And so are you

Wonder why Techonorati shows this blog as not having updated?

Because I screwed up the configuration.

It should be all better now.

Yes, I'm an idiot. But you already knew that.

ItsAPundit's little venture into blog hosting didn't go all that well.

Oh, sure. A couple of bloggers took us up on it. Some existing bloggers who wanted a little side project. And a couple of folks that got into blogging for the first time.

But mostly, sploggers.

Those are spam-bloggers.

You know the type. They create a blog for the purpose of sending out spam.

I hate spam.

Not SPAM®. I like Hormel's fine meat product.

But spam. I hate spam.

And battling spam was a constant thing.

Then one blogger decided to post content that violated a copyright.

And the copyright owner (or claimant) decided to complain.

Now, if they had complained to me, I'd have quickly solved the problem.

But no. This American Idol (if, like me, you don't give a rat's ass about TV shows such as "American Idol," it's an updated, overblown, stretched-out version of "Ted Mack's Amateur Hour") contestant decided to contact Dreamhost, the place where this site is hosted. And they took it down before contacting me.

I didn't like that.

But I understand why they did what they did. Don't like it. But anyway, it's back up and running.

And so ends the little blog-hosting experiment.

So, what's going to happen to the few actual blogs that were created?

Well, nothing, really. I will continue to host them as WordPress blogs, rather than as a WordPress MU blog.

There might be a slight hiccup as the changeover from WordPress MU to WordPress 2.3 goes into effect. But that should be slight. So don't freak. But do contact me if your blog appears inaccessible.

But, as of now, no more new blogs.

If you want a new blog, give me a shout anyway. I may be able to help you out.

We recently upgraded the software here at ItsAPundit. We're now running WordPress MU 1.2.3.

And it broke some stuff.

For example, the StatCounter plugin and the StatCounter Widget no longer work. We're not sure why, but we're investigating.

We also lost the Site Meter Widget. The good news is the Site Meter standard plugin still works.

We're not yet taking down the tutorials on using Site Meter or StatCounter with your ItsAPundit blogs, because we hope to have them working again soon.

But we have added the WP-Stats plugin and widget. It doesn't quite replace the functionality of StatCounter or Site Meter, but it does offer some functionality.

Despite the inherent "wrongness" of the color-coding, in American politics, Red refers to Republican and Blue refers to Democrats.

I'm neither.

I'm not a member of any political party. But if I did join one, it'd be the Republicans. Because I'm a conservative, and conservatives are more comfortable with the GOP than with the Democrats.

So, what I'm about to say, I say from the standpoint of an outsider to — but friend of — the GOP.

To all Republicans and conservatives: Do not send the Republican Party any money.

Not one Red cent.

"Red" cent. Get it? Red=Republican? Yeah, corny, I know.

Still, I'm asking all Republicans … and those that, like me, generally support Republicans … to withhold all funding. If you had planned to send them money, put it in a savings account instead. Let it draw interest. You were going to do without it anyway, right? So let it grow.

The idea is to withhold funds from the Republicans. For a while. And for two reasons.

The first reason is that we need to get the attention of those running the Republican party.

In 1964, the GOP took a swing to the right. Barry Goldwater, the Patron Saint of Republicans, was the candidate. And lost badly to Lyndon Johnson, the sitting president.

Heck, anyone would have lost that election to Johnson. It just so happens it was Goldwater.

But Goldwater attracted conservatives.

Sure he was portrayed as a war-monger. In fact, I remember my father — who used to be a conservative before he had his brain surgery — telling of a discussion he had with an individual who was shocked to discover that Sr. was planning to vote for Goldwater. He was told, "Hell, if you vote for Barry Goldwater, this country will be at war in six months." The punch line? "I did and we were."

But through it all, Goldwater withstood the criticism and stayed true to his beliefs.

Sure, he lost the election. But he won conservative hearts.

The GOP finally seemed firmly conservative when Ronald Reagan was the party's standard-bearer in 1980. But in a lot of ways, Reagan was a lot like Goldwater. To me anyway. He stayed true to his beliefs. But, unlike Goldwater, Reagan won the election. And re-election.

Lately, though, the GOP has been weak when it comes to conservative values.

Yes, I'm still a supporter of our president. And, if George W. Bush could run for a third term, I'd vote for him.

But he wasn't my first choice in the primaries in 2000. But when election day came, he was by far the better of the two. And again in 2004.

And I haven't seen a whole lot out of the crop of those who have declared for 2008.

And that's one of the reasons I say withhold your funds from the Republicans.

That's the only way you'll get their attention.

