Windows Live Writer...A Blogger's BFF

Nothing excites me more than when I find something that makes my life easier-ok well almost nothing, I do like chocolate, Thai food, long walks on the beach (I need to get out more). This need to simplify, systematize, and ease my over encumbered lifestyle made me the Get Smart Tech Chic that I am today. I work hard but it's also about working smart, and when I find something that helps me reach my work less play more goal, I have to share it.

Let's talk about Windows Live Writer, some of you may already use this cool tool and some of you may be anti-establishment Down with the Man types that don't go near Bill Gates is taking over the world Microsoft gadgets. Well I am in, maybe not love, but deep infatuation with Live Writer, it has made my blogging, article writing, and website updating so much easier!!

This one tool allows me to create a blog post offline in the format of my blog, then publish directly to my blog-works with most major blog services, without going through a bunch of convoluted steps. I can also insert hyperlinks, pictures, maps, videos, tags, etc., and all from this one little FREE program. Now not all blog platforms are supported, ActiveRain for instance is not supported, and those blogs that are embedded in a website are usually not compatible for the one click publish feature.

What you can do though is change the view and copy and paste from there. So what do I mean by change the view? No it's not an everything looks brighter with your shades on reference. What I mean is that you have four views, web layout and preview (this is blog layout and view), normal (basic Word format), and html. So you can write the post/article publish to Blogger, Wordpress, Typepad, etc., then convert to html for your website, ActiveRain, Trulia, or other random blog platform. Last but not least, you can switch to normal view to place your masterpiece on those article distribution sites.One stop shop is what I call that, isn't it Grand!!

Now that I have told you all the great things....there is one thing I am not keen on and that is the insert video plug-in. It will only allow you to insert web based videos not videos that are stored on your hard drive. Now for the most part your videos are probably acquired from and stored on the web, but for myself we have tons of Get Smart Women instructional videos that start on our external hard drive and then move to one of our web sources so I want to be able to do both. Yes I know I want it all-I want my cake and I want to eat too! I never understood that saying if you got the cake of course you want to eat, what are you just going to stare at it?

Anyway for now if you use Live Writer your videos have to be stored in the big web world, Youtube, Helloworld, Screencast, Seesmic, Vimeo, where ever you have them or you can add an extra step in by publishing without the video and then going to your blog and inserting the video there. This feature may change they seem to be adding new plug-ins all the time, like the Google gods and their constantly improving gadgets, they understand that to stay "cool" you need to have more and more accessories tools.

So now the Smart Gal rating 4.5 out 5 Smart Gals here:

Ok Brandon Turner from Microsoft is trying to get 5 out 5 Smart Gals, what they won't do for the extra half...can't do it until I try out the Soapbox but here is the comment he left:

"With the newest version of Windows Live Writer(was released this week) you can upload videos from your harddrive, they go Soapbox(MSN Video). This is just a preview release, so if you find any bugs, feel free to contact me. For more information on the new release:http://windowslivewriter.spaces.live.com/"