Man I have really been breaking a lot of my own rules lately! The latest one is I added Disqus comment system to Hot Blog Tips. I know, I know, some of you will probably get mad at me for it, and I am sorry. Truth is, after installing it, I really like it so far!
Ok, so lets discuss (Disqus) why I made the change, and the pro’s and con’s as I see them.
Those are the ones I can think of, and as I stated in the video, all the old comments along with the ComLuv links are still intact and working, but future comments won’t have ComLuv links. Also as I mentioned in the video I was able to eliminate 7 plugins with this one plugin. That is pretty good!
Also, the way my comments are organized on the page is a plus, the submit a comment area remains at the top, so you don’t have to look through all the comments to make one (although you should), trackbacks are grouped, and mentions on twitter are grouped along with who shared the article.
I heard one person say that the load time can be affected, I haven’t seen that yet, and with the deletion of 7 other plugins, I probably won’t…
Also, this will be a test for my site, and I reserve the right to remove it if it doesn’t work out for me…
I know some of you will have plenty to say, so let’s hear it. Will it affect your commenting? Why or Why Not. By the way, you should be able to comment as a “guest” using the same credentials you would without Disqus, so not having an account doesn’t make it any harder to comment.
Related posts:
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jordan Cooper, Keith . Keith said: Hot Blog Tips Now Uses Disqus http://bit.ly/c136YW (give me your thoughts…) [...]
I personally love Disqus and think it's awesome. But then again, I've been using it for a while (this will be my 428th comment with it!). Will be interesting to see how it affects commenting. I don't think it'll really be that big of a difference Keith IMO. And I think it's important to note that YOU DON'T HAVE TO HAVE A DISQUS ACCOUNT TO COMMENT
It makes it easier but it's not necessary.
I really think that is one of the fallacies with Disqus, (have to have an account to comment), I would like to get into the CSS and make the font a little bigger, but other than that and ComLuv, I don't really have any complaints.
I used Disqus briefly. The main reason I jumped off because it would ask the commentator if they wanted to sign up for Disqus when they left a comment. I worried that would deter people from commenting. It will be interesting to see how it effects your comments
I don't remember that happening before I got my account with them, and now that I have one I don't see that, like you said, I will have to see if it really affects anything….
Congrats. There are occasional downtimes, but they're minimal. I love Disqus, as both a blogger and a commenter.
booyah! 1486 comments!
I only have 83, but like I said, I used to avoid most sites that had it…. Guess that will change now as I reply to comments here on my site!
I love disqus. It seems to encourage actual discussions rather than one-off comments. This will be my 329th comment on disqus. I also love that it allows you to edit your comments.
I started using Disqus right away, and even though my blog is still newish I still get quite a few comments with no complaints about the system.
Wow, all you guys have a lot of comments, I have some catching up to do!
I think that reflects more on your content than on your comment system….
Hey Keith, nice to see your still changing things up and not afraid to take chances, that's a good thing
I tried Disqus way back in the day but quickly moved away from it for numerous reasons, however I will say it is one of those things that is user preference. I don't mind commenting on sites that have Disqus as long as it already has me logged in, if I have to log in I won't comment.
Show-off! See if I contribute another Disqus comment to your blog
Even better is, your comments ALWAYS ended up in my spam box with Akismet and I had to constantly fetch them (along with others) from the spam folder. With Disqus, no need to worry about it!
Me? Afraid to mix it up? Never man, and as I stated in the post, if I end up not liking it, I am not afraid to admit I was wrong and change it back…
Thanks for stickin' with me!
I like Disqus Keith. I've used it on my blog for about 6 months with no problems.
The only noticeable drawback is no CommetLuv. People just have to click on your user name to find out what you have cooking. Not a big deal.
The thing that bugs me about Disqus is the fact that it doesn't remember my username and password, even after telling ie to remember it. For some reason it won't. So every single site I go to that has this, I have to log back in with the name and pass, then wait for it to refresh the page just so I can comment. Pain! I often just leave without commenting.
I've also read, don't know if any of this is true, that the comments aren't counted as content on your page??? Does Google read Disqus comments? Anybody know? Thanks!
Hey brother, second time for me commenting here. It's a solid system for sure it only plays up for me when the internet is busy and it seems like the whole of the UK is online so it just goes into constant load for me.
Apart from that I'm sure they will intergrate a commentluv style aspect to it, it's a cool system and I dont think you will have any probs with it
According to this wiki it does actually index the comments too:
Disqus provides plugins for self-hosted blogs, running software such as WordPress or MovableType, that uses our API to interface with Disqus. Search engines will index this content perfectly.
