Thursday, March 07, 2013

is my blog dead or what?

Hey, gang.  Spring break approaches and as a grad student I've got a crapload to do, but I thought I might try to hop on the wagon and start blogging again.  I've got some notes for a new campaign that I could flesh out a bit and at least one really stupid D&D rules idea we can talk about.

The thing is, I've been considering switching venues, possibly to tumblr.  Would that be a big inconvenience for people?  I know that would make commenting a bigger hassle, but honestly I'm not sure if I can resume writing a blog and responding to comments.  And something about the interface just sooths me, whereas blogger has always been a mild pain in the ass.  I dunno.  Please share your opinion.

72 comments:

  1. Go for it. Adding a comments function to your tumblr isn't a hard task, so you can bolt that on later if you're of a mind to.

    Sounds like the important thing at this point is ease of use.

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  2. I'll admit I'm not a big fan of trying to follow anything on Tumblr. I don't think I've seen any way to get a specific tumblr feed into an RSS reader. Nor do I want to check yet another fire-hose update service.

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    1. I use Google Reader, it parses a tumblr url like any other blog. More directly, point your reader at the RSS xml file directly at "anytumblraddress"/rss

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  3. Tumblr is a work of evil.

    *disappears back into the rabbit hole*

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  4. I miss your posts, however rare they may have become, but am not on tumblr nor do I have any interest in joining yet another service. It seems the vast majority of OSR and gaming activity has moved to Google+ from both blogs and forums. I would strongly advise you go there for maximum exposure.

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    1. ....And I see you're already there. In that case, just post right on G+ and those of use with you in a circle already will see it. No reason to add another layer of annoyance...

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  5. I've always appreciated tumblr for being able to get out of the way of the content more than almost any other medium, and the ease of sharing.

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  6. I'd prefer you didn't, but you should do whatever gets you writing the blog again. :)

    Two additional possibilities to consider: 1. You could run it through blogger but close comments. 2. You could run it through blogger, keep comments open, but adopt an explicit policy of generally not engaging with the comments.

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  7. I'd prefer you stayed here, but I can live with tumblr.

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  8. I'd prefer you kept it here, but blogger is less awful than tumblr.

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  9. Good to see you back! Couldn't say anything about Tumblr, but I'm, too, not a big fan of joining yet another service. You know, "Never change a running system!" and all that. But if this is going to be your decision, I'd not refuse to see what you're up to in the future. Well, let's see how this turns out...

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  10. As long as you have an RSS feed, I'll be happy wherever you land.

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  11. Just so long as I know where it is that you end up writing.

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  12. As long as you're not putting your new updates in a cave in Iran they'll always be of interest to me. I come for the content not the medium and adding .tumbler.com instead of .blogspot.com makes not a whit of difference to me.

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  13. I'd really like to hear that stupid rules idea and I feel the same way as many of the others. I think a move to tumblr would be better than disappearing into plus only for example.

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  14. To me, what you'd lose is the history of this blog, and the ability to refer to it in your new posts (in a "self-contained" way). It's sort of like moving your office, but leaving all of your files in the old location.

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  15. One data point. At least judging from the stats on my blog, you are my biggest referrer. That means people apparently use your blogrolls to figure out what's new in OSR blogs. For that reason alone I'd suggest sticking where you are or at least redirecting people to a site with a comparable blogroll. It's a great resource.

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    1. I'll back this up. Despite the fact that you haven't been posting, a serious chunk of referrals to my blog come from here.

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    2. Yep, your blog is my first stop.
      I look in here in hopes you've written something new.
      Then I goto the Blog-O-Ramae.

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  16. This place's got a lot of history. It's an aged oak table. Look! That black mark is where RPGPundit put out his pipe in 2007! That hole is from the 2008 Edition Wars, and we don't speak about what really happened there. All that grime's from all those hundreds and hundreds of posts. And that rainbow-like thing is from a Flailsnail!

    On the other hand, Tumblr is very accommodating and it's really good for small stuff. I personally use it for an economic apocalypse/satire/conspiracy blog.

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  17. Anonymous12:00 PM

    You can write stuff on tumblr? I thought it was just pictures.

    If you disappear behind some webpage that I need to sign up for just to read, I'm going to lose track of you. A lot of the OSR is doing that, and to me they've just vanished.

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  18. I'm surprised blogger has lasted as long as it has, honestly. Tumblr is great, and comments are easy. I think most folks think of it as an image sharing format, but there are good layouts for writing.

    And sometimes it's good to leave history behind and strike out anew.

    OSR dudes have carved out a neat little territory here but G+ has made it almost vestigial. Also, every time I tell people I have a tumblr they're like "duh, obviously" and every time I tell people I have a blogspot they laugh as if I'm trying to be ironic or something.

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  19. Already follow your tumblr so that's fine w/ me.

