May 08, 2008
Terrablogs to Upgrade to MT. 4 (finally!)
Fellow Terrabloggers, our long sojourn in the blogging desert of MT 2.6x is coming to a close. On the weekend of the 6-8th of June we will be upgrading the Terrablogs domains to Moveable Type Open Source version 4.
MTOS 4 is a fantastic blogging platform with an impressive array of features & plugins. You can learn more about them at http://www.movabletype.org/
The upgrade isn't going to occur without some hiccups. There are after all some 1731 total blogs across the various Terrablogs domains! The weekend of the 6th through 8th and in the weeks following we will be standing by to help you fix any bugs or bumps that arise in your templates. Most of your pages will work just fine, and you will continue to log in just as you have in the past, only when you do you'll see all the great gadgets and gizmos of the most up-to-date & powerful blogging platform available.
Many thanks,
The Terrablogs Team
Posted by Admin at 08:49 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
September 01, 2006
Expect Outages Today
Sorry, folks, but you can expect TerraBlogs outages today. We're having to service the server due to hard drive problems.
Posted by Admin at 11:58 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
August 04, 2006
Come Blog With Us -- Add Your Feed
We are pleased to announce the lastest feature for our Terrablogging community. Beginning today we will allow non-Terrablogs bloggers to have their entries listed on the frontpages of Terrablogs domains. In the past our frontpages were reserved for those that had signed up for free blogs through Terrablogs. However we will now begin allowing non-Terrabloggers the opportunity to join our community. We will still require that these bloggers have a connection to the city/place associated with the domain they sign up for and that their blogs are non-offensive in the ways defined in the TOS.
So, if you would like to join our little community and maybe drive some extra traffic to your blog please sign up by clicking the "signup" button on the blog domain for your city/place. Once you sign up we will take a look at your site and validate your feed. If you check out then we will add you to the list and your entries will begin to appear on the frontpage for which you signed up.
As a test case we've included this blog, The Official Terrablog (TOT), as an rss feed indexed blog on all domains other than Chattablogs (sorry Chattablogs, you've already got TOT in your index). You'll notice that the entries from standard Terrablogs have this icon: 
to the left of the entry listing, whereas rss feed indexed blogs with have this icon: 
in the same position.
Pros:
- You can host your own blog
- You can use whatever Content Management System (CMS) you like, as long as it produces a valid RSS or ATOM feed
- If you already have a blog you don't have to worry about getting all of your entries imported
Cons:
- You have to deal with your own spam
- Your comments are not indexed. (In the future we may allow for comment indexing through a comments rss feed, but not just yet).
- Links to your entries will go through a "landing" page where disclaimer is displayed
- You have to do your own tech support
So, if you'd like to enjoy being a part of one of the Terrablogs blogging communities while having your site hosted elsewhere, here's your opportunity.
Atlblogs RSS Signup | Baltiblogs RSS Signup | Berkeleyblogs RSS Signup | Bostonblogs RSS Signup | Chattablogs RSS Signup | Covblogs RSS Signup | Memphisblogs RSS Signup | Monroeblogs RSS Signup | Nolablogs RSS Signup | NSAblogs RSS Signup | SanDiegoblogs RSS Signup | Seattleblogs RSS Signup | StLouisblogs RSS Signup | Vermontblogs RSS Signup | Vicksburgblogs RSS Signup
Posted by Admin at 11:30 AM | Comments (12) | TrackBack
April 24, 2006
About the new layout...
Dear Friends,
We hate that we had to remove the intuitive interface for the blog domains that was there before -- but it had to be done in order to keep all of the blog domains from crashing so much. We have huge plans for the future of Terrablogs, but without the funds necessary to make it happen, it's pretty difficult (if not impossible) to do cool new stuff. Right now we're just trying to keep things alive until we can afford a new server.
If you like Terrablogs and want it to keep going, please donate.
Thanks,
The Terrablogs Team
Posted by Admin at 11:42 AM | Comments (24) | TrackBack
February 21, 2006
Please Try Again...
If you've tried to sign up for a Terrablog of your very own in the last 24 hours or so and have had problems with the form, please try again.
Things are working now.
Go forth!
