In periods of boredome or unemployment, I read other peoples blogs. Needless to say they are almost always boring, but it is always fun to find out about other people.
One problem I find with blogs however is that people get bogged down in the minute of their lives and end up communicating very little of who they are and what they actually think on any given topic. Blogs would be more effectively written in the form of a Jerry Springer style final thought, complete with that unique blend of liberal-minded complexity acknowledgement, and normative judgementalism. Of course bloggers can add to it their own personal touch.
Take for example this boring blog:
"Today I went to the supermarket and they were all out of my favourite blend of coffee. I let it go, but realised on my way out that we only have International Roast at home. I'd rather drink hot water. Man, I'll be grumpy tomorrow morning without my coffee."
becomes slightly more amusing when written thus:
"You know, there are an amazing variety of blends available in the world of coffee today. But sometimes we get caught up in our work-a-day world and forget to take advantage of and embrace this complexity. We become stuck on one particular blend and totally unable to even contemplate trying anything new. We become grumpy and unable to adapt when we don't get our coffee without any reguard for the effect this will have on our friends and family. But by the same token manufacturers and retailers need to understand that they can't just make a scrumptious and addictive product and fail to provide, no matter what the cost. There will have to come a time when we as a society stand up and take these things into consideration- caffeine withdrawl affects us all. Take care of yourselves- and each other."-- sdm, Aug 17 2001 Jerry! Jerry! Jerry! http://www.studiosusa.com/jerryYou just can't help but watch so that you know your life isn't too bad..... [Susen, Aug 17 2001, last modified Oct 17 2004] For waugsqueke & other Haters of Blogs http://dir.yahoo.co...d_Diaries/Web_Logs/Fourth from the top, Yahoo lists Halfbakery as one of the "Most Popular" web logs. [iuvare, Aug 17 2001, last modified Oct 17 2004] Blogger.com http://www.blogger.com/about.pyraPyra's explanation. [iuvare, Aug 17 2001, last modified Oct 17 2004] Whatis.com http://searchwebman...7_gci214616,00.htmlAnother source. [iuvare, Aug 17 2001, last modified Oct 17 2004] Blog? http://www.whatshouldiputonthefence.com/halfbakers like me will like this, I'm sure. [lewisgirl, Aug 17 2001, last modified Oct 17 2004] There can only be room for one such blog on the web. No, literally - you would soon be taxing the biggest servers just from text storage... Seriously, you do have a point about how painful and boring some blogs are, and that is a very nice style you have, but isn't the thought of a prescribed style for blogging ridiculous, especially one so distinctive? I look forward to seeing your blog written like this, though, when I am unemployed/bored.-- jabbers, Aug 17 2001 Jabbers: Oh that's right. One thing that I forgot to mention was oh so eloquently brought to the fore by my esteemed and learned colleague jabbers. The style of a Springer monologue does take more room than the keyboard equivalent of, say, grunting. But the introspective and drawn out style Jerry takes would allow for less tedium in blogging and more thought provoking comment derived from that which is everyday life. So instead of having two or three tedious go-nowhere blog items per day, the blogger could have one, good quality blog Jerry style.
As to the prescription of a set style blog, I don't see how this is much different from what is widely practised today. Blog writing styles are much-of-a-muchness the only difference being the personal touch each blogger adds in terms of colloquialisms and the like. The Final Thought Blog merely suggests another interesting way to structure thoughts, while still allowing the author to add his or her own artistic flair as before. I don't imagine everybody will take up the idea- it doesn't suit all blogs, but I certainly don't think it's ridiculous.-- sdm, Aug 17 2001 You've accurately captured Springer's 'final thought' style. 'You know', 'We', 'But', and the platitudes as well. Much as I hate to admit I've ever watched Springer through to the end.-- protean, Aug 17 2001 'Fraid I don't know what a blog is... but this is a great idea. Indeed, extending the process of Springer-ism to other areas of reportage and debate would surely Make The World A Better Place - in much the same way as wrapping a knife in a pillow makes the knife Much Less Dangerous.-- serendipity, Aug 17 2001 Is there any point in web logs at all?Quote from one picked at random - 'Last Saturday, Su and I went back to the pub. We were offered free tickets to go see Depeche Mode but we're too old for that. For concerts, not for Depeche Mode. I also talked to a Scottish guy. I had never met a Scottish guy before and I couldn't understand most of what he was saying.' Who really cares?-- angel, Aug 17 2001 being old enough for Depeche Mode and too old for concerts are certainly not mutually exclusive. Yes, there's a point in web logs (not that I've ever done one, well I suppose I have something approaching one on my site...); the point is that you write down your random musings in what is meant to be a superficially dull tone, from which some people (who also think all modern art is deep) will draw great philosophical meaning. The act of publishing these thoughts, and in the knowledge that someone, somewhere, will read them and may draw comfort, interest or provoke thoughts from them, in itself justifies the inane rambling item. "I blog, therefore I am."-- lewisgirl, Aug 17 2001 I have never kept one either but have oft mused over it. To add to what lewisgirl was saying, for my money, the blog is there to share something of the human experience easily and to whoever wants to listen. Sometimes I read snippets of blogs and think, 'yeah, that's a good idea' or 'I can relate to that' and its often amusing- at least comforting.
