3 ms·

Disqus vs. Proprietary?

9 points by methodin 16y ago

Which do you prefer when on a new site that you do not have an account for? Does using disqus change the way you interact with the site at all?

hackscribe 16y ago
I'm having the same dilemma in trying to decide if I should develop my own internal commenting system for my new site or just go with Disqus.
- methodin 16y ago
  I wonder if Disqus would promote people to comment or shy them away from it (maybe they don't like disqus for a reason?) Perhaps it makes sense to start with Disqus and if people request it build your own.
treeface 16y ago
This discussion might be of value to you: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2500716/open-source-comment-engines http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2500716/open-source-comme... There are also lots of other discussions related to this on SO. In my opinion: with disqus you get to be lazy. That's fine. I use it on my personal site. I don't think it allows for infinite branching (like on Reddit), but that requires a pretty nifty nosql solution, were you to do it on your own.
nyellin 16y ago
If you have a wordpress blog, you can try out Disqus and it will keep your comments even if you disable it. I used Intense Debate for my Wordpress blog. After some annoyances, I disabled it and switched back to Wordpress' own comments. I'll probably try out Disqus when I have time... It will irk visitors, but you can switch between commenting systems if you want to test.
latch 16y ago
Probably need more context to give a better answer. Seems like you are asking from a user's point of view. I'll almost always use disqus if it's available to leave a comment, generally because it's simpler. Not having disqus doesn't change my willingness to contribute, providing I can do so simply..like entering my name and email. If I have to register/confirm/activate forget about it unless it's a site I'm particularly invested in (say, HN). From the development point of view, unless you have specific needs which disqus doesn't meet, I don't see why anyone wouldn't use them. They've turned the "writing a blog in language XYZ" tutorials into 5 minute exercises. On the top end, they are used by an ever growing and impressive list of people. Finally, since you can export all comments at any times, I really don't see what you lose.
hasenj 16y ago
From a user perspective, I find disqus a bit annoying .. I don't know, it's a bit too "in your face" if you know what I mean? A good UI goes out of your way, disqus doesn't quite do that very well. That's just my opinion. I actually use disqus for tumblr, because there isn't much of another choice there.
JonLim 16y ago
I really enjoy using Disqus for a number of reasons. 1) Users can easily comment, with or without an account, with their Twitter, with their Facebook, etc. 2) It can create a greater amount of exposure for that particular post + comment (Through Twitter and Facebook broadcasts) 3) Disqus has a very clean look about it and the way it presents posts that I really enjoy 4) You can easily moderate + view statistics of various sites in one central location (Disqus website) Hope that helps!

9 points by methodin 16y ago

Which do you prefer when on a new site that you do not have an account for? Does using disqus change the way you interact with the site at all?

hackscribe 16y ago

I'm having the same dilemma in trying to decide if I should develop my own internal commenting system for my new site or just go with Disqus.

methodin 16y ago
I wonder if Disqus would promote people to comment or shy them away from it (maybe they don't like disqus for a reason?) Perhaps it makes sense to start with Disqus and if people request it build your own.

treeface 16y ago

This discussion might be of value to you: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2500716/open-source-comment-engines http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2500716/open-source-comme... There are also lots of other discussions related to this on SO. In my opinion: with disqus you get to be lazy. That's fine. I use it on my personal site. I don't think it allows for infinite branching (like on Reddit), but that requires a pretty nifty nosql solution, were you to do it on your own.

nyellin 16y ago

If you have a wordpress blog, you can try out Disqus and it will keep your comments even if you disable it. I used Intense Debate for my Wordpress blog. After some annoyances, I disabled it and switched back to Wordpress' own comments. I'll probably try out Disqus when I have time... It will irk visitors, but you can switch between commenting systems if you want to test.

latch 16y ago

Probably need more context to give a better answer. Seems like you are asking from a user's point of view. I'll almost always use disqus if it's available to leave a comment, generally because it's simpler. Not having disqus doesn't change my willingness to contribute, providing I can do so simply..like entering my name and email. If I have to register/confirm/activate forget about it unless it's a site I'm particularly invested in (say, HN). From the development point of view, unless you have specific needs which disqus doesn't meet, I don't see why anyone wouldn't use them. They've turned the "writing a blog in language XYZ" tutorials into 5 minute exercises. On the top end, they are used by an ever growing and impressive list of people. Finally, since you can export all comments at any times, I really don't see what you lose.

hasenj 16y ago

From a user perspective, I find disqus a bit annoying .. I don't know, it's a bit too "in your face" if you know what I mean? A good UI goes out of your way, disqus doesn't quite do that very well. That's just my opinion. I actually use disqus for tumblr, because there isn't much of another choice there.

JonLim 16y ago

I really enjoy using Disqus for a number of reasons. 1) Users can easily comment, with or without an account, with their Twitter, with their Facebook, etc. 2) It can create a greater amount of exposure for that particular post + comment (Through Twitter and Facebook broadcasts) 3) Disqus has a very clean look about it and the way it presents posts that I really enjoy 4) You can easily moderate + view statistics of various sites in one central location (Disqus website) Hope that helps!