Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Textpattern VS LiveJournal

Compare Textpattern VS LiveJournal and see what are their differences

Textpattern logo Textpattern

Textpattern is an elegant content management system that is free, open source software.

LiveJournal logo LiveJournal

Online blogging software - free for basic users!
  • Textpattern Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-16
  • LiveJournal Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-02

Textpattern features and specs

  • Flexibility
    Textpattern offers a high degree of flexibility for building custom websites, allowing developers to manage content in a versatile, structured manner.
  • Lightweight
    It is lightweight and fast, making it easier to run on smaller servers and ensuring quick load times for users.
  • Powerful Template System
    Textpattern features a straightforward yet powerful template and tagging system, giving users full control over HTML and CSS.
  • Built-in Textile Markup
    The built-in Textile markup language allows for easy content formatting directly within the editor, simplifying content creation.
  • Strong Security
    Textpattern has a strong focus on security, with a robust admin interface and frequent updates to address potential vulnerabilities.
  • Active Community
    The Textpattern community is active and supportive, providing a wealth of plugins, tutorials, and forums for user assistance.

Possible disadvantages of Textpattern

  • Learning Curve
    The flexibility and power of Textpattern can result in a steeper learning curve for new users unfamiliar with its syntax and structure.
  • Limited Themes and Plugins
    Compared to other CMS platforms like WordPress, Textpattern has a more limited selection of pre-designed themes and plugins.
  • Less WYSIWYG Editing
    Textpattern relies more on markup languages and less on WYSIWYG editors, which might not suit users looking for a more visual editing experience.
  • Smaller User Base
    The smaller user base means there are fewer third-party resources and less widespread knowledge compared to larger CMS platforms.
  • Custom Development
    For certain functionalities and custom features, more effort in custom development might be required compared to more out-of-the-box solutions.

LiveJournal features and specs

  • Community Building
    LiveJournal fosters a strong sense of community, allowing users to join communities based on shared interests and engage in discussions.
  • Customizability
    Users can highly personalize their journals with a variety of themes, layout options, and custom HTML/CSS, making it possible to create a unique look and feel for their pages.
  • Privacy Options
    LiveJournal offers robust privacy controls, allowing users to make posts public, friends-only, or private, and even create custom friend groups for selective sharing.
  • Long-Form Content
    Unlike other social media platforms that focus on short, quick updates, LiveJournal is structured to support long-form content, which is ideal for detailed blog posts, stories, and essays.
  • Rich History
    Having been around since 1999, LiveJournal has a long-standing history and a wealth of content, providing a unique and nostalgic experience for some users.

Possible disadvantages of LiveJournal

  • Outdated Interface
    The user interface of LiveJournal can feel outdated and less intuitive compared to modern blogging and social media platforms.
  • Declining User Base
    LiveJournal has seen a decline in its user base over the years, which can make community engagement less vibrant compared to newer platforms.
  • Limited Integration
    The platform has limited integration with other social media and modern web services, making it less effective for cross-platform sharing and engagement.
  • Commercialization
    LiveJournal has undergone commercialization, including advertisements and sponsored content, which can detract from the user experience.
  • Censorship Concerns
    Especially since its acquisition by a Russian company, there have been concerns about content censorship and the moderation policies on LiveJournal.

Analysis of Textpattern

Overall verdict

  • Textpattern is a good choice for users who prioritize simplicity, flexibility, and control over their website design and functionality. Its minimalistic yet powerful framework is suitable for developers and designers seeking an alternative to more complex systems like WordPress.

Why this product is good

  • Textpattern is a flexible and lightweight content management system favored by designers, developers, and bloggers. It is appreciated for its simplicity, clean design, and customization capabilities. Its tag-based template system allows for easy content presentation without extensive coding knowledge. Additionally, the CMS has a strong community and extensive documentation, making it accessible for those who prefer a straightforward approach to web content management.

Recommended for

  • Web designers seeking a customizable and lightweight CMS
  • Developers looking for a straightforward platform with flexibility
  • Bloggers who prefer a clean interface and simple content management
  • Individuals or small businesses who want a system with less overhead

Textpattern videos

Textpattern CMS Tutorial 1 install on local server

LiveJournal videos

LiveJournal Review

More videos:

  • Review - What is LiveJournal?
  • Review - EMBARRASSING LIVEJOURNAL POSTS | Akilah Obviously

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Textpattern and LiveJournal)
CMS
47 47%
53% 53
Blogging
0 0%
100% 100
Development
100 100%
0% 0
Blogging Platform
35 35%
65% 65

