What a blog is and what it is not.

Published Wednesday, January 26, 2005 11:28 AM

A definition of a  blog, 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.

Now that we got that out of the way, I can continue. When most of us started to blog we did not really what a blog ment, there where some people that started using it as a webpage, and others regurgitated new posts from other web sites. I am guilty in the latter, but once I understood that a blog was ment to be, a journal of ones like and not a news site, blogging made more sense to me.

Now it is important that we use a blog for what it is ment for, or else it will spoil the scene for other people, for me personally I am tired of seeing new articles being regurgitated from sites like neowin.net and msfn.org, on dotnet.org.za. Dotnet.org.za is a blog not a place to steal news post from other sites and post it here, don’t get me wrong, the odd article from another site is fine, but there are a few members here that continuously repost other peoples articles here as there own. This must stop, if I want to read about the latest news, I will go to neowin.net or msfn.org and read the original article there. Dotnet.org.za is a blog mostly for developers, and when I come to this blog I am interested in what development work has been done by these developers and what interesting stuff has happened in there lives, I don’t what to reread something on dotnet.org.za that I have already read on neowin.

If you go the http://dotnet.org.za and you start reading though all the blogs, you will soon see that most of the content is with in lines of a blog, and in the development realm. There is only one or two people that don’t get what a blog is.

I know that some people might have hard feelings towards what I have written here, if so voice them in the comments, and we can see how things go from there.

Enjoy the rest of your day.

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by deon

Comments

# Pierre-Andre van Leeuwen said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 11:55 AM

I don't think I agree. Blog is short for weblog, and that was originally what it was used for. People would write about the interesting sites they visited.
I read dotnet.org.za blogs, not only for the development stuff, but also because a lot of the people (being developers) share my interests. They would therefore post links to sites I would find interesting, without me having to spend inordinate amounts of time surfing the web to find the same sites.

# KevinT said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 12:16 PM

@Pierre-Andre - do you not agree that, instead of a copy and paste of the whole story, it would be better for the blogger to just put a link to the story along with a paragraph on what they thought about the article and why they think people should read it?

# Deon said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 12:23 PM

I agree with KevinT

# Mongo-Matty said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 12:29 PM

I agree, Slain.

Some guys that rejurjitate the sharepoint info suck.

I've been wanting to make me blog, but all the rubbish turned me to drugs instead. It's more fun, but now I dont get free tshirts and stuff.

There must be some extra verve in the local blogs.

# Arno Nel said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 12:56 PM

i think everyone is missing the point. the best thing about blogs are that they are opt in. if you dont like it, dont read it. its simple really. i dont care that some guy in western somoa blogs about his pet coconut. its not my problem really. whats kewl is that he has a mechanism to share his thoughts to anyone who may want to read it.

re: "Some guys that rejurjitate the sharepoint info suck. "

i hope that is not referring to me, because 40 000 unique visitors over the last 2 months would disagree....

if you want stats of which blogs are the most popular, see armand.

# Arno Nel said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 12:59 PM

id just like to add something else. Even if someone does as KevinT said above, that person is taking time out of their day to share resources with the community. the fact that people out there are insulting this is beyond me.

# Matt said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 1:40 PM

My blog is my diary, and I can write what I want there; even if it gets me into trouble and wastes your time. If you don't like it... don't read it.

(even better: if you have something to say about a post... comment!)

# Arno Nel said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 1:50 PM

Weeeeeeeeeee, .....

well said Matt,...

who cares that someone uses vb.net over C#, who cares "What a Blog" is,... fark,... do your own thing your own way,... dont conform,... and if you dont like what we write dont read it !!!!

isnt the web better this way ?

# Matt said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 1:50 PM

I am not saying that you are wasting my time, I am just saying if the only thing that you do is rejurjitate post from another site like neowin, that it is a waste of your time, since I have read it on neowin allready. I dont mind seeing it again, if people what to rejurjitate stuff, the least that they can do is post a link to the original site.

# Deon said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 1:52 PM

woops, the last post was by me, addressed to Matt

# Deon said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 1:56 PM

Ok, I think I went about this the wrong way, what I really dont like is that some people here rejurjitate stuff from other sites as there own, with out linking to the original site.

# Arno Nel said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 1:59 PM

so it was you !!!!

dude, firstly, ive never posted anything from neowin. secondly, if i have access to content, and i want to share, i can and i will. dont read it if you dont like it. isnt that a simple concept ?
who the heck are you to judge ?
like i said, my blog is read by 40 000 ppl. im sure they would disagree with your comment.

i think you should stop looking around and judging ppl and get off your high horse and off the web.
Im sorry for the tone, but its post and comments like this that do nothing for our community spirity. i suggest you shutdown and take a long walk before you think about posting another comment....

WHY ARE YOU WASTING MY TIME !!!!

# Arno Nel said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 2:01 PM

apologies, then this was intended for you Deon, and i dont ever regurgitate. look at my entire blog. i link, and possible post an into... thats it,.. i would never clain to write something that wasnt mine. i always give credit to original author, even if the author was only linking another site,...

