Reading List Use Requires Recognition Of The Owner

Last year, we saw a number of reports from Blogger account owners with empty Reading Lists.

When first reported, the common observation mentioned "one entry". Recently, we found out what the one entry was.

All I get is Blogger Buzz - which I could care less about!

The account owner does not know that Blogger Buzz is automatically a part of every Reading List.

The fact that Blogger Buzz is being seen indicates that the personal portion of the Reading List is actually empty. This is similar to problems removing Reading List content, and suggests that the account owner is not being recognised.

There are two possible reasons for a Reading List being completely, constantly, and inappropriately empty.

• The owner is using the wrong Blogger account.
• The browser being used is subject to a cookie or script filter.

Wrong Blogger account being used

It's not hard to recognise an empty Reading List (or one with just one entry, which was not requested).

We've been discussing problems resulting from having additional Blogger accounts (intentional or non intentional) for many years. If someone sets up a Reading List for one Blogger account, then uses a different account, there will be no Reading List for the second account.

If the owner then sets up a Reading List for a second (third, ...) account, unless very lucky, there will be tiny differences between the two Reading Lists. If the account owner is just using Blogger to read blogs - and does not own any blogs - it is possible that other accounts could be used. The owner may occasionally notice miniscule differences, but never bother to diagnose the differences.

Cookie / script filter, preventing identification

Whether the account owner is using the intended account, or an additional account - if the account can't be identified, Blogger can't generate a Reading List either.

If the script, which identifies the owner, doesn't run - or if the cookie identifying the owner can't be read - a Reading List can't be generated. Cookies and scripts can be filtered, for various reasons.

Thanks to ever changing security needs, and unannounced updates to many security products, a filter which worked yesterday may not work today. People unaware of security updates won't think to check the update log for any security product - and some may not be aware that they have security products that can cause problems.

The end result

There are several reasons for an unreliable Reading List - but this will generally result in inconsistencies over time, or partial displays. An empty Reading List has definable causes, with predictable results.

If the Blogger account cannot be recognised, Blogger won't show a Reading List - other than the sometimes unwelcome Blogger Buzz entry.

If You Travel, Be Prepared To Prove Identity

We're seeing reports from people who claim to be traveling, and who can't login and access their blogs.

Google appears to now authenticate us using current location, as well as account name / password. We see occasional reports, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue, about new security procedures.

I am traveling, and I need to access my Blogger account from another country. I know my account name and password - and I logged in successfully. But after logging in, I am still being asked to prove my identity!!

This blog owner is finding a problem, with Google taking extra measures to protect our accounts and blogs.

Google is trying to protect us, from people who access the Internet from different countries - and who try to access our Google accounts, and steal control of our blogs.

Somebody in a foreign land, accessing your account, may not be you.

If you normally access the Internet from your home, and you travel to another location and try to login to Blogger / Google, you may be asked for additional details, to prove that you are the legal owner of your Blogger account. You may feel like you are being treated discourteously, when this happens.

In reality, Blogger is simply trying to keep your blogs under your control, by preventing people other than you from stealing your Blogger account, blogs, and email account - and possibly, your friends Blogger account, blogs, and email account.

When you travel, you spend time preparing for the trip.

When you prepare to travel to a distant country, you are responsible for getting your travel documents (passport), permissions (visas), maybe make health preparation (update immunisations, get extra medications) - and learn a minimum amount of the local language, before you go.

Maybe you should also spend some time getting your Blogger / Google account in order (update any backup details, such as backup email address and phone number). Even, plan an account recovery, from time to time.

This is an excellent time to try 2-Step Verification.

You might even consider setting up Google 2-Step Verification - and generating a set of one time backup authentication codes.

If you don't prepare your account for travel, you may have to wait until you get home, to post to your blog. You may even be asked for proof of identity, when you get home, too.

Your Reading List Is Unique To You

One question, that I have never seen specifically asked, is about our following, reading lists, and blog subscriptions in general.

Why do I have to login to Blogger, to maintain my Reading List?

The blog follower / owner has asked a question that is involved in various problems, in Blogger Help Forum: Get Help with an Issue - but with this question so easily overlooked.

The Blogger dashboard Reading List, which so many use transparently, is unique to each of us.

Similar to the confusion about the email address, mysteriously displayed on our Blogger dashboard, is the unstated detail that each of us has our own personal set of followed blogs - and consequently, our own Reading List.

If you want to maintain the (Blogger Following / Google Friend Connect) Followers community, on your blog, you are forced to do this, as part of the Followers GUI. When you are able to access the Reading List "gear" icon, and "Manage Blogs I'm Following", you have already logged in - possibly, without realising.

Sometimes, blog owners have learned of various dashboard shortcuts - and use them transparently. All blog dashboard access requires a login - to simply prove, to Blogger, that you are the owner of the blog in question.

Most blog owners understand, instinctively, that they must login to access each blog dashboard. Not everybody realises, however, that they have their individual Reading List - also accessed by their own login, on the dashboard "home" page.

Along with having your own Reading List, you have your own reading list maintenance wizard (aka "Manage Blogs I'm Following" - or possibly the Google Friend Connect equivalent, for Blogger accounts that use Google+ profiles). To access your own wizard, you must identify yourself, by logging in to Blogger.

