T23-Group 3

= Blogs =

=Intoduction= A blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. The activity of updating a blog is "blogging" and someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Blogs are typically updated daily using software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain the blog. Postings on a blog are almost always arranged in chronological order with the most recent additions featured most prominently. definition



Blogs are usually written by one person and are updated on a regular basis. Blogs are often written on a particular topic including photography, spirituality, recipes, personal diaries and hobbies are an example of popular blog topics. Blogging has as many applications and varieties as you can imagine. Whole blog communities have sprung up around some of these topics putting people into contact with each other in relationships where they can learn, share ideas, make friends with and even do business with people with similar interests from around the world. What is a Blog 

There are two main type of blogs that exist: web blogs and personal blogs. The purpose of personal blogs is for individuals to diary whereas web blogs are for sharing and discussing information about various topics. www.dvorak.org/blog/primer/blogprimer1.htm

There are many subjects of Blogs. Some examples include news, travel, sports, or entertainment. 

= Issue = Do blogs and bloggin have a positive or negative effect on internet users? Within this wiki page, a brief description will be give on blogs, as well as how to create and use them, then the advantages and disadvantages of blogs will be explored to offer a recommendation on the effect of blogs on society. 



= Background Information = The word “Blog” was originally coined by Peter Merholz. It was slang for an internet site term known as “web log”. Nowadays the term Blog is used more frequently. Merriam-Webster's Dictionary even astonishingly declared “blog” as the word of the year in 2004. There is no clear website from which can claim fame to being the first one created. The origins of what modern blogging came from is also highly debated. The modern blog most commonly used in today’s society evolved from the online diary. This is where people would keep a runnning personal account of their lives. Some of the oldest running blogs where run by students, Justin Hall, and Jerry Pournelle. These were created in 1994 and were used to give updates about the classes they were in. Blogging at Harvard Word of the Year

= Blog Use =

Early blogs were manually updated the same way as common websites. However, the increases in technology allowed the publishing process to be much larger, less technical, and more available. Ultimately resulting in the Blog sites we see today. After a slow start Blogging became increasing popular by 1999 and the years to follow For example: The site Open Diary It was launched in October 1998 Shortly and rapidly increased to thousands of diaries. First site to allow people to comment on other peoples blogs.

Blogging has become much more then a technological novelty. It has become a cultural phenomenon that has shaped many lives. Instead of just being a way to communicate information from people, which was its original intended use. The vast majority of users have become young girls, who more then often use blogs as a way to vent angst-ridden emotions for all to see. We are in the era of “information technology age” it makes sense that everything including diaries are becoming online. 10 years Running World of BlogsBlog Herald

= How To Create a Blog = There are a variety of websites devoted to blog creation. One popular choice is a Google sponsored company called Blogger.com. Using the Blogger website, users can follow step-by step instructions on how to create and personalize their own blog. There are a variety of components of a blog that need to be set up before users can begin blogging. The first step is to establish the design of your blog page. This includes choosing from previously created templates, customizing fonts and colors as well as organizing the various elements of your page. The purpose of a design is that it fits the bloggers personality and reflects the purpose of his/her blog. Other important components of a blog include blogger comments, access controls and blogger profiles. Blogger Comments let anyone offer feedback on your posts. Access Controls lets the user decide who can read and who can write on their blog. Blogger Profiles let users find people and blogs of similar interests. In addition to these components users can also choose to share photos, and send information from their cell phone. www.blogger.com Another popular website for users to create a blog include: www.blogskinny.com. Similar to Blogspot, users simply go to the website and click create a blog and follow the instructions for personalizing their own blog. Blogskinny website’s blogs are organized according to subject (e.g. fashion, sports, health and family). Furthermore, the website claims to review all postings on the blog to keep the content clean and enjoyable for readers. Finally, another blog creation website is found at www.thoughts.com. This blog creation website is unique in that it has a rating system in which users can rank other blogs and photos, podcasts, and videos. Those with the highest ratings can win vacation packages. These are just a few of the popular blog creation websites. Before creating a blog, users should research each website and determine which one best meets their needs and preferences.