AtlantaBlogs | BaltiBlogs | BerkelyBlogs | BostonBlogs | ChattaBlogs | CovBlogs | MemphisBlogs | MonroeBlogs | NOLABlogs | NSABlogs | SanDiegoBlogs | SeattleBlogs | VermontBlogs | VicksburgBlogs
Posted by Admin at 09:21 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
January 27, 2006
The Terms of Service have changed
After receiving several recommendations from our bloggers, the Terrablogs Terms of Service have changed. You can access TOS at the following locations:
AtlantaBlogs TOS | BaltiBlogs TOS | BerkelyBlogs TOS | BostonBlogs TOS | ChattaBlogs TOS | CovBlogs TOS | MemphisBlogs TOS | MonroeBlogs TOS | NOLABlogs TOS | NSABlogs TOS | SanDiegoBlogs TOS | SeattleBlogs TOS | VermontBlogs TOS | VicksburgBlogs TOS
The TOS for each domain can also be accessed via the navigation at the bottom of every domain's main pages.
We're always open for improvement. So, if you have any suggestions for how Terrablogs can be made better feel free to talk to us. We're fairly personable.
Also, if you like Terrablogs and want it to keep going, please donate towards a new server!
Posted by Admin at 03:11 PM | Comments (10) | TrackBack
Notice the Terrablogs outage?
We got hit with a massive of traffic last night, and all of the blogs and all of the blog sites went down. We don't really know whether it was a DOS attack, since the current server isn't even hearty enough to handle the diagnostic tools we need. What we do know is that the sites were deader than a doornail. Amazingly, some of our volunteers were able to get some duct tape and bailing wire and resurrect it.
Here's what it boils down to, folks:
If you like Terrablogs and want it to keep going, please donate towards a new server!
Posted by Admin at 11:00 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 28, 2005
Big Changes in the Works
Friends,
As you may have noticed, we've changed the look (and some of the functionality) of Chattablogs. You may have to clear your browser's cache! In the near future we hope to roll out changes to all of the other Terrablogs domains, as well. It's our way of saying thanks to YOU, our awesome Terrablogs community, because we've managed to raise about 25% of the funds we'll need for a new server!
Want to see more rockin' new features? Keep those donations coming!
Best,
The Terrablogs Team
Posted by Admin at 04:57 PM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
December 19, 2005
Help Support Terrablogs
Dear Terrabloggers,
When we started this little city-&-place-centered blogging experiment nearly three years ago, we had no idea it was going to be even remotely as successful as it has become. Every day we have dozens of new signups and numerous requests from people in other cities wanting a blogging portal of their own. This is due in no small part to the grassroots "word of mouth" efforts of all of you.
Terrablogs now hosts more than 700 blogs with over 44,000 entries, and we've gotten more than 100,000 comments in the last 3 years — with 12,000 of these comments in the last 3 months alone.
As I'm sure you've noticed, with all this growth we've experienced there have been some growing pains. Terrablogs now involves a half-dozen people to support its efforts — all of them are volunteers — and we receive little to no advertising revenue because we refuse to force people to advertise on their blogs.
What we desperately need from you, our users, are donations — even just one, even just a small one to help fund a new, more powerful server to run the various Terrablogs domains. We need to upgrade the server so we can upgrade our blogging software and offer more features and a blogging system that runs faster and better than what we have now.
If you can donate to help us out it would be greatly appreciated, even if it is only a few dollars. We simply cannot do this without your help, so please consider giving!
Many Thanks,
Josiah Q. Roe Founder, Terrablogs
Posted by Josiah at 09:50 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 01, 2005
No Blog For You?
If you've tried to sign up for a new TerraBlog within the last few weeks and did not receive notification from us, please sign up again. Thanks.
Posted by Admin at 11:03 AM | Comments (9) | TrackBack
October 20, 2005
Maintenance Update Numero 2
OK, sports fans. Here's the skinny: Things are still a bit wacked out in the TerraBlogosphere, with permissions problems all around. So, if your blog does something unusual, give it a bit and try again. We're still working out some kinkage.
With Affectionate Gurgling,
The TerraBlogs Administrators
Posted by Admin at 01:14 PM | Comments (31) | TrackBack
Maintenance Update
Maintenance hath been had. Unfortunately Trackbacks will be disabled for a bit. Do let us know if you have any problems.
