My Blogger Blog Was Kidnapped - or - Why Use Typepad?

Have you heard about a certain podcast being kidnapped? It gets better.

1. Not only is it being held for ransom,
2. there now a fight over who really owns the right to do the Vegan podcast, and
3. Back here in your own neighborhood, one of MY blogs was kidnapped.

Enter, if you dare, behind the scenes in the strange world of intrigue that is new media.

I run from drama. And also my issues whatever they are can't possibly be as full of testosterone as is the "who owes what to whom" knock-down drag-out re the Vegan Podcast Guy. So this is very mild by comparison.

The short story:

• Until I moved to typepad and opened the doors here at Case Notes from the Artsy Asylum I had been working on a blogger weblog titled: Ephemeria and the Artsy Asylum


• It appeared at this address: http://ephemeria.blogspot.com/

• When I left Blogger for what I felt was a more professional atmosphere at typepad, I continued to post to the blogger site to keep all my bases covered until my blog readership had totally made the switch. (Hey, I'm an artist; it takes me awhile to accomplish this technical stuff)

• But when I visited my own blog one day - well - my blog was nowhere to be found.

• Instead I found a different looking blog with only one entry - and that comprised only of photos.  Hmmmmm. . .

• While waiting for a response from the Blogger folks about what the heck was going on, I looked for a way to contact the photo showing faux-ephemeria person.

• There was no name, profile, link or email contact on the page so I posted a very straightforward public comment to the photos letting them know that the name Ephemeria had been in use by me for years and the right to it's use would be protected.

• I've never gotten any response from either Blogger or the faux-ephemerian

• But, Poof, three weeks and no response later, my old blog is showing up at http://ephemeria2.blogspot.com/ and

• The photo faux-ephemerian has disappeared, leaving the empty shell of the blog that once was

So although I can't say "all's well that ends well" since the correct URL is still not on my blogspot page, and visitors that see the blank at http://ephemeria.blogspot.com/ must be scratching their heads.

Here's what I'm sure about:

• Blogspotters beware; it could happen to you.

• When it comes to blogs, my experience is that I got exactly what I paid for (Blogspot is free)

• I'm SO glad that I chose typepad over the three other systems I tried on for size - it's easily the best ten bucks a month I ever spent.

• If anything close to this would have happened at typepad there would have been a response to me the same day and the site would have been restored without me having to do one thing.

Read more about the Vegan Guy and more of the convoluted relationships there by going to PC News, Cyberlaw Stanford and Curry.com among others. Be warned though: you need a scorecard and a detailed relationship chart to keep up.

Comments

[webduck]

I swear, you must have ESP or you are picking up on my inquisitive thoughts. You answered so many of my questions about your old blog, and using Typepad. I am using the free Blogger site, and not real happy with it either, but now I am having second thoughts about it and whether I should use Typepad. Thanks so much for explaining your experiences Susan.