Failure to use the right Blogger account, or using a computer that prevents proper identification, leads to an empty Reading List - or to a list with just one entry. This is one reason for some people claiming that the Reading List is unreliable.

The Account / Blog Recovery Instructions Don't Work!

Every day we see the complaints, of the hundreds.

Your instructions, for recovering access to my Blogger account, don't work!

And alternately, we see the anguish.

I can't login to my Blogger account, because my account is locked!!

And the final complaint, which is the most heartbreaking.

I can login, but my blog is not on my dashboard - and someone has filled my blog, with spam!!!

These are all reports about the same problem, in alternate universes.

Any time Blogger Engineering changes their account / blog recovery options, and cuts down on the numbers of one of the three, the other two will surely increase in number - because all three are symptoms of the same problem. People simply refuse to remember their account names and passwords.

There is one solution, which would be 100% effective, and drive the numbers of each of the hundreds, to zero.

Everybody, without exception, would simply remember their account name and password.

Were that to happen, Blogger Security could remove all "backdoor" accesses and recovery tools, and blog thieves would have to go back to Barista College, or Hamburger University. There would be no more stealing control of peoples accounts or blogs - save maybe by watching somebody in public, as they login.

The recovery instructions do work, for people who make some effort.

The recovery instructions do not work, because you, the blog owner, simply don't make enough effort to remember / retain control of your accounts, or to protect your accounts. And in some cases, you simply have protected your identity, to make you completely anonymous - and can't identify yourself, because you are anonymous.

Remember your login details, and be one of the millions who work on their blogs.

If you remember your account name and password - and do not ever let your account name and password be known in public - you will never have to worry about account / blog recovery. You would then be one of the millions who do not care about account / blog recovery, because they never need to use the recovery tools.

Be prepared to re authenticate, when you travel!

And if you travel, be prepared! Setup Google 2-Step Verification before you step out the door. And whether you travel, or stay in the same place, use your account, and publish your blog, regularly.

Millions don't worry. Become one of the millions. Reduce the numbers of the hundreds.

If you're learning this concept too late - as many are, periodically - start a new blog, and combine the old and new blogs, in a blog cluster.

Confusion About EMail Addresses Based On Google Apps Provided Email Domains

Since 2009, I've been explaining the intricate relationships between Blogger accounts, email addresses, and Google accounts.

One of the challenges of logging in to Blogger or Google involves account names and passwords, that may be shared with an email account that is the basis for the Blogger / Google account name.

Non GMail based Blogger / Google accounts initially share an account name / email address with the source non GMail email account. If you change a non GMail email address, the Blogger account name will not change. If you delete a non GMail account, the Blogger account is not deleted. Finally, even with shared account names, the passwords between the email account, and the Blogger / Google account, are not automatically shared.

With a GMail / Google based Blogger account, on the other hand, both the account name and password will be shared - since it's the same account. If you delete a GMail / Google Blogger account, the Blogger account - and all owned blogs - are also deleted.

Besides the account name / password confusion, use of the Google login wizard is complicated by use of Google Apps based email accounts.

Use of the new Google login wizard is a challenge because of the blind login process - and the lack of detailed diagnostics, when an incorrect account name or password is entered. The lack of detailed diagnostics helps prevent hacking of our Google accounts, when our email address and various personal details become known to the public. Any mistakes result in one monolithic error.

The email or password you entered is incorrect.

Google Apps based email accounts are a frequent concern, when frustrated custom domain owners need to access their Google Apps accounts, to either update domain registration payment details, or to access the registrars domain management dashboard.

Google Apps access, which uses the Google multi-account login wizard, is complicated by domain owners who do not realise (or remember) the non GMail based Google Apps account name - or the password.

Before Google Apps based email domains became an issue, it was possible to easily identify non GMail based Blogger / Google accounts, as opposed to GMail based accounts, based on one significant detail - the absence of "gmail.com" / "googlemail.com" in the account name.

Observing that a given Blogger account name did not include "gmail.com" / "googlemail.com", we could advise a Blogger account owner of the issues involving account name / password sharing, between the source email account, and the Blogger / Google account.

Thanks to the existence of Google Apps based email domains, it is now possible to have GMail / Google accounts which lack the "gmail.com" / "googlemail.com" in the account name - and we see the confusion.

• Some blog owners may delete an unused "non GMail" Google account, not realising that they are deleting the necessary Blogger / Google account that owns a given blog.
• Other blog owners may be unable to use the Google login wizard effectively, since they don't understand that a non "GMail.com" account may be a Google account.
• And, in truly unfortunate scenarios, we have blog owners who lose control of their blogs when their employer, Internet Service Provider, or school converts their domain to use Google apps management

Just as it's impossible to canonically identify "legacy" accounts, it's a challenge to adequately describe the issues specific to Google Apps based non "GMail.com" Blogger / Google accounts. Control and synchronisation issues, relevant to both the account names and passwords, will always cause confusion, to Blogger blog owners.

Articles about regaining account control - and proper use of the new Google One Login wizard - will be referenced frequently, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken.

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Help Me! I Can't Access My Blogger Account!

Every week, we see the anguished cry of blog owners, who don't have access to maintain, or publish to, their blogs.

