ABJ and Topix

The Akron Beacon Journal apparently has partnered with Topix, a news search and bookmarking service, to run the comments function on Ohio.com. I'm not big on the ABJ comments section, so no idea how long this has been going on. While the Beacon joined up with Monster.com with great fanfare, I can't find any announcement of the shift to Topix. You can see a sample of the new, enhanced comments here.

The move is a good one. It add functionality to the comments section and allows users to set up profiles, share bookmarks to favorites and basically do all those Topix things.

For myself, I may do a little more commenting. I've always had a problem with spending what limited online time I have on a comment that few see and that is usually in response to someone else's ridiculous comment. I can set up a profile that, as far as I can tell, will display a link to the blog. I think. Problem is, Topix doesn't have a preview function for your profile -- I can't see it as others see it. I see all the information they say isn't displayed.

This minor kvetch aside, I'm happy that the ABJ is finding parters to enhance the utility of their web presence. Despite the well-publicized problems, it's a welcome sign of at least some forward thinking.