i can't comment on blog (error something) so I do here: I guess many companies will fear for negative comments, but they should fear for NO comments at all :) - Gianluca Diegoli

indeed, that might be the case for many sites - on the TypePad comment system, for some reason, some users find it hard to comment there... I submitted tons of tickets, but so far, no resolution. They usually want to know exactly what happens, have screen shots, etc. I think that secretly they'd like us to tell them how ti fix it, too ;) - Valeria Maltoni

Chris, is this much different than having a FriendFeed conversation automatically show-up in a sidebar? We've seen discussion about "stealing comments" before... I think it's bull. As for moving data "into" Google: Google has quite some efforts for dataportability going on... I expect a user can backup their comments to another service as they please. Likewise, all my FriendFeed comments are automatically pulled into Backtype. - Meryn Stol

I see it also has some similarities to Diigo and other annotation web services... These have existed for ages... I just think Google repackages this a bit, with better UI and such. I really don't see the problem of it. The big difference is Google Toolbar's reach. Many people don't even know of Diigo probably. - Meryn Stol

I expect that friendfeed, facebook and twitter will start very soon with similar tools, that simulate visual integration with connected and commented sites. So, I prefer openness of Google to FB walls... - Gianluca Diegoli

linked this thread in the TypePad comments - it's very sad that the native software would not offer integration, given the developments we're discussing... probably why more and more bloggers are moving to WP :) - Valeria Maltoni

right! WP FTW :) - Susan Beebe

It sounds interesting but since it requires the use of Google Toolbar I think I'll pass. I don't have room for any toolbars. - Sue - Friendfeed is best

I work for a big humanitarian organization and I think we have a certain responsibility towards our users. This includes that we don’t allow spammy comments or comments that are obscene or racist. With SideWiki that might happen, and be visible to the user who has Sidewiki enabled, without us being able to do anything about it. Also: If I have no control over the comments, how can I prevent a fraudster from claiming that he or she is part of our organization and asks the visitors for donations? A, I might not even know about it unless I have SideWiki installed. B, many users will consider the SideWiki content to be part of the website (yes, they should know better). This will actually give fraudsters who are adding fraudulent credibility. That is a major problem. - Timo Luege

That's a very valid concern, Timo. I have no idea of what Google plans to do with it, but on a first blush, the add on bar is distracting, almost "rude" as it intrudes on an existing page flow - I was never a fan of add on bars, whether they come from left field or are at the bottom of blogs. Esthetically, they detract from the user experience and make more visual clutter/graffiti. - Valeria Maltoni