Blogger is rewriting the Followers gadget, and removing some lesser used features.
One of the features seeing some change is Followers Authentication and Profiles. Long ago, I wrote about Community Accounts, and later about Community Profiles - both features letting you (or someone Following you) provide a blog to Follow and / or Follow other blogs.
At the time, Following (aka Google Friend Connect) was part of a complex network of different Followers services - with some Google users, and others non Google users. The ability to use non Google services, to Follow Blogger blogs, made a Blogger blog accessible to more people.
Unfortunately, using non Google services to authenticate (Accounts) and to describe (Profiles) made Following more complicated than it might be otherwise.
During the past weekend, Blogger started the process of simplifying Following. This involves removing non Google accounts and profiles from Following.
The rewrite will simplify the login options - and the login process.
Right now, potential Followers see a lot of choices that mean very little to them. Who cares about AIM, Netlog, or OpenID?
The rewrite will provide a login more like Google "One account" - and make logging in, to Following, easier for all of us.
The Followers count is an immediate concern, for some of us.
Right now, I am trying to reconcile the discrepancy between January 11 (when Blogger Engineering claims we will start to see a decrease in the blog Follower count), and December 18 - 20 (when we actually did see a decrease).
The decrease, which started late Friday December 18, was not insignificant. This blog went from 5,343 to 5,104 Followers, in less than 24 hours.
December 18.
December 19.
If you compare the icons, you'll see that I may have actually "gained" 3 Followers - while going from 5,343 to 5,104. Presumably my own lost 242 Followers had non Google accounts - and are now unable to access this blog, using Followers.
There are half a dozen topics, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue - where some wait, in vain.
One of the features seeing some change is Followers Authentication and Profiles. Long ago, I wrote about Community Accounts, and later about Community Profiles - both features letting you (or someone Following you) provide a blog to Follow and / or Follow other blogs.
At the time, Following (aka Google Friend Connect) was part of a complex network of different Followers services - with some Google users, and others non Google users. The ability to use non Google services, to Follow Blogger blogs, made a Blogger blog accessible to more people.
Unfortunately, using non Google services to authenticate (Accounts) and to describe (Profiles) made Following more complicated than it might be otherwise.
During the past weekend, Blogger started the process of simplifying Following. This involves removing non Google accounts and profiles from Following.
As part of this plan, starting the week of January 11, we’ll remove the ability for people with Twitter, Yahoo, Orkut or other OpenId providers to sign in to Google Friend Connect and follow blogs. At the same time, we’ll remove non-Google Account profiles so you may see a decrease in your blog follower count.
The rewrite will simplify the login options - and the login process.
The rewrite will provide a login more like Google "One account" - and make logging in, to Following, easier for all of us.
The Followers count is an immediate concern, for some of us.
Right now, I am trying to reconcile the discrepancy between January 11 (when Blogger Engineering claims we will start to see a decrease in the blog Follower count), and December 18 - 20 (when we actually did see a decrease).
The decrease, which started late Friday December 18, was not insignificant. This blog went from 5,343 to 5,104 Followers, in less than 24 hours.
If you compare the icons, you'll see that I may have actually "gained" 3 Followers - while going from 5,343 to 5,104. Presumably my own lost 242 Followers had non Google accounts - and are now unable to access this blog, using Followers.
There are half a dozen topics, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue - where some wait, in vain.
I really hope Blogger can bring back our numbers.I don't think that your numbers are coming back - and I just hope that we don't lose more. Just do not be confused about the scope of the coming changes.
Comments
Thanks for the explanation.
FlowerLady
Happy New Year, thanks for sharing the info
Kathyk
Hugs Sylvie xx
Thanks to blogging friend Anne for letting me know
Thanks for the question, and for your idealism.
I suspect that we will have to wait and see how Blogger provides login to Followers, on 1/11 (or whenever). I would not be surprised if they are still tweaking the GUI, so we have to wait until they unveil it.
I am hoping that the effect of the simplification (removing non Google accounts / profiles) means that we will be using a version of Google "One account" login - which will make it easier for everybody.
That said, I will certainly produce some tutorial, immediately after they release their changes. I simply have to wait, as you do, until then.
I totally apologise asking you this as if you are a Google agent who knows everything, I just thought, since you answered someone so helpefully, you might have an idea! Many apologies and thanks!!
The "non Google accounts / profiles", in the announcement, are accounts and profiles used only in Blogger Followers / Google Friend Connect.
If you have a Blogger account that's based on a non GMail email address, that you use to login the the Blogger dashboard, that will not be affected. They are only cleaning up accounts and profiles, that are used for Following.
Thanks for the information :)