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Textpattern and LiveJournal

Textpattern Reviews

Top 10 Web Content Management Systems
If you are looking for a simple, text-based, straightforward CMS, then TextPattern is the one you are looking for. TextPattern, focused mainly on your text content, is a great CMS option for bloggers and independent journalists. TextPattern also has a long development cycle dating back to 2003. Therefore, it has a credible ecosystem of text related plug-ins and extensions,...
Source: cloudzy.com

LiveJournal Reviews

25+ Medium Alternative Platforms for Publishing Articles
LiveJournal allows users to share their life stories, give advice, and exchange ideas with each other. The platform differs from Medium where writers usually create long-form content based on their hobbies and expertise. LiveJournal provides opportunities for people to learn about others’ lives, whether it’s through simple exchanges or more in-depth sharing of experiences.
Source: forgefusion.io

Social recommendations and mentions

LiveJournal might be a bit more popular than Textpattern. We know about 8 links to it since March 2021 and only 6 links to Textpattern. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Textpattern mentions (6)

  • Matt Mullenweg, Automattic's CEO, Seems Bound and Determined to Wreck WordPress
    There's ClassicPress. But a better alternative than sticking with WP is https://textpattern.com/ (which has better and more stable codebase that is as old as WordPress). - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • WordPress Alternatives
    TextPattern use to a thing like around the same time WP got started. It’s also PHP based. https://textpattern.com/. - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • Modern WordPress – Yikes
    Checkout https://textpattern.com/ - its development started around the same time as WordPress, and still continues. Even though it didn't reach Wordpress' success, I've always felt that TextPattern is better coded than WordPress. - Source: Hacker News / about 1 year ago
  • Ask HN: For static HTML, what is your go to template?
    Depends on the need...I have a quick LibreOffice HTML template in light or dark. I include metas for mobile use in the document properties. I also have a PHP controller that can easily modify these if I need it to be more dynamic. Otherwise I use https://picocss.com/ for some things. For publishing I either drop the HTML file in a folder with or without a controller, or start a new endpoint by creating a new... - Source: Hacker News / about 3 years ago
  • Textile Markup Language
    Textile was the driving markup behind Textpattern (https://textpattern.com/), one of the better publishing/CMS tools out there on PHP. It had a nice object oriented approach that was less painful than Wordpress, and gave great flexibility to design aspects in ways that were easier to work with than Wordpress... But Wordpress won the popular marketshare, and TP was relegated to some diehards. Those diehards still... - Source: Hacker News / over 3 years ago
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LiveJournal mentions (8)

  • I thought I'd give y'all an update.
    Awww, thanks! This means a lot to me! I, too, have an anxious mind and still, to this day I have to step back and ask myself why am I stressing about something when my focus needs to be on this other situation? The other thing I do that might help is I journal. I use livejournal.com but if you are artistic, you might like a handwritten journal. Source: about 2 years ago
  • Finally done the show!
    Desperate for more content, I listened to the 'Clear Eyes, Full Hearts' podcasts and they are okay but I find Stacey whatserface an incredibly annoying presenter. There's an absolute shedload of FNL fanfiction out there too, if you're into that kind of thing, ranging from light romantic fluff to heart-wrenching emotional observations about the characters' feelings to downright crack. I even started writing some... Source: about 2 years ago
  • livejournal password leak SOS
    Hi, I have no experience with this and I am hoping someone can help me. Remember the livejournal.com password dump? My 20 year old livejournal is now visible and has my full name. Of course I don't have the password or the email I used in 2004. Is there anyone who is willing and able to help me get the password for it so I can delete it? Source: about 2 years ago
  • Apparently Bing can control the suggestions if you just ask. (unless they're in a bad mood)
    It works fine. I can get it to read livejournal.com entries. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Buy pbn links cheap
    PBN, or blog network seo, is one of the 'expensive' gray SEO strategies, thus creating or receiving the service for a low price is impossible, or at best only PHP and zonk. PBN links can be formed on any platform, even free ones like Blogspot and WordPress.com, but the ones that are preferred and well-known for their benefits are still self-hosted paying ones. The blog networks seo is a collection of domains that... Source: about 3 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Textpattern and LiveJournal, you can also consider the following products

ClassicPress - The WordPress fork. No Gutenberg. Great future!

Blogger - Publish your passions, your way. Create a unique and beautiful blog. It’s easy and free.

Sitecake - Drag and drop CMS for HTML websites. It's flat file CMS so it's pretty fast.

Tumblr - A feature rich and free blog hosting platform offering professional and fully customizable templates, bookmarklets, photos, mobile apps, and social network integration.

Anchor CMS - Free and lightweight blogging system

Ghost - Ghost is a fully open source, adaptable platform for building and running a modern online publication. We power blogs, magazines and journalists from Zappos to Sky News.