I took the previous version of the WordPress Global Translator plugin out prior to installing the http:BL WordPress Plugin because 1) The layout didn't work right after translation and 2) spammers were accessing it more than humans.

I received a message from the plugin author yesterday, asking me to try the latest revision. I hesitated until this evening because installing and configuring plugins can be a pain if they don't work right the first time.

I'm happy to say that this revision works properly and I no longer have to worry about email harvesters and other low-life spammers using the translated pages to throw comment spam onto. I notified the author that it worked as designed and I plan to keep it as long as things don't go awry with it and I don't see an increase in comment spam. Google indexes the translated pages as well as the original, so there are more links indexed when using the translator.

One thing I'd noticed since removing the translator on May 10th is that the number of visitors from the countries where people speak those languages had decreased dramatically. I didn't think it would have that much of an impact, but it did. I had been considering putting in a much older version (that worked right) before receiving the email message from the author. It was just good timing that he told me about it when he did so that I wouldn't have to mess with it twice.

So there you have it, from someone who has used it and not used it and is using it again. A bit of caution: These translations are not even close to being 100 percent correct, but may help you some if you speak English as a second language.

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For various reasons (including sleep), I haven't done a fraction of what I wanted to do today. After getting some much needed rest, I think I'll be back in top form in a matter of hours. Look for more drive-bys and external links coming up in the next post.