= How To Find A Blog =

Those who are interested in reading about what others think or feel about a certain topic can search for blogs using various website blog search engines. Popular search engines include www.Blogsearch.google.com, www.readablog.com and www.blogcatalog.com.

= How To Read a Blog =

For individuals interested in reading web type blogs, there are a few elements of a blog that are important and awareness of these elements will help new users understand and read web blogs. The following elements of a web blog include: Blog layout – most blogs are laid out in which the latest posted item are seen first of the blog. Therefore, when reading a blog, you are reading from end to beginning.

The Post Element: the elements of a blog post include: The Comments Element: this is where readers can leave their comments and create a discussion of a subject. The collateral: this includes other features of a blog such as a search box, archive list, about page, etc.www.dvorak.org/blog/primer/blogprimer1.htm Sourcewww.dvorak.org/blog/primer/blogprimer1.htm
 * Permalink: this is the link to the database location of the current post.
 * Headline: The subject of the post.
 * Primary Link (Main Link): This is a link to a website that the blog is referring to.
 * Summary/Comment: Thoughts of the creator of the blog.
 * Blockquote: This is an excerpt from an item being discussed such as an excerpt from a newspaper or article on the internet.

= Advantages of Blogs =

1) Blogs Are Easy As described in “How to Create a Blog” and “How to Read a Blog” in the above sections, Blogs are relatively easy to create and use. A person simply has to have access to a computer and the internet. In 2004, 75% of people had accessed the internet (including children and the elderly). Blogs are usually free, so there are few limitations stopping anyone from creating their own blog. A person simply has to log back in to their blog to maintain it. Again, only access to a computer and the internet is required. People can create new posts, edit previous posts, and change and customize settings. Blogs have unlimited space provided for a person to work with. There are no limits to how much a person can blog. Blogs are relatively easy to search for on the internet. Because they are all separate, existing websites, once a person uses a search engine to type in a search similar to an existing blog, the blog should appear as one of the search options.
 * To Create
 * To Maintain
 * To Search

2) Blogs Connect People Blogs are created, and maintained over the internet, and so people from all around the world, provided they have access to internet, can connect through blogs. Blogs are not limited by culture, race, or status. Because most blogs are free, people have a relatively low cost method of communication. People may connect over similar interests by creating or responding to a blog. It is said that we now live in an age of Digital Sociality in which new technologies promote interaction in society. Many believe that the ease of communication brought on by new technologies such as blogs, have brought people closer together. Blogs may also act as the only source of social interaction for people who may not have other means of interacting with others. People may begin to look forward to reading or writing blogs to connect with others.

3) Blogs Provide Availability and Diversity of Information Through blogs, people provide internet users with a range of information and opinions. There is very little authority regulating blogs and their content, and the information provided through blogs covers a range of topics. People can really have freedom of speech. As on June 2008, there were 209,593,000 Blogs on the internet, with 175,000 new blogs created every day along with millions of new posts made. www.youdesignit.blogspot.com These blogs cover a range on information from personal diaries to blogs about science. People can access blogs immediately after they are posted. They do not have to wait to receive the information, but can receive it immediately upon connecting to the internet. People may use blogs to seek out information or simply to be entertained.

4) Information Pull (Rather than Push) In the past, most information such as advertisements or newscasts were being pushed onto society with no means of controlling what information you were exposed to. With new technologies such as the internet and blogs, people now have to power to avoid the information they do not want, sift through and only pull out the information beneficial to them. This means that people may get more diversity of information because information is not being chosen and controlled by a few selected people. Information is becoming more individualistic, meaning that people can access only information that interests them, they can avoid information that they do not wish to see. People now have more access to information. They can find the information at any time of day, from any place (provided they have access to a computer and the internet). People now have more control in their hands over what information they receive, rather than the control being in the hands of those who control the main mass media devices.