There's also the self-interest aspect. A lot of people keep a diary. Why not put it on the web? It’s relatively easy nowadays and it takes less space. There's also something of the voyeur there: anybody can peek into your life and see what you are doing (with relative anonymity.)-- sdm, Aug 17 2001 Discussing whether or not weblogs are inane isn't going to make a blind bit of difference - people will still write them. Far more productive to consider their meaning, in the overall scheme of things - what can they add (in value terms) to the web? Well, nothing. OK.I'm feeling a need to apologise for myself. Do I have a weblog-type page?; as I said, sort of. But I think the difference is that personal web pages should generally be kept that way (imho) - writing one's deepest meaningfullest thoughts on a publicly available site with the reverse-voyeur excitement [sdm] mentioned is kind of twisted. I mean that in a sad way. I have a web page, but it's purely for my friends and family. (I don't even know why I've put it on my HB profile, hmmm.) For that reason I'm in no hurry to see it come up on a search engine. My mother worries that by having a website I'll immediately attract stalkers aplenty, but in fact, the pages that come up from a web search on my own name are real work sites, email archives and such, and are far more revealing! That comes from having held sort-of publicly accountable positions. My own site is basically a photo album, and in some ways a diary, that just means I don't have to write one of those dreadful formula letters at Christmas telling everyone in facile language what I've been up to all year.-- lewisgirl, Aug 17 2001 One good point you have, [sdm], is that a distinctive style is crucial for a blog to not be dead boring. My final thought on this topic, though, is that one Jerry Springer is quite enough!-- jabbers, Aug 20 2001 li·bel n. A false publication, as in writing, print, signs, or pictures, that damages a person's reputation. The act of presenting such material to the public.-- angel, Aug 20 2001 There-- thumbwax, Aug 20 2001 UnaBubba: you're pretty much correct from what I can tell. It's the daytime trash television that (over here) they take off air during the school holidays. It's so low-brow that it is often mistaken for nose hair but there is something about it. Like watching a car wreck.
Angel: Im not quite sure how writing in the *style* of could be considered defamation. More like intellectual property infringements, maybe.
Jabbers: // My final thought on this topic, though... // pun intended? The Springer trade mark introspective tone is rubbing off! You're a closet Springer Blog fan aren't you?-- sdm, Aug 21 2001 What's a 'web logger'?-- gorn_the_great, Aug 21 2001 [sdm]: I was referring (wryly) to a (now-deleted) annotation which could have been regarded as defamatory of various Halfbakers. [gorn_the_great]: A person who posts his diary on the net. Reading them is usually almost as galvanically exciting as watching granite erode.-- angel, Aug 21 2001 I wrote the now deleted epic storyline involving various halfbakers. Pity it saw the light of very little of a day.-- thumbwax, Aug 21 2001 [sdm]: as much as the unintentional similarity in tone of my first post to the Final Thought style pains me on inspection, I cannot deny it. I can but claim that this introspective style was independently developed, and is unique to myself. However ironic this post may sound, I hope that all my fellow halfbakers can recognise that my opposition to wide adoption of the Springer style of blog is in earnest.-- jabbers, Aug 23 2001 I misunderstood the title. I thought this was going to be an idea for a collection of final thoughts from various people.
