When I decided to have a go at this weblogging lark, I had a look at the various tools available, and after some of the usual dithering, settled on Movable Type. It was free to use (though donations were requested[1]), very configurable and extendible (the MT Plugin Directory is a wonderful resource, without which this site wouldn’t be doing some of the things I like), and had a superb support forum. Not only that, but a new, improved version was on the way.
Then came the announcement: Mena’s Corner: It’s About Time, and the reaction to it. A lot of people have been made very angry, and although SixApart have since modified some of the more contenious elements of the new licence, it looks like many users will be voting with their feet and abandoning MT.
Oooooooh. Now, for my purposes and budget[2], the pricing isn’t a problem. However, for a lot of users, it’s a huge issue. Now if a lot of people abandon Movable Type, this does bring its long-term viability into question. I’ve only been using MT for a few months, compared to the years that others have committed. But in that short period, I have spent a lot of time in configuring, editing, tweaking and who knows what else to get the site working the way I like it.
So, what to do? Upgrade to MT3, and accept that with its new pricing model, there might not be so many users (and plugin development might also suffer), or move to something else?
I’m having a play with MT3, and so far it seems to be mostly fine. My current template and plugins work, and the new user interface is a moderate improvement. Need to spend some time reading up on the new tags to see what new features I can use.
I’m also looking at Textpattern, which is free and written in PHP. Looks potentially very good, though probably needs a bit more development….
Still, no rush. I’ll keep this site as it is for the time being, and consider whether to upgrade or migrate later…
[1] And I was quite happy to make an initial donation of $20, and would have considered more later…
[2] And an exchange rate in my favour 