They seem to have forgotten the value of a dollar.

Remind them.

Put your dollars in a savings account. Until it's time to release the funds.

They'll panic.

Then, when the candidate you want — not one you'll settle for, but one you actually want — runs, release the funds.

I really think my candidate is running, although unofficially.

I'm supporting Fred Thompson, who is not running. Offically.

And, no, I'm not one of those late-comers who's looking for the latest fad. I was disappointed when he decided not to run for re-election to the Senate, even though I'm not from Tennessee. I thought he was presidential material. I wanted him to stay in the Senate and stay in the public eye.

But Fred Dalton Thompson is smater than I am.

He's stayed in the public eye. Weekly on NBC. Twice a week, sometimes. And on TNT. Five times a week. And on USA. Five times a week.

I seriously think Thompson is running for president. But he can't say he's running.

If he says now that he's running, he'll lose his free platform he currently enjoys. He'll no longer be able to substitute for Paul Harvey. He'll get less calls to be a commentator on the talking head shows on cable and "nitwork" TV.

Right now, by not running, he's able to get what other GOP candidates can't get.

But I think … or hope … or maybe it's just wishful thinking … that Fred Thompson is running for president.

And that's the second reason to withhold your money. Get a real conservative running.

When that happens, take that money out of savings and send it in … keeping the interest for yourself. That way, everyone's a winner!

What is StatCounter?

StatCounter is another free, fast, and easy way to add a web counter to your web page. It also keeps statistics on the number of visitors, including the visits each hour, each day, the pages visited, where they came from, and more.

A lot of bloggers like and use StatCounter. So we've added a plugin to allow you use it as a Widget in your sidebar.

But first, to use StatCounter on your ItsAPundit.com blog, you have to have a StatCounter account. They're free. They also have premium accounts that cost money, but return more information.

To sign up for a free StatCounter account, go here .

Once you've signed up for your StatCounter account, you'll be provided with your StatCounter code. You won't be able to use the code as provided, but you'll be able to use parts of it to get a working StatCounter.

One other thing. The current version of the StatCounter Widget doesn't support invisible (or hidden) counter. It displays a StatCounter button. The counter works and you can view your stats by logging on to StatCounter. Yes, we plan to improve the Widget to offer better customization to your StatCounter.

I Got My StatCounter Code. Now What?

ItsAPundit supports StatCounter support via Widgets only. That means you can place your StatCounter in your sidebar. It's not that hard to do.
From your ItsAPundit Dashboard, click Plugins.

Scroll down to the StatCounter Widget plug-in. Click Activate.

Now, click Presentation > Sidebar Widgets.

Drag the items you want in your sidebar from the Available Widgets box to your Sidebar box. Note that some themes have more than one Sidebar box. Drag the Widgets to the appropriate box. Be sure to include your StatCounter Widget in the appropriate Sidebar box.

On the right-hand side of the StatCounter Widget, you'll see an icon. Click it.

The StatCounter Widgets Options box will pop up.

In the Title box, either enter a title for the Widget. One is not needed, but you can enter one if you wish.

Remember we said you'd not be able to use the StatCounter code as they provided, but you'd be able to use pieces of it? Here's where you'll do that.

In the sc_project box, enter the numbers following the "equals" sign in the StatCounter code you were given. For example, if your code included "sc_project=1234567" then you'd enter "1234567" (without the quotation marks, of course).

In the sc_partition box, enter the numbers following the "equals" sign in the StatCounter code you were given. For example, if your code included "sc_partition=11" then you'd enter "11" (without the quotation marks, of course).

In the sc_security box, enter the numbers following the "equals" sign in the StatCounter code you were given. For example, if your code included "sc_security=a123bcd4" then you'd enter "a123bcd4" (without the quotation marks, of course).

Click Update Options. The popup box will close.

Click Save Changes.

Open a new tab/window to your blog.

You should see your StatCounter in the sidebar. If you don't, one of two things has happened.

Either:

1. You entered one or more of the values incorrectly. Recheck all of them against your StatCounter code.
2. There is a problem with the Widget. Now, since we wrote the Widget, we'd be the ones to fix it. If you have entered the values correctly in your StatCounter Widget and it still doesn't work correctly, let us know.

Suppose I lost my StatCounter code

If you lose your code before you enter the values in the Widget, log on to your StatCounter account, click the Project Name, then click the "Install Code And Customise Project Settings" icon.

Complete the wizard and you'll see the standard StatCounter code. You'll be able to use the critical values in the Widget to enable your StatCounter.

I knew this day would come. It actually came earlier this week.

