LeftyBlogs.com: News & Announcements

Haven't been updated on your site since August 22. No one knows that I'm alive anymore.
Any help?
Thanks.

Oops. I re-registerd teh blog with the new feed addy when I saw that it wasn't being updated.

Fie on Blogger. I should have waited.

I do get alot of traffic from the lefty blog links and feeds on everyone's sites. Blogger's statements suggest that they are sloooooooooowly rolling out this beta version, so it may be quite sometime before they get around to changing anything.

That said, I hope that you'll consider switching the feed url to the beta one.

Slob

Okay, I just checked the feeds and both the old and new ones seem to be working (that is, they are updated). So that should mean that you should not need to switch the urls, at least not now.

BUT, that leave me wondering why my posts since converting to the Blogger beta are not being picked up by LeftyBlogs. It seems to me that it has got soemthing to do with what Blogger has done, but I am not sure what.

Any suggestions?

Slob

I need suggestions, too. This is a candidate blog & right now it's dead because posts are not being updated on Lefty.
Help!!

I switched to beta and my blog is not showing up on Left anymore. What do I do?

There appear to be two issues here:

First, folks are sending us new RSS url's. Please stop. Under the beta, it appears that your old url's still work - but just have the new data format.

Second, our system is choking on the new feeds from Blogger. We don't know why, and we're working on it. (Frankly, that Blogger would change the data format is a little frustrating and idiotic.)

For now, your best bet is to go back to the non-beta version. After all, "BETA" means that things may not work...

Would that I could go back to the non-beta version! No can do.

Thanks for the try. Seemed like a good idea at the time, esp. when updating could take days.

I wish you would update b/c no one knows I'm alive anymore....and I don't have the option to switch my blog back.....

I miss my posts going up on leftblogs!

If there's something I can do to fix it p;ease
send me instructions!

Let me know when everything is fixed so that I can put LeftyBlogs back up on my page.

Ditto.
Eileen

We're continuing to work on it, but I'd remind you that LeftyBlogs.com is a labor of love, a volunteer effort from one person - who pays the bills by getting Democrats elected.

Naturally, LeftyBlogs is sometimes going to have to take a back seat to getting people elected - especially nine weeks from election day.

Please be patient. Don't be upset. Remember that Blogger's new beta is, well, beta. Don't use beta software unless you're prepared for some glitches.

Hang tight, folks.

Kari,

I don't know the technical reason, but see if this helps or not.

I ran the old and new feeds through the weblogs feed validator (http://www.weblogs.com/feedvalidator.html).

The new feeds and the old atom feeds came back as NOT valid, while the old RSS feeds (username.blogspot.com/rss.xml) came back as VALID.

I think everyone who switched to blogger beta & is having a problem probably used the atom feed (since that's what blogger told them to do).

Okay, when i run the old atom feed through feed validator.org, I get the response that while a valid feed, it may be casuing problems for some users, and then it lists the problems.

See this:
http://feedvalidator.org/check.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fabigfatslob.blogspot.com%2Fatom.xml

Me, too. Any solutions?
I'm also trying to elect progressive Democrats - me!

My feeds seem to be missing from Lefty Blogs again. I haven't changed my Blogger rss so what could be the problem?

Doncha think that blogspot.com might be willing to do correspondence with you (since you represent so many of us on blogspot.com who are diead in the water) and together you folks could work out a solution....

I still have your feed active on my blog...but it's doing me no good....

Hey guys this is a crucial election year...I bet Blogger would work with you to fix the problem...and it would make so many of us invicible lefty bloggers happy again.

Buzz...Buzz....
Mosquito
http://mosquito-blog.blogspot.com

still Posting come and visit even if leftyblogs isn't updating Mosquito's posts....

Interestingly, I can't find any place on this site to send you a simple email, and this after I submitted a blog to be listed. What the hell's up with that?

Also, upon reflection, this is just silly:

Important: We often approve blogs that don't meet all five requirements perfectly. But, if you lie, we will reject your blog. So don't even try it.

Geez, you make me sorry I submitted my URL. Just never mind...

Still waiting for Lynne Haley for Michigan's 62 House District, to be added to Michigan. This is very important!!!!!!

I've worked on my feed for four hours this morning and it is not validating for Lefty....I use Blogger...and previously, when I initially signed on with Lefty, my feed worked.

I can post on Kos and Florida Politics be listed on the Lefty blog...but from my own site, no such luck.

Suggestions?

Thanks.

I have noticed my posts are no longer included in the Indiana updated livewire.

Sunny,

You did it, didn't you. You fell for the invitation to switch to the new Blogger.

Well, you are screwed.