Help me! My email address changed last month, I dropped my phone into the sink, and now I can't sign in to my blog!

If you look at the fine print, you see the full story.

Ask enough questions, and the details will come forth.

Help Me! I never bothered to remember my password - I used the Forgot Password wizard to reset my password every time I wanted to sign in to my Blogger account. My email address changed last month, my phone number changed last week, I can't get the email from the Forgot Password wizard, or the new Blogger Account / Blog Recovery wizard - and now I can't sign in to my blog!

As I have repeatedly advised folks, and previously pointed out in 2010, Blogger lets us maintain our blogs anonymously, and promises anonymous access and ownership for eternity. There is no magic token attached to our blogs, that let us conveniently email Blogger and ask for a second (or a third) back door access to our accounts.

If you can't access your Blogger account, you can't maintain your blog. Use the Forgot Password wizard, when you have access to the email account - or the new Blogger Account / Blog Recovery wizard.

And learn how to use the Google "One account" login wizard, properly.

Blogger wants to protect us, and our blogs, from attacks from people who claim to be us, but are not. Help them to protect our accounts, and our blogs - don't require that they gratuitously allow you access to your blog when you forget the password, and have no second - or third - back door access to reset the password.

Your Blogger Account: Anonymity Vs Security

One of the most frustrating problems with Blogger accounts involves the conflicting goals of anonymity and security.

1. We are allowed to publish a Blogger blog in complete anonymity. Blogger acknowledges and supports that need.
2. Anonymity comes at a price. Should you succeed in intentionally becoming completely anonymous, then forget the account name or password, there will be no way for Blogger to help you to recover access to your Blogger account.

Every week, we get reports from people who can't access their blogs because they changed their email address without proper planning, or they don't know which account owns a given blog. And some time ago, we dealt with a small flood of reports from people whose Blogger accounts - and blogs - had been stolen, using some devious hacking techniques.

Blogger and Google have added additional options for account authentication.

Considering the need to prevent account and blog hijacking, yet allow people to be able to recover account access after changing email address, this is a righteous advance. The options may not please people who value anonymity, though.

Blogger / Google has added an additional account verification option, Two Step Verification.

2-Step Verification improves your chance of successful account recovery.

Two-Step Verification will improve the chance of your being able to recover account access, if you forget the account name or password.

For those unable or unwilling to accept 2-Step Verification, and where tracking cookies are not regarded as a devious plot, Blogger uses demographic authentication. First seen by people who travel being asked to prove identity, demographic authentication appears to be used when you need to recover account access, or when you login from a different computer.

2-Step Verification may not be acknowledged by everybody as a major advance.

For people who have had their Blogger account hacked and blogs stolen, or people who fear this fate, demographic authentication may be seen as a positive direction for Blogger / Google to take, For people who fear "big brother" and the never escapable cameras and total lack of privacy, an authentication process which tracks each of us, as we login, may be seen as privacy violation.

We will be recognised, demographically, by computer, by geographic location, and by Internet connection. This may substitute for, or enhance, 2-Step Verification.

Two Step Verification - which uses your cell phone or home phone as a verification token - will not work, for everybody.

• It requires advance action. By the time you realise that you have forgotten the account name / password, and you cannot use the backup email address to reset the password, it's too late to register your cell or home phone.
• If you value anonymity, you may not want your activity tracked.
• If you value anonymity, you may not want Google to have your cell or home phone number, stored in their databases.

For people who understand the risk of having ones Blogger account hacked - or who want to provide an additional option for account recovery when necessary, however, this is a solid option.

Account Recovery Options, And Prevention Of Blogger Account / Blog Hijacks

Ever since Blogger started using Google accounts to authenticate Blogger account access, blog owners have had trouble maintaining access to their accounts and their blogs.

Not all Blogger blog owners understand - and less accept - the measures that Blogger has taken, to prevent malicious activity, by unknown persons who would use Internet obscurity to hijack their accounts, and their blogs.

Every day, we see numerous complaints in Blogger Help Forum: How Do I?, about inability to recover account access. And, we see occasional (not occasional enough) reports about blogs now owned by people who are not personally known by the rightful blog owner.

Blogger is continually improving their account recovery, authentication, and account hijack prevention policies. Unfortunately, as they improve in one area, they make things more difficult in another.

Until late 2010, Blogger / Google offered several options, for recovering account / blog access.

• An automated wizard, where you could provide the URL of your blog, and have account recovery instructions sent to the email address registered with the Blogger account(s) that administered the blog, accompanied by the welcomed advice

  We've sent password reset instructions to your email account xxxxxxx@yyyyy.zzz.

• An option, should the latter email account be unusable (the owner graduated from school, changed ISPs, changed jobs), to walk into many regional Google offices, present proof of identity, and regain access to some Blogger accounts.
• In some limited cases, to transmit a facsimile of specific proof of identity documents to a Google office, have identity verified remotely, and regain access to some Blogger accounts.

In early 2011, we noted a significant number of cases where people were reporting logging in to Blogger, and finding various personal blogs missing from the dashboard blog lists. Checking the blogs themselves, they were found to be still online - but now owned by other persons. In an alarming number of cases, the persons then owning the mysterious blogs appeared to be part of a malicious and well planned attack, against Blogger accounts and blogs.

