We’ve all seen the serious problems on the Biased-BBC site over the last few weeks.
Please let me explain them and also say what we have been doing to sort them out.
Two separate problems occurred almost simultaneously and you may have assumed they were connected – but they were not.
* Google began a rollout of regional blog identities. This is designed specifically to allow them to control/censor content in different countries. In practice for us that means that we have been commenting on at least 5 different B-BBC sites and so our comments have been scattered. There’s no useful fix for this.
* Google also withdrew the Google Friend login facility last month. As our Comment provider, Echo, is no longer being supported by its original developer because they have moved on to bigger, shinier and more profitable things we also lost that ability to log in here and they will not fix that.
As a result it became an unexpected and rapid project for us to move to a new solution.
The response to David’s appeal was fantastic and enabled us to organise new hosting with a new comment system. We’ve chosen WordPress and to use their comment system – which doesn’t require registration if you don’t wish to do so.
The new address is biasedbbc.tv
This will be the last post on the old Blogspot URL although the site will remain here as a reference.
Several things to bear in mind please:
The move to the new site has been rushed through because of the Google and Echo problems. There will be teething problems. Some things will not work straight away. I will be working on these constantly until they are resolved. Please email me with problems or use the Open Thread that I will set up on the new site for issue reporting but I will not be able to respond to everybody instantly or even maybe individually due to the number of comments that I anticipate. Also, technical issues will be given priority over cosmetic comments.
Important: I will not be able to import Comments from the previous site until next week. Please do not report missing past comments as an issue.
I want to say thank you especially to a friend of this blog and a friend of mine MaxFarquar for again designing the new blog graphics. Max did the design for the previous blog too – as a favour – and if you feel like popping over to his place and leaving a small thankyou in his Donation jar then I am sure it will be appreciated.
If you have any error reports, problems, issues, questions…email me here. I can’t guarantee to get back to you promptly because I’m expecting a busy few days pulling this all together but as always I’ll do my best to help.
AllSeeingEye
Burt
Please tell me we’ll still be getting the Question Time live event
🙂
Of course! Best bit of the week….
Excellent! thanks for all the hard work, too ASE
Thanks Alfie. Appreciated!
testing avatar
Test
Fail! hehehe…I just found out that Wordprees.com and WordPress.org are the same but separate!
P.S. My pulsating ‘O’ gif that many found bewitching doesn’t look any good here so I have changed to my other avatar (that I use on CIF!)
Well done this looks good.
I notice now that on the BBC feedback they now have “editors picks “as the default. Can you guess the style of the picks.
testing – hoping that I can now comment again as the frustration I feel when I see bias and cannot share it is unbearable (a trouble shared is a trouble halved) and helps the b.p.
thanks to David and ASE for all their time and effort.
whoops – forgot to thank Max as well – just grateful to all involved.
Max is a top bloke and a good friend of this site. I appreciate you adding him and I’m sure he will too.
Thanks Deborah
It does look pretty nice. :^)
The site looks good but I can’t get this Avatar thing to work!
Can’t get the tag to show “Continue reading” link. Any advice?
(I echo the above thanks for the hard work that’s gone into the new site).
The above comment should say “Can’t get the “more” tag to show the “Continue reading” link” but as I posted the actual html it the more bit vanished. Hope this makes sense.
Can’t delete my own posts.
This will be the last post on the old Blogspot URL although the site will remain here as a reference
Just to remind you that you haven’t actually posted this to the old site at:
http://biased-bbc.blogspot.co.uk/
Pounce walks in, looks around. likes what he sees. goes to the gym.
Great Site David and Team and wishing you the very best of success in furthering the awareness of the insidious biased propaganda generated 24/7 by the BBC and hopefully eventually bringing about its demise.
Will there be a facility to like peoples comments?
That would be good. I was going to ask the same question.
Some people have asked for that to be taken away.
Debate it here and let us know.
I wouldn’t mind a comment rating system if too many people reject the Life feature.