On first glance, I felt that it would be a little sick. Upon further reflection, however, I thought it might be nice to have a place where your last thoughts could be immortalized for all to see.-- iuvare, Aug 23 2001 //I've spouted off about the inanity of weblogs here before...//
That's funny, waugsqueke, considering the Halfbakery is a blog [see link].-- iuvare, Aug 23 2001 That's just another example of the fact that Yahoo should stick to being a search engine, because it doesn't know what it's talking about, otherwise...-- StarChaser, Aug 23 2001 What were you doin' at Yahoo?-- sdm, Aug 24 2001 I wasn't, I was talking about iuvare's link listing the Halfbakery as not only a blog, but apparently the fifth most popular one. This points out that Yahoo is unclear on the concept, both of the .5B and of what a 'blog' is.-- StarChaser, Aug 25 2001 [Off-topic] Starchaser, would you mind making the concept of a blog, clear and precise? I always thought a blog was simply a personal (as opposed to commercial), online journal, updated daily.-- iuvare, Aug 27 2001 Is that because you said so, or would you happen to have an explanation?-- iuvare, Aug 27 2001 Right, it's an online journal. Journals are collections of one person's thoughts or whatever they feel might be worth writing down. 'A personal record of occurrences, experiences, and reflections kept on a regular basis; a diary. '
The Halfbakery is NOT a blog, because we are not one person.-- StarChaser, Aug 27 2001 I disagree.
I maintain that your definition is too limiting. It's an example of particular kind of web log, not a defining characteristic (see links & excerpts from sources below.)
"A blog is a web page made up of usually short, frequently updated posts that are arranged chronologically -- like a what's new page or a journal. The content and purposes of blogs varies greatly -- from links and commentary about other web sites, to news about a company/person/idea, to diaries, photos, poetry, mini-essays, project updates, even fiction. Blogs posts are like instant messages to the web. Many blogs are personal, "what's on my mind" type musings. Others are collaborative efforts based on a specific topic or area of mutual interest. Some blogs are for play. Some are for work. Some are both." --blogger.com
"Blogs generally represent the personality of the author or the Web site and its purpose." --whatis.com
Again, I think the crux is that it's online, updated daily and centered around a particular format or purpose. I think the unifying element of a blog CAN be a person (perhaps the originator), but that it musn't solely contain thoughts from that person (or persons).-- iuvare, Aug 27 2001 I was toying with the idea of creating my own, personal weblog (ok that defeats the use of the word "web"), as a sort of personal journal. i don't normally keep a dead tree journal, nor am i the kind of the person that you'd imagine would keep one :) but i had a particular intention for this one: to keep track of changes in my opinion about certain issues, and just generally trace the path in my thought stream and that elusive property known as our worldiew.
i remember that on more than one occasion i've wanted to remember what/how i thought about something in particular previous to events or situations which changed my perspective on that topic/issue/person/situation/whatever; well it's damn near impossible, i can tell you that much.
as far as implementation goes, i was considering using slashdot.org's free code base and make it all enrypted with some astronomically long crypto key, me being of course THE world's number one most paranoid person on earth (no really, it's true i tell ya..!), thus permitting me to safely write stuff i generally wouldn't even tell ME about (!).
but then of course i'd have to give up all forms of software copying for fear that the country i'm currenty residing in -'s federal authorities would come and confiscate my pc and take with them the forthspewings (errm..) of my very soul, and most likely crack the rsa crypto within a few years of massively parallel er, parallel computation and then, and then and it would an nah aargh noooo heelp, maaah, there's a big look it's right there in the shadows, arrggh ... arrrrrrrrrgggghh!!!!!!!!
right.. i'm smyrf, i've been clean for five whole days now, it's not easy but i'm coping, thanks to the help of the lovely people here at mind-altering-substance-ingesting-individuals anonymous, and i've also been allowed to keep my own blog to tell you all about it!-- smyrf, Aug 28 2001 Iuvare: <shrug> Ok, whatever. Your own definition says 'THE author', though, and every blog I've ever seen has been done by one person, possibly with contributions, but still only the one. But whatever makes you happy...-- StarChaser, Aug 31 2001 Me likes it-- longam, Jul 09 2002 random, halfbakery