In mid 2011, Blogger changed the automated account recovery wizard, to not display the email address being used for the password recovery. Now, we see less detail.

We've sent login instructions to your GMail account.

or even

We've sent login instructions to your account at y****.com.

To recover account access, the blog owner is now required to remember the email address - or minimally, to have access to all owned email accounts, and check each account, one by one, until login instructions are found.

To reduce the need for local and remote identity verification, Google enhanced the account recovery wizard, where the blog owner can provide an email address (whether or not usable for incoming email), provide secondary details to prove identity, and regain access. They also added Two Step Verification, which lets you use a pre registered cell or home phone, as an additional / alternate identity token - both to prevent hijackings, and to recover account access.

Unfortunately, people who idly forget the password and the email address, or who forget (or never provide) secondary personal details when setting up their Google account, will always be a challenge. Another challenge is provided by people who value anonymity, and setup multiple email accounts to obscure their real life identity from their Blogger blog ownership.

In specific cases, Blogger is known to provide mysterious "hints" to people who have gratuitously used multiple email accounts - and who cannot now remember all accounts used.

Your email address is a***0@yahoo.com.

However, the limited effectiveness of hints should always be noted. The Blogger Help Forum: [FAQ] Regarding account-related issues won't be going away, for lack of traffic, any time soon.

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Deletion Is Not Alternative, If You Cannot Authenticate

Some supposed blog owners, unable to login to their Blogger accounts because they forgot the Blogger account name or password (or never bothered to remember either), try to compromise.

They figure that, if they can't regain access to the blog, then Blogger will be willing to simply delete the blog - and everybody will be happy. They appear to have overlooked the repeatedly stated policy, which promises us that our blogs will be ours, as long as we wish to own them.

The problem is, blog deletions are as sensitive to illegal action as account recovery - and illegal actions are a very real threat to our blogs.

Blogger exercises due diligence, in requiring proper authentication for Blogger account recovery.

Blogger can't delete a blog, any more freely than give control of a blog.

Any requested deletion, of any supposedly owned blog, must be no less controlled.

Blogger promises us

Blogger accounts and Blog*Spot addresses do not expire.

This means that our blogs will not be deleted, or transferred to the control of another person, without careful validation of the person requesting the deletion or transfer. If the other person cannot prove rightful ownership of the blog in question, Blogger is not legally entitled to delete the blog, any more than they are entitled to transfer control of the blog.

We are permitted to own and publish our blogs, without any minimal required activity, and without any required proof of our real life identity. We are entitled to publish our blogs when we see fit - and are entitled to come back to our blogs after any length of time - if we are able to authenticate ourselves.

Blogger lets us publish, at any rate we prefer.

Blogger will not harass us when we are inactive, whether or not anybody else offers to publish to our URL with more vigour. Neither will they give anybody else control of our blogs, either to publish - or to delete. Similarly, they won't give me - or you - access to somebody else's blog, or harass somebody else.

If you find yourself unable to access your blog, and delete it on your own, try using the improved Google account recovery wizard, before asking that Blogger delete your blog for you.

In limited cases, the Google tool Removing Content From Google may be useful. Finally, concentrate on making your blog or website more useful, and organically improving your reputation.

Why Does Blogger Use Email, To Identify You?

One of the most constantly seen discussions, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken, involves people who have forgotten their Blogger account name or password.

Generally, it's a rather simple task to recover access to one's Blogger account, should you forget / lose access to any one Blogger authentication token.

The Blogger Forgot your username or password? wizard will send, upon request, an account recovery email message, to the email address associated with the Blogger account needed, for any active and online blog. Just provide the blog name, read the email, and follow instructions.

Unfortunately, not all Blogger blog owners can always use email based account recovery.

Some blog owners, when advised to recover access to their Blogger blog by opening the account recover email message, are still unable to recovery access to their Blogger accounts.

Excuses abound - and there are so many different excuses, provided in the problem reports.

There are several reasons for using Blogger / Google email account based account names.

• Account name uniqueness, benefits Blogger / Google.
• Identity verification, benefits Blogger / Google.
• Name retention, benefits the account holder.

Unfortunately, not all Blogger blog owners appreciate those advantages - and some actively avoid them.

If you want to own or publish a Blogger blog, read a private blog, or comment on some Blogger blogs, you have to have a Blogger / Google account. For your convenience, you can have a Blogger / Google account name that's based on any mutually suitable email address.

If you don't want to use a single, active email address - or if changing your Blogger account, each time that you change email accounts, is not convenient - you won't be forced to use your active, current email address. You can use any available non GMail email address, for an account name - though there are advantages, in choosing an account name, carefully.

You can have as many GMail or non GMail email accounts, as you wish. However, keeping track of your email accounts is your responsibility - and only your responsibility. Blogger cannot support or track your multiple identities.

If you choose to not use your active, current email address in your Blogger account, and you ever forget the account name or password, please do not write into Blogger Help Forum: How Do I? and ask

What's my email address? Can I have a hint?

or

Can somebody please send me email to my current address?

Blogger Support cannot, legally, help you, in this case. When you're told

No.

please, don't complain.