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  20. Are the advantages of tumblir on the writing side or the reading side?

    Any examples of sizeable D&D blogs on tumblir?

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  21. It's a pain to follow Tumblr, but I'll try to do it. There is a good chance I will just miss posts and not comment, though.

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  22. Prefer you stay here. I have a Tumblr, but Tumblr is for day-to-day posts of ephemera and ain't-it-cool images; it isn't too friendly for in-depth rambling or discussions. Think of it as a stream, not a pond.

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    1. I couldn't agree more.

      Blogger provides a much, much stronger "system of record" for other folks (:cough: like me :cough:) to be able to find and reference specific posts. Tumblr is like a graphic-heavy Twitter: posts are here for the moment and then lost to history a few days later.

      Go with what you're more comfortable with but having tried both I found working with Blogger far more convenient than Tumblr.

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  23. Use what you must, just make sure you link it here so I can follow. I prefer blogger (my efforts at trying to use tumblr have been....odd.)

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  24. If you'd enjoy blogging more on Tumblr, go for it. And I for one wouldn't grouse if you didn't allow comments. As a reader I have any number of online options for reacting to what you write.

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  25. Anonymous1:41 PM

    Tumblr is awesome. You are awesome. It's a match.

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  26. Ahh a Jeff sighting! Can spring be far behind?

    Seriously tho I'd follow you anywhere and I've come to the private conclusion that Blogger is inefficiently evil. Tumblr scales great to mobile devices. Go for it man.

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  27. Tumblr is awful. I advise you to check out Wordpress.

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  28. If you just want to avoid pesky commenters, you could post to my blog.

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  29. If you post it, i will read it (if i can find it). I'm comfortable with the blog, but if you switch to tumblr (or whatever), i'll happily spit in the face of comfort.

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  30. I probably won't do Tumblr. Sorry to miss out.

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  31. Deciding your future by commitee!

    Nothing can go wrong!

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  32. Well, you could always try Tumblr out for a bit and see how it feels. I'd follow.

    - Ark

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  33. Anonymous6:08 PM

    You do what works best for you, Jeff - we're likely to follow anyhow.

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  34. Relevant data:

    "Jeff's Gametumblr"

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  35. Anonymous7:10 PM

    I'll be thrilled to read more posts from Jeff no matter where they are.

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  36. I'm not a huge Wordpress fan but I'd recommend Wordpress over Tumblr. Tumblr just doesn't seem suited for what you do and what you do is awesome.

    Tumblr is best for college girls to post semi to fully naked pictures of themselves. Not that I go there for that. Or at all. ^^;

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  37. why not both?
    put your posts on a Word file,
    then copy and paste to each .. . .

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  38. Commenting on tumblr is a bitch and the archiving and blogroll and all the stuff that made Jeff's Gameblog a great gateway for so many of us to the rest of the RPG blogs isn't there.

    It's just comment-via-retumble and hit the "archive" button, neither of which are very transparent or easy to use.

    But, man, please come back. RPGland needs more sanity.

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  39. Anonymous10:02 PM

    I miss the inspiration of your blog and hearing your ideas, so whatever it takes to keep you happy and sharing stuff is good.

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  40. I would not do Tumblr, but would understand. It's crazy the 2 biggest old school blogs are both essentially gone.

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  41. Anonymous10:03 PM

    "Commenting on tumblr is a bitch and the archiving and blogroll and all the stuff that made Jeff's Gameblog a great gateway for so many of us to the rest of the RPG blogs isn't there."

    Damn, I forgot about that, but then I have still been using your blog as a jumping off point via blogroll during your dead phase, anyhow.

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  42. Yes, I consider a move to Tumblr an inconvenience, but it's better than disappearing altogether I guess. My preference is Blogger or WordPress in that order. As others have suggested, if you prefer not to see or answer comments, you can always just turn them off.

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  43. I don't know anything about Tumblr, but I will follow you anywhere. Just too much good stuff to pass up.

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  44. Keep it here, is my advice, and turn off comments if that helps Tumblr is far better than G+, however; I just can't get used to checking out G+.

    I'd hate to lose the great blogroll.

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  45. Anonymous2:10 AM

    Real life comes first. No apologies needed. If your new space allows anon posting, I'll probably become a regular reader.

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  46. On reflection, this post of yours in view of the comments is coming across like some red haired aging jackass looking for nerd love. Are you next going to ask us what shoes you should wear to the ball, "Are my shoes dead or what?" (Red patent leather with heels)

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  47. I would prefer reading this blog, also this repository of Jeff's wizardly knowledge is easy to search, just yesterday I was checking the old twenty questions blog post.

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  48. As long as tumblr has an RSS that I can subscribe through Google Reader, I will continue reading you.

    Just please don't delete this blog.

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  49. Would subscribe if you switched, but not a fan of tumblr.

