HIDI: Blogger Vs Wordpress (Round 1)

EDIT: Table has been reduced for smaller screen resolution. Thanks for the tip, Cecilieux! I have just finished transferring my other blog Dark Side of the Light from Blogger to Wordpress. I've also created a 301 redirect so that anyone navigating to the old address will be automatically redirected to the new. The transition was smooth enough but there are a number of modifications needed before Wordpress takes. So typically I've decided to offer a HIDI (how I did it) to my loyal readers. Old Blogger uses a combination of CSS and HTML, new Blogger functions on an XHTML template and Wordpress utilises PHP on a MySQL db back-end. Fortunately, Wordpress did the translation work for me, but I did lose DSotL template, which needs to be re-written in PHP if I want to restore it. There are a number of differences between running a Blogspot, Wordpress or hosted domain (like Abandon All Fear). I've compiled a list of pro's and con's I have observed below: Blogspot (new Blogger) FTP/Hosted (old Blogger) Pros Free Customizable widgets Customizable template Layout editor Upload and save templates Multiple blog hosting (no limit?) Image upload (no limit?) Video embedding Easy switch between blogspot and host Multiple contributors Pros Customizable template Easy to customise HTML and CSS (copy and paste template) Blog is still stored on Blogger server (posts and template) effectively acting as a backup (if lost on host) Own domain name Easy switch between blogspot and host Multiple contributors Cons blogspot.com domain Knowledge of strict XHTML a must to add any complex mods outside of layout editor Single user login linked to Google account Limited set of options for contributors Cons No widgets Knowledge of HTML and CSS needed to change layout Single user login linked to Google account Images, video and blogs unlimited but confined to host server limits Limited set of options for contributors   Wordpress FTP/Hosted (Wordpress) Pros Free Many customizable widgets Control and edit comments Add pages Detailed management interface, similar to CMS Multiple blogs possible Set multiple security levels for subscribers/contributors Import variety of blog types (including new Blogger) Export blog to a file (for backup/import) Multiple user login for non-linked blogs Layout editor Pros Many customizable widgets Control and edit comments Add pages Detailed management interface, similar to CMS Multiple blogs possible Set multiple security levels for subscribers/contributors Import from variety of blog types Export blog to a file (for backup/import) Multiple user login for non-linked blogs Customizable template Own domain name Unlimited image/video upload (but confined to host limits) Large selection of standard templates Cons Cannot freely customise template (small charge) wordpress.com domain Limited 50mb image and video upload Small selection of standard templates provided Will not import Blogger hosted Bug causes problems displaying embedded video Cons Knowledge of PHP needed for template modification Will not import blogger hosted Knowledge of MySQL db needed for non-standard blog management/imports Copy of posts/comments are not stored on Wordpress server Bug causes problems displaying embedded video Widgets may need to be coded in manually Looking at the comparison tables Wordpress seems to come out on top, however I would still choose a Blogspot or ftp Blogger over the free Wordpress blog any day. It's all about the functionality you want. When you consider a free Wordpress blog does not let you customise the template, limits on uploads and bugs it's just not worth it. Blogspot may not have all the content management functionality of Wordpress, but it does allow you to change the template as you wish with a bit of knowledge of XHTML. It's simple and easy to manage and without limits to the content you want to create. I like ftp Blogger for the fact that I can delete the blog from Blogger's servers but it will keep all the content on your ftp sever accessible (for example if you want to end a blog but keep it available for reference). Having a good knowledge of CSS and HTML I can control the look of the blog and add/remove structure and 'widget's as I wish by going into the template editor. It's also easy to switch from your own ftp domain to a blogspot domain and back again. I've also noticed that after doing this, your blogspot domain name automatically redirects to your own ftp hosted blog, eg. darksidelight.blogspot.com redirects to www.abandonallfear.co.uk/darksidelight. A hosted Wordpress blog however does manage to kick ass against Blogger hosted. Sure you don't get a backdoor backup from Wordpress (you can still manually export the blog), you don't get to easily switch from your own domain to a hosted blog and the widgets are not easily added but the functionality on offer along with content management simply can't be beaten. In the next post, I'll go into the HIDI walkthrough... Technorati Tags: blogger, wordpress, transfer blog, blogging, pros and cons, domain name, hosting, blogspot, blog, xhtml, php, mysql, css, widgets, wordpress bugs, image upload, layout editor