Technorati, Yahoo, Ice Rocket, feeddigest, and a few others have managed to adjust their settings to deal with the mess up of the feeds which Globber threw into the new version. But they all have (paid) staff and Kari has made it clear that Lefty Blogs ain't goin' to be making that effort, being so shorthanded and all.

I will, eventually, be switching away from Blogger. Until then, I managed to put together a decent enough feeds of liberal blogs through feeddigest, although it took some experimentation.

I somehow managed to also get back the hits lost when Lefty Blogs turned off my lights.

The only other solution would be for LB to plug in the new feed urls for all of us saps who switched. But Kari's dealing with fifty states worth of blogs and that seems to be a bit much to ask.

Did I mention how much I hate Blogger? Well, I do.

Slob

Ditto! Just when we needed Lefty most. I just don't have the time right now to switch from Blogger now or I would.

No, I didn't switch to Blogger Beta...and guess what....today, the entire Lefty Blogroll is gone off my site....I'm still at the same old 0.3 atom.xml that's coming up as obselete when I run it through the feed validator....

Is there anyway that Lefty would take my rss feed through feed burner or is that just way too much experimentation to justify the waste of time?

Thanks for the feedback!

sunny

I seem to be having almost the exact same problem as Sunny except my blogroll hasn't disappeared.

Marc,

I took Slob's advice and went to feed digest....set myself up a new feed and input that feed into lefty blogs...it was accepted by the feed validator and Lefty accepted it as well.

My blogroll did reappear, by the way, but Smashed Frog remained DOA....

We'll see if it jumpstarts with Lefty with the feed digest feed...

And I really like Lefty, so I hope it works!

:)sunny

Here's hoping it all works.

One quick FYI -- even if you've switched to Blogger Beta, your feed URL should be the same. The problem is that they've somehow changed the format of the data file - and it's not working with our current code.

Once we get it working, everything will load up miraculously... no need to resubmit.

Meanwhile, if you have another way of generating a feed - go ahead and resubmit.

Smashed Frog still not blogrolling....:(

google's really screwed things up. As soon as I get the time I'll be switching. Unfortunately, that's not likely to be until after the elections :(

I've resubmitted a feed other than Blogger's atom.xml...it has successfully passed through the feed validator.

Please, at your convenience, try and get Smashed Frog up and running on Lefty Blogs.

Thanks!

Right now, it sits dead in the water.

Thanks much!

Smashed Frog is up and running on the Lefty Blogroll!

I guess I should have reviewed this archive earlier, but I have resubmitted my new feed for my blogger.com blog now that I have switched to their new (beta) service. It doesn't appear that the atom 0.3 feeds are working anymore and they now fail in feedvalidator. The new url for the feed does not contain any references to 'beta' and it is successfully validated as an atom 1.0 compliant feed. I'm hoping my blog can be updated as soon as you have time to reflect this new feed so it will return to the leftyblog MA state page. Thank you.

Has there been any progress on this problem? I switched to blogger BETA a few days ago, and my updates haven't been showing up on Leftyblog since.

[quote]For now, your best bet is to go back to the non-beta version. After all, "BETA" means that things may not work...[unquote]

Ditto that, I created a new blog under beta, and will be switching back this weekend. My www.jesus911.co.nr is done with the old Blogger and I'm stickin with it. With my newer blog the templates are a mess to tinker with. Neither POST PREVIEW nor TEMPLATE PREVIEW work correctly. And once I've entered text in a post, I can't get it to change size or font.

I'd give it another 6 months to a year before making the transition to the new blogger. Stay with the old version (BLOGGER). {;~)

That isn't an option. Once you switch to the new BETA version, Blogger makes it impossible to switch back. Besides, other than not being able to get LeftyBlog to see me, I like the new BETA system. There has to be another solution.

[quote]For now, your best bet is to go back to the non-beta version. After all, "BETA" means that things may not work...[unquote]

hmmm, not fer nuttin, but take a look at the banner at the top of this page.

Globber's feeds for the new version now no longer have "beta" in their url. I have therefore submitted the new feed url and am hopeful that will be the end of the matter.

ABFS

So what is this url for beta blogger? No can find. Do each of us have to resubmit? This certainly is confusing, to say the least

No, once you switch to BETA Blogger, your RSS feed automatically changes. And you're screwed. At least for now.

We're working on it.

WOW! I am back on LB blogwire. YAY!

Despite the blogroll appearing to show that I have been revised and added, I am still not showing up. Gee, I can't wait to see how Google is going to make You Tube as good as it did blogger.

Ditto.

Blogger's "know issues" forum indicates that they "fixed" the feed problem. I have checked my blogger feed using other newsreaders and they are all working just fine.

Yet, still no LB.

