I am completely sold on the function of blogging via a Windows client. I am
in the process of searching for the perfect tool and have tried several so far.
My requirements are pretty simple.
-
Must be able to talk to dasBlog. This is easy as DasBlog supports the standard
blogger interfaces. -
Nice WYSIWYG editing. This is key. I can write HTML tags
like breathing, but who the heck wants to? The editor should not make me learn
new quick keys, I mean CNTRL+M as the tab key? C’mon. - Save drafts for future editing and posting.
- Easy inclusion of images with the back end FTP function taken care of for me.
- Code formatting would be great.
BlogJet 
BlogJet would be perfect if it weren’t for the fact that it is the reason I
made the weird comment about CNTRL+M == TAB above. The WYSIWYG editor is functional,
but not impressive. That said, this is the editor that I am using to write this
post. As stupid as it is, I like the built in smiley face insertions, but I
should be able to add my own.
BlogJet is fully functional, but is amateurish in its’ implementation.
The writer’s of BlogJet should be making a more professional product given the
cost of the product ($40).
NewsGator 
NewsGator is my RSS aggregator and does a great job of aggregation, but the ability
to post to your own blog from within NewsGator is severely hampered by the fact that
Outlook is the actual client. Outlook allows no complex layout of your posts since
the editor itself is meant for email, duh. The “form factor” on
this solution is just lacking.
w.Bloggar 
Apparently a favourite for a lot of people, w.Bloggar is fully bloated with so many
features that I wasn’t sure where to start. I didn’t get too far
with w.Bloggar because there is no WYSIWYG editing and that is a requirement for me.
At least the HTML editing should have intellisense tag prompting. Writing <>
characters is just a plain waste of time in 2005.
Zoundry Blog Writer
WYSIWYG, check. Attachment and image FTP uploads, check. Spell check,
check. Nice interface for navigating previous posts and drafts, check.
So why don’t I like it? Basically the UI is dated and far too busy.
Not so much confusing as irritating. For instance, I must select the blog to
post to for each post i write. That’s just a waste of .02 seconds of my
life that I will never get back. My rejection of this tool just plain comes
down to aesthetics. It is probably a great tool.