add support for sign in (for comments) > Google, others

denisegoldberg

Right now comments are only allowed to be posted by individuals logged on to smugmug or to facebook. I'd like to see the ability for comments to be posted by viewers who are not signed on.

I understand this was removed because of the posting of offensive comments. I believe whether anonymous comments are allowed should be up to the owner of the site.

• default setting can (should) be to disallow anonymous comments
• site owner should be able to allow anonymous comments on a gallery, a folder, or site-wide level

--- Denise

denisegoldberg

add support for sign in (for comments) > Google, others
I find the signin requirements for leaving comments to be very restrictive. Most viewers of my site do not have smugmug logins, and many have a problem with (i.e. will not use) Facebook.

Please add support for Google sign-ins for comments.

I'm sure there are many others that will be requested as well.

--- Denise

Allen

I believe the default should be "log in to leave comment" to protect everyone but owner has ability to toggle to anonymous.

Ferguson

I think nearly 100% of the comments previously left for me were anonymous, and I appreciated every single one.

Please, even if it is an option, site owners should be able to get anonymous comments.

Sadda

Yes anonymous comments option is highly desired and useful particularly when site wide password protection enabled!

Allen

Yes anonymous comments option is highly desired and useful particularly in a passworded gallery.

paulbrock

yep, between FB and Google sign-in most people should be covered. Maybe DISQUS as well, as they cover quite a few.

paulbrock

Ferguson wrote: »

I think nearly 100% of the comments previously left for me were anonymous, and I appreciated every single one.

Please, even if it is an option, site owners should be able to get anonymous comments.

That's been my experience as well.

J Allen

southeasternphotography

Let's not forget adding an option for Site Owner Approval Before Posting of Comments to the Public"

juanheredia

+10

juanheredia

denisegoldberg wrote: »

I find the signin requirements for leaving comments to be very restrictive. Most viewers of my site do not have smugmug logins, and many have a problem with (i.e. will not use) Facebook.

Please add support for Google sign-ins for comments.

I'm sure there are many others that will be requested as well.

--- Denise

Denise, with the new smugmug we lost all the gallery comments right?
What did you do with them? I remember that you have a hundred messages in yours.

guy

J Allen wrote: »

Me too.

denisegoldberg

juanheredia wrote: »

Denise, with the new smugmug we lost all the gallery comments right?
What did you do with them? I remember that you have a hundred messages in yours.

There's a post somewhere about how to move your legacy comments to a new comment block - I'll see if I can find it when I get home tonight.

I haven't done anything with mine yet. Without the ability to have both Google signin and/or anonymous comments I won't implement a comments box on my site. If (I hope when) either of the two are implemented I will set up a new guestbook page.

--- Denise

denisegoldberg

juanheredia wrote: »

Denise, with the new smugmug we lost all the gallery comments right?
What did you do with them? I remember that you have a hundred messages in yours.

denisegoldberg wrote: »

There's a post somewhere about how to move your legacy comments to a new comment block - I'll see if I can find it when I get home tonight.

I think I've lost my memory...

I believe the post I was referring to was about something that isn't implemented yet. When a number of us started asking about gallery comments (as opposed to photo comments) a question was asked about whether moving our old gallery comments to a page would be a good thing to do. I think the consensus was yes. Gallery comments from legacy smug aren't visible in the new smug but apparently they are still there. So hopefully a tool for moving them will be made available to us.

--- Denise

denisegoldberg

denisegoldberg wrote: »

There's a post somewhere about how to move your legacy comments to a new comment block - I'll see if I can find it when I get home tonight.

Phew! Found it... Sheaf indicated here that the ability to move comments to a new page is now implemented.

That doesn't answer this feature request but it does address the losing comments issue.

--- Denise

Oscour

+1
I also need G+ implementation with comments, such as a way to post comments without being connected to a social media site !

Thanks

southeasternphotography

Options I see folks (self included) wanting for comment access:
SM login,
FB login,
G+ login,
other login ?,
No login,
Review before making public with no login,
I suppose a Review before making public with login,
Did I miss any?

Darter02

I rely on the simple ability to leave comments as a tool with my clients. For instance, before a wedding gallery goes public the bride has a chance to ask for changes to images. Currently, on Legacy, they can easily do so under any photo they want changed. I know for a fact my current customer doesn't use Facebook. She also doesn't have G+, and only uses an old Yahoo account.

