The Real Blogger Status

The disappearing scroll tab, in the latest Chrome browser version, is tres elegante - for some blog owners. Personally, I'm not convinced. Hover the cursor in the scroll tab area, to get the tab to pop out. If you use the Chrome browser, and the display content is longer (or wider) than one physical screen, you may not realise that.

We're seeing a problem with Blogger Hosted Comments - and "Bad Request Error 400", following the use of the comment "Preview" feature. When a blog owner or reader composes a long or important comment, use of the Preview feature is normal. Right now, after hitting "Publish", following a successful Preview, one frequently sees the bad news. Bad Request Error 400 There is a workaround for this annoyance - and it's not difficult to use.

I have suggested that properly sizing the Jump Break and Title sections of each post is an important decision, when publishing a post in your blog. Publishing this blog, using carefully sized post title and jump break sections, allows me to consistently publish posts, with maximum detail visible in main page view - and with the "Read more" link visible. Potential readers may read a post in this blog - instead of returning to a SERP , and reading another blog. This affects a key reader retention metric, the " bounce rate ". All of that considered, sizing of the introductory post sections won't always produce predictable results.

We see an occasional report in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , about custom domain publishing. My readers can't view the blog - they get a redirection count error! DNS analysis shows a properly setup domain . When we try to examine the blog, we see a private blog notice - or we are required to login. But why a private blog, using a custom domain?

People reporting a problem with blog access / performance, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , will be frequently advised to diagnose their problems using affinity / differential testing . Some diagnostic advice starts with simple instructions to " clear cache, cookies, and sessions ". Some people, alternately, advise "use a different browser" - and test as a reader. These different strategies, seemingly redundant, will frequently lead to different results.

Some blog owners and readers ask about blog feed displays, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue . I clicked on this text at the bottom of the blog page: Subscribe to: Posts (Atom) and I got a screen full of gibberish. This is a known oddity, in Chrome.

We're seeing confusion, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , about unfairly limited Blogger / Google support policies. Why can I not Follow my favourite blog, without using a Google account? and Why must I upgrade my computer, to be able to use Chrome? Some blog owners and readers take the support policy limits personally, as if Blogger / Google is punishing them - or their readers - for not using the right account to login, or not upgrading their software.

The Blogger dashboard, and blog displays, is less of a pair of websites - and more of an application with code that runs on our computers . The Blogger code on our computers requires cookies and scripts , which are installed as we use the various Blogger dashboard pages. The cookies and scripts are susceptible to interference, from overly restrictive layered security . If you have a problem with Blogger - either accessing / using the dashboard, or using / viewing a blog - one of the simplest things to check, complementing script filter settings , is the browser cookie filter settings.

Every different browser and operating system, when supported by Blogger, requires more unique code - makes Blogger more complicated to maintain - and makes Blogger features less stable. Right now, Blogger Engineering is refocusing their efforts on more popular browsers and operating systems - and simplifying Blogger features. This will require that some Blogger components be discontinued.

We're seeing a number of problem reports, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , from blog owners unable to use the dashboard. I can't write a new post, view my Stats, or posts on the Blogger dashboard. Whenever I open these pages, it keeps loading like forever - and now I've been unable to update my blog or view my Stats. The Blogger dashboard is simply not loading, for these blog owners.

We see occasional evidence of confusion, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , about reading newsfeed content. I click on the link at the bottom of the page, and I get a screen full of gibberish. When we check the problem report, and verify browser involved, it will almost always be for users of the Chrome browser .

One of the more intriguing questions, seen occasionally in Blogger Help Forum: Learn More About Blogger , is about blog accessories, and template antiquity. I feel the customization with HTML templates is a lot more unique - but I wanted a certain gadget, on my blog. I upgraded my template in order to add the gadget, and copy its coding. After reverting back to the Classic template, I placed the gadget into my HTML. How do I get the gadget to work? This blog owner does not understand the differences between HTML and XML.

Not all blog owners appreciate the effort by Blogger, to make anonymous comments a usable feature, in our blogs. Anonymous comments have a complicated form - and people don't want to comment. They have to select certain pictures, related to a subject. When using a mobile template, they don't see all the buttons needed - and there are many steps until you finally publish a comment. Could is be simpler? With no checking pictures, with just typing few numbers, or without any security question at all? This blog owner would prefer Blogger commenting, before 2015, when anonymous comments meant unending waves of spam.

If you like to multi task when using Blogger, you probably keep a few windows and tabs open, in the browser. If you have lots of tasks running simultaneously, and you try to Share to Google+ from the dashboard Posts page, you may click on the "Share" link, the "Share on Google+" window pops up, you watch the window load - and just as the window is almost complete, it vanishes.

One of the most intriguing subjects, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , is about account access - and the dashboard menu. My menu only gives me Posts, and Settings! How do I manage my blog? This blog member (owner?) may be simply logged in to the wrong Google account.

People worry about the Quick Edit icons - sometimes, needlessly. I was logged out - but I can still see the edit tools! or My visitor logs show people clicking on the "rearrange" links!! Fortunately, no matter what can be seen - or may be clicked - only administrators will get any result. I use the "rearrange" links for many blogs, frequently. The links are unbelievably useful, when instructing a blog owner how to remove a misbehaving gadget on her / his blog .

It's important to use a supported browser, when using Blogger. Every different browser - and every different browser version - requires different code, to make heavily scripted products like Blogger operate properly on your computer. When you report a problem with using Blogger, one of the most essential questions that you can answer is What browser - and what browser version - are you using? This is not a formality - nor is it pedantic or snarky - it is a serious question , intended to help you to help us.

Too many would be blog owners (blog thieves?) complain how unhelpful Blogger is - and even, that Blogger is fraudulently denying them access to their Blogger account, and their blogs. They fail to acknowledge that Blogger / Google has a responsibility to millions of blog owners, who remember their login details - and who do not want thieves stealing their blogs . If you need assistance recovering control of your account and your blog(s), you need to help Blogger to help you. Prepare to provide proof that you are (should be) the account owner.

We are seeing a few blog owners reporting, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , of inability to use various dashboard functions. I am seeing "This Connection Is Untrusted" - You have asked Firefox to connect securely to 7749195048983246407_73be54cd6d1c58526e719a5edd6d94a945570409.blogspot.com, but we can't confirm that your connection is secure. This prevents me from using various preview features. We suspect that the problem involves the Firefox browser, possibly following the latest update .

We have a small but vocal group of blog owners, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , who report that they are unable to use Post Editor, to upload photos. When trying, they get an error Do you want to open or save resumable (1.61kb) from www.blogger.com? Right now, it appears that the problem is common to older versions of Internet Explorer.