Spammers.

I hate spammers.

Oh, I like SPAM. That meat product from Hormel. Good stuff.

But spam … unsolicited commercial email … is a pain. And, around here, we expand "spam" to include TrackBack and Comment Spam.
Lots of spammers set up Web sites to support their spam. And some have chosen to use this blogging service.

We're not here for that. I don't like it. And blogs set up here for the purpose of supporting email, comment, or TrackBack spam won't last long.

I've already closed down several. And see several more that look like spammers in training. They haven't yet put spam-consistent content on those blogs. But I expect they will. And I think they've tried, but have been caught by the JavaScript stripping that WPMU does. I think they'll keep trying, and eventually put up stuff that's obviously for spam purposes. And when they do, and when I see it, the blogs are toasts.

Sure, they may end up signing up for another blog. But I'll shut those down, too.

No, this isn't a challenge. Just a statement of fact.

I haven't gone so far as to contact their ISPs. But that's an idea.

Still, this is a blogging service. And I fully expect people to set up blogs that I find distasteful or offensive.

But I'm not going to tolerate some things. Spam isn't free speech. Nothing commercial is free.

I'm all about folks setting up blogs to make money. By selling ads or such. Not by spamming folks via email, TrackBacks, or comments.

Just thought you should know.

What is Site Meter?

Site Meter is a free, fast, and easy way to add a web counter to your web page. Not only does it display the number of visitors to your web site, it also keeps statistics on the number of visits each hour and each day.

At least, that's what they say. And we agree. We like Site Meter. A lot. And so do many others.

But first, to use Site Meter on your ItsAPundit.com blog, you have to have a Site Meter account. They're free. They also have premium accounts that cost money, but return more information. We have a premium account. But a free account still has lots of good stuff.

To sign up for a free Site Meter account, go here . To sign up for a premium Site Meter account, go here .

Once you've signed up for your Site Meter account, you'll be provided with your Site Meter ID (also called your "Site Code" or "Codename").

I Got My Site Meter Account. Now What?

ItsAPundit supports three ways of using Site Meter.

One way is via your Blogroll. This is not the preferred way, because it doesn't support many Site Meter features. That means you won't be able to track the original URL from which your visitors came before linking to your site. Other things that Site Meter won't be able to track about your visitors include timezones, keywords, search engines used, screen resolution, screen depth or javascript version. * .

Using the Site Meter Plug-in

David Smith, the genius behind Site Meter, developed a WordPress plug-in that we have available on ItsAPundit.

First, you must have a Site Meter account. See above. You'll be using your Codename / Site Code, so have that handy.

Next, you need to activate the Plug-in.

From your ItsAPundit Dashboard, click Plugins.

Scroll down to the Site Meter plug-in. Not the Site Meter Widget plug-in. (We'll cover that one in a minute.)

Click Activate.

Now, click Options > Site Meter.

Remember we said you'd need your Codename? Enter that in the codename box.

Click Update Options.

Open a new tab/window to your blog.

You should see your Site Meter at the bottom of the page. If you don't, it means one of three things have happened.

Either:

1. Everything's fine and you have a premium account and have chosen the Invisible Tracker option.If you have a free account, this isn't what's happening and everything is not fine.
2. or… You entered your Codename incorrectly.Recheck it against your Site Meter "welcome" email. If you entered it correctly, this is not what's happening. And the fault is likely mine. Because …
3. The theme has an error and I need to fix it. Just let me know about the problem.

But, if everything is right, you'll see your Site Meter at the bottom of your blog.

Using the Site Meter Widget

If you want your Site Meter to appear in your sidebar, you need to use the Site Meter Widget.

From your ItsAPundit Dashboard, click Plugins.

Scroll down to the Site Meter Widget plug-in. Not the standard Site Meter plug-in.

Click Activate.

Now, click Presentation > Sidebar Widgets.

Drag the items you want in your sidebar from the Available Widgets box to your Sidebar box. Note that some themes have more than one Sidebar box. Drag the Widgets to the appropriate box. Be sure to include your SiteMeter Widget in the appropriate Sidebar box.

On the right-hand side of the SiteMeter Widget, you'll see an icon. Click it.

The SiteMeter Widgets Options box will pop up.

In the Title box, either enter a title for the Widget. One is not needed, but you can enter one if you wish.

In the Enter your codename box, enter your Site Meter Codename. This is requried.

Click Update Options. The popup box will close.

Click Save Changes.

Open a new tab/window to your blog.

You should see your Site Meter In the sidebar. If you don't see it, one of two things has happened.

