Tuesday, 25 AUG 2015 :: Getting serious about blogging

What is serious blogging?  I'm not really sure.  I have been exploring blogs in a new way, looking for the answer, ever since I started to write them.  I look at the topics, the length, the content, the links, the number of writers, the photos, and whatever else is noticeable... including advertising and the ability to print. 

It seems that advertising becomes the main income source for blogs.  At least, that's my impression.  I'm not too fond of advertising that doesn't have a direct connection with the topic it's associated with, or that digresses into smut.  It is a rude shock to link to a page on crafting and find photos of practically nude men or women, or profanity as normal and acceptable language. 

This separation of value systems will lead to some kind of separation of access in the internet.  How, when, I don't know.  I know I already am pulling away from many of the media choices we have to choose from.  Moral boundaries are very important to many, even though it is popular to degrade them.  Finding some way to separate from the objectionable parts of internet life may become our only option for avoiding the conflicts and terrorism we are enduring now.

Back to advertising ::  Since I have been going to Facebook, I have had the unfortunate experience of following article links to sites that are so overwhelmed with ads that have to load onto the page constantly, you can't reach the information you went to the site for.  Their ads may make money for the blog site, but I'm not sure why anyone would want to fight their way through the process.  I have been creating a long list of links I never want to visit again.

Even so, these browsing experiences are helping me move toward the kind of blogs I want to create for Working Together and myself.  The internet is how we get a lot of our information now, and may become the only way in the future. 

Printing is another important blog element for me.  When I can't stay to read, or want to remember the information I find, I try to print the blog or page for reading later. Finding the little print icon can be a major challenge.  Lots of times there aren't any. 

One of the most important lessons I learned as I browsed sites was how many webpages don't have a reference to their web address in the printable text of their blog page.  I have printed many blog articles for reading later and then discovered I don't have a way to find the site again without a lot of time and trouble.  It has caused me to look for the best way to include all the necessary information in the text of a page.

It is a challenge to learn all these things, but it is important.