July 8, 2013

• Keep Calm and Download Archives

  

  Regarding the upcoming July 15 31 deadline for the Xanga fundraiser, it does seem the clock is clicking a tad bit quicker these days, doesn't it, fellow Xangans?

   

  Well, not one of us knows where he will be tomorrow, much less on July 16th ~ James 4:13-16 ...

  But I DO know this:  the God who is sovereign over all thrones, dominions, rulers and authorities (e.g. - see Colossians 1:15-18; Daniel 2 & 4; Psalm 135) is sovereign over all the happenings here in this little corner of the universe we call Xanga!

  I also know that @TheXangaTeam has graciously provided archives in both html and XML (read: Word Press compatible) formats for ALL bloggers here. (Thank you, Xanga Team!)

  I'm no computer guru, but because The Xanga Team DID provide the archives in XML format, I WAS able to export my deerlife blog over to WordPress (http://deerlifexanga.wordpress.com). (To explain: that's my smallest blog here, and one I'm not planning to continue here on Xanga if Xanga relaunches.) Yeah, it's got some formatting issues, and the pictures still need to be linked to the posts there, and I would like to do more with the theme, widgets, etc. (makes me appreciate all that Xanga 2.0 is offering!), but the full archive IS there! Whew! I was also doing that as sort of a test run in case Xanga ends up shutting down, and I need to export my other blogs. (If you've not already done so, please arrange to download your archives ASAP!)

  * * *

  After The Xanga Team announced the changeover to a paid blogging platform and the possibility of shutdown (link), I had great concerns about my archives (link)... After being convicted of my sin of anxiety over the situation, and remembering that God Himself is the One who gives and takes away, and His name is to be blessed and praised no matter what –– I asked God for grace to joyfully entrust myself to Him, just as Jesus entrusted Himself to His Father (see I Peter 2:23c -- one of my favorite portions in all the Scripture!). (See also my post: "Are you keeping calm & carrying on: Do you react or respond?").

  [Through God's Holy Spirit, Christians are given supernatural strength to keep calm and carry on, but we must ask Him for that strength ~ Luke 11:1-13, esp. v. 13. That's a constant battle. Will we who are Christians look to and trust and lean on Jesus Christ as the Solid Rock, or will we be blown about by the storms of life -- in which case we end up giving a very inconsistent and shoddy witness to the world, and look no different from the storm-tossed, wearied, scattered, harried, helpless, and harassed sheep who've not come to the Good Shepherd so they might have life and life abundantly, and find rest and peace and joy in Him. ~ See Psalm 4, esp. vv. 6-8.]

  In addition, I did go and post a question on the WordPress forums about how to import my blogs to WordPress. This was prior to the WP compatible archives being made available (http://en.forums.wordpress.com/topic/importing-blog-from-xanga):

  I'm wanting to import my blogs from Xanga. Any help you could provide would be appreciated. The archives they're providing aren't in the .xml format. Is there any way I can import an RSS feed?

  Though I did get a speedy response, there was no answer to my dilemma –– though I'd heard there were ways to import the files there for a fee –– but in the meantime, as I said above, TheXangaTeam came through with the XML archives!

  Earlier today, a fellow Xangan posted a similar concern on that same thread about getting her Xanga blog ported over to WordPress in the event of Xanga shutdown... Here was my response to her:

  Since the time I wrote this request, Xanga has provided a WordPress compatible format you can use to import your blog to WordPress.

  From your private homepage on Xanga, click on Settings, and then click on Weblog Archives. If you've never updated your archives, then click the button that says "Update your archives." If that's the case, then you'll have to wait until they're ready. Otherwise, if they're already up to date (i.e. - up to the date of your last post), then click on wordpressWXR.zip. The file will download to your computer. After it's on your computer, you'll need to click on it to open it (to get it to the XML format). At that point it's set to import to a blog here on WordPress.

  I'm still waiting to see what happens with Xanga, but I have three blogs on Xanga. Regardless of what happens to Xanga, I wasn't planning to keep one of those active there, but I did want to preserve a public record of it. I just imported that one to deerlifexanga.wordpress.com from Xanga, and it worked beautifully. (FYI: the archive did include all the private posts (which remained private) as well as the pulses (which are also marked as private -- even if they were public on Xanga). All the tags carried over. The formatting is off in some places, and eventually I hope to check everything, but I was glad to have the blog copied over here.)

  You can find the import instructions here: http://en.support.wordpress.com/import/-- Just follow the instructions for WordPress.

  I've still not downloaded my photos, so that's my next step!

  I hope this helps! If you have any questions, please ask.

  ~ Karen

  [Correction to my comment above is that the photos were successfully imported, but I do need to go through manually and add them in to all my posts.]

  * * *

  Anyhow, I'm still hoping Xanga 2.0 will become a reality, and thanks to my husband, I have pledged $ 96 toward the fundraiser (link) to continue this blog and my tent_of_meeting blog here at Xanga. That said, I am taking measures in case Xanga doesn't relaunch. As of this point, just after noon on July 8, we're still needing over $ 20,000... #WeAreXanga

  (In case of Xanga shut down, you can find me via my WordPress blog: http://naphtalideer.wordpress.com -- into which I'm hoping, Lord willing, to import this blog.)

  Romans 8:28.

  ~ Karen

   

  • 2:55 PM
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