    Also, whatever format you use, my personal selfish preference is that you install a Google +1 button, since this is the method I find most convenient to flag web pages for future reference without either sequestering my interest from the world or spamming all of G+ about it.

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  50. Who are you again?

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  51. I'm on tumblr, but I still don't really get it. I'd rather you stay here, even if you never replied to another comment again. BUT it's a free country and you should probably do whatever you're most comfortable with...

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  52. Glad to see ya checkin' in!

    As to the question of the day, I for one prefer your current set up. My thoughts on the subject pretty much overlap with the posters above, *but*, if you so choose to migrate to tumblr, I'll do my best to keep up. Jeff's Gameblog in some form is better than none, for certain!

    I'm really looking forward to reading notes on that potential new campaign! And of course, that *really* stupid D&D rule sounds intriguing. But anything that gets you back in the groove is gonna be worthwhile convo fodder.

    Oh, and I wouldn't worry overmuch about staying on top of your responses. Everybody knows you're busy and all. We'll take it in stride. Honestly, I'm amazed that someone who has consistently delivered inspiring, entertaining, even thought provoking posts pretty much on the regular since 2004(!) is still able and willing to keep contributing top notch gaming content for this great hobby! And for free(!)(!), to boot. For that, my thanks, btw.

    Glad to see a post on the venerable Gameblog once more!

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  53. I'd prefer the gameblog as is, though if there is a way to still get Tumblr to show up on my blog post notices, I guess that'd work out.
    I hope that even upon the switch to Tumblr all old posts would remain available?

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  54. If you move on Tumblr, I will not follow you : it's too impractical. Sorry.

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  55. Clearly you need the convenience of selecting a platform that works for you. You've attracted over 60 replies to a post to blog that's been silent for a long time. I dare say plenty of people will follow you to tumblr if that's what works for you. Others are sure to cross link to your awesomeness as well, so stragglers will get hyperlinks to your stuff. Do what you like; you're doing it for fun, after all. If its not fun, you shouldn't do it.

    I'll be sure to get that new tumblr feed in my RSS reader.

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  56. Anonymous9:11 AM

    I think tumblr would be a good fit for you Jeff, particularly while busy with grad school. You say the tumblr interface soothes you, while blogger has been a pain. That should seal the deal right there. Blogging is best when the author is blogging for themselves, not out of any feelings of obligation to the audience. And blogging somewhere is better for everyone than not blogging at all. If you ask people if they would like change, you will pretty consistently encounter resistance. Tumblr is where the growth is in this space, and whatever audience turnover occurs, I bet you'll gain more followers than you'll lose. Your blog was here way before the "OSR blogosphere"; you're a trailblazer.

    http://blog.compete.com/2011/10/26/tumblr-vs-wordpress-vs-blogger-fight/

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  57. Please don't - like many folks here, I really cant stand tumblr.

    That being said, you should do what works best for you. But whatever you decide, please please please don't be one of those guys who kills his blog when he moves on. There's so much great stuff here, it would be a blow to the gaming community to lose it all. (And I still haven't finished reading at least half of your older content!)

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  58. Yay! I just checked back in randomly like I sometimes do, to see if my favorite gaming blog had stirred to life again, and at least get the good news that you're thinking of getting back into the swing of things blogging-wise. So whatever that takes, I'm cool with, if it's Tumblr or whatever. BUT - two things. First, like a couple previous posters said, please keep this blogspot blog up so we can access old content. And if you're gonna do that, then how about every time you do post at your new Tumblr blog, if that's what you decide to do, you also post a link here on the old blog to the new Tumblr post?

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  59. tumblr browser suits visual blogs better - also if you have too many subscriptions crashes - i used for short text and art posts - i came to blogger last year as easier than wordpress and better networking and g+ links - i used livejournal for years but feels contantly in decline - i keep in part to see what russians up to

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  60. Late to the party...I’ll merely add that I agree with Tom: “As long as you have an RSS feed...”

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  61. I think you should do what feels right; I've been considering the opposite move [from Tumblr to Blogger] for a while now, because I wanted a more efficient archive but haven't started the blogger going ...yet.

    I too use your blog as a gateway & would hate to see it disappear.

    If you switch to Tumblr would you consider just copying & pasting posts over here? Just to Keep the blog rolling so to speak?

    Personally, I follow you both places and both Tumblrs too :)

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  62. Great post. I just located your blog and wished to let you know that I have certainly loved reading your blogs. At any rate I’m going to be subscribing to your feed and I really hope you are writing again soon.

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  63. tumblr doesn't looks at all like a blogging platform, which blogger is so for me that is a no brainer.

    If you don't feel like keeping up with comments, just disable them or ignore them.

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  64. You're thinking about moving to tumblr?
    I thought you were already there: http://perfectcromulence.tumblr.com/

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