Either:

1. Everything's fine and you have a premium account and have chosen the Invisible Tracker option.If you have a free account, this isn't what's happening and everything is not fine.
2. or… You entered your Codename incorrectly.Recheck it against your Site Meter "welcome" email.

If you suspect neither is the case, let me know. But it's probably one of these. So do double-check.

Can I Use Both?

If you activate both the Site Meter plugin and the Site Meter Widget plug-in, will it work?

Actually, yes. Our testing reveales that only one will show, so your stats should be correct. If, however, updates happen to either plug-in, they might start interferring with each other if they are both active. So we suggest activating one or the other, not both.

We've added another new plug-in to ItsAPundit.com - a variation of the classic Inline Trackbacks by Simply Kimberly.

While it's true that Kimberly Emerson is no longer supporting her plug-in, the value of the plug-in has been proven over time to those that like the Inline TrackBacks feature. We're supporting it here … but only for here.

Here's how it works.

When the plug-in is activated, TrackBacks and Pingbacks to posts will appear on the blog's home page, underneath the post. Some bloggers enjoy showing links to posts on the blog's home page. Some use it to host Linkfests.

Linkfests are not classical blogging, but they are popular in some corners of the Blogosphere. If Linkfests … or Inline TrackBacks … are your cup of tea, you can include them as part of your ItsAPundit.com blog.

While not everyone will use this plug-in, some will want to use it. And things like this are ways we're trying to make blogging just a little bit easier.

One of the downsides to Wordpress (one of the very few) is that comments and trackbacks/pingbacks get all jumbled together. Now, you might get a theme, like K2, that does this (see Blue Star Chronicles for a good example in action.) But, you might want to use a different theme. If you get lots of trackbacks/pingbacks, it is nice to see who is leaving a regular comment.

In hunting around, I found two different ways. The first can be found here, at CRE8d Design, and is straight html in the comments.php file. At the moment, I am using this method. You can see that it does different things in different themes. For Pirates Cove, it creates a separate list on the right. For the others, it creates a list of TB/PB's, then the comments.

Another involves a plugin, and a little bit of coding, available over at Perspective from cubicle. The plugin also allows you to change the index/archive so that it will display the number of comments and TB/PB's separately, like in Moveable Type. You can see both in action at my test blog, PC Test.

For this one, as it leads you to the Wordpress Wiki, down in the section "Comments.php," the best way to set this up is to put the code <h3>Trackbacks/Pingbacks</h3>
<ul> <?php listtrackpings(", '<li id="trackback-%id"><a href="%url">%origin</a> (%date)<br />%content</li>'); ?> </ul> right after the section that states how many comments there are for the post, something like <h3 id="comments"><?php comments_number('No Responses', 'One Response', '% Responses' );?> to "<?php the_title(); ?>"</h3>
. You might have to play around a bit.

As always, back your files up prior to making changes.

And let me know if you hate the way it looks in the Pirates Cove theme.

More: Playing around with the pop up comments to get them to work the same hasn't worked as of yet. MK at Perspective from cubicle has been kind enough to take a look. A work around is simply to remove all the trackbacks/pingbacks from the popup comments. If you are using some sort of plugin or script to show them on your front page, why bother in the pop ups?

From the Trackback Separator wiki, look all the way down in the section about removing trackpings being shown in the original comments list. The first part is easy, the <?php endif; ?> goes right before <?php } // end for each comment ?>

It's easy … and fast … to get your free ItsAPundit blog.

How easy? Just click “Create a new blog” and then fill out the form.

See? Told you it was easy.

You will need to consider a couple of things when you start.

Your Username

Your Username will be both your login name and your blog’s URL. That is, if you choose imapundit as your Username, you’ll log in using imapundit and your password, and your blog’s URL will be http://imapundit.itsapundit.com/

Your Username is important. You won't be able to change it … or your URL. But you can change your Nickname.

For example, if your Username is imapundit, you'll log in with imapundit and your URL will be http://imapundit.itsapundit.com. But your Nickname can be anything you want. It can be Ima Pundit, I'm A Pundit, Alan Smithee, or anything you want.

Email Address

You’ll have to give an Email Address so we can send you verification link and your initial password. And don’t worry. We won’t send you emails or give your Email Address to anyone. We hate spam, and figure you do, too.

After you submit your information, ItsAPundit will send you a verification link to the Email Address you provided.

You'll have day to click the link.

Once you click the verification link, your blog will be created, and ItsAPundit will send you your ID and Password.

When you get that, log in and start blogging.

And if you want to change your Nickname or Email Address, you can.

See how easy this is?