Aha! Perhaps it's a right wing plot!
Seriously, I am a candidate & was counting on this blog. Right now I'm off the radar. Is there anything that we can do to help restore ourselves?

FYI

An alternative, or addition, to LB, for folks in California, NY, OH TX, NY, NJ, VA & PA is blognetnews.com

They CAN read my feeds.

It seems I goofed and switched before checking out the consequences. I can't think of any worse time for this to have happened...I LOVE Lefty Blogs and it seems I may have dropped off after the switch. I'll check again in the AM to see if I'm just being impatient, but any idea when a fix will be available?

P.S. I read the reasons and I'm pretty sure I spelled Sensenbrenner correctly.

I can't add anything to the above comments. The Beta has been removed from the feed but I'm still compehensively screwed on LB. Googs told us it would only change the interface and make it MUCH BETTER. Didn't tell us the feed would fold up like the Iraqi army. And, of course, we can't go back.

Not LB's fault but any help would be appreciated. We're just coming up on the fun part!

UMRBlog

I tried Feed Reader then found out that Lefty doesn't accept those. Then I tried to take Sunny's suggestion and went to Feed Digest who is currently not taking any new subscribers. No reason given as to why.

Me too. Still Comprehensively screwed, right in the middle of an election cycle.

Next time, I'll know what to ask the Googs before I bite.

Thanks for any help. I'll check back.

I've been hoping for a site feed miracle for more than 2 mos. Guess it just ain't going to happen. My candidate blog is almost dead & lost my google references. What's that old saying about timing being everything?

Okay...Blog.spot has completed their Beta testing and are now asking everyone to switch over...blognet news and virginia political blogs are accepting my feed.

Why can't lefty blogs? Surely there's a way to figure out how to get us back and running with a few emails to blognet news, va political blogs and/or blogspot.com

Please figure it out and tell us what we need to do to get rolling...in the meantime I'm going to take the lefty blogs blog roll off of my site until this problem is solved....

buzz...buzz...mosquito

Oh yeah -- there's a way. I just don't have the time - too busy working for two gubernatorial races, a secretary of state race, two congressional races, nine state legislative races, two statewide ballot measures, and two state legislative caucuses.

Remember that LeftyBlogs is a one-person volunteer effort. I work on it during my downtime. Which there isn't any of these days.

I hear you, Kari! It's called multi-tasking (or driving yourself crazy).
I've been down for a few days w/bronchitis/pneumonia. Only 4 more days, only 4 more days.

First, I want to thank you for being added to leftyblogs.
But since the switch to blogger/beta, I'm not showing up here. I've went through all your tips and suggestions before writing you. My feed's url is different than before, its now has default.etc in the tag. I put the old atom.xml url on the page in addition hoping it will help. But no luck. Any suggestions?

I would highly recommend to everybody having problems to test their url in the feed validator. It could be something as simple as forgetting to put in your email address in your blog account.

Anyone out here who could offer to help Kari out? Any techs in the crowd?

Count me as another one who is having trouble after changing to Blogger Beta. Arrgghhh!

I even tried to resubmit my aton feed, but I can't find it anymore, even when I follow Blogger's directions.

At least I waited until after the election.

BTW - thanks for all the great work Kari!

I made the rollover to beta-Blogger and since then no feeds have been showing up on Lefty Blogs. I certainly hope this problem can be solved as soon as humanly possible -- but patience is a virtue -- and I'm keeping the Lefty Blog roll on assuming that this can all be sorted out.

Although I have both an RSS and atom validated feed, I have been offline(feed) now for two full weeks.

Is there something I might be able to do on my end to facilitate returning to the blogroll?

This is an important site. Thanks. I had to move to blogger beta, and also have been dropped. I'd like to reappear here.

I'm still writing at dpatterson.blogspot.com, Daniel's News & Views.

DRP

I've got something that I'm going to try. If it works, I'll post it here and on some of the blogs affected by BloggerBeta's problems.

Add me to the list of those who switched and no longer appears on LB, and I hope this can be fixed. The beta version is far superior in terms of usability, in particular working with images and drafts.

When and if there is a procedure that can put my site back on LB, would most appreciate the info.

Respect all you folks.

First Kari, How'd your races go? You had a handful and no hard feelings on the Blogger Beta issue, I found other ways to run a feed to the public and picked up many new readers. That being said, I would really like to get back on the blogroll sometime soon.

Do you by chance have a ETA for finishing the fix?

Thanks! Renee

I did the validator, then I went away from atom back to simple RSS. I even played strains of "Workin' my way back to you, Babe...".

Screwed has become a state of mind.

Googs are no help so I'll just have to wait for Kari to figure it out. Kari, if it makes you feel any better. I lose about 30% of my visitors not being on LB feed. It shows your creation is effective. Makes me feel like the "before" in Chuck Atlas ad, though.

