Labs

Movable Type is a powerful and flexible system that includes just about everything the majority of blog users will need. Comments and a Trackback system are set up as a default, as well as categories and much else besides. There's support for multiple users and multiple blogs, which means a single installation can service many users. The only real downside is that creating templates can be a complex business, but given that the product is free there's very little not to like about it.

The popup menu at the top of the screen allows you to select which blog you want to edit. Each posting can be associated with categories, letting you set up categories for different areas of interest and allow people to search for those categories alone. The overall interface of Movable Type is clear, although some puzzling divisions between parts of postings are apparent. The Upload File button on the left allows users to upload files to their Web site, which makes posting pictures easier. If your Web server also hosts an email server, you can set up your site to notify email addresses when you make a new posting.