5) Blogs are Beneficial to Businesses and Consumers Many businesses are now using blogs to promote their products and even update consumers about them. This is a cheap and easy method of getting knowledge about your product to the general public. Advertisers are also buying space on blogs to promote their product, so regular people can earn income through simply having a popular blog. Blogs can also be used to research markets, by looking at the interests of people. Consumers can also use blogs to inform themselves, either through the blogs of businesses or through reviews written by other consumers.

= Disadvantages of Blogs =

1) Blogs are Questionable When reading blogs, people may not be able to distinguish what is fact or what is fiction. Anyone can create a blog, with whatever content they choose, and so distinguishing between those that hold legitimate information and those that are fictional may be difficult for the user. Businesses may use blogs for advertisements or promotion, but because there is very little authority regulating the content on blogs, may be tempted to use false advertising, promoting false beliefs.

2) Privacy is at Risk Blog users may become comfortable with blogs and provide personal information. This could be simple descriptions about oneself or one's life to even more private information such as addresses or banking information. Providing personal information on blogs via the internet could lead to identity theft or even threats to one's personal safety.

3) Easy to Start but Hard to Maintain As previously outlined, blogs are relatively easy to start. While many are excited to create blogs, it can become a chore for some to continously maintain blogs. Writing can be a difficult and time consuming task. Some may think of blogging as relatively cost effective, but the time required to maintain blogs can be costly. There are thousands of abandoned blogs on the internet. People must constantly update blogs, and with interesting content, otherwise they risk losing all of their readers. Many believe that most people do not have very much to say that's interesting, and/or are unable to write down their ideas in a compelling and clear manner. www.gerrymcgovern.com

4) Previously Deleted Information is Memorized Bloggers may write down information or opinions in a blog that they may later retract and remove. The implication of writting it on a blog, however, is that it will always be memorized by another source. Blog readers may have already read it. And with search engines such as Google, there will always be a record of the blog in memory.

5) Blogs turned into Gossip Columns Bloggers may be tempted to take advantage of their freedom of speech. By taking advantage of a newfound freedom of speech, Blogs can quickly turn into gossip columns. Many issues can arise such as slander, defamation, cyberbullying and abuse. Bloggers mush recognize that harsh blogging against another can seriously affect other people. www.ezinearticles.com

6) Blogs are Subject to Interpretaion Blogs are written from the point of view of one or a selected few people. Just like any other opinions or information, blogs are subjective. Readers may disagree or be misinformed by what a blog says. Readers may feel angry or violated by what a blogger has written. This can lead to other issues previously mentioned such as defamation or abuse. www.webpronews.com

7) Blogs can Replace Traditional Social Interaction As mentioned in the Advantages of Blogs, some bloggers and readers may rely on blogging as a source of interaction with others. This could lead to an addiction to blogging and minimalization of other traditional sources of interaction, cutting the blogger or reader off with the world outside of the internet.

= Conclusion = In conclusion, Blogs and Blogging can be beneficial for society as long as people recognize the negative points associated with blogs. Blogs can be used to provide society with diverse information and opinions that can be shared throughout the world. But people must exercise caution not to take advantage of their freedom of speech. Blog users must also exercise caution with content, privacy issues, and addiction. By acknowledging the issues that arise from blogs, society can benefit from the freedom of sharing opinions, information and interests with one another.



=References=

Aimee Petroschuk
 * www.matisse.net/files/glossary.html#B
 * www.problogger.net/archives/2005/02/05/what-is-a-blog/
 * www.dvorak.org/blog/primer/blogprimer1.htm
 * www.Blogsearch.google.com
 * www.readablog.com
 * www.blogcatalog.com
 * www.thoughts.com
 * www.blogskinny.com
 * www.blogger.com

Ashley Tkachyk
 * www.ezinearticles.com
 * www.gerrymcgovern.com
 * www.technorati.com
 * www.youdesignit.blogspot.com
 * www.webpronews.com

Denise Letterio
 * www.opendiary.com
 * www.wired.com
 * www.news.cnet.com
 * www.blogherald.com
 * www.en.wikinews.org
 * www.slais.ubc.ca
 * www.tweetizens.com