The basic comments system here seems to limit the number of replies to a comment, and I always thought the Like feature was better than having to do a “Well said” reply every time.
Likes are OK, but open to manipulation too. Not an option here I hope, I am astounded that the BBC has a system that also has ‘dislikes’ on theirs, with all the abuses that can be generated, especially with a 20k intranet at a blog author’s disposal.
I’ve asked David and Likes are now back on.
Sorry to be grumpy, but your site migration has been less than perfect.
1- I have only just found the new URL by a fluke. I never saw it announced on the old site.
2- For me the old site is now just an empty blue page, no notice, no redirect – don’t you like your readers?
3- Your previous banner was horrible, easily one of the worst on the web; I see the current one is from the same stable – slightly better (trying to be positive here…) but not much.
Much as I appreciate the time that’s gone into the new site, I’m afraid I’ve got to agree re. the banners. I never really liked the last one, and there’s far too much going on in this one. How about a “Design a New Banner” competition?
And yes, definitely need a straightforward, easily found link from the old site to this one.
Grumpy? Really? This was an emergency migration for issues beyond our control.
The speed needed was beyond our control.
The problems were beyond our control.
Why was it a “fluke” to find this page when the new site URL was posted twice on the old site and…
…aahh whatever….
‘The site URL was posted twice’
Exactly.
Your answer illustrates the problem. You live and breath B-BBC. You open every post, read the full text and the comments.
‘Posted twice’ from your point of view is more than enough.
For me – and I imagine for most of the visitors to this site – B-BBC is one of many sites that I visit within the space of perhaps half an hour’s surfing a day. I do have a life to live.
I had seen a few headlines about changing the website, so when I visited the old URL a few times and just got a blank, blue page, I assumed you were still messing around with the migration.
‘…whatever…’
By wittering on about how hard you all worked and what an emergency it was you show that you just don’t get it. I find it incomprehensible that you just closed down the old site without leaving a single page notice or redirect at the old URL, which is still active.
I assume you are also aware that by immediately killing the old site without any redirect mechanism you have also broken any link that refers to any past page on B-BBC. You have just effectively nuked yourselves.
Whatever…
And if you still don’t believe me, google yourselves. I get
http://www.biased-bbc.blogspot.com/
(Can’t seem to post a screenshot here)
which is now just a blue blank.
Whatever…
But the old website is still up ! And it explains the changes – and how to get here.
http://www.biased-bbc.blogspot.co.uk/
I like the Like facility. If skimming rapidly, I would tend to read the comments that several people have approved.
But the new banner – I think it is too busy. The old banner seemed OK to me – simple and blunt.
There’s just no pleasing some people.
Excellent comment DB and I look forward to receiving your suggested artwork to the usual email address.
.psd format preferred and jpg as an unwelcome alternative.
Hmmm… sofa so good. Just wondering how to get my old avatar/icon to work here.
Me too. Somebody already pinched my tag on Gravatar so that is out of the question. Any ideas ?
Liking the new site and thanks for all the hard work. A suggestion though. I would like to see more text above the fold in each comment. It is a bit of a pain having to expand every comment, indeed I bet like me lots of people will not bother. This is a simple setting in WP I think.
The blog is a work-in-progress for helpful suggestions and because of your comment I’ve just doubled the text above the fold.
Is that enough? Too much?
Let me know.
I’m seeing about 4 lines of text above the fold atm. Would love to see almost full articles there if possible.
And thanks for responding!
If DV gives me the nod then it can happen instantly.
To be honest I prefer the shortened Preview style as is scans easier and you can opt to dig deeper or ignore it.
I’m always grateful, though, that DV wears the big hat and I don’t so mug him for a decision!
The BBC remain true to their gutless agenda. There will be no truths or facts related to Islam as affects the values of our society, no matter how pertinent.
One can also apply this observation to every area where the BBC has its own agenda, for whatever the motive.
BBC refuses to screen play about Islamic threat to freedom of speech
Mark Thompson, the BBC’s director-general, says it will not screen the controversial ‘Can We Talk About This?’.
