Blogging is a new verb in the lexicon of the Internet. It refers to the activity of keeping an on-line web log ("Blog") or journal. This whole concept is very new. At the begining of 1999 there were literally only about 25 web sites in existence that could be described as blogs. However, starting in 1999 the scene changed dramatically. Software was created and released (much of it free) that opened the activity to those without technical web site creation skillls. Hundreds of blogs appeared almost immediately and by now there are tens of thousands of them.
Many of the early blogs served the function of helping people navigate the maze of the Internet. Now, unfortunately, the proliferation of blogs has made them a maze themselves. No doubt the fascination with blogging which presently is often immature and short lived will level off. Some blogs are created with the limited intention of fulfilling a personal or family diary type function. However, there is reason to expect that most of the remaining blogs that survive will do so because they manage to create a participatory community of regulars who share a common interest or perspective.
So, why on earth would anyone want to start a blog?
Any trip through the current blogging landscape exposes the traveller to a realm where teenage streams of conciousness, chronicles of disfunctional lives and blatent demonstations of illiteracy seem to predominate. If you think that I am being too harsh just click on "Next Blog" a few times to view the evidence.
So, why join the fray? For now, let me offer three reasons for my choice to begin blogging.
First, unappealing as the world of blogging may appear it is certainly one take on reality. And, amongst the mindless stuff there are some real gems. However, isn't that pretty much the way it is no matter where you sample reality? Frankly, the daily newspaper, though a bit more sophisticated, isn't always that much more edifying - to say nothing of trying to mine the ore from the dross of what North American television has to offer. This is the real world - like it or lump it. Participate or flee to an idealistic commune somewhere! To reject the blogging world simply because it is not always intellectually stimulating is just a bit more snobbish than I would care to be.
Secondly, of course, is the fact that there are amongst bloggers some really exciting and intellectually challenging people. Now, I certainly do not share the lifeview perspective of all of them - but what a treat to be able to read their stimulating comments and to be able to engage in direct communication with the authors. Isn't that what we often crave when we read a good book? If only we could ask the author a question or challenge them to clarify or enlarge upon some element of their presentation. In the world of blogging that immediate exchange is not only possible but generally expected. This is too rich an opportunity to miss.
And finally, as I hinted at the outset, I think that this is a dimension of communication that represents the way into the future. Blogging is global in scope. Anyone anywhere in the world with Internet access can read your blog. As any exposure to the scene will demonstrate, blogging is already an international activity. Blogging takes place in real time. Within seconds of composition a posted item is accessible to every potential reader. Within that same time frame readers can record and post their responses. Not only that, the material on a blog is archived and can be read or reread days, weeks or months later. What could be more versatile than that. These features really do give communication a whole new meaning.
To me it is exciting to contemplate having even a tiny part in such a future!
Many of the early blogs served the function of helping people navigate the maze of the Internet. Now, unfortunately, the proliferation of blogs has made them a maze themselves. No doubt the fascination with blogging which presently is often immature and short lived will level off. Some blogs are created with the limited intention of fulfilling a personal or family diary type function. However, there is reason to expect that most of the remaining blogs that survive will do so because they manage to create a participatory community of regulars who share a common interest or perspective.
So, why on earth would anyone want to start a blog?
Any trip through the current blogging landscape exposes the traveller to a realm where teenage streams of conciousness, chronicles of disfunctional lives and blatent demonstations of illiteracy seem to predominate. If you think that I am being too harsh just click on "Next Blog" a few times to view the evidence.
So, why join the fray? For now, let me offer three reasons for my choice to begin blogging.
First, unappealing as the world of blogging may appear it is certainly one take on reality. And, amongst the mindless stuff there are some real gems. However, isn't that pretty much the way it is no matter where you sample reality? Frankly, the daily newspaper, though a bit more sophisticated, isn't always that much more edifying - to say nothing of trying to mine the ore from the dross of what North American television has to offer. This is the real world - like it or lump it. Participate or flee to an idealistic commune somewhere! To reject the blogging world simply because it is not always intellectually stimulating is just a bit more snobbish than I would care to be.
Secondly, of course, is the fact that there are amongst bloggers some really exciting and intellectually challenging people. Now, I certainly do not share the lifeview perspective of all of them - but what a treat to be able to read their stimulating comments and to be able to engage in direct communication with the authors. Isn't that what we often crave when we read a good book? If only we could ask the author a question or challenge them to clarify or enlarge upon some element of their presentation. In the world of blogging that immediate exchange is not only possible but generally expected. This is too rich an opportunity to miss.
And finally, as I hinted at the outset, I think that this is a dimension of communication that represents the way into the future. Blogging is global in scope. Anyone anywhere in the world with Internet access can read your blog. As any exposure to the scene will demonstrate, blogging is already an international activity. Blogging takes place in real time. Within seconds of composition a posted item is accessible to every potential reader. Within that same time frame readers can record and post their responses. Not only that, the material on a blog is archived and can be read or reread days, weeks or months later. What could be more versatile than that. These features really do give communication a whole new meaning.
To me it is exciting to contemplate having even a tiny part in such a future!
