Blogging Power Tools to Enhance TypePad Blogs

I've been meaning to compose a comprehensive list of third party tools and applications that you can use with your TypePad blog. Thing is, there are already so many lists out there, that it makes more sense to point to them than start my own. Every time I find a particularly well-curated list, I'll add it to the Useful Links page here.

One of the best I've seen so far is Darren Rowse' list on this post at Problogger. He invited his readers to submit links to the services they use and they came up with a pretty nice overview. The post is organized well according to function.

Some of my faves would include FeedBurner, SiteMeter, CoComment, Squidoo, del.icio.us, firefox,  PFF: Performancing for Firefox, and Performancing Metrics. What are your favorite applications, services, or additions that make your TypePad blog better? How about sharing them in the comments here?

Tags: blog, blogs, reference, software, stats, tools, web, web2.0, webdesign, weblogs, Blogging,

Comments

[Posted: Apr 30, 2006 6:35:49 PM]

I can't imagine blogging without Ecto. TypePad's compose window is fine for short, quick entires, but anything more substantial demands a desktop client. My main blog has six authors, and editing all of those entries in a web browser would be impossible. The support for adding product pictures and links from Amazon is also a huge time saver.

Not to mention, I've gotten addicted to all the hot-key combinations on the Mac version. I almost never need to touch the mouse anymore. Long live Ecto!

[Posted: Apr 30, 2006 8:52:03 PM]

Johnathon - Does Ecto have a WYSIWYG editor or is it strictly HTML? I can code just fine, but I'd rather use a WYSIWYG editor and go in and tweak the code if I need to. TypePad's compose window does that, but the WYSIWYG formatting options are lacking (left and right justify, center, etc.).

At the moment, I'm trying out Qumana. It's a pretty slick looking program, but not much better than TypePad's compose window. You can justify your text, but there's no option to tweak the font color or size... sigh. The upside is that it's free, it works from the desktop, and it's easy to use. It does need the .NET framework installed.

~James

[Posted: May 1, 2006 12:40:50 PM]

James,

The Mac version of Ecto has a good WYSIWYG editor, but I'm not sure about the Windows version. I know there are some diifferences between the two. If you use Windows (I'm guessing you do from your reference to the .NET framework), you can try Ecto for a month without paying anything.

[Posted: May 1, 2006 12:56:40 PM]

Jonathon,

Thanks for fielding questions on Ecto. I haven't played with it yet (yeah, I know, *total* dereliction of duty there…) I've been waiting for a moment when I get caught up enough to give it some real attention. Hopefully this week!

[Posted: May 1, 2006 1:57:54 PM]

John,

That's awesome -- be sure and let us know what your thoughts are. I think you'll be amazed by how indespensible Ecto becomes, especially on a high-volume blog like this.

[Posted: May 1, 2006 4:21:05 PM]

Hmmm... looks like the Mac and Windows versions of Ecto are two very different programs! I'd imagine the engines are similar, but the user-interfaces are completely different. The Mac version looks pretty cool. The Windows version? IMHO, it needs some help.

The site says that Ecto 2.0 for Windows is in beta at the moment. In the meantime, I'm trying out v1.8.8 for Windows. It's not bad, but it really needs some work to get up to speed with the Mac version. I hope it happens.

Also, for the Windows users out there... so far, I like the free Qumana software. It needs a few items, but I'd imagine the Qumana people are already aware of that. I emailed them with my thoughts, just in case! *grin*

~James

[Posted: May 1, 2006 6:06:28 PM]

www.flickr.com and www.statcounter.com

[Posted: May 1, 2006 7:52:45 PM]

I got a reply from Tris Hussey at Qumana:

"Hey thanks Jimmy! We're working on the font colour and size ... just a matter of getting into the queue and out the door. You're not the first person to ask for it for sure. Let me know if you have any more questions or comments."

Cool!

[Posted: May 1, 2006 8:26:57 PM]

Graham,

Thanks for adding yours!

[Posted: May 1, 2006 8:32:24 PM]

James,

Very cool that you got a response from Qumana so quickly, eh?

Thanks for sharing it here. This is a good example of ways the community here can reach out to other blog-oriented companies as well as TypePad. I get a feeling that some *very* interesting results may come out of what has been started here.

Meanwhile, I've just started playing with Ecto's free demo version… I'm not even sure I'll make it to the end of set-up before I shell out the $17.95 to keep it. I'm deeply geeked to see that there's support for my favorite RSS reader, Pulpfiction. If Ecto makes it easy to post from Pulpfiction to my blogs, the sale is gonna be a done deal!

[Posted: May 2, 2006 5:50:22 PM]

I love Ecto too, but should note that it sometimes has peculiar behavior - that is, if you're new to blogging (and html in particular), it's probably best to use the TypePad interface for a while first.

The peculiar behavior, I should note, usually has to do with using the wysiwyg buttons, particularly the list button, but other things as well. So, sometimes you'll find yourself going in to the html and trying to find overlapping tags and such. Still, for managing multiple blogs, Ecto is awesome, as well as its image uploading dialogue, which allows you to put in css style options and save commonly used configurations and more.
Bud

[Posted: May 4, 2006 3:38:20 PM]

Bud,

yeah it does exhibit some kinda bizarre behavior around quotes and lists… I did a post yesterday where I used ecto to upload photos, then copied the code into dreamweaver and then finished editing in the TypePad compose window. Argh. But in the end, it came out beautiful.

The main drawback I see to ecto so far is that it doesn't seem to be able to handle tables and PayPal buttons very well… I was very much hoping it would streamline my store pages, but oh well. I guess I'll have to get back on the store topic here again soon.

[Posted: May 5, 2006 4:01:42 PM]

I just found another very useful plugin that adds an MT Template Tag Reference to your browser. I'm finding it very useful for coming up with new templates and fun hacks!

I posted a screenshot on my blog...

James

[Posted: May 5, 2006 4:04:50 PM]

Oooooops! I should have linked to the Permalink for the

[Posted: May 5, 2006 4:07:08 PM]

Sheesh! I'm some kind of hacker aren't I???!!

Here's the link!

*stepping away from the laptop now*

[Posted: May 7, 2006 1:41:46 PM]

I ended up with Zoundry. they have been doing a lot of work on it and so far is the easiest to use for me with the fastest learning curve. They are extemely responsive and helpful.

[Posted: May 7, 2006 4:14:30 PM]

James,

That MT Template Tag Reference plugin looks pretty cool! I'll definitely play with it a bit (or a lot) in the coming week(s). Thanks for pointing it out.

[Posted: May 7, 2006 4:37:16 PM]

Zoundry looks like an interesting take on a blog editor… Specializing in inserting affiliate links with their "Product Placement Engine™" does give them something to distinguish them from other blog editing platforms.

But I won't be testing it out till there's a Mac version, I'm afraid (unless someone sends me one of the new Macbooks that runs windows too. heh. I'm pretty sure there'll be a Mac version of Zoundry before that happens.)

[Posted: May 14, 2006 9:46:07 PM]

Ecto 2.0 for Windows has been released! The biggest difference is the WYSIWYG Rich Text Editor that was absent in V1.8.8. I shelled out the $17 and bought it.

BTW, they're offering Ecto for Macs at half-price... what's up with that?!