“We are currently working with the National on various ideas. There are currently no plans to broadcast Can We Talk About This?, but this is not due to the play’s content or themes.”
Yeah…right. Bloody cowards. They know exactly what awaits them if they decide to broadcast it, but won’t even admit to that.
Nothing to see here…move along.
Still getting used to quirks.
May I ask what defines one’s post getting this message (or not)?:
Guest Who says:
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
March 29, 2012 at 7:53 am
And what that means in practice?
I still seem to get the odd WordPress email asking me to confirm a post, which I do, but it seems erratic.
The trigger does not seem posting URLs, or length, so I was interested in the things that may instigate a delay, so I can avoid them.
There are a few things which trigger automatic Moderation.
More than 2 URLs in a comment for example is a WordPress default. I upped that to 5 because multiple links are often valuable on here and I might take the barrier off altogether if the spamtrap looks as though it is working well.
The plan is to take off as many of the WordPress comment Moderation restrictions as possible whilst keeping bot spammers at bay so please keep the feedback coming as I tweak the settings.
Tx very much.
I do tend to cite URLs, and in number, as they can often be ‘factual’, or at least clear sources that are hard to counter.
Currently the BBC i sin a fix trying to explain to me how my citing their own URLs contravenes their own House Rules.
So far, they are simply digging deeper holes.
Hoping length will not be an issue, as I have doozy of an ECU reply to share soon!
I liked “likes” can we have them back, please? At least you had a good idea about how well or otherwise your comment sat with other viewers…
Thanks for reinstating ‘like’ ASE, and for all the hard work you’re putting into the site.
Will it be possible to identify who it is that liked the comment, and also the possibility to either edit or delete ones own posts?
I see that certain HTML codes can be used in posting, is the plan to eventually have a more sophisticated menu to use for posting, including inserting smileys, pictures, and similar options?
Yes – good points, TB.
ASE must be knackered, but we do really appreciate all the effort. (Well – most of us anyway. There seem to be one or two ungratefuls)
Good points TB – and cheers Reed, I really appreciate your comments. I took a week off of work to make this happen and that lowers my tolerance threshold for a small minority of people who are moaning with no helpful input.
TB I will look into that and see if I can do it but the feedback I’ve had to my personal email has already been very firmly both plus and minus on your ideas. Ping me an email and I am putting together some options tomorrow for DV to consider.
The site is work-in-progress so email me your ideas.
email has been ‘pinged’ ASE
..and replied to now in detail. Your ideas are fantastic and we will keep in contact about them – and also with the progress on them too.
This comment applies to everyone…email me directly and I will try to assist i any way I can.
I’ve had problems all day today getting through to the site from Internet Explorer and opening the comments is even harder than getting the site to respond.
Don’t know if this is still teething troubles or if it bodes ill for the functioning of this new site.
I’m on a horrible 1mb line right now and everything is gucci for me. We’ve now got a *very* shiny server and a good connection there so all should be fine.
Email me and we we sort it out.
Okay, thanks, ASE. I will give it a few days to see if it settles down. Today it has been a case of the site not responding, for some reason. Yet I’ve had no bother getting other websites to open.
On the old one a message used to come up about a long-running script and it gave you an option – Stop script – which used to clear whatever the obstacle was. Haven’t had that, though with the new site.
I had that as an occasional Chrome error too but we have bought a big shiny server with some great bandwidth now. That should go away nicely.
Any problems, email me personally and I will be all over it like a cheap suit..
Trying to put in a wink with no success by the look of it
Minor tweak, but I have a feeling WordPress did not ‘spring forward’ with the clocks.
If it says 6.37am when I hit ‘post’…
Someone essentially help to make severely articles I’d state. That is the first time I frequented your website page and up to now? I surprised with the research you made to make this particular submit amazing. Fantastic process!
Well, I have to admit, it’s the most sense Dr. Scezandy from Oslo has made so far:)