A Google Account Does Not Have To Be GMail

Blogger uses the Google "One account" login to identify you, when your identity is important.

Occasionally, in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken, we still see evidence of confusion.

Some time ago, Google started making users to sign in with a Google address. I did not want a Google email address, but since Blogger was requiring it, I had to make one. I never had any intention of using it, but only wanted to use Blogger. Why did Google make the sign in procedure for Blogger the same as Google mail?

This person, as with other Blogger blog owners, does not understand the difference between a Google account, and a GMail (Google email) account.

When Blogger changed their login screen, and started instructing us to

Sign in with your Google account

they were making the term "Google account" more inclusive - not making the term "Blogger account" obsolete, or less inclusive.

Your Google account may be based on your Blogger account.

A Google account, in this case, is based upon your current Blogger account. A Blogger account can be based on a GMail email address - or it can, just as easily (more easily, actually) be based on a non GMail email address.

What the %^&&? I do not use GMail!


Your identity, using Blogger, is provided with a Blogger account.

Whether you are going to use Blogger for commenting, as a blog Follower, as a blog owner, as a private blog reader, or a team blog member, your identity needs to be verified. This requires a Blogger account - it just does not have to be a GMail account, if you don't want GMail.

Please, allow your identity to be provided - when necessary.

You will need to use a computer that permits your identity to be checked. Computers with excessive security, that needlessly anonymise you, will be a problem, with many Blogger / Google features and services.

When you see a reference to "your Google account", don't spend time complaining about violation of your right to choose your email address. Just use your Blogger account.

Your Blogger Account: Privacy Vs Account Recovery

Occasionally, in Blogger Help Forum: How Do I?, we see questions about publishing a blog, anonymously.

How do I publish a blog, without having my identity revealed?

One of the best techniques for keeping yourself anonymous is to use different Blogger / Google accounts, for different blogs. But, there's a downside to that technique.

I can't regain access to my blog, because I don't remember the email address!

Sometimes, it's a bit more embarrassing.

I can't regain access to my blog, because I don't remember the GMail address!

And here, we see blog owners who took the need for secrecy a bit far.

Regardless of whether a Blogger account is based on a GMail, or a non GMail address, backup access - should one forget the account name or password - uses the email address.

You can't maintain anonymity, if you ever have to reveal your email address.

If you want to publish your blog without revealing your identity, that's fine - Blogger permits this - and even supports your need. In order to support this need, though, you have to allow them to refuse to disclose any personal details.

Neither the account name - or email address, should you forget either, can be disclosed, without revealing your identity.

If you maintain email account access, you can always recover Blogger access.

One of the reasons for using one's email address (Gmail, or non GMail) as your Blogger account name is so you won't forget the account name. If you forget your email address, you'll have worse problems than just inability to publish your Blogger blog.

You need your Blogger account based on an active email address.

Unfortunately, if you choose to use one "email address" to read and send your email, and a second "email address" (whether bogus, or genuine) to publish a Blogger blog, you are not as likely to remember your Blogger account name. That's a decision that you have to make. If you want to publish your blog anonymously, don't expect Blogger to gratuitously break your anonymity, later.

If you forget an identity detail, you must break anonymity.

In this case, you're going to have to hope that you can supply your email account hosts - either GMail, or non GMail - with enough personal details (anonymity not possible, now) so they can restore your email account, and / or recover access to your Inbox - and you can open the Blogger account recovery message, and regain access to your Blogger account.

If you'e forgotten the backup email address of the active account, again, don't expect Blogger to tell you what you need to remember. Now, you'll have do do some research, and hope that you can find the forgotten email address mentioned in email, in one of your remembered accounts - or maybe in a friends email account.

You'll have problem with a deleted / locked account or blog, without email.

This scenario will be intensified, when a blog is deleted for any of several different reasons - possibly including accused DMCA Violation.

There is one valid reason to have multiple email addresses.

There is one reason to maintain two (or more) email addresses. If you have a small business, or you communicate through your blog using email, don't use your Blogger account email for casual contact with the public.

Here, using two (or more) email addresses makes sense - but maintain Blogger account names and email addresses, constantly.

Use Google Two Step Verification, for extra protection.

At any rate, if you're able to recover access, this time, consider using Two Step Verification, for future protection. Especially if you travel.

You Are An Adult - Let Blogger Treat You As An Adult

Many Blogger blog owners overlook the details, in the legal requirements for blog ownership and maintenance.

Confusion in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken is seen periodically.

I faked my birthdate when I setup my first blog - and Blogger just cancelled my blog!

and

My 10 year old child created a blog, which is full of happy memories - and the blog was just deleted!!

and

Blogger will not tell me the email address, so I can login to my blog!!!

None of these people understand that Blogger is not being capricious or petty, in denying them their rights to access / own / maintain their blog.

Ownership of Blogger (and other brands) blogs has become a simple and automatic extension of one's daily life, for many people.

Children may expose themselves to real life dangers.

Like creation of a "Social Security Account" (in the USA), some people routinely create a blog, without fully reasoning out why doing so may not be in their best interest. How many parents would intentionally let their child walk to school, wearing a t-shirt that says "My name is xxxxx", or "I live at (my home address)!".

