Do you know what I know?

Blogs. Everyone seems to have one. Whether they are simply rambles and rants of everyday life or platforms for shouting out views on social and political change, blogs have by far become integrated into today's technology-savvy generation. The term 'blog' was coined from its original combination of two words, web and log. Today, blogs are all over the Web, personalised and individual.

(Source: www.sepetnie.blogspot.com)

A blog is a personal and usually non-commercial website that uses a dated log format (Webopedia, 2009). It enables users to record and post information or data in text, image and now video form for viewers to see (NetAlert, 2009). According to NetAlert (2009), blogs are currently very popular with teenagers aged 13-19 and young adults in their twenties. The number of blogs has increased greatly, with advertising group Universal McCann in March 2008 that 184 million people have started a blog (Caslon Analytics, 2009). This shows how far the phenomenon has spread and the depth of its penetration.

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One popular blog is Waiter Rant. To this day, people still do not know who Waiter Rant actually is. This is one of the allowances, whether good or not you decide, new media has. There are many other bloggers like him, such as the author of Barmaid Blog, who relishes in the fact that she's still at large (Barmaid Blog, 2009). A definite downside to the explosion of new media is that they can be dangerously inaccurate at times (West, 2003). This is due to the openness the Web offers as well as the lack of filters for information.

The benefits of blogging surpass individual zones. According to NetAlert (2009), blogs are a way for individuals to publish their thoughts and opinions on issues important to them. This is a good gauge of public opinion and can help state apparatus maintain a watch on the community. Other benefits of blogging include business and marketing strategies, as blogs are low cost and help build brands (Suarez, 2006).


References

2009, 'What are blogs?' in NetAlert: Australian Government, accessed 15 June 2009, http://www.netalert.gov.au/advice/services/blogs/What_are_blogs.html .


2009, 'Why are blogs popular and what are their benefits?' in NetAlert: Australian Government, accessed 15 June 2009, http://www.netalert.gov.au/advice/services/blogs/Why_are_blogs_popular_and_what_are_their_benefits.html .

2009, Blogging: Statistics and Demographics, Caslon Analytics, accessed on 15 June 2009, http://www.caslon.com.au/weblogprofile1.htm .

Suarez, L 2006, '10 Great Strategic Benefits of Blogging' in IT Toolbox, accessed 15 June 2009, http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/elsua/10-great-strategic-benefits-of-blogging-9233 .

I classify

The more we talk about blogs, the more we seem to have to learn. How do we classify blogs and why do we do them? First, let's tackle the term 'blogging community'. The collective community of blogs is known as the blogosphere. It is likened to the term 'logosphere', the world of words or the universe of discourse.

Blogging communities are now becoming more and more popular, ones like My Blog Log. My Blog Log is a blogging community, set up and managed by Yahoo!, that connects bloggers to each other, allowing members to view user profiles, blog updates, and maneuver around with ease (Yahoo!, 2009). Something like Facebook or Friendster, this blog networking site connects people through their blogs.

(Source: www.mybloglog.com)

Many media outlets like CNN and BBC have used the blogosphere as a gauge of public opinion (Keren, 2006). Both for academic and non-academic purposes, the blogs have become very much a part of daily life. Blogs have started to be tracked by blog search engines such as Technorati, Blog Pulse and Tail Rank. Technorati was tracking 112 million blogs as of December 2007 (Technorati, 2008).

(Source: www.technorati.com)

There are so many ways to classify blogs, by subject or topic, or geographical location. Blogs have been classified as such for easy moving around by blog readers like you and me.

References

2009, MyBlogLog, accessed 14 June 2009, http://www.mybloglog.com .

2009, 'MyBlogLog' in Yahoo! , accessed 14 June 2009, http://info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/mybloglog/ .

2009, Technorati: Front Page, accessed 14 June 2009, http://www.technorati.com .

Keren, M 2006, Blogosphere: The New Political Arena, Lexington.