My Sad Postach.io Story

This was what I wrote when I decided to move from Blogger to Postachio.io and what a performance it was. If only I’d know about Blot.im back then I could have saved myself a whole lot of time and missed out Postachio.io entirely. At least I’ve still got all my material in Evernote.

Here’s what happened:

Well, I have finally made it. After a great deal of hassle I have managed to move the 1831 posts from my previous blogging platform, Blogger, onto a new platform, Postach.io. The beauty of this arrangement is that each and every one of those previous weblog postings now sits in my Evernote account where they are fully indexed and searchable so that I can actually easily access and make use of all the information that I have collected over the years.

I do not know, nobody can know, whether this new platform will stand the test of time but I found the idea of having everything under the one roof very attractive and it is for that reason that I have expended the time and energy to get to this point, I hope it will prove to be a wise decision.

If nothing else this move does at least mean that all this material is now under my own control and if changes are made to the blogging platform or if one day it is no more then I still have all the information safe and sound and easily accessed. If need be any or all of my notes can be used elsewhere and I am no longer subject to future decisions that the folks at Google might make about their blogging platform.

It has been difficult and tedious to move all the material from one platform to another. However, now being able to easily embed video, slideshows, still photos, downloadable PDFs, sound files etc. etc. using Evernote and to publish this material simply by applying the tag “published” to the Evernote note will be a huge benefit and the work and frustration that has been involved will soon be forgotten.

In terms of the process I started with a Blogger weblog which I had to export as a single file and then import that into a temporary Wordpress blog. A Python script I got hold of would accept a Wordpress export file as an input. The script would not accept a Blogger export which was why this intermediate step was necessary. Having generated a Wordpress export file this was processed by the Python script and a number of .enex (Evernote Export) files were generated by the script. These files could then be imported into Evernote generating individual notes, each one representing an individual post on the previous weblog.

The story did not end there, many of my original posts had embedded images, videos etc. and all these had to be regenerated. This doesn’t sound too bad but I was dealing with over 1800 individual posts so it has been quite a task.

From there it has been a matter of checking things and tidying them up, this whole process has thrown up a number of deficiencies with the Postach.io service which I am hoping over time will be addressed. Bear in mind that I have no knowledge or skill in writing HTML and I cannot therefore make changes to a style sheet to change my Postach.io template without running the risk of wrecking it, there will be many many people in the same position. Here is a checklist of just a few of the issues that I hope will be resolved quickly, as these issues are remedied I will tick them off and this post will be updated, as if by magic :-)

1. A serious problem I encountered was that the “force sync” button on the Postach.io website was resulting in ALL my weblog postings being deleted which was a disaster for me. I would urge great caution in using this button and I in fact am now terrified to go near it. I understand that this is going to be looked at.
2. There are regular very significant delays in between publishing a note and it actually appearing on the weblog. Sometimes this can be many hours and this is the result of “queue problems” at the Postach.io server end of things. Sometimes the queue is “flushed” and posts then have to be re-edited and the sync process run again. This needs to be resolved as a matter of urgency.
3. Currently it is not possible to search a Postach.io weblog. This is a huge deficiency as it is impossible for a weblog visitor to search for information. It used to be possible to add a Custom Google Search to the weblog but at the time of writing this is not possible, the facility to add a custom search is no longer available.
4. Checklists generated in an Evernote note do not currently appear as such on the connected Postach.io weblog which would potentially be very useful, as things stand a checklist is simply converted to individual paragraphs.
5. The available navigation is very basic and some sort of calendar or “blog archive” option is badly needed. As things stand, certainly on the template I am using, the only available navigation option is “older posts” or “newer posts” and with almost 2000 posts that is not adequate. My postings go back to at least 2008 and scrolling back page by page is just a non-starter.
6. When posts are tagged selecting an item from the tag cloud does not bring up all the posts. If for example you have 25 posts tagged “Vacation” and you have the website set to display 10 posts per page when you select the tag “Vacation” ten posts will be listed. That sounds fine but the option to view the remaining unlisted 15 tagged posts is not available, there is no “previous posts” or “more posts” option. This makes tagging posts largely pointless because you can only pull up and display a limited number of them.
7. There is an issue with deleting posts. Sometimes if you delete a post from your Evernote notebook with the intention of the corresponding post being deleted from your weblog what you expect to happen will not always happen. I have had a situation whereby a deleted note does NOT result in the posting being deleted which can be very annoying. Bear in mind if you post something, you may not be certain of being able to subsequently remove it! This has been identified as an issue according to the Postach.io weblog and apparently the problem has been fixed but I have experienced this problem since the apparent fix. One option might be the “force sync” button but beware, see (1) above.
8. RSS feed issue. Clicking on the RSS feed button, at least on the template I am using, does not deliver a working RSS feed but simply opens the URL of the weblog itself. I believe from a little research that what is required is to add “/feed.xml” (minus the quotes) to the end of the link provided by the RSS button. This system has great promise, which is why I have chosen to move over to it but as it stands I think it runs the risk of being looked at by people and it being rejected because of the fact that some basic tools are missing. ANY weblog must be capable of being searched and navigated easily “out of the box” without specialist knowledge of how to hack a page of HTML, that’s my view at any rate.