Most modern day parents know that child molesters, kidnappers, and other predators, hanging out near the school as the kids get out, will walk up to some child, innocently wearing such a t-shirt, greet the child by name - and convince him / her to accept a ride home, because the parent is "waiting anxiously for child to get home because of an emergency".

You just do not do this.

Children may expose themselves to Internet based dangers.

Oddly enough, however, some parents allow (maybe, encourage) their underage children to create a blog, containing numerous personal details, maybe even showing pictures and names of their friends. Then, when a Blogger account or blog, misused in this way, is deleted by Blogger, the complaint will be

How can Blogger do this to my child? He setup that blog, and really enjoyed what he was doing!

not accepting the fact that Blogger is trying to protect their child (and his friends).

You just do not do this, either.

Blogger protects young people, who have not yet developed good judgement skills.

Pre teen children are legally the responsibility of their parents, for good reasons. Pre teens are still learning the judgement skills necessary for many privileges - and one privilege is blog ownership.

Blogger blog owners must be at least 13 years of age. Blog owners under 13 years of age may manage blogs legally owned by their parents - and hopefully, controlled by their parents, to some degree.

Adults, too, may expose themselves - or their Blogger accounts, without thinking.

As adults, we too may publish online content, that may be used to attack us. Yet when Blogger tries to protect us from our innocent mistakes, the response, from some blog owners, is angry accusation, implying that Blogger is maliciously denying access to our blogs.

Very few accusers consider the need that we must accept basic responsibilities, when we publish a Blogger blog.

Protect yourself - and help other people to protect themselves.

Folks, not everybody who greets you by name is your friend - and not everybody who prevents you from doing something is your enemy. The world is full of people who do not have your best interests in mind.

I know that you know this - so act as if you understand what this means. Please.

The Comment Notification Option Is Subject To The Realities Of Authentication, And Cookie Filtering

Some blog guests cannot understand why they can't get notifications, when someone leaves a comment after them, attached to a post comment form.

Why don't I see the option to "Email follow-up comments to xxxxxxx@yyyyy.zzz"?

or maybe

I selected the option to "Email follow-up comments to xxxxxxx@yyyyy.zzz", but I don't get any reply notifications. Why am I being mistreated by Blogger?

These people do not realise that comment follow-up notifications are subject to the same problems as the embedded comment form.

Many people, preparing to post a comment on their favourite blog, look forward to reading replies from other blog guests - and become confused when they do not see the option to

Email follow-up comments to xxxxxxx@yyyyy.zzz

They don't realise that they will only see that option when they are logged in using a Blogger account - and when their login status is available to the code behind the comment form. Like the desire to post a comment, using one's Blogger / Google account, this option requires availability of the Blogger login cookie, identifying the commenter as being logged in.

An incorrectly set cookie filter can either prevent availability of the comment notification option, when using the embedded comment form (if "third party cookies" are blocked) - or can prevent availability of the option on any comment form (if cookies, in general, are blocked). In either case, the commenter will be treated, by the comment form code, as not being logged in - and no option will be provided.

Also, if the commenter is successfully logged in, but is not using a Blogger account that's attached to an active email address, he / she can select the notification option, but will never receive a notification. This is a typical problem, with a Blogger account setup using a bogus email address, whether accidentally or intentionally.

So, if you don't see the notification option when you post a comment - or if you select the option but never get any email, don't immediately and unilaterally blame the Blogger commenting feature. Do some research, before reporting your problem.

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June 2012 Graduates Should Start Planning Now

The discussion about Blogger account and blog access recovery, and authentication requirements, never ends.

Account / blog ownership recovery is not at all a simple issue. Occasionally, we see the extreme cases, and the frustration.

I made two blogs for school in im pretty sure 2009, so three years later I am no longer at that school, and it was registered with that school email, therefore I have no access to this email anymore, and the email account has most likely been deleted. I really need to delete these blogs because there are photos of people on there and they dont want them there.

My personal opinion is that the solution is obvious. If you cannot maintain either primary access (account name and password) or secondary access (access to a working email account) to your Blogger account, you should not publish a Blogger blog.

My opinion is not always well received, in Blogger Help forum. Some people have criticised me for my apparent lack of compassion, for the improvident blog owners. My sympathy is with blog owners, in general.

My most recent FAQ discussing this issue seems to have reduced - but not eliminated - the criticism.

One popular scenario seems to involve people who recently underwent an email address transition - for instance, recently graduating from college, and having to suddenly change email addresses.

In the past, one popular activity, involved in the frequently repeated scenario "I don't have access to my email account any more and, of course, never bothered to remember my password" would typically start with the plea

Please, can Blogger tell me my email address??!!

and Blogger Support would helpfully provide a hint

Your email address is r****or @ gmail . com

or possibly

Your email address is r****** @ ***e . edu

Many of those requests have come from people who, as college students, had created one or more blogs of frivolous or offensive content, that need to be deleted immediately (ignoring the blatant lack of ability to prove their ownership of the blog(s) in question).

This isn't an unusual scenario, among young people. We should note that most college grads can hopefully remember the name of the college attended, so the hint "***e . edu" should not be too obscure for the graduates themselves.

