Custom Domain Publishing Vs FTP Publishing - Understand The Difference

This week's announcement about the (lack of) future for FTP Publishing has started a shock wave of FUD and panic. Some folks in Blogger Help Forum: How Do I? may be panicking unnecessarily.

Am I in trouble? Do I need to switch back to BlogSpot - and if I do, can I keep my dot com name - mydomain.com?

In this case, we look at other clues in the question, and check out the domain.

mydomain.com.  3600 IN A 216.239.32.21
mydomain.com.  3600 IN A 216.239.34.21
mydomain.com.  3600 IN A 216.239.36.21
mydomain.com.  3600 IN A 216.239.38.21
www.mydomain.com. 3600 IN CNAME ghs.google.com.

That's a blog published to a custom domain, and that blogger has no need to worry. Custom domain publishing has offered an alternative to FTP publishing for a while - now, Blogger is exercising that alternative.

So, should you worry?

Look at the URL behind the "View Blog" link on the dashboard, and at the Settings - Publishing display.

My blog "Nitecruzr New Template Laboratory" is published to "nitecruzrtestnew.blogspot.com".

You're publishing on blogspot.com

My blog "The Real Blogger Status" is published to "blogging.nitecruzr.net".

You're publishing on a custom domain

My blog "Chuck's FTP Test" is published to "nitecruzr.com".

You're publishing via FTP

Only the latter blog - "Chuck's FTP Test" - needs to be migrated. The others are fine. Only worry about your blog, if you see

You're publishing via FTP

.

Does your blog

• Use a BlogSpot URL, exclusively?
• Have a layouts template?
• Have a shiny gadget, like a BlogList, Following, maybe a Google Translator?

If any of the above are true, then most likely, you do not use FTP Publishing. Relax, then get back to work.

Blogger FTP Info: Who's affected? provides a simpler answer to the above question.

• If your blog URL ends in "blogspot.com", you are not affected
• If you don't see "You're publishing via FTP" (or "You're publishing via S/FTP") when you go to "Settings | Publishing", you are not affected

If your blog is published by FTP to an external server, you have Until May 1 to plan and execute the migration - back to BlogSpot, then maybe to a custom domain.

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