Participating in the Comment Challenge as laid out here: http://commentchallenge.wikispaces.com/

Comment Challenge Tasks:

1) Do a comment self-audit

Answer the following questions:

• How often do you comment on other blogs during a typical week?
• Do you track your blog comments? How? What do you do with your tracking?
• Do you tend to comment at the same blogs or do you try to comment on at least one new blog per week?

Prior to this challenge, I probably commented about 20 or so times a week. Not at all sure, though, because I never used comment tracking, and I don't experience much of an internal barrier to commenting, so it's possible that I comment more than that and am just not all that aware.

I do track my comments now, via CoComment, although I don't really care that much.

I tend to comment at the same blogs, but I am open to following a thread from known to unknown territory. I find that Twitter has expanded my horizons a bit.

Reviewed Gina's comments... I think I do okay, although lately I've really been noticing the "genius is in the comments" phenomenon, where a good post elicits even better information from the readers who comment on it. (e.g. my own post here: http://relaxnoreally.blogspot.com/2008/04/seeding-conversation.html

I think I disagree w/ Gina's "don't comment for the sake of commenting" advice, actually. Some bloggers live for comments, and are genuinely pleased to get ANYTHING, even just a "Hey, thanks, this was cool." I think I'm somewhere in the middle... I like comments, but don't fret if I don't get any. I know my mom and dad are still out there reading, and they're pretty much the ones I'm writing for much of the time, anyway.

2 & 3) Comment on new sites and sign up for a comment tracking service. Check. Scroll down to see comment widget.

4) Ask a question in a comment. Check. I do this fairly frequently.

5) Comment on a blog post you disagree with. Well, this turned out to be a challenge. I read a post a few weeks back from a college counselor I consider to be morally bankrupt... he was recommending that students go ahead and submit "intend to enroll" deposits at as many schools as they could afford to. I didn't comment, though, and I certainly didn't flag the blog for further reading, so...

The best I could come up with is this post on @divabat's blog, more along the lines of "comment on a blog post you have a question about":

Okay, I'm supposed to disagree with someone in a comment as part of my participation in the 08 Comment Challenge, but you and I often agree on life's important questions, so this could be a bit of a challenge.

So this isn't so much of a disagreement, but more in the line of some clarifying and/or challenging questions... how did the KaosPilots program get to be such a singular focus of your attention? And if this application round doesn't work out, at what point (if any) will you step back,re-evaluate, and come up with a "Plan B"?

Asking in a spirit of support and respect...

6) Engage another commenter in dialogue

Many of the blogs I read don't have extensive comment streams, but I tried to do this here: http://www.commoncraft.com/being-lightweight-working-clients

7) Reflect on what you've learned

Commenting is good; helps you refine your thinking and knit your communities together a bit. Concise & constructive commenting is an art. Sometimes what starts off as a comment might should be repurposed as a private email. And finally, daily challenges are tough!

8) Comment on a blog outside of your niche

I'm something of an omnivore, actually... not too many things qualify as being outside my interest. But I have been mystified by the pull of Second Life, so went looking for a blog that could help me "get it."  (Searched "Second Life Newbie" using Google's blog search.) What I found was interesting, but didn't do much to dispel my not-so-great impressions of Second Life:

http://innovation.freedomblogging.com/2008/03/12/second-life-shopper-achieves-enlightenment-with-no-sexbed-or-sploders/#comment-1755

Feel kind of like I did in college when folks were trying to get me interested in coffee... still not convinced that the upside wins.

 

9) Should we be commenting on blogs?

I don't know about anyone else, but I think commenting is good for me. Helps me articulate my thoughts/feelings, lets others get a quick sense that they are being heard. That being said, one of my favorite blogs has no comments enabled, and having talked w/ Nancy about it, I understand why. Not about to say that everyone should be commenting, just know that with my "feedback = good" orientation, they make sense for me.

 

10) Do a comment audit on my own blog.

 

I have two blogs. The personal one is really for my own use; I don't care much about comments, and am often writing with myself or my family as a primary intended audience. In the month of April I posted a haiku every day, and my comment stream went down. My second blog is currently just a little nubbin of a more professionally oriented blog, and I don't think many people know it exists.  Still, when asked recently to help "seed a conversation" in an Upper School Faculty meeting at our school, I put out a call for help (via email and Twitter) and got a terrific influx of helpful feedback in the form of comments.

 

11) Review my blog comment policy

 

I think my blog comment policy is probably okay "as is."