Migrating from Typepad to WordPress (or something similar)
October 20, 2024 2:13 PM Subscribe
Greetings.
I’m considering migrating my blog from Typepad to WordPress.
My current situation:
1,100 posts on Typepad (essays, reviews, interviews on art and theatre).
All posts include images and text.
Experiencing difficulties with image uploads and unresolved support issues.
Typepad no longer accepts new subscribers and has changed ownership multiple times.
Options I’m considering:
Remain on Typepad despite increasing challenges.
Migrate content to WordPress (or something similar).
a. Use a third-party export tool and migrate myself.
b. Hire a professional to handle the migration.
My primary concern is maintaining link integrity. I need to ensure that existing Typepad links (some up to 20 years old) redirect to the new platform. I’m unfamiliar with the process of transferring permalinks from Typepad to a new platform.
I would appreciate insights from anyone who has successfully navigated a similar migration, particularly regarding:
The migration process and its challenges.
Maintaining link integrity post-migration.
Recommendations for third-party tools or professional services.
Thank you for your advice on this matter.
Options I’m considering:
Remain on Typepad despite increasing challenges.
Migrate content to WordPress (or something similar).
a. Use a third-party export tool and migrate myself.
b. Hire a professional to handle the migration.
My primary concern is maintaining link integrity. I need to ensure that existing Typepad links (some up to 20 years old) redirect to the new platform. I’m unfamiliar with the process of transferring permalinks from Typepad to a new platform.
I would appreciate insights from anyone who has successfully navigated a similar migration, particularly regarding:
The migration process and its challenges.
Maintaining link integrity post-migration.
Recommendations for third-party tools or professional services.
Thank you for your advice on this matter.
Response by poster: Hi griffey. Thank you for your response.
And thank you for the quick tutorial on permalinks. I just did some research on the subject. I learned that, because the permalink contains "typepad.com," it would be hard to maintain exactly the same permalink structure during a migration. Yikes.
Are you using Typepad with your own domain? No. To be honest,when I began using Typepad in 2006, I never thought it was an option, much less a necessity. If I had known about it then, I'd have seen the benefit in a scenario like this. Plus - lesson learned! - who ever thinks a blogging platform would slowly become dysfunctional if not obsolete?
Are you planning to use a new domain for the "new" site, or are you planning to move the existing domain from the old to the new?. I would use a new domain for the new site. However, based on what I learned from you, and what I'm learning from my new line of inquiry, it would not only require moving everything (apparently the Typepad export function doesn't export images; since this is an art and theatre blog, it's image heavy), it would require notifying my audience of the transition, which is not possible.
Link integrity is going to come down entirely to what those links are...a domain you own, or not. Yikes again. As I wrote in my initial post, my main concern is being able to redirect people to the same post on a different site.
I have a feeling that my options are limited.
Thank you very much for your enlightening response. I appreciate it.
posted by holdenjordahl at 4:48 PM on October 20
And thank you for the quick tutorial on permalinks. I just did some research on the subject. I learned that, because the permalink contains "typepad.com," it would be hard to maintain exactly the same permalink structure during a migration. Yikes.
Are you using Typepad with your own domain? No. To be honest,when I began using Typepad in 2006, I never thought it was an option, much less a necessity. If I had known about it then, I'd have seen the benefit in a scenario like this. Plus - lesson learned! - who ever thinks a blogging platform would slowly become dysfunctional if not obsolete?
Are you planning to use a new domain for the "new" site, or are you planning to move the existing domain from the old to the new?. I would use a new domain for the new site. However, based on what I learned from you, and what I'm learning from my new line of inquiry, it would not only require moving everything (apparently the Typepad export function doesn't export images; since this is an art and theatre blog, it's image heavy), it would require notifying my audience of the transition, which is not possible.
Link integrity is going to come down entirely to what those links are...a domain you own, or not. Yikes again. As I wrote in my initial post, my main concern is being able to redirect people to the same post on a different site.
I have a feeling that my options are limited.
Thank you very much for your enlightening response. I appreciate it.
posted by holdenjordahl at 4:48 PM on October 20
I would be very hesitant to move into WordPress right now. The person who runs the organization that supports the software seems to have lost his mind and revealed himself to be a massive jerk. I'd want to wait to see how that is going to play out which may take several months - or just become a fact of life with which we have to live or avoid.
posted by ElKevbo at 6:50 PM on October 20 [4 favorites]
posted by ElKevbo at 6:50 PM on October 20 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: Thank you, ElKevbo, for the heads up on WordPress. I will factor this story into my migration decision. The thing I've learned from this experience is that I need to stay current on the status of all the tech I use.
posted by holdenjordahl at 6:18 AM on October 21 [1 favorite]
posted by holdenjordahl at 6:18 AM on October 21 [1 favorite]
I agree with ElKevbo that the WordPress owner thing is something to watch, but WordPress is still the biggest CMS by a large margin (60%+ market share). So if in a year or five years you needed to migrate somewhere else, the other folks will probably have a way for you to easily move (Typepad even has a WordPress importer tool).
No matter what you do, you should get a full export of your Typepad account:
Even if you can't get an export of all files from Typepad, the images issues probably could be solved with some careful searching of the export file for media, downloading all that media, uploading it to a new WordPress, and then doing find and replaces to make the media links work.
posted by gregr at 6:59 AM on October 21 [1 favorite]
No matter what you do, you should get a full export of your Typepad account:
Import/Export and scroll down to the Export section. Click the Export button to generate the export file. Once the export is complete, you will see a download link....With a paid Typepad account, you can request an export of all uploaded files, including images, by opening a Help Ticket in your Typepad account.WordPress does have a built in Typepad importer, which I've never used but probably works fine. I suspect it will not deal with your images automatically. Not sure about how it'll handle links, but you can always batch create redirects.
Even if you can't get an export of all files from Typepad, the images issues probably could be solved with some careful searching of the export file for media, downloading all that media, uploading it to a new WordPress, and then doing find and replaces to make the media links work.
posted by gregr at 6:59 AM on October 21 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks, gregr, for your insights. All this will factor into my next step.
posted by holdenjordahl at 9:14 AM on October 21
posted by holdenjordahl at 9:14 AM on October 21
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Link integrity is going to come down entirely to what those links are...a domain you own, or not.
posted by griffey at 4:06 PM on October 20