If you do not have a self-hosted blog, Disqus uses JavaScript and helps search engines index the comments by displaying the discussion threads on your Disqus community page.
Source: http://wiki.disqus.net/FAQ#Willsearchenginessti...
Takes guts to make a move like this. There are some die hard haters out there. As for me, I have used Disqus and I like it but, for me, it didn't run comment luv and that was important. I did speak with Disqus support last summer and they said they were working on a way to add comment luv but I guess it was harder than they thought. If you haven't talked with them, you may want to ask them over Twitter. Tweeted out to them and they answer pretty quickly.
In the end I choose Intense debate over disqus. because it does most of the things you mentioned plus it adds on the commentluv plugin on their side making it one less thing I need to install.
I get a lot of new traffic from Intense debate and comment luv and thats why I had to keep it. As for Disqus, I get a lot of traffic from them as well, but…I got twice the traffic from Intense debate. If Disqus added support to Disqus I would switch over I think…
I also have no problem commenting on Disqus blogs…
I have gotten used to Disqus after having to use it on Search Engine Journal. One thing that is kind of convenient is that it does remember me, so when I visit new sites, I don't have to fill out the name, password, website, etc. I probably wouldn't go with it on my blog simply because of the conflict with CommentLuv, but it doesn't stop me from commenting either. It's definitely much easier once you're registered.
Disques doesn't seem any better, in my opinion. I believe it does scare away first time users because even I, an avid WordPress user, deleted my comment in fear that I screwed something up when I hit “Post as Guest”. I think if you changed some of the wording around, everything would be okay.
Not sure I can change the way that works Joe, so go get an account!
I keep hearing that they are working on getting that integrated, I hope they do to because I really do like comment luv. I was happy to see that when I imported all my comments from here, all the comment luv links came with it, so past comments that used it, the links are still there.
Yeah, you know I do things the way I want to here, so I am prepared for the haters. Funny thing is, at least so far, I am getting the same traffic and comments as before. Even a few more commentors…
I didn't really look into Intense Debate, only because I had already set up an account with Disqus for the sites I was already commenting on….
OK, you list the reasons why Disquis is good but they don't seem like biggee's. Are they? It just seems like another layer of complication to me. What does it really give you? Why is more complicated better?
It is actually easier Ralph:
I don't have to moderate (gives me more time for work that I get paid to do)
I can respond to comments right from my email (easy to reply from my Blackberry!)
I eliminated 7 Plugins to do what this one does.
The comments are all shared on Disqus website, so more social interaction.
Overall, I like it so far. Is it really so easy? No, but it certainly isn't harder.
But can't you do that stuff without Disquis?
________________________________
I can't email a response to a comment, no. Also, the integration eliminated the need for 7 plugins I had, that does a lot. And add in the better Spam control and layout… I like it better so far.
Actually, it looks like it is going to be a problem.
From Andy Bailey:
“it is still impossible to do anything with Disqus while they are using an iframe for the comment textarea input. sorry!”
That is too bad. And I didn't realize the comments were embedded in iFrames either…. I read that the comments were indexed on self hosted WP sites on the Disqus wiki, and as far as I knew, SE's couldn't read iFrames…
For people like me that have an account, it remembers me on every page, so I don't have to type in my info over and over again.
Can connect via Facebook and Twitter. Can post comment to both as well. Auto-email on replies, without subscribing to the entire comment thread. Overall, it's an awesome plugin.
Just takes a few minutes to get used to. Once you have an account, it's golden.
That's strange, because I've never had to “re-login” with Disqus unless I clear my cookies. Which browser do you use?
I have never had to re-login either unless I cleared my cookies, which I do sometimes run Ccleaner to get rid of all the temp files…
Really like this responding right in the email too! Just have to remember to remove my email signature before sending it!
So your comments will no longer be indexed? Not sure I'd publicize that little treat…
Someone best keep the content high.
Which 7 plugins?
Hi Nathan and Keith. I use ie7 still. I like it better than ie8. Even if I clear my cookies, I still have to enter my info. Like I did just now. It really makes commenting a pain.
I checked my stats to see how many people still use ie7, figuring it was low… 54% of the visitors use ie, and of those 25% of them are still use ie7. That's 5,500 people that may have the same problems as me. Not a small figure to take lightly.
I like this commenting system, and appreciate this change. Except from the absense of comment luv, disqus is very good, I think.
