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Commenting Systems Roundup

Posted April 11, 2010 – 05:00 in: dhp1080, syndicated

Through the multiple iterations of this blog, I’ve written my own commenting systems to use. While they were not necessarily the most feature-packed, they most certainly got the job done. Now, as I just somewhat rewrote my blog engine, I’m considering bringing back commenting.

Lately, commenting has become a much more social experience. Comments are threaded, trackbacks recorded, tweets inserted into the list of comments automatically. All this leads to something that would take quite a long time to code. Naturally, I started looking for an existing alternative to writing my own code.

Most of the fully-featured commenting systems are now remotely hosted and javascript powered. This means no database management on your end, and easy integration into blogging systems such as Wordpress, Movable Type, etc. There are probably three main contenders in the commenting systems world right now.

Note that while Disqus and IntenseDebate are free options, JS-Kit Echo only has a 30-day free trial before costing you a minimum of $12 per year.

Disqus

Disqus

Disqus is probably the most common remotely-hosted commenting platform these days. Everything works well. It’s fast-loading, reliable, and feature packed. They support all sorts of login methods, sharing methods, customizations, etc.

However, I’m quite tired of seeing Disqus comments. To be completely honest, it’s not a very pretty commenting system, nor is it as customizable as I’d like. Simplicity is key for most users, and Disqus just has a lot of things going on (as seen above). I don’t know why real-time comment updating is necessary, but nevertheless, it’s there. To me, it feels like Disqus takes up more space than necessary, but it’s still a free and stable commenting system.

IntenseDebate

IntenseDebate

IntenseDebate is another option for commenting brought to us by Automattic. It sports the same long list of features as Disqus, but is, in my opinion, somewhat better looking. While not perfect, it seems to be more customizable than Disqus, and because it’s brought to you by the same people that built Wordpress, it’ll be stable.

It still suffers from a bit of a cluttered look (especially below the comment box), but it’s better than Disqus. If you’re looking for a free commenting option, I’d definitely give IntenseDebate a try.

JS-Kit Echo

JS-Kit Echo

Echo is the only commercial commenting system of the bunch, and I suppose for good reason. It’s significantly better looking, and even more feature-rich than Disqus or IntenseDebate. Interfacing is smooth and compact while comments are attractive and free of clutter.

Now that’s all fantastic. If it were free, I’d jump on it in a heartbeat and call it, by wide margin, the best I’ve seen. However, it’s commercial. Outside of the free 30-day trial, the branded version of the service will cost you $12 per year. Want to remove the Echo logo? That’ll run you $48 per year.

If you’re a site turning a pretty decent profit, and want to include powerful, attractive, and user-engaging comments, I’d say Echo is right for you. If you’re a smaller site that is unwilling to spend a pretty penny on comments, try out IntenseDebate.

However, if you want to bypass all these silly social commenting systems and stick to simple comments, by all means, do so. Wordpress comments are more than enough and there are plenty of plugins to help you add any features you’d like to have.

Ultimately, however, my verdict is to try out IntenseDebate if you want a free option, and if not, go spend your money on Echo. It will be worth your while.

Via dhp1080 from 1080degrees

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