Dec 28, 2015

Where Did All My Friends (Connect) and Picasa Web Albums Go??


 In just one day, my blogger friend connect list that was considerably over 1,500 readers suddenly downsized...by a lot of friends!!!

What in the world happened, I thought! What did I do, what did I say?  Why did so many friends suddenly take me off of their blogger list? 200 friends and more?

Have they all just frozen me out?????

With a blog that is gaining on 8 million views, readership counts are a blast. I want to know why you visit, what you read and why in the world my blog has grown to this level. I like to tell people it's because I give so much away for free, but in my heart of hearts I know it's because I live such a strange life that you are still trying to figure out if all of this stuff really happens to me....or not!

Well, I googled and googled and went to all of the major help and info sites for blogger and still couldn't find anything to explain how dozens and dozens of my followers had suddenly disappeared!

Today, I finally got my answers! And just in case you've had it happen to you! It's them, not us!

Come to find out,there's been a big change in Google Friend Connect. Instead of getting rid of it forever, and a lot of us love it, and use it to follow friends, or to discover where they are from and what their interests are, (but only if you put it in your profile, don't freak out!)

Blogger has decided to retire all readers from our lists who are not members of the Google Family. So, goodbye to anyone who signs in from Twitter, Yahoo, Orkut, or other Open ID accounts.

You can still read, you can still comment, you just can't become one of my Friend Connect Friends...sob, sob.

So, beginning January 11, anyone who wants to sign in as a friend will have to have even a simple google account...like a gmail account for example. Just make a simple little gmail email account, an extra one is always nice for when you don't want to give your personal e to someone you don't really know, anyway!

At that time, they'll be removing any non-Google Account profiles and we may continue to see decreases in our blog follower accounts. And for those of you who use Picasa ...yep, it's being retired as of May 2015. It'll still exist, you just won't have issues fixed on the editing desktop version, and the online web albums will all be connected to Google Photos and you won't be able to do much with your old Picasa Web Albums..which I LOVE. So, eveyone...get those albums organized because we wont be able to have the controls and moving etc of photos that we have now..groan!

So, dear friends, if you haven't been removed by the powers that be from my list yet, please just get a gmail account..hey, it's nice to have an extra for separate mail, anyway..and then sign in again with your new secret ID on my blog web page.

I MISS ALL OF YOU!!!

Michele Bilyeu blogs With Heart and Hands @
www.with-heart-and-hands.com



Michele Bilyeu blogs With Heart and Hands as she shares her creative and healing  journey from Alaska to Oregon. Wildcrafting and the textiles arts... sewing, quilting, and creating prayer flags. Join me as I add my healing energies to changing our world..one little project, one gift of sharing from my heart, at a time.

7 comments:

Sue said...

Glad you bought this to our attention. I noticed I lost loads too but thought as I hadn't been blogging on a regular basis people had just decided to unfollow. I know have a possible exolantion. Thank you.

Scrappy quilter said...

Interesting! I've lost a couple too, just thought it was that time of year when people decide to unfollow those they no longer want to follow. Glad to have an explanation.

Celia said...

Been gone better check my little blog list. Thanks Michele.

Unknown said...

I can totally relate. I hope all goes better. :)

Carol- Beads and Birds said...

I have a post up with this very info!! to warn MY readers too.

Penny said...

I didn't even know there was such a thing as Google Friends. I hope none of my regular readers is a member of it. Does this mean however, that you can't just get in by clicking on my blog address? Oh dear!

O'Quilts said...

We love you because you are authentic.