Recent developments in Blogger account recovery makes me hopeful that Blogger will soon eliminate the silly account name hints, and start relying entirely upon automated recovery processes. I do not think that it's unreasonable to expect that, by June 2012, those preparing to graduate from college should consider their post graduation activity checklist with some care.

• File forwarding address for all postal mail.
• Pack up and move all personal possessions in dormitory room.
• Return rented and borrowed books and similar materials to owners.

It's possible that they could add

• Setup a HotMail, GMail, or Yahoo email account.
• Transfer control of all personal Blogger blogs to a new Blogger account, based upon the new email account.

And possibly even

• Remember the new Blogger account name, and password.

Like Blogger blog ownership as a corporate resource, Blogger account management deserves some planning. If you are looking forward to graduating in June 2012, why not start preparing for graduation, now?

Please Blogger, Restore My Deleted Blog!! #2

In 2009, Blogger Support became weary from handling too many problem reports from blog owners who had made such a simple mistake.

I hit the wrong key, and deleted my blog! Help Me!!

They started archiving deleted blogs, and gave us a wizard to un delete a newly deleted blog, from the archive. Unfortunately, that ability to un delete a blog has two major limitations.

1. A deleted blog can be un deleted within 90 days.
2. A deleted blog can be un deleted by a blog administrator.

Some blog owners find out the relevance of the second limitation the hard way - after they delete their blog, then find out that they have two (or more) Blogger accounts.

From a cursory examination, two similar symptoms

I hit the wrong key, and deleted my blog!

and

I can't find my blog on the dashboard!

would result from the same problem, and have the same solution - un delete the deleted blog. However, the second symptom has an equally common diagnosis

You are logged in with the wrong Blogger account.

This diagnosis is generally derived from ownership analysis, of the missing blog.

Unfortunately, ownership can only be determined when the blog in question is online. And that is the problem seen, too many times, when people try to un delete their deleted blog.

If you just deleted your blog, there are two diagnostic procedures, commonly used in Blogger Help Forum: Something Is Broken, that you'll not find useful.

• Account recovery. The Blogger "Forgot your username or password?" wizard is useless, for a deleted blog.
• Ownership analysis. You cannot determine the owner, without examining live blog content.

If you just deleted your blog, and you don't have access to an owning Blogger account, you're going to have to brute force your way back to control. For each possible email address (GMail or non GMail), you must

1. Clear cache, cookies, and sessions (yes, all 3!), and restart the browser.
2. Use the Blogger "Forgot your username or password?" wizard, and plug in an email address.
3. See if you get email and can recover access to a Blogger account.
4. See if you can un delete anything from the dashboard, for that account.

This is going to be a frustrating exercise - but it's probably your only solution possible. There are only two ways to avoid this exercise.

• Don't delete your blog, by mistake.
• Always maintain access to your blog.

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Blogger Is Not Blocking Access To Your Blog

I've explained the issues about Blogger account maintenance, and blog access, so many times.

I've described it as possession being the law, or as reading between the lines, or even as responsible practice - and some people just don't understand these issues. Some people try to describe their problem, when they have a problem, as Blogger unlawfully stealing their possession.

Blogger won't give me access to my blog - do I need a court order to get access to my blog, and to my content?

At first glance, they have a point - Blogger has to give us access to our blogs, or they cease being our blogs. If you look closer though, there's a flaw in that reasoning.

Blogger lets you publish a blog, without identifying yourself legally to them, as long as you retain control of the blog.

To retain control, you have to access a Blogger account that owns the blog. You have two methods of access, to any Blogger account - a front door, and a back door.

1. The front door: The account name (email address when setup originally), and the current password.
2. The back door: The email address currently associated with the account, and access to that email address.

If you lose both the front door and the back door, you can't access the Blogger account, and you can't control the blog. If you lose access, don't blame Blogger for your loss of access.

Blogger is not preventing you from accessing your blog, and doing whatever you wish, with your blog - as long as you can prove that it's your blog. Blogger will assist you, when possible, to access your Blogger account, and your blog.

When you make it impossible, as when you lose both the front door and the back door, they can't assist you. If they can't assist you now, they will still hold the blog, patiently, until you are able to prove that it's your blog.

Your blog is still there, waiting for you to access it. It will remain there, waiting for you to access it. Blogger is not preventing you from accessing your blog.

Recovering Your Account Information

Blogger promises us that our blogs will be ours, forever, and that we are free to publish our blogs in privacy, if we so desire.

They do this by protecting our Blogger accounts behind Two Factor Authentication. Both the name of our Blogger account, and the password used, are our secret to keep.

Since both the account name and the password are secrets, you can't just write to Blogger Support one day and say

I forgot my account name - can you tell me what it is?

When you setup a Blogger account, you provide an email address, which will be used for recovering forgotten account names and passwords.

If you forget the account name, or need to reset the password, you can use the Forgot your username or password? wizard.

"Forgot?" has two options, which you use depending upon what you know.

The "Forgot?" wizard gives you two options, and sends a recovery email message accordingly.

• Recover access to an account. Provide the account name (the email address that you provided when opening the Blogger account), and the email goes to to the primary email address for that account.
• Recover access to the blog. Provide the URL of the blog in question, and the email goes to the owning account(s) for that blog.

