The Real Blogger Status

This month, we are again seeing evidence of recent security changes by Microsoft . We see signs of continued frustration, in the process of publishing comments - and publishing posts, as part of the Import process. In the process of diagnosing an apparent comment publishing problem, I ventured into the comment publishing experience, yet again.

Some blog owners want to know why custom domain published blogs are subject to daily activity spam control limits. We see the occasional query, in Blogger Help Forum: Learn More About Blogger . Does the 50 posts / day limit apply to all blogs that use the Blogger platform - or only for these hosted on BlogSpot? With Blogger, all blogs are subject to a daily publishing activity limit - pages and posts, combined.

Some blog owners don't understand the need to identify themselves , when commenting on our blogs. We see an occasional question, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , about comment authentication. Why, if I've selected "Anyone - including Anonymous Users " under comment settings, for "Who can Comment?", do my visitors complain of having to login? This blog owner, like many others, does not understand the Blogger spam mitigation policy, in Blogger Comments.

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.

We're seeing questions about commenting, and identification, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue . Why do I have to click on 3 pictures of steak, to post a comment? This blog reader is not enjoying the new CAPTCHA - and has a problem with using it, repeatedly. When you comment, you now have to identify yourself as a person - not a robotic process (aka "autobot" or "bot"). For most of us, this is not an issue. We login to Blogger (or Google) once a day, and we're done. The "once a day" solution does not work, for everybody.

This week, we're seeing complaints from quite a few angry blog owners, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue . Why do I have to solve a CAPTCHA, to comment on my own blog? and Everybody sees a CAPTCHA - even if they are logged in to Blogger! Previously, the CAPTCHA was visible only to those not logged in to Blogger, or to those wishing to comment, anonymously.

One of the most easily overlooked details, about Blogger blog content , is that GPT / PTC / PTS Content is not suitable, for Blogger blogs. Blogger Content Policy has a section which describes GPT / PTC / PTS Content, in passing . Spam: Spam takes several forms in Blogger, all of which can result in deletion of your account or blog. Some examples include creating blogs designed to drive traffic to your site or to move it up in search listings, posting comments on other people's blogs just to promote your site or product, and scraping existing content from other sources for the primary purpose of generating revenue or other personal gains. Unfortunately, spammers have been imaginatively subtle, in their description of various make money fast programmes - and not so many blog owners think it necessary to contact a lawyer, to interpret the Content Policy document, when planning their new blog.

Much of what we do in life - and what we do when using Blogger - is based upon, and limited by, choice. Some choices we get to make, for ourselves. Other choices are made for us, by people who make their own choices. Some blog owners do not want their readers to have to login to Blogger, to comment on their blogs. Other blog owners do not want their readers to have to solve a CAPTCHA, to comment on their blogs. A few blog owners do not want their readers to have to do either. It seems anyone who wishes to leave a comment, will have to do some form of login, either via Google or a CAPTCHA, to do so! Is there a reason for this, would it not be easier, for anyone to just leave a comment? And the answer here is simple. It would be easier, if neither were required. But reality - involving activity by spammers , and activity to counter spammers - leaves some of us with less choices.

Several weeks ago, Blogger added a security feature to Blogger commenting, to reduce comment spam . Note: Even if you don't have word verification turned on, anonymous commenters might be asked to enter some text. This helps protect your blog from abuse. This change has not pleased everybody. I disabled "prove you're not a robot" for commenting. Why do my readers still have to solve a CAPTCHA, each time they comment? This blog owner is not looking at the bigger picture. This new feature will benefit many blog owners - when Blogger is used, properly.

The new, mandatory CAPTCHA form , for blog readers wishing to comment anonymously, has been in service for just under a week. We're seeing a variety of problems , reported in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , by blog owners and readers alike.