Posted by Stephen at 03:54 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
October 19, 2005
FYI: TerraBlogs will be Down for Server Maintenance
Dear Friends,
Sometime this evening, all of the TerraBlogs domains will be down for server maintenance (for no more than a couple of hours). I know, it's painful to have to do without the blogs -- even for a brief while. Perhaps you can use this time to spend some quality time with your children, who have long since forgotten your name and instead call you "Old Bloggie." Thus stuff's gotta be done, so bear with us and know that we love you as much as we love blueberry muffins.
Mmmm, blueberries.
Lovingly,
The TerraBlogs Administrators
Posted by Admin at 05:38 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
October 13, 2005
Just say no to comment spam
In our never-ending quest to make Terrablogs the best possible blogging service, we are trying something new in our efforts to combat comment spam. If you have tried to comment on a terrablog recently you will have noticed one extra step has been added to the commenting process. Now, rather than having your comment automatically posted to your favorite blog, you must verify that you are indeed a human attempting to comment, not some mindless bot blindly flooding our poor blogs with advertisements for your lastest poker pill, or whatever. Verification is simple. You only have to be smart enough to click the "Verify" button and your comment will go through without a hitch. We believe that our bloggers are smarter than the bots leaving spam and therefore real bloggers will be able to leave comments when bots will be too stupid to do so. (We hope that there are no hitches. If, however, you do notice a problem leave us a comment on this blog. Or, if that isn't working email us at info [at] terrablogs [dot] com).
Our goal is not to make your interaction with Terrablogs more difficult and less enjoyable, rather our goal is to make your interaction with Terrablogs easier and more enjoyable. We sincerely believe that the less spam that we all have to deal with the more enjoyable our corporate blogging experience can be. We hope that the slight inconvenience of clicking one extra button to make your comment will be far outweighed by the decrease in blogging litter that is strewn about by heartless, mindless comment spammers.
Posted by Admin at 10:37 AM | Comments (14) | TrackBack
September 13, 2005
Back Online!
Alright, the blogs are back online. Some maintenance has been done but not all of it has been completed. We'll let you know when it begins again. Thank you for your patience. In the meantime, let us know if you see anything out of the ordinary.
Posted by Admin at 11:03 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
BLOGS NOW OFFLINE!
Alright, it is happening. The blogs will be offline. May be a couple of hours before they are back up. You should be able to read all the blogs, but you won't be able to comment or post until the maintenance is done. Thank you for your patience.
Posted by Admin at 08:45 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
The Blogs Will Be OFFLINE!
We will be turning off access to all of the blogs for a few hours for some much-needed maintenance.
This may happen between 8 and 10pm EST. You'll still be able to see the blogs, you just won't be able to... Well, you won't be able to do anything with them. At all. Have no fear, though. They'll be back.
Posted by Admin at 08:00 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
July 22, 2005
TerraBlogs: Now With RSS 2.0!
What is RSS?
RSS is an acronym for Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication. It's an XML format for distributing news headlines, excerpts and other info on the internet. It's also sometimes referred to as "syndication."
What does this mean for the TerraBlogs sites?
All of the blog sites now feature an RSS 2.0 feed! What's that mean? That means that you can do cool stuff like add a live bookmark to any TerraBlogs domain in FireFox or check for updates via your RSS reader/aggregator!
Where's the link to the RSS feed?
The link to each domain's RSS feed is available on the main page of each domain in the form of a button that should look something like this:
Here's a list of the RSS links for each domain:
AtlantaBlogs RSS 2.0
BaltiBlogs RSS 2.0
BerkelyBlogs RSS 2.0
BostonBlogs RSS 2.0
ChattaBlogs RSS 2.0
CovBlogs RSS 2.0
MemphisBlogs RSS 2.0
MonroeBlogs RSS 2.0
NOLABlogs RSS 2.0
NSABlogs RSS 2.0
SanDiegoBlogs RSS 2.0
SeattleBlogs RSS 2.0
VermontBlogs RSS 2.0
VicksburgBlogs RSS 2.0
What are my RSS reader options?
Personally, I've been using SlashDock for Mac OS X, but there are a huge number of options available for those of you who are new to the wonderful realm of RSS. Dig around on Google to find an option that suits your style.
