For me, choosing the Xlog blog is both a coincidence and a trend.
Blogger is Unsatisfactory#
Stripped of its glamour, simplicity is key. Blogger was originally a content-sharing platform I favored, but its outdated templates and slow indexing left me somewhat disappointed. As I mentioned in this article, after experimenting with many blogging platforms, I found that Blogger was the most suitable for my content sharing.
After some operations, I discovered two major issues with Blogger: outdated templates and slow indexing.
Regarding templates, due to the lack of setup tutorials (I didn't try paid templates, thinking they weren't worth it), I modified Blogger's CSS code based on ChatGPT4; although the template and website ran normally after the modification, I later checked Google Speed Insights and found that the website's score was not high. Thus, I suspected it was a setup issue and reset the template, but ultimately found that the score remained low (around 80 points). As for search engine indexing, after learning how to submit indexing requests to Google, I applied for indexing several times, but the number of articles indexed was few; I still do not know the reasons or countermeasures.
All of this made me feel that sharing content on Blogger was somewhat unsatisfactory and regrettable.
By Chance, I Started Xlog#
I have actually known about Xlog for quite some time. Shortly after Xlog was released, I saw DIYgod's introduction about Xlog and browsed her website (including her sharing about studying and living in the UK). However, due to my insufficient understanding of cryptocurrency at that time, concerns about future fees, and not seeing detailed tutorials, I temporarily set aside trying Xlog.
Recently, by chance, I re-understood the principles and operation tutorials of Xlog, coupled with the unsatisfactory experience with Blogger, I decided to try creating a blog on Xlog and become an Xlogger.
The so-called coincidence was that I recently browsed the blogs of Weiyexing, Zhenxia Old Dream, and Jincheng Goidea. Through browsing Weiyexing's blog, I initially discovered that Xlog blogs can be very stable, modern, and aesthetically pleasing, which can compensate for the regret of Blogger's templates being not modern enough. After browsing Zhenxia Old Dream's blog, I realized that the cryptocurrency wallet required to manage Xlog is actually quite easy to set up, and in a sense, Xlog does not require you to pay for various management and operations; at the same time, it made me understand that building an Xlog blog is actually very easy. Browsing Jincheng's Xlog blog further strengthened my determination to use Xlog. Previously, I read her Hugo blog, which had excellent content.
As for the cryptocurrency required for blockchain, Xlog bloggers can apply for CSB cryptocurrency for free. Whenever the account balance falls below 0.02 CSB, one can claim 0.02 CSB cryptocurrency from the Faucet, which is enough for a blogger to perform 100-1000 operations. The total amount of currency currently available is less than 87 CSB, and each operation does not consume much CSB, so Xlog bloggers do not need to claim CSB frequently, but rather as needed.
More importantly, during this period, I particularly liked the "Everything Can Be RSS" philosophy of Xlog's initiator DIYgod and the Web3 technology applications based on Ethereum blockchain technology. Perhaps because I like RSShub, my preference for Xlog increased. After initially understanding the basic operational logic of Xlog, I ultimately decided to build a blog on Xlog and bind my long-saved domain igdux.com.
Initial Experience Sharing of Using Xlog as an Xlogger#
Using Xlog to build a blog has been a good initial experience. First, the philosophy of its initiator is advanced and visionary, deserving respect. Xlog, based on the Crossbell blockchain technology and Web3 technology underpinned by Ethereum's underlying logic, has made preliminary explorations and beneficial attempts in promoting the development of blockchain technology and Web3 applications. Compared to other operations that use Web3 technology to shout slogans and make big money, I prefer the practical, future-oriented applications and developments like Xlog.
Secondly, Xlog possesses the characteristics that a modern blog should have. Based on the open-source project, Xlog is relatively stable and secure; it allows free import and export of data; based on IPFS technology, it can permanently store shared content; at the same time, Xlog's UI design is novel and meets current mobile-friendly needs; moreover, Xlog has built-in AI enhancement features that can automatically generate content summaries and translate into the browser's target language (for example, if a blog written in Chinese is read by an English reader, it will automatically display as English content); additionally, Xlog is currently accessible in China.
Furthermore, I have a few expectations for Xlog and Xloggers.
- I hope Xlog can provide visual, selectable templates in the future;
- There are few detailed Chinese tutorials for deploying and optimizing Xlog. For example, how to add images and text descriptions at the bottom of the blog; how to add personal social media accounts at the bottom of the blog, etc.
- Improve the SEO friendliness of Xlog blogs. Many prominent figures have hundreds of articles on Xlog, but Google's indexing is not ideal. For example, when I search for weiyexing.win on Google (as of now, there are about 270 articles), only about 20 are indexed on the first page. Meanwhile, my site scored lower in Google PageSpeed Insights tests compared to Blogger blogs (perhaps due to the decentralized nature of Xlog's server calls). Xlog developers might consider optimizing this appropriately. The test results are as follows:
Xlog blog igdux.com PageSpeed Insights test results:
Blogger blog igengdu.com PageSpeed Insights test results:
- Refer to Xlog bloggers as Xloggers and enhance community interaction among Xloggers. Learning from excellent communities like V2ex and linux.do, activities can be organized to increase the recognition and popularity of Xloggers.
Collection of Xlog Blog Tutorial List#
- Five Minutes to Have a Decentralized Blog on Blockchain and IPFS;
- Why I Write Blogs (Including the Process of Building an Open Source Chain Blog);
- Xlog Based on Ethereum Blockchain Technology;
- Free Cryptocurrency Claim Address;
- A Simple Introduction to Xlog.
Note: This article will be synchronized to my Blogger blog.