The new CAPTCHA, added by Blogger last week to restrict spam in anonymous comments, is already showing signs of unwanted effect, with some blogs. Besides making the commenting sequence more complicated, the sequence, in general, is inconsistent. Differences in the sequence, when compared between the three commenting form placement options (embedded, popup, and full page), varied by the original CAPTCHA screening option, and the moderation option, have been noted. And how many readers, commenting on their favourite blog, will think of hitting "Publish" with "Google account" selected, to login and avoid the CAPTCHA? The CAPTCHA form itself will discourage comments, being made by the casual blog reader, against many blogs. And the CAPTCHA, as added to all three comment forms, now makes cookie filtering issues equally critical , for the embedded, popup, and full page forms, alike.

We're seeing reports, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue , about a new way Blogger is blocking comment spam. I didn't enable CAPTCHAs, for commenting on my blog! Why are my readers having to solve one, before commenting? It appears that Blogger has added a new CAPTCHA form, to the commenting process. In Blogger Help: The word-verification option , we see the notation. Note: Even if you don't have word verification turned on, anonymous commenters might be asked to enter some text. This helps protect your blog from abuse. It appears that "might be asked" is the key detail, here.

We see signs of optimism, occasionally, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue . How do I convince Blogger to let me publish more than 50 posts / day, in my blog? Blogger Support has repeatedly declined to make any change to the daily post limit.

We're seeing a number of problem reports, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken , about various problems which involve CAPTCHA verification processes. The symptoms are fairly diverse. Some blog owners report problems with commenting, on their blogs. Some report problems with high posting volumes. Some report problems getting abuse review requested, for their blogs falsely accused of hosting abusive content. The reporting volumes, and perceived urgency, for each case, will vary.

Not all Blogger blog owners, using CAPTCHA screening to reduce abusive comments on their blogs, know first hand what the typical CAPTCHA puzzle can be like. We're seeing a few concerned blog owners, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken , asking why they're seeing fewer comments on their blogs . I'm hearing from people that they can't post comments on my blog. I tested, and comments are working just fine. What is the problem, here? Not all blog owners bother to test the CAPTCHA, on their blogs - or even know why they don't see one, when commenting.

Not all Blogger blog owners know that the ability to comment is a privilege which they control. Like the ability to publish and read posts , it is also a responsibility which they need to control, carefully. Any blog owner who wishes to publish a blog, and not be subject to frequent deletion of the blog, as a suspected malware or spam host, needs to understand the responsibilities, and the risks.

During the past week, I have seen a small handful of mentions of the latest Blogger CAPTCHA form, so I was not surprised this evening when I encountered one, in real life. In this case, where I was privileged to see these real examples, I suspect that the CAPTCHA itself was only marginally involved, as the cause of the problem being discussed, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken .

Occasionally in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken , we see a query from a confused blog owner. I made a large number of posts today, and Blogger is now requiring me to solve a CAPTCHA, for every post. I tried to find the form to submit, so that my website could be reviewed, but I could not find it. What do I do, now? This blog owner, like too many, does not understand the spam mitigation policy.

Recently, we're seeing a few frustrated blog owners, in Blogger Help Forum: How Do I? , who have decided that the recently provided CAPTCHA ("word verification") screening puzzle is simply too much for their readers to handle. Some blog owners have discovered that removing the CAPTCHA, from their blog comment wizard, is not all that easy, either. Everytime I click on "Save settings", to disable word verification on my blog, as soon as I return to the settings, it is enabled again. How do I get rid of the CAPTCHA? Some blog owners have not yet learned that the New Blogger GUI (2011) just is not ready for public use.

As we add social networking accessories and gadgets to our blogs, we need to appreciate the nature of the connections, which we are adding. Some Blogger blog owners fail to understand the relationships between the different Internet services, such as Blogger / Google, FaceBook, and Twitter. Why do I have to solve a CAPTCHA when I post on my Wall? and Why does my "Share to FaceBook" wizard not let me include a snippet or thumbnail from my blog? These are typical questions, seen recently in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken . The people, asking these questions, probably do not understand that services like FaceBook are not part of Blogger or of Google.