Thanks for anything you can do.

Tony Cameron
Upper Mississippi River Basin Blog

I tried to post earlier but im not quite sure what happened. If you use the rss feed http://username.blogspot.com/rss.xml the site feed works. I have my blog linked through other site feeds and it works using the rss feeds. Should we resubmit our sites with the rss address so that we can get our sites with the feeds again?

Javier -- I'll take a look at that. If it's as simple as all that, we'll do the change globally.

None of my blog posts are showing up on Lefty Blogs. I even checked the "Blog Roll" for my state and it says I have yet to post since being added, and I know I've posted at least 3 times. I also checked "local" and "non local." Can someone let me know if I'm doing something wrong, or if there is a glich?

Thanks!

For what it's worth -- the feed from my blog is getting through to Yahoo (some way or another) I've exhausted my expertise with fiddling with the feeds (actually that didn't take long). I'm really hoping to show up again on Lefty Blogs. This is a great service, and I do appreciate being included.

I'm one of the unfortunate ones who fell for the siren song and switched to Blogger's beta. I have to admit that I like the way it works.

But I was shocked when I realized my posts weren't showing up over here. At first, I thought it was something I did to fall off the blogroll (paranoid that I am).

I'm glad I came by here and saw that I'm not alone with this issue. Hope you all get it fixed soon. You provide a great service and I hope to be back on it again.

Thanks for your efforts.

Anonymous Is A Woman, which feed are you even using? The new blogger is confusing to say the least, and they havn't updated their "help" section and give NO way in which to contact them.

And yes, I hope LeftyBlogs works this problem out soon....

Does anyone know the exact problem that should be reported to blogger. Ive found a place to report bugs in the beta software but I'm not exactly sure what to say. I really don't know all of the technical jargon. BTW here is the link the the page http://help.blogger.com/?page=troubleshooter.cs&problem=other&contact_type=bug_with_blogger_beta&Submit=Submit

Terry, Thanks for asking, but I'm not even sure which feed I use. I'm a writer and the tech stuff is often way over my head. I'll fiddle more to see if I can get it.

And hopefully Kari will also come up with something, or Blogger will because others are obviously also still having issues.

Dito that Anon Is A Woman. I have my feed running, however, when it post on some sites it's extremely slow, or post with the wrong time(causing my entry to get buried below a bunch of other newer entries on whatever site it's being syndicated to). Then, of course, with LeftyBlogs, it's not going through at all. I believe our new feed addresses are SUPPOSED to be at "http://blogname.blogspot.com/atom.xml"

I wish someone would fix it soon though! No doubt my readership will benefit enormously from getting the leftyblogs syndication up and running.

And by the way anonymous is a woman, you need to change your URL being linked to when I click you name. you have it listed as http://htttp//anonymousisawoman.blogspot.com instead of http://anonymousisawoman.blogspot.com

Terry
http://theliberalprogressive.blogspot.com

Ok Its me again. I just realized that blogger lists the address for the atom feeds in blogger as
http://username.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default does anyone have this as their site feed address on here and if so, is it working?

Ok sorry to keep posting but scratch the last post. I think I've figured it out. I believe the new feeds should be

http://username.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

It passes the feed validator and I was able to import my blog postings though another server that would allow me to import them with all of the other addresses

I sent in the new feed address and it's still not working. meh :( I dunno what's going on with it.

If I'm not mistaken, you the site isn't updated immediately. I could be wrong but I think all of the updates are done manually so as soon as you send it in, it won't be updated.

I know, but I sent mine directly to Kari to ask to get it updated. It's still not working though.

...well, apparantly SOMETHING worked, all of a sudden a bunch of my post showed up at once, about 3 weeks late.....lol.

Update: The Beta Blogger feed problem is now fixed.

I'm cursed, I guess. The global fix didn't list me twice and I still don't seem to be coming through. I checked the c&p and the validator and I'm supposed to be good....cut to strains of "Bobby McGee...nothin left to lose"

UMRBlog

I don't know if this is related to the issue I'm experiencing, but I have NOT switched over, and it's totally sixes whether or not my posts are categorized under my state feed. They seem to be showing up consistently in "all blogs", but almost no one seems to link from that page. It doesn't seem to be tied to content, so I'm left to wonder if it's the blogger feed ... ohhhh. I think I just figured it out. Blogger is only feeding a certain amount of text to the feed, and if no state-specific keywords are detected there, (even if there are plenty further down in the blog) it won't categorize it as local content. Does that sound plausible?

Well, I guess I'll go ahead and post this in case anyone else is experiencing the same issue.

Thanks for all you do, leftyblog guys. We really appreciate the job you're doing.

DS

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