There are several interesting details, with the "Forgot?" wizard.

• The wizard works only for BlogSpot URLs. If the blog is published to a non BlogSpot URL (as a custom domain), you will need to provide the original BlogSpot URL.
• The wizard works for all BlogSpot URLs - regardless of the Country Code alias which affects the blog owner. Whether the owner is in Canada (and seeing "xxxxxxx.blogspot.ca"), in Mexico (and seeing "xxxxxxx.blogspot.mx"), or in the USA (and seeing either "xxxxxxx.blogspot.com" or "xxxxxxx.blogspot.us"), you use only the "xxxxxxx" BlogSpot name, in this wizard.
• The wizard works only for active URLs. If the blog is deleted, either by you or by Blogger, you won't be able to recover access.
• You will only get the recovery email, when you login to the recovery email account. You have to use an active email account, for recovering your login information.
• Blogger will not tell you the email address, since the account name / email address is kept a secret.
• Blogger cannot tell you anything, if you have intentionally obscured your identity.

In cases where the account was last used under Old (Pre 2006) Blogger, the Claim your blog wizard may be used - but note that Legacy accounts are no longer supported, in general.

"Having trouble?" complements "Forgot?".

A third possibility would be the Google Having trouble signing in? wizard. You may also find Google Accounts: Secondary Email Address to provide relevant - if not welcome - advice.

In any case, your personal identity is kept a secret from others - as other folks identities are kept a secret from you. If you don't have access to the email account that's associated with the Blogger account, you don't get the email. That restriction leads to interesting scenarios - such as mysterious email received from the Forgot Password wizard, caused by desperation.

Whether you use either "Forgot?" wizard, when you open the email and login to Blogger as part of the authentication process, be sure that you provide / use the right Blogger / Google account. Alternately, clear cache, cookies, and sessions - then restart the browser - before executing either wizard. Do not claim or recover the blog, to an unknown or unexpected account.

Recovery is easiest done, using two browsers.

Account recovery will involve accessing two accounts, simultaneously - and is best done using two browsers.

It's possible that understanding the relationships between Blogger accounts, email addresses, and Google accounts may reduce your need to continue. If your account is based on a non GMail email address, you may wish to consider the special relationships.

Your next possible solution is to try using the Blogger "Forgot your password?" wizard. If "Forgot?" does not provide you enough clues, you're entitled to ask Blogger Support for help - but you need to understand the limitations of their ability to help.

If you choose to ask for help, consider making an effort to recover access to your GMail account, or to your non GMail account, as necessary. And when you check your email accounts, GMail or non GMail, check carefully.

Having recovered the account, you should be able to find the blogs previously owned - and possibly un delete them - starting from the "Deleted blogs" dashboard list.


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Some blog owners lose access to their #Blogger accounts - either forgetting the account name / password, or letting the blog go dormant and requiring demographic authentication when trying to access later. They expect that Blogger will just send them an access token, without verifying that they are the rightful owner.

They fail to observe that Blogger wants them to continue publishing their blog - and does not intend to let unknown parties have control of it, through failure to require verification of identity.

Private And Team Blog Membership Invitations Are Subject To Abuse

When you invite a designated reader to your private blog, or invite a member to your private or team blog, you use the Settings - Permissions wizard to send an email to the prospective member or reader. You select the email address to send the invitation to, based upon the known address of your prospective member or reader.

The prospective member / reader, upon receiving the email, is free to send it on, to any other email address that he or she uses, and to accept the membership by using any Blogger account - current, or setup at the time of accepting the invitation.

This allows anonymity in membership, by permitting somebody to accept membership, period. You have no way of knowing, nor should you know, what account or what email address your new member uses to accept membership. The only thing that you know is that a membership invitation was accepted, by a given prospective member.

Unfortunately, just as you don't know what account the membership was accepted under, you have no way of knowing how many people other than your targeted member were sent a copy of your invitation. That's a possible reason for some blogs mysteriously exceeding the 100 member limit.

The bottom line here is, just as you must choose your blog administrators wisely, so should you choose your members and readers. Don't just send an invitation to somebody, without considering the possibilities.

Help Me! I Can't Access My Blogger Account To Publish My Blog!

Every week, we see the anguished cry of blog owners, who don't have access to maintain, or publish to, their blogs.

Help me! My email address changed last month, and now I can't sign in to my blog!

But, if you look at the fine print, you see the full story

Help Me! I never bothered to remember my password - I used the Forgot Password wizard to reset my password every time I wanted to sign in to my Blogger account. My email address changed last month, I can't get the email from the Forgot Password wizard, and now I can't sign in to my blog!

As I have repeatedly advised folks, Blogger lets us maintain our blogs anonymously, and promises anonymous access and ownership for eternity. There is no magic token attached to our blogs, that let us conveniently email Blogger and ask for a second back door access to our accounts.

If you can't access your Blogger account, you can't maintain your blog. Use the Forgot Password wizard, when you have access to the email account.

Blogger wants to protect us, and our blogs, from devious attacks from people who claim to be us - but are not. Help Blogger Security to protect our accounts, and our blogs - don't require that they gratuitously allow you access to your blog when you forget the password, and have no back door access (or even second back door access) to reset the password.

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