In Part 2, I offer some takes on platforms I skipped, summarize my experiences with ones I’ve tested, and offer some alternatives to blogging altogether.
Not for me, but still good
Here are a few sites I skipped because they focus on text over images, though some do support images.
- Scribbles. This one is still in early access, but the editor is very nice. There are no real themes to speak of, but the whole thing is well-designed and fast. If you just want text, this is a very good choice.
- Bear (not to be confused with the note-taking app). Comes with some themes, supports markdown and images (as a paid option), but is extremely minimalist. It’s free for basic features and $5 per month/$48 per year for paid (paid covers things that are server-intensive).
- omg.lol. This is a weird grab bag of stuff for a mere $20 per year. They now include a blog option which is currently in beta, uses markdown, and is the most “to the metal” of the three listed here.
Sites I’ve tried so far
- Scribbles: If the image support was a little more refined, I might stick with it. I don’t knock it for this, though, it’s not their focus.
- Bear: Fast and light, but again, image support is not quite there for my needs.
- Pika: This was on my short list from Part 1 and…it’s so close. Images are constrained to the theme, so you have to right-click and “open image in new tab” to see them full-size. I can understand why it’s set up this way, but it’s just not right for me.
Alternate solutions to blogging platforms
Some of these may seem pretty obvious, I include them, anyway.
- A journaling or diary app.
- Pros: Completely offline, entries could be entire books if you are very silly and wordy
- Cons: It’s for you and you alone, unless you publish your collected writings at a later date. This is also a pro to some people.
- A paper journal. The pros and cons are the same as the electronic version, with the bonus of never needing electricity or battery power to write, just enough natural light and your favourite pen/pencil/crayon.
- A note-taking app like Obsidian, Bear or one of the other billion options.
- Pros: Lightweight, local, fast.
- Cons: That sharing thing again. But wait! See the next bullet item…
- A writing app that also lets you publish to the web. Some of these include Ulysses, Mars Edit and iA Writer (the Mac in particular has a lot of options).
- Pros: An excellent writing environment, and they allow you to share your posts relatively easily.
- Cons: You still need a site to share to. Also, while the writing experience is often quite nice, once you move beyond that with photos and heavier formatting, the process tends to start breaking down a bit.
- Dictating into a voice-recording app or voice recorder device.
- Pro: It’s as easy as just opening your mouth and talking.
- Cons: Cleaning up the dictation later could prove clunky or messy. You have to decide where to put the transcripts, unless you just want an audio version of your life (which might be interesting!)
For Part 3, I will be doing more research and narrowing down my choices a bit more.
Here is another cat GIF. The cat is industriously working away on its blog, All the Mews Fit to Print.
