Blogs: Bizarre and Brilliant

1
Blogs Bizarre and Brilliant

• Lib 5050-375 Catawba
• Spring 2004
• Susan Dudley

2
Whats a Blog?

• Blog slang for Web log, an online publicly
  accessible journal generally written by an
  individual and updated frequently with new
  entries
• Blogging the act of writing in a blog
• Blogger web log author

3
Types of blogs

• Linking site listing links to other websites
• Personal online diary detailing the events of
  the bloggers daily life
• Typically, blogs are a combination of links
• and personal commentary.

4
Common Blog Features

• Newest content appears at the top, older content
  shifts downward.
• Oldest content is archived, but remains
  accessible.
• Links are available for readers to post their
  comments on blog entries.

5
A Brief History of Blogging

• Blogs have existed since the World Wide Web was
  launched by CERN and Tim Berners-Lee in 1991.
• First popular blog was Netscapes Whats New page
  in 1993.
• Blogger introduced, 1999. Easy-to-use software
  for website creation eliminated the need to learn
  HTML (coded format language) the number of blogs
  on the World Wide Web explodes.

6
Blog Statistics(from Perseus
Development Corporations 2002 survey)

• 92 of blogs are created by people under age 30.
• By the end of 2004, there will be over ten
  million blogs on the World Wide Web.
• BlogSpot (recently acquired by Google) and
  LiveJournal are the top blog-hosting services.
• 66 of blogs are abandoned by their creator
  within four months.

7
Current Trends

• Media outlets, newspapers, television stations,
  and magazines have begun hiring professional
  bloggers editors often review entries before
  allowing them to be posted.
• Corporations and even the federal government are
  turning to blogs to quickly update and share
  information password access is required to read
  these blogs and only authorized personnel can
  publish entries.

8
Blogs of particular interest to librarians

• and Bizarre
• Conan the Librarians Journal http//www.livejourn
  al.com/users/librant/
• Ref Grunt http//refgrunt.blogspot.com/
• Laughing Librarian http//www.laughinglibrarian.co
  m/
• L.A.C.K. Librarians are Corrupting Kids
  http//www.lemurlove.com/lack/newsblog.htm

• Brilliant
• Education Librarian Weblog http//www.educationlib
  rarian.com/
• Blogdex http//blogdex.net
• ResourceShelf http//www.resourceshelf.com
• Peter Scotts Library Blog http//blog.xrefer.com
• Sitelines http//www.workingfaster.com/sitelines/