Instablogs, the only blog network in India, has launched a new blogging community platform that will allow readers to Digg stories, create personal blogs and socialize with other community members. Once you join the Instablogs community, you get a personal blog space [like myname.instablogs.com] that revolves around your activity in the Instablogs zone. For instance, you will see comments posted by readers on your stories, your friends' activity, your popular stories and other things. You can change the look-n-feel of your blog in a single click by choosing any of the professional web themes.
If you already have a blog, you can import the contents to your Instablogs space - that will probably give more exposure to your current blog entries and could mean more readers.The process of submitting stories, commenting and voting is quite similar to Digg but the one unique feature they have is "News Leads". It's like telling the whole community about an interesting story on the web, anyone can pick the news lead from the queue and blog it on their persona; Instablogs space. As soon as they do it, the lead becomes a story.
Overall, Instablogs community looks like a good concept implemented quite nicely and considering that they have just launched, the response has been fairly impressive. Give it a shot.
The Instablogs site is monetized with contextual advertising but the revenue is not currently shared with the community members. If that could change in the future, Instablog could see much higher levels of participation as most users need some sort of incentive to get engaged.
Side Note: Instablogs, as a blog network, has over a 100 blogs under their umbrella and the team is managed by Ankit and Nandini Maheshwari who are based in New Delhi and probably the only "blogging couple" in India.
Find this article at: http://labnol.blogspot.com/2006/11/instablogs-community-makes-impressive.html
web: http://www.labnol.org/ email: amit@labnol.org
Reader Comments
If you already have a blog, you can import the contents to your Instablogs space - that will probably give more exposure to your current blog entries and could mean more readers.
how to do this?
Written on 16/11/06 4:07 PM
Nandini Maheshwari wrote to me earlier saying that the blog import feature is enabled for just 50% of the users who are chosen randomly.
They are expecting to make this feature public by Monday.
Written on 16/11/06 4:12 PM
thankx for info
Written on 17/11/06 1:43 PM
Look at its clone at
http://www.blogsurf.org/
Written on 29/12/06 7:17 PM
Have you used it yourself? I found it so phoney, specially the citizen journalism thing. They just pick the real stories from somewhere else and link on their blogs! Nothing orignal there.
My IT blog
Written on 10/4/07 4:43 PM
I am making it a point to post and tell people about reality behind screens- instablogs is a hoax and all is pseudo posting and copied data and images. Their origional business is adventure and outdoor www.instatravel.org, www.himadventures.com and www.himadventures.net.I went through while trekking in himalayas. We contacted ANKIT through www.himadventures.com and he outsourced us. This issue was raised at www.indiamike.com also. And later on one himachal website which publishes ‘ interview’ of ANKIT was also contacted about his reputation. I was shocked when I came to know that he had started this blog netwrok.
One of my friend working in india was traveling through SHIMLA and had visited his office also. This is small group which is posting blogs and making money from adsence.
I am sure people will come to know about this one day. My personal internet search had come to following conclusions..
1. Trekking and mountaineering is their first business and they are operating websites like www.himadventures.com and www.himadventures.net
2. Not only instablogs- they are operating many more websites.
Their address is found on more than 10 websites.
I am sure this couple will go PLACES.
know something ?
search for : ankit maheshwari, himadventures will bring to the truth what I am saying.
Will continue further…..
Written on 28/9/07 6:40 PM
If you search for
anil maheshari in google, you will come to this !
http://www.spamhuntress.com/wiki/Anil_Maheshwari
You will find that address and phones are same what these people had provided initially when they were operating from DELHI.
This further proves that these guys are imlicated in cyber crimes and this also confirms when I contacted www.himadventures.net at their 24×7 Help no: 91 9915160121…that Mr.Ankit Maheshwari is a fraud personality and he has hijacked the domain from them. They told me that they had proof that he even used their personal images along with names on his website and when they threatned to take them to court-he removed.
If someone wants further celrficiation- you can contact them.
So ? We all now that picture is clear…only google has to see this along with many innocent readers and lady maheshwari that infact her husband is ………[no comment ]
Written on 16/10/07 9:59 PM
instablogs has been exposed here:
To further establish link of instablogs and himadventures
http://elliottback.com/wp/archives/2005/10/06/instablogs-sucks/
Hope 'real' readers will come to know about their 'real' business.
Written on 26/10/07 6:43 AM
I dialed this 24x7 helpline 91 9915160121 and confirmed from Mr. Loomba that there has been domain theft and what impressive information I gathered with following hard work of you all is..
1. This is true that Mr.ankit Maheshwari operated himadventures.com and now they are operating from SHIMLA with new baby instablogs.org
2.Ankit claimed to a website that they had been paying 2,00,000 as telephone bills[ internet ] and this is enough to initiate a income tax inquiry which www.himadventures.net people seems to be unaware of.
3. This exposure of instablogs.org has forced ankit maheshwari to post a disclaimer on his website himadventures.com- which again proves that they come from a background of tainted image.
4. both websites instablogs and .com of himadventures had been blamed for copied data and images. You can easily find it that images and data had been stolen fromblogs and websites.
I agree- that someone from google and yahoo will come to know about it later or sooner.
Written on 9/11/07 8:20 AM
Enough of this instablogs thing. No one is interested in reading that crap which is copied data. I think this is effort for online advertising-nothing else. May be adsence giving them enough to continue.
I do not know about shimla or where in india it is but i certainly checked this accusation that they are associated with himadventures.com as internet is filled up with their claims and enteries about himadventures.com and yes, i checked google also and there too- their association with not only with himadventures but with some other business had also surfaced.
I do not know about himadventures.net guys and had not contacted them as I am not having any personal issues with instablogs but i certainly feel that google and yahoo should think seriously before they provide a platform to people like instablogs.com
Written on 17/11/07 5:06 AM
I read all about instablogs.com at http://www.startupdunia.com/instablogs-a-case-of-identity-crisis/ and also went to google for varification of those claims by readers that this is hoax and pseudo posting group. I too do not know about shimla in india but i can say that this is a intelligent investment by this couple wh switched from adventure outdoor to blogging.
I do agree that google.com and yahoo.com should do something about it besides all readers who are being taken on a ride by such people.
Written on 22/11/07 7:31 AM