Monday, May 28, 2018

Where Have All My Blog Comment Notifications Gone

That's the big question for Google bloggers these days, so... 
Where have all my blog comment notifications gone?

Those comments are now following the new GDPR (General Data Protection Rule)
 that says information about commenters are a no-no, like their avatar, email info, name...etc. 
Just Google GDPR and your computer screen will be filled with mind-boggling info.
I've been following the Google Support page and the questions are overflowing.
Google has told us that...
Yes, my settings have changed. I figured that out on my own, but thank you.

For the 10+ years I've been blogging I have received notifications in my email that someone 
has very kindly stopped by my blog and left a comment. Somewhere in time another rule/update
 made it so a few comments got lost between my blog and my inbox because their email was 
considered SPAM. Now ALL the comments stay on my blog and I don't know they are there 
until I check, which I do just so you know...thank you for the comments! Unfortunately, 
I don't always have an email address for the commenters, so replying isn't an option. I know
 some bloggers leave a reply to the comment in the reply section on the blog. Call me lazy,
 but I don't go back to check to see if someone replied to my comment. I just don't have 
the time, because I'm busy sewing or visiting other blogs.

One suggested fix is to leave a comment on your own post and check the box
"Email follow-up comments."
It's just a sticker over a sore, but it's a workaround until something better comes along.
The follow-up comments might go to SPAM, so you'll have to look there.

I have not lost hope that Google will make our life easy again with something
as simple as a box to check that says, "Yes, you can share my info with this blog friend."

The majority of us Blogger users don't have the luxury of having a blog guru
to help us with the new rules, nor do we have the money to hire an attorney
to write the correct wording on our blog so we are compliant. I hope this doesn't
make blogging a thing of the past. I'm not ready for that.

My blog friends make my world a happier place. xo

Update note:
To at least get the comments in your spam folder or somewhere in your email, as soon 
as you write a post go leave yourself a comment and check the follow-up box. 
That's working for me right now.

UPDATE: Google announced that it is aware of the problems and is working
towards a solution that will hopefully arrive next week.  Yay!

26 comments:

  1. If you leave a comment, I will TRY to reply. Sigh...

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  2. Very interesting, but sad. Thanks for sharing. Hopefully this was a quick fix for Google Blogger and they will do something better, especially if enough people complain (ask) in their Google Forums.

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  3. Is THAT what it is! I've been wondering - I'll try your workaround. This is a sad day for us bloggers!!!

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  4. Well you have 3 comments including your own. No notifications?

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  5. I know! I also cannot access their e-mails unless I have communicated with them in the past. It is so frustrating.

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  6. I love my blogging friends and will miss the ease with which I have been able to make new ones ... <3 Pat

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  7. Doesn't look like Google has followed the law/guidelines by the GDPR to allow users to "opt in", so blog owners can contact them. So silly.

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  8. That's what I'm doing right now too. The email then usually comes in as a no-replyer....but at least I can cut and paste and email a return comment pretty quick. Keeping our fingers crossed that Blogger does come up with a button to select as your suggested....it's the least they could do...I mean blogger is a virtual quilting guild....and we ladies like to talk and share.

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  9. Thanks for doing the research for us. I have also post on my blog.

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  10. Thanks for sharing the info! I sure hope Google will work everything out for us.

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  11. It is such a pain - I am like you, I don't have time to go back and see if they have answered my comment on their page. And I stopped checking the followup comments box because it means you forever get other people's comments sent to you... I do hope blogger works something out, otherwise they will see a lot of people leave...

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  12. Thanks for the info Carol, what a pain in the rear.

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  13. Carol, I ditto everything you have said. I only blog about once a month now but am so tempted to let it go, especially with the latest information that I read yesterday on my dashboard about making sure people who visit your blog know if data is being collected. I have no idea what blogger collects and don't know how to be sure blogger's 'fix' works on my blog. Like you, I am not a techie and this is getting sooo confusing! But for now, just wanted to say hello and hope you get your comments. I will try some of your fixes on my next post.

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  14. Carol I clicked the notify me button on my blog when I did a test and it ended up in Spam telling me I was a no-reply! I checked my settings and I am not a no-reply because my email address is there. Well you said at least it's in spam, but what a royal pain in the you know where. Are they trying to get rid of us bloggers now? I hope you can read this comment in your spam or on your posting.

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  15. I consider myself to be fairly educated in the techy areas, but the last few years, Blogger has become more and more complicated. Like Leslie, I have been tempted to let my blog just drift away, but I would be sad to do that. It's been fun for me (though with working again has taken some of my blogging time away) and I have made some dear friends along the way.

    Thank you for all the help and tips concerning this latest hiccup. Fingers crossed this gets fixed soon!

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  16. Thank you for your words of wisdom! I've just left myself a comment on my blog so let's hope it works! I enjoy blogging too much to give up on it but just don't have time to chase Blogger around!! Happy sewing ::-)

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  17. Who came up with this brilliant idea?

    What next? no email updates from your blog in my inbox?

    This is very bad, very very bad and someone is gonna get a big hurt. I am feeling kind of crabby about this.

    Have a fun wonderful sunny day Carol. 😇

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  18. Checked my spam file this morning, and evidently google has moved your post notifications to my spam files. Ugh. Hope they figure this out and soon!

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  19. It's such a major change in the blogging world. It used to be so easy and convenient.
    Now I don't even know that a comment has been made, let alone how to reply to kind folks who leave comments.
    It's amazing how much this has decreased my enjoyment of blog writing.
    I wonder if there is a better, more user friendly platform to use for blogging now?
    Please keep us updated on anything you find out!

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  20. Thanks for letting us know - I have been searching all over in the blog settings section etc -trying to figure out how to have the comments come back to me - I appreciate you finding a small fix ;-) In the meantime I have sent feedback and comments and hope to get more help ;-)

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  21. Seriously considering wordpress at this point. I'll have to ask questions of people who are on it. I just can't believe that they are not sending us some kind of notification about this.

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  22. I gave up on blogger a few years back. I never did get a notice that someone had commented. I always had to check my post. I would forget and check months later and that just wasn’t right. Hope blogger gets things straightened out.

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  23. I think this is going to go on for a bit, until they figure out how we can get comments through to email with the sender's consent. So, we'll all to be patient and do the best we can to communicate.

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  24. Thanks for the tip! I’ll give it a try! Hope it works. I find this change to be very disturbing.

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  25. Thank you Carol! I am one of the bloggers that doesn't have a computer guru handy so this post really helps me understand what has been happening and thank you for the bandaid!
    xoxoxoxo
    Jan

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  26. I wish the old days were here, too. I had trouble yesterday. I only found out about it when I posted a question about the new GDPR which Google added to all blogs and it was suppose to show on my blog. It didn't show when I followed their instruction.
    Someone in the Craft Industry Alliance posted that I had an SSI error. I joined this support group last night. https://www.facebook.com/groups/LGandKSBloggerSupport/
    I think it has to do with my changing it to HTTPS a year or two ago and now Blogger is changing stuff for all.

    I have been reading their posts about all the changes Blogger is working on and I guess I will wait it out for a while. I've thought about paying for a website, I might have more control and be able to make it simpler (you think?). I just want to blog and share and pass on quilt information and inspiration to others!

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