# Deon said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 2:41 PM

I never aimed it at you, it was ment for other people, I like your blog and evething that you post, I never said you regurgitate stuff.

# Arno Nel said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 2:45 PM

hehe, no stress deon. sorry, ive read what i wrote again, and i seem a little angry. Just another point i wanna make, is that a blog is whatever you want it to be.

when someone invented the paper diary, people used it to jot their personal thoughts,... then some ppl descided to use it for work and appointments, i just use it next to the tel to doodle and jot down tel numbers....
who is going to tell me that what im doing is wrong ? the diary is the medium, but what you do with it is up to you....

all agreed ?... now,... lets get pissed, what a crap work day !!! i need beer...

# Deon said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 2:56 PM

hehehehe, so we are all then.

# Ernst Kuschke (C# MVP) said on Wednesday, January 26, 2005 9:42 PM

I think this post sums up pretty nicely "what a blog is". It's opinion. Opinion differs.
And what web-logging was first intended to be has long since evolved into THIS :)

# Craig said on Thursday, January 27, 2005 12:31 PM

I think you're all wankers. BWAHAHAHAHA!!

# TrackBack said on Thursday, January 27, 2005 2:24 PM
# Farstrider said on Thursday, February 03, 2005 9:48 PM

Sorry Deon,Ernst I really think that you are both missing the point completely. What WAS web logging intended for?? Your definition, I do not think so! As far as I am concerned, it has to be horses for courses. (Horses for courses means that what is suitable for one person or situation might be unsuitable for another.)

# Nitapika said on Friday, February 04, 2005 8:14 AM

A blog is actually a place where anyone can do what ever t f they want.

# Adrian said on Friday, February 04, 2005 10:39 AM

Farstrider, I think Deon has a point, look at some of your previous posts. eg. http://dotnet.org.za/farstrider/archive/2005/01/27/13696.aspx
and http://dotnet.org.za/farstrider/archive/2005/01/23/13532.aspx
you never credited the original poster, and the first link is a direct copy form neowin.net. You say Deon and Ernst is missing the point, but I think the rest of you are missing the point, a blog is a personal diary, things that you like you can post it on your blog, but for the people that don’t get this, I will explain it for them. If you like some thing on another page, you post a link to it, you don’t pass it off as your own. That said, Farstrider you contradict your self a person can see that your posting style has change since you read Deon's post, all of a sudden, you are putting a referral link to the original author, and you are starting to post more about Development stuff, so instead of bitch about something, saying that it has not point, but then it must have had a point seeing that it has change the way you blog. If you want to post about news and stuff, and pass it off as your own, get a web site, that is what it is for.

# Farstrider said on Friday, February 04, 2005 5:45 PM

Who's passing things off as my own, stop talking absolute drivel, the fact of the matter is the one you accuse me of not crediting comes from this person, ALLISON LINN, AP Business Writer. The person on Neowin also did not write the article in its original form. As to your comment about my style, please man, get a life look at the dates and then do a comparison with what I post. The one post that I so heinously omitted to credit the person for, well then, fucking sue me!! As was stated in one of the earlier comments if you don’t like what I post then piss off and go read elsewhere. I am not forcing you to come and look at what I post. Who the fuck do you think you are, making aspersions and accusations and this also applies to anyone else who thinks that it is ok to do so!!!

# Adrian said on Friday, February 04, 2005 6:26 PM

So the person at neowin did not credit the original, does not mean that you can do the same, and what about the second post, no reference at all to any other site or person.

I did look at what you post, went three months back, all of a sudden as of this week, you started posting dev related stuff, go figure. Now stop acting like your shoe size and swearing all over the place trying to look all mean and cool. So I see that you contradict your self as well, I am not forcing you to read my comments, or reply to them, but you do. No one here said that they don’t like what you post just the why that you post it, if you like a news post, post a link to it, give credit due to the site that informed you about it. Well I hope you stop crying like a little baby now.

# Rudolf said on Saturday, February 05, 2005 9:11 AM

Sorry 2 b a bit late responding. I tend to agree with Deon. Anything u as an individual post on the web must (in broad terms) still conform to general copyright issues. If u cannot properly 'quote' from someone or just provide a link ur actually 'stealing'.
I'm usually to lazy anyway to copy and paste someone else's stuff so I provide only a link :p

# Dave said on Friday, February 11, 2005 3:45 PM

It's spelt "meant", not "ment".

# 尖锐湿疣 said on Tuesday, June 28, 2005 1:48 AM

http://joeydotnet.com/archive/2005/01/27/175.aspx

# 尖锐湿疣 said on Thursday, September 29, 2005 9:25 AM

Small world,is not it?

# 尖锐湿疣 said on Saturday, October 01, 2005 3:14 AM

Small world,is not it?

# kalimurzino@rambler.ru said on Saturday, May 26, 2007 12:08 PM

David

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