic complaint I just added a link in my blog, but the link vanished! No, it wasn't your imagination.