As mentioned in the previous post, we've been working on an easier system for editing the text on the site. This is primarily due to the fact that not everyone on the internet knows HTML. In fact, the vast majority don't and any site that wants people to create links and style their articles for emphasis needs to have an easy way for them to create this code without actually having to code.
Today we're happy to say that we've put out the first iteration of this new system. You can see it in the comments for articles. We deployed in that area first as it is a brand new system and the comments get a great deal of activity. We want people to mess about with it and see how it works. If it's hated, then we'll go back to the drawing board and make it better. If it's loved, we'll quickly deploy it on as many places as it makes sense. So please, give us feedback! We want to know what you have to say.
It should also be noted that this 'WYSIWYG' in the comments won't show up if you have set your bandwidth settings to Very Slow (the lowest setting) as it does take up some small bandwidth space (about 10kb to be exact.) If you are indeed using this setting, simply bump up your setting to Slow to higher to test it out. We've worked to optimize it as much as possible.
Additionally, you can see that there is option to toggle between the two different views, but for those who are members, you have the ability to turn this on or off in Your Profile page. If you eat HTML code for breakfast with a side of CSS, then choose the HTML option in there. This will streamline the interface so you can add code as you please. If you'd rather not deal with the code, then choose the WYSIWYG option and eventually, you'll see this system across all of the site once we're happy with how it functions. The WYSIWYG view is the default when people first sign up.
If you want to see some of the technical journey to get to this point, read my article that goes in to much more technical detail, although I'd say that it's not the most enjoyable thing in the world unless you're a very technical coding person.
Over the last two months, we've been announcing a number of new features or improvements to the Maneno platform. These have ranged from community management of comments, trackbacks, and media files, to custom CSS, to custom pages, to bandwidth options. We feel that we're at a very good point with the site where all the functions that need to be there for someone to manage, modify, and publish their articles are happily humming along. But, we're not going to stop there.
Over the next few months, we will be rolling out some new features as well as improving others. The editing system for HTML on articles is going to get an overhaul for instance. Also, blog management is going to be completely reworked to be more friendly and intuitive. This is especially important to note as we've been working with to incorporate all the new features we've been adding in and now that they're there, the system needs to be made easier for those who are new to blogging or just want an easy interface to work with.
Another item we're going to be integrating in to the standard blogs quite soon is a one column design. You can see this being used on the hosted blogs already, such as Wanjiku. It's another option that people will be able to switch between as well as customize with the custom CSS function.
All of this is aiming to create a platform that is simple to initially use, but then has more advanced features as people become more advanced users and need more powerful tools at their disposal. We've been really enjoying all the people who have been working with the system to date, as well as their feedback and we look forward to the others who are to come in the future!
