Tag: disqus

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Is Disqus necessary

I just migrated my posts on tumblr to this new self hosted WordPress blog. I am pleased that I finally have the rights to the content I share and do not have to comply with terms and conditions imposed by corporations who used to store the data for me.

In the same vain, why am I allowing for all my comments to be stored by a third party? I no longer see the need to used Disqus. It came in handy whilst using tumblr as there was no alternatives to offer commenting.

The one issue that made me reassess this decision was the fact that Disqus comment count appeared over the text of my posts. I could not fix that issue so I will abandoned the service. The argument about ownership justified the decision even more. I now own all my posts, how about I own my comments too?

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The difference between Disqus and Gravatar

I couldn’t find a website with this title so I thought I’d create one myself.

This evening while thinking about my Gravatar and Disqus profiles and the fact that many professional wordpress bloggers use Disqus, – rather than the software’s comment system – I became confused.

I know that Gravatar is a service that adds your photo to comments you write online and that Disqus manages the comments you make.

I asked myself “is there an overlap with these services?”.

I couldn’t find an adequate answer so after close examination of both my accounts, I’ve come to the following conclusions:

  • Disqus is very commonly used on tumblr sites and professional wordpress sites.
  • Disqus allows for someone’s comments to be stored in one place so that their comment footprint can be accessed.
  • Gravatar is a portrait photo holder that is displayed wherever you enter a comment and works on sites where Disqus isn’t active.
  • Both services offer a profile pop-up, containing links to your other accounts such as twitter and other blogs.
  • If a website doesn’t have Disqus installed, your comment will appear with your Gravatar profile.
  • If a website has Disqus activated, your profile will be generated by Disqus, not Gravatar.
  • Your Gravatar photo can be used by Disqus.
  • If you would like to promote yourself then creating a detailed and complete profile with both services is recommended.

That’s what I came up with. Can anybody else shed some light on the matter?

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