Panbo changes 1, commenting & MadMariner

Things are changing around here, and in my magazine life too. News of the latter will come tomorrow, but do please note how much easier it has gotten to post comments on Panbo (updated software!). If you click the comment "Sign In" link now, you’ll see three kinds of user authentication—TypePad, formerly called TypeKey and once the only such service available; OpenID, which is new to me and seems a bit cranky, but is open source; and finally Panbo’s Movable Type OS itself. All three will purportedly keep your true identity safely hidden, if desired, and using any will get your comment posted here immediately. While the first two will work at many blogs, the latter is especially cool as it will eventually facilitate forum entries—even user blog entries—and will include Panbo-specific profile information, like what boats and gear Panbots use, if you’re willing to share.
   There’s also good news for Panbo advertisers…

MadMariner is taking over the sale and service of all ads on Panbo. The BlogAds service I’ve been using for display ads does work, but was hard for anyone but a geek to use. By contrast, MadMariner has developed an especially human-friendly and comprehensive online advertising program, described here, and the MM sales team are not only actual humans themselves, but also boaters. It may take a month to get MadMariner’s ad service fully integrated with Panbo, but the MM team is ready to talk about your needs now (contact info here). I know that most of the companies that did manage to create Panbo ads with the old system were happy with the results; and I’m confident that MadMariner will make the process much easier, and hopeful that those ads will be even more fruitful.