Also, when I do corporate work, they can have tight restrictions on what is allowed. Some do not allow the use of G+, or FB, etc..

A solution needs to be forthcoming soon.

GaryBakker

Should not have to login to FB or Google+ to leave a comment.

I understand the need for protection. Let this be configurable. If the site owner decides to allow anonymous comments, then there should be no liability for SM.

mishenka

Smugmug - you are selling me (still your client:) ) an image hosting service and my "100 Customizable" website service. I do not see how it is your business what comments are on MY website. I pay for the storage space you advertise and for the bandwidth and other services. Get off MY website. We've been through it with your footer on the legacy SM. Why go though it again?

billw

I have a Genealogy folder with multiple galleries of family photos. The folder and galleries are password protected. I have invited family members to view the photos and leave comments, (dates, places, names, etc.). I send them by email the direct link to the folder and the password. Disallowing anonymous comments totally breaks this system. The family members with the best knowledge of the older photos do not have social network accounts (so adding Google+, etc. won't help), and they're certainly not going to sign up (and pay!) for a smugmug account just to participate in this project.

A password protected gallery, or a gallery that is in a protected folder, should be able to have anonymous, unmoderated comments. Perhaps public galleries could allow anonymous moderated comments, although I believe that a site owner who allows unmoderated comments on a public folder or gallery bears the responsibility to monitor those comments and delete ones are "inappropriate".

Have people been asking for the removal of anonymous comments, or is this smugmug covering their @ss?

Sheaf

The spam in the old system was a major headache for many of our customers and for us as well. It also significantly impacted our email deliverability because people were understandably marking comment notification emails as spam when the included comment was a spammy one. We're still looking at this, but it's not simply a matter of expecting people to moderate their own comments.

paulbrock

does message content need to be sent via email? or could you have a "you've got a new comment" with a link to the gallery/photo?

Allen

Sounds like Smugmug wants to force us to look for any added comments every day if we don't get an email notification.
Have log in and go to Account Setting > Stats > Comments > Details every day to check.

mike_k

Sheaf wrote: »

The spam in the old system was a major headache for many of our customers and for us as well. It also significantly impacted our email deliverability because people were understandably marking comment notification emails as spam when the included comment was a spammy one. We're still looking at this, but it's not simply a matter of expecting people to moderate their own comments.

What about giving people the option to allow public comments? Is that a possibility? I've never received a spammy comment, and requiring people to log in to leave a comment will be a major headache for me (okay, only a minor one, but still... .)

billw

Sheaf wrote: »

The spam in the old system was a major headache for many of our customers and for us as well. It also significantly impacted our email deliverability because people were understandably marking comment notification emails as spam when the included comment was a spammy one. We're still looking at this, but it's not simply a matter of expecting people to moderate their own comments.

Thanks. I appreciate that you're caught between a rock and a hard place.

I thought I remembered an option to "moderate" comments, but perhaps that was in legacy. And certainly if users are getting tonnes of spammy or trolling comments they don't want to be bothered approving/denying each comment. On the other hand if they allow anonymous comments that's the price they pay.

But certainly anonymous comments can be allowed in protected galleries? That seems to be what the pros need, and would solve my problem too.

GaryBakker

billw wrote: »

But certainly anonymous comments can be allowed in protected galleries? That seems to be what the pros need, and would solve my problem too.

And this is what many of us non-pro enthusiasts need.

DesptachesGallery

southeasternphotography wrote: »

Let's not forget adding an option for Site Owner Approval Before Posting of Comments to the Public"

Exactly - give us the control, not make some "one size fits all" decision. the code could be written in about 10 minutes.

DesptachesGallery

Definitely support for anonymous (no login) as many older people don't understand social media, and some flat-out refuse to use it. Also, some coporates block/ban social sites, so for corporate work, you just killed us.

Combined with the ability to moderate before publishing comment, and if you want, all the other social logins, but please re-add no login and moderate. thanks!

kimbomac

+1 for anonymous comments. We have the ability to allow or disallow comments, enforce or withdraw comment moderation. Poor taste comments are just as likely whether the person has to log in somewhere or not, as they can easily log in with a pseudonym if they are 'that type'.