blogging

PDF? This is a joke, right? Also: the BlogShares button brings me back.
Rob Patterson on the new Reformation
The revolution is that now everybody can be part of the conversation.

The End Goal Is the Appearance of Originality

Josh Levin, in a humour piece for Slate, compares blogging to rapping: “Essentially, blogging is sampling plus a new riff. Political bloggers take a story in the news, rip out a few chunks, and type out a few comments. Rap songs use the same recipe: Dig through a crate of records, slice out a high hat and a bass line, and lay a new vocal track on top. Of course, the molecular structure of dead-tree journalism and classic rock is filthy with other people's research and other people's chord progressions. But in newspaper writing and rock music, the end goal is the appearance of originality—to make the product look seamless by hiding your many small thefts. For rappers and bloggers, each theft is worth celebrating, another loose item to slap onto the collage.”

Doc Searls on the irony of 'corporate blogging' and the metaphors framing how we see our conversations
I usually skim his writing looking for the gems, but this one's all ruby, baby.
Anil Dash as the Jon-Stewart-on-Crossfire of blogging
"Not to put too fine a point on it, but you're hurting us. You're hurting all weblogs."
Excellent article by Dave Pollard on the advantages for businesses to get into blogging
All internal links in his article, however.
Vancouver abuzz with blogging
I would vote Yes in a referendum to annex Portland as Vancouver South!

With Their Voice In My Head

My friends are blogging.

I've known about Tony's weblog for a little while now, since he's been in Japan teaching English, and he linked to it from wherever he was hosting photos of his stay there. Duncan—his bowling name—clued me into his weblog when we were both up late at night not following an adult sleep schedule. That same night, Duncan tipped me off to Lola Bigcups—also her bowling name—who has evidently started a feud with L & M, who write together as one author. (I've known L & M for about as long as I know Duncan.) Though I don't know them as well as Tony, Duncan, Lola, or L & M, Hien and T are people I've either know from college or know through my college buddies. All of the people (they're more than just "bloggers" to me) listed above, their personalities really comes though in their writing.

(I've found that with most people I met or at least whose voice I've heard that when reading them, I read them with their voice in my head. More so with people I knew before they had a weblog.)

I've been blogging for 4+ years now, and now have more weblogs than I have fingers, and up until now pretty much kept all of my weblog activities separate from that circle of friends. I don't feel like keeping that part of my life separate from the circle of friends anymore. Too much work. Linking to them above is the first step in stopping.

For the record, my bowling name is Magnus.

Even There Certain Limits Are Typically Observed

al3x: “there’s no protocol for blog romance, in the social and technical senses. On the social tip, it’s sleazy to write your favorite blogger and profess your interest; reader-author interaction usually stops at comments, and even there certain limits are typically observed. On the technical end, there’s no way to easily find other bloggers who are, if you’ll excuse the crass phrase, “on the market,” though the worth of a mechanism to allow this (TrackLove? LoveBack? BabyGotBack?) is highly suspect.”

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