WordPress.com users can go ad-free (for a fee)
Matt Mullenweg has just announced at the WordPress.com blog that based on their experimentation with Google ads, they’ve decided to make displaying advertisements optional—but for a fee.
…Light advertising has allowed us to focus on free features for you guys rather than paid upgrades, and enabled us to invest in infrastructure so your blog is always fast and reliable and never shows a fail whale.
[...]
The No-ads upgrade can be purchased for 30 credits a year ($0.08 a day) through the Upgrades tab in your blog’s dashboard.
So that basically answers two things: (1) it costs a lot to keep things free so they’re running ads, though only at a reasonable amount; and (2) yes, you can finally remove them, though you’ll have to pay for it.
The next question would have to be: will WordPress.com users be able to make money for themselves by running their own ads? Matt says they’re thinking about it, though take note that it will probably a paid upgrade too.
Sticky Posts for WordPress.com users
As Matt Mullenweg had mentioned in a demo of WordPress 2.7 “Crazyhorse” during WordCamp’s State of the Word, there will be a new feature called Sticky Posts. It turns out that feature is already installed on WordPress.com blogs. This is patterned after forum posts which you want to keep at the top of the page for everyone to see.
Chances are WordPress.org users have a blog at WordPress.com, so be sure to try out that feature as we await WP 2.7!
WordPress.com redesigned
Hosted platform WordPress.com just got a design refresh, as announced by Matt Mullenweg via Twitter last August 11.
You’ll notice that while WordPress.com and WordPress.org sport similar design elements now (since version 2.5), the content of their homepages differ greatly. The former features posts from the users’ blogs, while the latter boasts of the blog software’s excellent features.
Which one do you prefer? It’s like comparing apples to oranges. I do, however, would like to see WordPress.org aggregate content from self-hosted blogs too. Wouldn’t that be exciting?
WordPress.com users get 24/7 Support
Bloggers on WordPress.com can now enjoy round-the-clock support by sending a message through the support contact form.
This is great news, considering most services out there (blogging or not) usually offer support only if you pay for them. Read more about the announcement here.
WordPress for iPhone app previewed
Just as I had reported earlier, Matt and the gang are developing a blogging application made specifically for the iPhone, whose newest version is going to launch in 21 countries this July 11. (And for those who are wondering, it will be coming to the Philippines officially in a few months.)
For a preview of the WordPress For iPhone, click here or view below:
The WordPress iPhone app will work for both WordPress.com (hosted) and WordPress.org (self-hosted) users. Not only will it be free for download, it’s open source too.
WordPress.com now supports Google Gears
WordPress.com announces they now officially supports offline access through Google Gears. This means a faster and more enjoyable blogging experience.
To enable this feature, simply hit “Turbo” in your dashboard.
After that Gears will download around 200 files and store them on your PC. It will also update them when needed automatically in the background, no other actions are required.
For users using self-hosted WordPress, this feature will be coming soon in WordPress 2.6.
TypePad AntiSpam for WordPress and WordPress.com Stats for Movable Type
WordPress and WordPress.com are Automattic products, while Movable Type and TypePad are SixApart products. These two companies are fierce competitors for the blogging platform crown, but here’s a surprise: you can actually use two of their plugins for the “opposing camp”.
TypePad AntiSpam
TypePad AntiSpam is SixApart’s answer to Automattic’s Akismet. It’s completely compatible with the latter, and like it you’ll need to register for an API key, also for free. Get started here.
WordPress.com Stats
WordPress.com Stats is an analytics program for self-hosted WordPress and WordPress.com users alike. Movable Type users can run this plugin as well, but they’ll also need a corresponding API key. Complete details found here.
It’s clear that these two companies are looking to expand their userbase not just with their blog software but with other projects in tow.
