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A Brief Fling with Windows Live Writer (Beta)

Posted on August 24, 2006 by Guest Contributor

Let’s just say we didn’t click. It wasn’t meant to be. We waltz to different foxtrots (or maybe that’s the PROBLEM…) Windows Live Writer is SUPPOSED to be this nifty new desktop blogging tool that makes your life easier…or something. I have to admit to being a skeptic from the very beginning (Why do I need this? What void does it fill? Will it really help me out, or just clutter my hard drive even more?), but I decided to give it a fair shot.

First of all, let me tell you that it would be extremely wise to NOT do as I did when installing, and let them give you that toolbar. It may SOUND useful, but only if you are STUPID and use Internet Explorer still. (Who does that? Why give us a toolbar for something that only complete noobs and “people who want viruses” –according to one acquaintance, use? Honestly, I feel sort of sorry for anyone still surfing on that thing, but it’s probably their own fault…) Insults aside, it takes a ridiculously long time to install it and then when it’s done, of course, you’ll find all sorts of little tidbits hanging around that you probably didn’t want, but didn’t think to cancel out and OH MY HELL.

After that unsightly mess, my real odyssey began here. The reader will note that I have limited experience with the fancier word publishing projects and sometimes have to fight even to just get my margins lined up. That said, this thing DOES claim to be WYSIWYG, and I feel like we should be able to expect some things from that, which apparently we can’t, as shown expertly in this sad and mangled post.

So that was about the time I gave up on trying to synch with my actual blog. Incidentally, that also means that this is about the time I gave up on this ever actually being useful for me. I don’t want to have to keep a whole different new blog just to use this thing that seems so eager to be totally pointless! For the purposes of this write-up, however, I went ahead and set myself up a Windows Live Spaces account. Actually…

Subsequent experimentation led to the relief that it will at least publish pictures to Live Spaces. I think maybe there was just something tricky with the Blogger scheme of uploading. So, I suppose if you like your Live Space, then this isn’t such a bad thing. I don’t know anyone with one, and do remember that I had forgotten the existence of my own! Not a great sign.

Penultimate thoughts…

One thing I was sort of happy about, in a way, is that you can edit (“EDIT EDIT EDIT”) old posts directly from the Live Writer set-up. I wasn’t expecting that, since by the end of this I wasn’t expecting much. I guess I meant “happy” more in a “whew, at least it does THAT” way.

The bottom line is that I just can’t find anything that wrong with the blogging interface(s) I already use, certainly nothing that Live Writer fixes. There’s no reason for me to adapt to a new program. For people who care more about formatting, it might have been a decent download, but I’m not sure I would even trust it to handle it if some of my less successful tests prove anything. Anyhow, it’s a mutual break-up. I don’t like Live Writer, and after this review, I can’t blame it for not liking me.

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Jeremy Toeman is a seasoned Product leader with over 20 years experience in the convergence of digital media, mobile entertainment, social entertainment, smart TV and consumer technology. Prior ventures and projects include CNET, Viggle/Dijit/Nextguide, Sling Media, VUDU, Clicker, DivX, Rovi, Mediabolic, Boxee, and many other consumer technology companies. This blog represents his personal opinion and outlook on things.

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