A very slightly exciting technical innovation: it's now possible to log in to the blog with your FaceBook account and have your profile pic and a link to your profile appear next to your comments (comme ça). There's a very slight formatting issue and it goes a weird if you log out, but it seems to work fine otherwise.
A very slightly less exciting technical innovation: it's now possible to 'follow' the blog using the widget underneath the Recent Comments/News/Latest/Popular/Tags thingie in the sidebar. I think it means you get to find out when there's an update or something, but I guess it's also a way of showing support in a Web 2.0 sort of way.
Let me know if you have any problems.
UPDATE: If you want to link to a site other than your FaceBook profile such as your blog, let me know, either directly or in your first comment, and I'll make it so – as I've just done with Marie's comments (fingers crossed).
February 28, 2009 | Reply
I am testing this new feature.
February 28, 2009 | Reply
Hang on - does it mean that it doesn't link to my blog any more? I think I prefer the old version. Shame. You will have to live without my photo in the Aretha hat.
February 28, 2009 | Reply
That's good. I always had problems leaving a comment here.
February 28, 2009 | Reply
@Marie: Yeah, it's shame, isn't it - on both counts? I'll try to work round it, so that if people give me a URL once they've signed in with FaceBook, it will use that instead. But that's not exactly perfect either. The next version of the blog software will support Blogger accounts, too, although whether it'll support pictures will probably be at the whims of Google rather than the blog software developers.
@Stuart: That's good - the bit about your being able to comment again, not not having been able to leave a comment before.
March 1, 2009 | Reply
OT, but... disappointed there was no mention of Ali Larter's 33rd birthday today, Rob... tut, tut. Did you send your card?
March 1, 2009 | Reply
"OT, but... disappointed there was no mention of Ali Larter's 33rd birthday today, Rob... tut, tut. Did you send your card?"
Clearly you missed out on my acknowledgement of said marvellous occasion on this week's RAoAL.
And if I knew where to send the card to, then you'd know I'd crossed a line somewhere and it would be time to send the blokes with the straitjackets round.
PS How did you know it was her birthday? At least I have the excuse that it's precisely two days' after my wife's...
March 1, 2009 | Reply
"Hang on - does it mean that it doesn't link to my blog any more?"
How's that? Should be working on both the entries and the sidebar now.
March 1, 2009 | Reply
Ooh this is a bit good! I would like it to link to my blog though please
March 1, 2009 | Reply
"I would like it to link to my blog though please
"
Your wish, etc, etc.
March 1, 2009 | Reply
I did join your "Friends" in the right bar for all of a couple of minutes, but I didn't care for my glabella which is all it will show of my so-called profile picture (which isn't of my profile). As for linking with Facebook, that would reveal my true (mild-mannered) identity, my super-powers would be destroyed and the world would be in mortal peril. So I won't. (You've been on my blogroll for months, anyway...)
March 1, 2009 | Reply
"PS How did you know it was her birthday? At least I have the excuse that it's precisely two days' after my wife's..."
My excuse it that I noticed it on the IMDb celebrity birthdays widget yesterday.
March 2, 2009 | Reply
Yeah, sorry Rob; nothing against Facebook per se but it really isn't the identity I use online so would much prefer the blog link thanks...
March 2, 2009 | Reply
I am trying again.
March 2, 2009 | Reply
No, it still goes to my Facebook ID. How do I sign in so I have my picture, but so that it also goes to my blog? [Scratches head, feels like she is probably missing something.]
March 2, 2009 | Reply
"No, it still goes to my Facebook ID. How do I sign in so I have my picture, but so that it also goes to my blog? [Scratches head, feels like she is probably missing something.]"
Basically, the way it works is this: when someone signs in with FaceBook, LiveJournal, etc, it creates a record for them in the blog database. In this record there's an entry for the website URL, which (thanks to some template fiddling) will appear for FaceBook users when they leave a comment; if there's no URL, it'll default back to their FaceBookprofile.
What I did was give your and Anna's entries the right URLs. Trouble is, that subtly altered the entry so that when you logged out and back in again, silly blog software didn't realise you were the same person so created a new entry for you and used that. I've fixed that one, too, and I'll fiddle some more with the database to see if I can make it seamless.
March 2, 2009 | Reply
Should all be working fine now. Will know better how to do it in future since it looks like direct database fiddling is the only way to do it properly. Stupid blog software.
But you shouldn't have any problems using it now and it should always go to your blog, not your FaceBook profile.
March 2, 2009 | Reply
"Should all be working fine now. Will know better how to do it in future since it looks like direct database fiddling is the only way to do it properly. Stupid blog software. But you shouldn't have any problems using it now and it should always go to your blog, not your FaceBook profile."
Yippee! Thanks Rob.
March 4, 2009 | Reply
Truly this rocks!
