I just read a comment on my friend Debra’s blog about her trouble getting a comment to post on my blog.
Well, dang. (To put it politely. But you know I’m not thinking politely right now.)
It’s not about me, though. Really. It’s just that I have this swell book giveaway (The Smiley Book of Colors) and I’d hate to think that people aren’t able to comment to get signed up for said swell book giveaway. So if you’ve tried to comment, and can’t, please shoot me an email (cathyhall55 at hotmail dot com) and I’ll add your name to the pot (otherwise known as Random.org). I won’t draw a name until Monday, April 3, just to give y’all time. And then I’ll send up a little wish to the Powers-That-Be in WordPress Land that this commenting snafu will be fixed.
And while I’m commenting on commenting, I’d like to speak my piece about commenting on certain Blogger blogs. Not pointing fingers here. Cathy-on-a-Stick is still over at Blogger. Some of my favorite blogs are at Blogger. And that’s why I feel the need to speak up.
I’ve noticed that an alarming number of folks have enabled that captcha wherein I have to try to figure out TWO words, all crammed together, and type them in so that my comment will post. Sometimes, I have to type them in multiple times before I get them right. And that’s only if I sign in using my Blogger account. I just cannot sign in using my wordpress account and get those words to work.
And so what happens is, I move on. I just don’t have time to type in two words, over and over and over again. Besides, I don’t like commenting under my old Blogger account. Yes, I comment to support the blogger and/or sign up for a giveaway. But when I comment, I’m also putting my name out there so that other commenters might check out my blog. If I can’t comment under my wordpress account, then that defeats that purpose, right?
So all you Blogger folks who have blogs I love, show your commenters some love and get rid of that captcha. Use comment moderation if you’re worried about spam. But those words that bleed together and don’t make any sense? They’re just dang annoying. (To put it politely.)
Cathy C. Hall Writes 
the captcha words bother me, too. Hard to read. An extra step that discourages me from commenting.
EXactly, Sally!
I couldn’t agree more about typing in those 2 words! Half the time I can’t even read them & I have to retype them several times. And why 2 words? Isn’t 1 enough?
Thanks for making it so easy to leave a comment on your blog!
Muddy
You’re very welcome, Muddy.
I’ve wondered the same thing…can a robot figure out ONE word but not TWO? 😉
I dropped my captcha before the two words. I rarely get spam. The filter catches it, so it’s not a big deal. The changes at WordPress have made it difficult to comment. That’s why I wrote about the need for a current Gravatar profile . I have a WP account, but don’t have an active blog. In the past, I could link my blog to my comments on WP. Not now. Of course, WP users have said for years, it’s a pain to comment on Blogger.
That’s funny. My gravatar didn’t show up on that last one. On this one, I’ll stry to change the url and add in my blog.
Yes, Stacy, I’ve noticed the same thing with WordPress–it doesn’t always connect with my url. I have NO idea why. I’m still filling out the info–
But I’m glad it worked for you–I’ve checked your name before to go to your blog and didn’t find a site. Now I know where you are!
Woot! This comment worked! Last week, WordPress was doing some endless loopie thingie wherein a comment would be stuck in limbo forever. Then Blogger had some commenting issues, separate from the Captcha codes we all know and love. *snort* Anyway, thanks for saying the thoughts that were on all our minds, Cathy.
SO glad it worked for you, Suzanne–I love hearing from you!
(I keep thinking at some point, comments will go away and I’ll end up blah-blah-blahing to myself. Not that I haven’t had plenty of practice with that!)
Haha! I blah-blah to myself all the time. It’s usually when I’m standing in front of my fifth grade class.
I turn it off, then turn it back on. I don’t like having it, but I also like giving folks the option of posting anon, because not everyone has as account. If I allow for anon comment and don’t use the captcha, I get flooded with spam. Most of it makes it into the spam filter so the blog doesn’t suffer, but I have it set to email me all comments. so I get flooded with emails I have to sort through and delete.
I might have to just pick one side and go with it. I want it to be easy for folks to comment, but I also don’t want all the spam.
Yeah, Janice, I can see where you’d need it if you’ve got the emails coming to your inbox–still, there’s a trade-off, huh?
I have no idea how Akismet works, but it sure keeps anything spammy coming through on WordPress.
I agree; it is so annoying. I disabled mine just to make life easier for others. Have a great day. In the 90’s here, is this an April Fool’s joke or what?
If it’s April’s Fool, then fool me every day, Linda! 😉
I agree. With huge intensity! Those funky words drive me nuts, and I have at times read a blog and not commented due to those things. I let Blogger do all the spam checking for me and I rarely, if ever, get a spam comment. Blogger pretty much catches it all without anything special being required on the part of the commenter at all.
I rarely had spam come through on Blogger, either, Lisa. Though sometimes I had trouble commenting at all–that’s what so weird about WordPress. Never had any problems until they decided to make it “better.”
Sigh.
Solution: Have one of your kids show you how to use the camera on your phone and send the photo via “message.” When you want to use captcha, take a picture and send it to one of your kids. They can write back with the words as text. Type them in. Problem solved. Good luck, granny.
Now, Rob, you know I’m not that smart–and honestly, the kidders gave up on showing me ANYTHING on my phone or other techno-wise, years ago.
I shall somehow muddle through…;-)