The Wise Professor

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 beers.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.. The students responded with a unanimous ‘yes.’

The professor then produced two beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

‘Now,’ said the professor as the laughter subsided, ’I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things—your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions—and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.. The sand is everything else—the small stuff.

’If you put the sand into the jar first,’ he continued, ’there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and mow the lawn.

Take care of the golf balls first—the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented. The professor smiled and said, ‘I’m glad you asked.’ The beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of beers with a friend.

Letter to David Smith MP - 28th December 2024

This is a letter I sent to my MP, David Smith (Labour) which remains unanswered almost 2 months later. Is it any wonder we lose faith in our politicians?

David Smith MP. House of Commons. LONDON SW1A 0AA

28th December 2024

Dear Mr Smith

I am writing to you as one of your constituents to express my deep concern about the current direction of the country under the Labour Government. I have outlined several key issues below that highlight the challenges many of us are facing and why there is such widespread dissatisfaction:

1. Removal of the Winter Fuel Payment: This essential support has been taken away from millions of pensioners without any prior warning of this before the General Election. This decision feels like nothing more than a spiteful robbery of the elderly, leaving many vulnerable to the rising cost of energy.

2. Rising Cost of Bus Travel: At a time when reducing car travel should be a priority, the increase in bus fares is incomprehensible. For workers relying on buses for their commute, this measure clearly amounts to a “tax on working people”, potentially adding an extra £40 a month (£480 annually) to their expenses.

3. Cancelling the A1 Road Upgrade: This much-needed project was also quietly abandoned, despite being vital for infrastructure improvement. Again, there was no mention of this before the General Election.

4. Higher Council Tax Increases: We are now facing higher Council Tax bills at a time when household budgets are already severely stretched.

5. Increasing Public Debt: Despite promises of fiscal responsibility, additional borrowing has driven public debt to new heights, with the country now paying even more in interest. This is making us all poorer.

6. Mortgage and Savings Interest Rates: Mortgage interest rates continue to rise, placing an enormous burden on homeowners, while savers are now seeing their returns fall. Could it be any worse?

7. Rising Inflation and Economic Stagnation: Inflation continues to rise, eroding the value of wages and pensions. Economic growth has stalled and, in fact, reversed, with the country teetering on the edge of recession. This is a clear failure of economic policy and the opposite of what was promised.

8. Illegal Migration: Illegal migration remains an unresolved issue. Despite the government’s promises to “smash the gangs”, there has been no meaningful progress. A clear, practical plan is still absent.

9. Employer National Insurance Contributions: The increase in employer National Insurance contributions has placed significant additional costs on businesses, which are now being passed on to consumers. Prices continue to rise as a result.

10. House Building Targets: The government’s housing targets are wholly unrealistic. Housebuilders have made it clear that they lack the manpower to deliver on these promises, which are nothing more than a “pie in the sky” wishlist.

11. WASPI Women: In direct contradiction of pre-election statements, the government has completely abandoned the WASPI women, who continue to be treated disgracefully.

12. Missed Taxation Opportunities: Opportunities to raise taxes on harmful products like sugar, alcohol, and tobacco were ignored, as was the opportunity to increase taxes on the very wealthy. Instead, the burden falls disproportionately on businesses who obviously pass these costs on to ordinary working people.

In summary, things are getting far worse under the present Labour Government. Many in society feel betrayed by the lack of action and broken promises.

As an average couple, my wife and I have seen no positive changes in our lives since Labour came to power. The government may point to pension increases, but these are negated by the withdrawal of other support and rising inflation, leaving us worse off.

This is the third time I have written to you regarding my concerns, and I am deeply disappointed that I have not received any reply to my previous letters. I hope this time my concerns will be addressed, as your constituents deserve to be heard.

I urge you to raise these concerns with Government Ministers and in “The House” and to advocate for meaningful change that addresses the struggles of ordinary people. We need policies that provide real support, foster economic growth, and deliver on the promises made to the electorate.

Thank you for taking the time to consider my concerns. I look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,