Blogger changes…not for the better

I’ve long suspected that Google is trying to dissuade use of their Blogging platform (limiting compatibility with the excellent LiveWriter, and subsequently Open LiveWriter), this announcement on Blogger has done nothing to change my mind:

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And another...

Well, what fun!

The photos in my last post are visible on my computer, but not other computers....well not on Martin's computer anyway.

One thing I noticed: I hadn't made the album I took the photos from available for public viewing - that's now been changed.

This is a photo that I've copied and pasted from Google Photos straight into Blogger:




This photo is posted using the conventional Blogger method:

Blogger, LiveWriter and OpenLiveWriter.

I strongly suspect that work on OpenLiveWriter has stopped. I downloaded the most recent release which has supposedly fixed the problems encountered when trying to post photographs - it doesn't work, not for me anyway. Text only posts work fine, the brick wall appears when photographs are included in a post.  Things are very quiet on the OpenLiveWriter Twitter and Facebook pages, there's very little activity which more or less confirms my suspicions. I'm guessing that a major reason for this is because Google ultimately want to shut down Blogger (because they don't make any money out of it?) and they're making it more difficult to post. The original LiveWriter, a Microsoft product, provided an easy and very effective way of posting to blogs but Google, who control Blogger, appear to have moved the goalposts which effectively stopped full access via LiveWriter. Microsoft have since withdrawn LiveWriter which led to OpenLivewriter which is Open Source - although apparently still under the umbrella of Microsoft. OpenLiveWriter seemed to work for a while, but it wasn't long before it's access to Blogger was also blocked. Searching the web has uncovered a number of instances where it's been claimed that the problem has been sorted - but they're all beyond my limited technical ability. I'm happy to be corrected in my assumptions, but having spent a long time running round in circles I'm going to take some convincing. Anyroadup, here are a few photos from my first TGO Challenge, 2004.

Update:
This was originally posted using Blogger.
I then opened OpenLiveWriter and selected ‘Open Recent Post’ to open this post.
I then changed the font and font size before updating.
This seems to have been successful. So far.

Update 2:
Although the photos are visible on MY computer, others can’t see them….well Martin can’t.
I realised the album I took the photos from was private, I’ve now changed that to public….let’s see.
Update 3:
Maybe not...

P2P recce with Judith, a UFO, and a wild camp.

The reason for this test is the continuing problem I have with posting using Open LiveWriter….


The Plan (there’s sometimes A Plan) was to once again recce the route from Hope to New Mills.


Judith had been pressed into proof-reading my written route description, checking that the words on the paper bore some resemblance to the actual route on the ground. 


It proved to be nearly okay…..apart from the odd intruction to head East rather than West. Oh well.

Judith and I met up in Manchester and then hopped onto a train to Hope, arriving around mid-day.

.

Our route headed north from Hope station

September 2018 Pt2

Via de la Plata continued:

We spent the previous night in Silleda, in a hostal – a hotel type of place. It was wonderful, if you ignored the bed bugs.

Rob had the foresight to use his Permethryn-treated sleeping bag liner. Being a smart-arse, I didn’t use mine….and paid the price.

Oh well.

View from the kitchen bacony

The kitchen had quite a nice cast iron cooking range, redundant now, but retained as a feature I think.

Wandering off for breakfast I spotted:

A Galician Knocker

After getting over the shock of seeing such a big knocker we found ourselves in a nice little eatery where we feasted on coffee and egg & bacon barm cakes…although Galicians call them something else.

As we chomped our way through our breakfast barms we were disturbed by the sounds of fireworks going off, and then a marching band – it was yet another fiesta, celebrating somethong ot other.

Spaniards need little excuse to celebrate – anything!

Later in the day we came across two Russian (?) peregrinos (or should that be peregrinas?) who were cycling the same Camino.

It was another hot day, I recall that we didn’t push ourselves too hard.

Anyroadup, a few more photographs of the next couple of days:

We ordered beers which arrived…along with a lovely snack

A nice modern albergue

Always open, we arrived to find it closed.

A shrine in the woods

Another one for Alan R

A light snackette for Rob

Habitaciones para peregrinos may well have been desde 10€ – but for us in was casi 60€. So we didn’t.

Artist at work

Entering Santiago de Compostela

First view of the cathedral

Another one for Alan R

As we closed in on Santiago we passed a music shop selling traditional instruments from the region.

Well, we didn’t pass it really…

At 1100€ I was seriously tempted….but resisted

Rob splashed the cash on this Pandereta – it sounds brilliant!

Then there was the very long queue, and even longer wait, to receive our Compostelas – recognition that we’d walked a very long way.

Here you go…714km for this.

Oh look, more food. And beer. Tsk.

Later, whilst wandering around downtown Santiago we came across this lot, playing in celebration of a very local fiesta:

They were a bit good.

Somehow, and I *really* don’t know how, you’ll have to ask Rob, I ended up in a bar with this lovely bunch. I may have had a beer. Possibly more than one.

The rest of the afternoon was a bit of a blur.

Most odd. 

The cathedral

Classic cars in the cathedral square

Two excellent musicians, one on Gaita Pipes, t’other on Pandereta – think tambourine….but turbocharged. These ladies were busking under an archway, the entrance to the very grand cathedral square.

After all the excitement of El Camino it was time to move on. The next bit of this expedition involved exploring the Douro Valley in Portugal, playing loads of music, drinking tea (and other beverages), and generally enjoying ourselves…..that’s going to be in Pt3.