If it works for you that is all that matters. And that included the way it affects your readers. I was really annoyed by Disquis at first which is common I guess. Readers don't have a choice. If I want to comment here it is using disquis. Once you are in you are in so it is less of an inconvenience for me. It is just that I keep thinking bad thoughts every time I comment on a blog using it. Maybe one day I will wake up and decide how wonderful Disquis is but for now, it won't keep me from commenting here. The only reason I care about this at all is that when smart and moving on bloggers do something, it is important to pay attention. They know more than me and have different objectives. If I am going to move up the ladder I need to understand what those are. Maybe I can miss a pothole by doing something before I am forced to.
I appreciate your persistence to use my comment system, I think this is the most you have commented over here in a while!
It really has made life just a little easier for me as a blogger, so far I like it. I am sure there are downsides to it, as with most things I try to implement here.
The 7 Plugins are:
Akismet
Comment Luv
Keyword Luv
Subscribe To Comments
Twitter Link
Threaded Comments
Ajax Edit Comments
Looking at my stats, only 18% use IE that come here, 55% are using FireFox (I use that as well) 19% use Chrome, and 5% use Safari.
It really depends on your niche, since more “bloggers” and “internet marketers” read this blog, most of them have realized that IE is archaic and buggy as a browser.
In other niches where less techie type people are the visitors, then there will be more IE users, as well as more Yahoo and Bing users….
Yep; knew I'd be sorry for asking. lol
Hi Keith, I like some of the changes you're making around here. Especially the larger font size and layout changes. You gotta do your own thing and don't care about how many other bloggers don't like it. But I know you're just being nice by asking us what we think. Sweet of you.
@Ileane
If it makes you feel better, I found this blog because you are using Disqus. It looks like overall people are having a good experience with it, and I like it because I know that my comment will be accepted (90+% of the time it seems), and that the blog won't be as likely to be littered with junky comments.
Actually Ileane, I do care. Just not sure if it would change my mind…. LOL
I guess I need to ask how my using disqus helped you find this blog?
Yep, I was searching google for the phrase: traffic from disqus
I'm pretty new to hard core blogging, so I just ran into disqus within the past week. actually, I never really saw the need to be social I guess, until James The Infopreneur set me straight in his one guidebook I bought. So, I've been making a HUGE effort to completely change my focus over the last week. Regarding the comment system, I have CLuv right now, and I like it…mainly because I think it helps get people to my site. I think once disqus is more prevalent and once I have a contingent of loyal followers, I'll make the switch over then. Unless somebody tells me otherwise first.
Hmmm…on second thought, perhaps I should “upgrade” to it sooner than later. I read through the rest of the posts below and see that the Pro's are definately outweighing the Cons.
BrandonBurgh
Surprising to me, I actually gained commentors after I switched….
To me, I like to try new things, if they don't work I can admit I made a mistake and change back. I think this one has really worked out well for this site though….
The only thing I didn't like about disqus is if you decide to remove it you will lose all comments made while using it.
By the number of comments you have here it does not seem to be a deterrent either.
Actually Anne, you can export them all back from Disqus. http://disqus.com/faqs/?q=export-comments and simply import them back into wordpress, I checked into that before I installed it…
Haven't seen you in awhile! How is everything going?
That's good they fixed the comment export issue. When I switched my Blogger blog to WP I manually entered all my old comments that didn't import. Good thing there weren't that many. =)
I'm hanging in there. Just installed Headway, then got some stupid crap in my code which messed up my feed, reinstalled WP and am now I'm trying to recreate my site. Just another day as a blogger. =) Aren't you glad you asked? It's all a learning experience for sure.
Would love to hear about Headway, been thinking about using it on another site….
This is my first comment anywhere! I read all the other posts in this thread, and, don't really understand much of it yet. So, I created a Disqus account and will let you know if I experience any problems. Hope it works out for you. I've enjoyed reading your postings, etc.
And how, pray tell, does a Disqus comment go wild?
This is why I hate Disqus. I was replying to Dave Doolin way down below but then I had to log into Disqus. It went flippy on me and when It came back it was a separate comment with no context. Tel me how wonderful that is!
EEEEEEEEkh….sometimes i really get tired of disqus……when you try to remove it, all your comments are deleted in a sec,,,,,i just hate this …otherwise it works great…
Actually, you can export all of your comments from Disqus, and easily import them to a wordpress blog. It is as simple as a few clicks of your mouse.
Since that eliminates the only complaint, sounds like you like it!
Hey actually I like the DISQUS comment plugin too as it is providing very good facility as well as it is quite easy to use. SO I am agree with you. Thanks for this post.
i like disqus
I have download new version but does not goed work with my own littleheart icon and loader so I use still old version