Thanks to the "embed" button in Vox, I can add a Twitter widget right in a blog post to let you know what I'm up to (add me as DarrenTooCool):

I can also add one that lists me, and everyone I am following:

I thought these tools were kinda hard to find on the Twitter site. Twitter calls them "Badges" which makes no sense to me. Go here for the wizard that makes code you can use for ANY blog platform. But for VOX you need to select the "Other" option (it produces embeddable Flash code).

Seriously, if I'd know a "badge" was a web "widget" I'd have saved a lot of time.

To add this to your VOX sidebar, just follow these instructions.

And while this may be old news, I can testify that someone new is ALWAYS joining Twitter, and us newbies need all the help we can get!

When you started at Vox, did ever see this as your "Other Blog?" I did. When I got an invite to be a Beta tester, I pretty much knew this was a short-term thing for me. My own blog, my own domain, yeah, that was the way to go!

But now, my original blog has become my "Other Blog."

Yeah I keep it around, but I don't do any "personal" blogging there anymore. It's more of my pocket change blog, earning a little income from ads and affiliates. But it isn't really any fun there. Not anymore.

No, the fun is to be had here at Vox. You have "Friends" and "Neighbors" (see mine)  and you can join "Groups" (see mine). Plus its just way easier to keep in touch. (Though, Facebook is better at that)

Here there is community, and connection.

At my "Other Blog" all that faded away. Maybe I faded away.

But I really dig it here at Vox, and I will be here for the long haul.

And if you don't, YOU should have a Blog here. It would be fun. Again. And aren't you ready for that after all this time?

Thanks Vox, for "Bringing Sexy Blogging Back!"

TechDadBlog

Fathers.com

Letters from Dad - supports the Book

Love & Respect Forums

Easy2DIY - Do-It-Yourself Home Improvement and Home Repair Tutorials and tips

...know of any others?

This post started as a reply to Jennifer's post on having a domain'd blog and a vox blog...

I am an old school blogger and still have a blog outside of Vox, but it has a niche focus and I really have nothing there I want posted here (and vice versa

I use Vox for music, personal rants and such (things I did at my other blog at one time, when blogging was new and you could stay connected with other bloggers). At vox, there is more of a sense of community (something that got lost at my other blog as the net grew and grew, and caused me to re-focus it - leaving out the personal touch).

Not that you should do the same, just that I find value in separating myself from my domain'd blog, and to me vox allows me to get to know folks better - at my domain, I feel like I am speaking to myself.

Funny, I started out on a hosted blog (Blogger), went to a blog tool (several actually) on my own domain, and now I am back on a hosted blog. Everything old is new again?

Regardless, even though I don't blog (here) as much as I did back in the day (domain'd blog), I like the "feel" of Vox much better that when I was blogging in a vaccum. Like I said before, Vox reminds me of when blogging was new, and you were friends with other bloggers.

So, that's how I feel. Now, let's get to know each other!

I mentioned this on Eric's site, but I thought it was worth a post.

One of my favorite add-ons for IE and Firefox was Onfolio. With it, I could snag and save bits of web pages that were interesting, or that I didn't have time to read (but would later). When Onfolio was purchased by Microsoft, things changed.

Out went the Firefox support, the Academic version was killed and to use Onfolio, you had to install the Microsoft search toolbar. No thanks.

Then I read about Clipmarks somewhere online. It looked cool, so I installed the Firefox extension, got busy, and never bothered to create a login. Then I saw that Clipmarks was able to post to VOX, and I created my account right away.

As you can see, I have been using it A LOT ever since. The best use, for me, is to "Clip" things I find intersting every day (check my Clipmarks page).

Usually, I have nearly 30 tabs open in Firefox. That is TOO MANY and it bogs down my computer. But, I keep them open because there are usualy one or 2 things on a website that I think is important. I keep the page open so I will remember to go back to it. Only I don't. I always THINK I will, but I never do. So, by "clipping" that certain item on a web page, and posting it, I am actually MORE productive.

* My PC runs smoother due to less open tabs
* I have no anxiety about all my un-read tabs that I have something I need to read
* All those items are organized by tag and subject on Clipmarks
* I can blog anything I clip, and share it with you fine folks 

What I like about it, even more than Onfolio, is that I can share what I find interesting. Now, I am not much for participating in Social News networks (thought I read Digg daily I don't contribute - more on that another day). But Clipmarks makes it a breeze. Not only can I blog to Vox, but I can share my "Clips" with the Clipmarks community. Sometimes, people even like the things I add!

So there ya go, that's why I dig Clipmarks. If you clip, add me to your list of Clippers!

Often I come across bloggers who are detailing their cancer experiences. It is one of the great things about the internet, the ability to share experiences.

I know these stories are inspirational to so many, they have been to me. Even though I only have cared for 2 people with cancer, I get very moved when I read these blogs.

Below I have listed a few that I read, and a few I just found. By no means is this a comprehensive list, just some that I know about. Feel free to introduce me to others .

Sandee - I Will Survive

Glenn's Cancer Blog

NPR's My Cancer Blog

MSNBC: Low Blow, one man's battle with prostate cancer

The Cancer Blog

The bad thing about being in Comet as an Alpha user, is the uncertainty.

I don't know where I stand.

Will I get to keep my blog when Comet goes live? If not, will I be able to export it?

Will there be a charge for Comet? Will I get Comet for free or at a discount for being a tester?

How much should I blog without knowing these things? How deep should my posts be if I don't know where it will all land?

If anyone has any answers, I'd sure like to know.

Call me jaded (Hiiii Jaded), but blogging hasn't been fun for me for a long, long time.

Maybe because the Blog world exploded. Maybe because folks I liked to read stopped blogging. Maybe because I quit reading blogs I used to love (for no fault of the author). Maybe because my readership dropped because my lack of interest showed.

Whatever the case, having had a blog for 6+ years you see a lot of change.

I think this is what is so interesting to me about Comet.Or Notcomet.

For the first time in I don't know how long, I am starting to have fun again. Not as much fun (yet) as "back in tha day" but I can sense it happening.

I think a lot of it is because many of the bloggers I lost touch with, are showing up here. As they should be, because they are all excellent, interesting, witty, funny, and just plain friendly.

Now I have no idea if I will be reconnecting in the way things used to be, and I am not sure that would be best anyway. But I have to tell you, seeing bloggers that I used to used to read (and some that even used to read me) is so cool. Plus, I am dscovering a lot of folks I've never met before - and I feel like I've known them for ages.

It really is like going back in time - back to the days when Blogging was new and Blogging was fun. When meeting another blogger you connected with was like discovering a $5 bill on the sidewalk.

Right now, it makes me think of this community as the "Little Rascals" ... it is like being a member of "Our Gang" again.

I am probably not communicating this very well. I am not sure if this even makes sense to anyone but me.

Things will probably be different once this service is open to the world, "Our Gang" will grow and dillute and spread out and drift. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe that is where Comet will make things different.

But for now, I am glad to be in the Clubhouse again.

Right Spanky?