Top 5 Blogging Platforms for Macs

By Marisa Peacock (@marisacp51) Jan 14, 2009

4 comments

If you want a little more control or flexibility with your blogging, using a desktop blogging client is a good choice. Not to stereotype, but those creative blogging types usually come fitted with their own Macs. They want a blogging tool that will let them be who they are without forcing them into the constraints of templates and standard front ends.

Yet, of all the hip, savvy software preloaded onto Macs, none really include a true blogging client (iWeb doesn't count).

If you crave a desktop blogging tool rather than a broswer-based interface to help you write your cool posts, CMSWire offers a few suggestions.

Blogo

Brainjuice just released version 1.2 of Blogo, a blog editor for the Mac. The updated software now supports all major blogging platforms like TypePad, Blogger, WordPress, Typo, Movable Type, Drupal and Expression Engine. You can even use it for micro-blogging on Twitter and cross-posting from Ping.fm.

Blogo gives users the option to moderate comments (WordPress 2.7 or higher). It also comes with improved Safari integration and offline editing.

Figure 1. Blogo editor

Features include:

Intuitive interface
Editor that works in both rich text and HTML
Offline editing mode
Ability to layout, edit and post photos
Preview mode ability to post videos, widgets and other media
Ability to ping news sites
Supports multiple sites

Blogo is available for 21-day trial. Cost is US$ 25.

Ecto

Ecto is a feature-rich desktop blogging client for MacOSX. It supports a wide range of weblog systems, such as Blogger, Blojsom, Drupal, Movable Type, Nucleus, SquareSpace, TypePad and WordPress.

With Ecto you can write, manage entries, compose entries offline, and it puts considerable emphasis on getting users from A to B to Z as quickly as possible.

Presently in Version 3, Ecto is made by InfiniteSushi, the same company who gave us Endo and Flickr1000. After a simple download and installation, Ecto can be set up to work with the blog platform of your choice.

Figure 2. Ecto 3 edit window

You can compose your blog entries, tag them and assign catagories in the editor view.

Features include:

Intuitive interface for creating and editing weblog entries
Full local control of recently posted entries and drafts (with search function)
Support for all available remote control options of MovableType API
Convert, scale images and create thumbnails, create poster movies or create thumbnails from movie frames
Support for multiple weblogs and servers
Embedded debug console to troubleshoot server connections
Full-featured HTML-rendered preview of entries using Safari's WebKit
Localized in six languages (English, Dutch, French, German, Spanish and Japanese)
Ability to send email notifications
Insertion of iTunes details of the song currently playing in your entry
File and media upload with iPhoto import

A copy of Ecto costs US$ 17.95. Volume discounts are available.

Flock

While technically a browser (its foundation is the Mozilla platform), Flock capitalizes on its dedication to the social web. Users can network, access, create and share videos, photos, blogs, feeds and comments across social communities, media providers, and popular websites and blogs.