Enjoy!
Posted by Hugo Fitch at 03:25 PM | TrackBack
July 13, 2005
Having Blog Spam Problems? Let us know!
Let us know about comment spam by sending an email to the address in the image below!
Your email should contain the URL of where the spam comment appears.
After submitting your spam to us, we'll unleash the barbarian hordes who will descend upon it with fury and therupon smash thy spam into teeny bits.
Posted by Hugo Fitch at 04:20 PM | TrackBack
June 13, 2005
Signup Errors
I had suspicions a couple days ago that there were some issues with the signup script which was keeping the signup e-mails from getting to Ron, myself, or Maphet and therefor keeping us from creating new blogs.
Well, we found the error and fixed it, and we apologize. So if you signed up for a blog recently (as in the last week or two) please by all means signup again.
Posted by Josiah at 09:44 AM | TrackBack
June 09, 2005
Database Migration
The databases have been moved locally... this should help speed things up.
Woot.
Posted by Stephen at 09:59 PM | TrackBack
June 08, 2005
Is Your ChattaBlog Scheduled For Deletion?
DEADLINE: 1:00pm on June 15th
Because of inactivity, a number of blogs on the ChattaBlogs domain are scheduled for deletion. That's right, friends -- they'll be completely, irrevocably erased because we need to thin the herd. This list was automatically generated, and it's nothing personal. If your blog is listed below, then it's on the chopping block (unless it has a strike through it):
Continue reading "Is Your ChattaBlog Scheduled For Deletion?"
Posted by Hugo Fitch at 01:00 PM | TrackBack
June 01, 2005
Memphis Blogs
I suppose I should make an official announcement here that Memphis Blogs is up and running. Its been sitting there for awhile, we just never bothered to launch it. Now that were on a new faster server we're going to start turning on more and more blog sites.
We'll also be moving a few people over to Memphisblogs who've moved there recently or were on Covblogs. If you're from Memphis, let us know and we'll getcha moved over.
Mark is also going to be tweaking the site to make it a bit more aesthetically punchy.
Gotta send the shoutouts to Stephen, Ben, and Ron for getting it going and to Pablo for the design.
Posted by Josiah at 03:32 PM | TrackBack
May 31, 2005
Do Not Turn Off Your Individual Entry Archives!
ATTENTION ALL TERRABLOGGERS
Do not turn off your Individual Entry Archives! This will break your blog. You will not be able to see any new individual entries or extended entries accessed from your main page. You will also be unable to view comments. So, if you're tempted to turn them off, don't. Just say no. Thank you.
Posted by Hugo Fitch at 03:10 PM | TrackBack
Down Time
Sorry for the downtime tonight. It was due to a problem totally unrelated to the server move. It broke around the time I headed to the Andrew Bird show. It had to wait; he's that good.
Posted by Stephen at 12:26 AM | TrackBack
May 30, 2005
Having problems leaving comments?
Dear ChattaBloggers,
If you're having problems leaving comments on any of the TerraBlogs blog domains today, you might want to try forcing your browser to refresh. It helps.
As noted in the previous entry, the blogs were moved to a new server today. Hooray! You should notice a big dyna-whoppin' speed increase as a (glorious) result.
Best,
Ron
Posted by Hugo Fitch at 04:19 PM | TrackBack
New Server
Happy Memorial Day.
Chattablogs is on a new server.
Hooray.
-sdb
Posted by Stephen at 02:32 PM | TrackBack
May 26, 2005
New Default Templates Are On The Way
Dear ChattaBloggers,
New default templates are on the way for all of the TerraBlogs domains. This is the blog where we're testing them.
The templates that we are testing are not limited to just the stylesheets -- we're talking about a substantial workover here. We want to give you guys templates that function correctly. As it stands now, some of the default templates that you get when your TerraBlog is established do not function as well as they should. These updated templates, specific to our particular modified version of Movable Type, should help eliminate some of the most common issues.
At some point soon, we're going to figure out the best way to release these templates to those of you who have an existing blog on any of the TerraBlog domains -- if you'd like to use them.
This stylesheet you're looking at will not be the only one available.
Feel free to poke around.
Best,
Ron
Posted by Hugo Fitch at 10:07 PM | TrackBack