As I've been going through the motions of testing the Office 2010 Beta, I've come to the point where I test the Blog Posting capabilities of Word 2010. The interface is familiar and easily recognizable as it appears unchanged from Word 2007. I regularly use Windows Live Writer to post to Live Spaces and other blog spots, but the capabilities of both applications are worth exploring a bit.
To begin with, the Blog Account Manager is fairly straightforward. You must have email publishing configured for your Live Spaces Account. Entering your Spacename and secret word is all that’s required.
Pros
One advantage Word has over Live Writer is the ability to insert Charts, Shapes, SmartArt and now Screenshots directly from within the Ribbon interface.
Insert Ribbon – Word 2010 Beta – New Blog Post Template
I do find the Editing and Proofing tools somewhat easier to use and the Format Painter button is always welcome. For those folks who regularly use Word then the interface is comfortable and familiar. But to each their own… Use whatever works for you AND the best thing about Windows Live Writer is that it's FREE!!! For a free application, it's rich with capability.
I must admit I have grown fond of the Right Click Context Menu found in Word. It makes for some easy changes right inline without having to resort to using the buttons at the top of the screen.
Right Click Context Menu – Word 2010 Beta
Drawbacks
Using Word doesn't come without a few drawbacks. The most notable are:
- The absence of the Insert Tags option to appropriately tag the post for eventual publishing to the Clubhouse site. Nothing that a Macro can't' fix, but still a drawback.
- The ability to upload the photos inserted into the post. I've worked for hours trying to configure this option without success. Maybe someone knows and will leave a comment. J -- This makes my earlier point about all those cool things you could insert, MOOT.
- NOTE: The workaround for this would be to Right Click each object within the Blog Post in Word, click Save As Picture and then upload to your Skydrive and then insert the linked image from your Skydrive. Too much effort for this poster.
- One other notable drawback is the WYSIWYG experience. Because of the large layout Window in Word, things do appear differently when posted. Word doesn't contain a Preview option, only Publish as Draft or Publish.
After all is said and done, I'll stick with Live Writer as it's perfect for posting to Live Spaces and other places. After all was finished with this Blog Post I ended up Publishing a Draft, re-opening in Live Writer, adding the pictures and tags and then Published to Live Spaces! Way to Go Live Writer Team!!!!! The moral of this story is that while there are other tools that could be used for Blog Posting, it’s sometimes best to stick with the tool that was designed to just that.
