It is no secret, that the art of the blog, has taken the Internet by storm. A blog exists on almost every subject, and a majority of internet users owning or writing for a blog in some way, shape, or form. At the very least, it’s conceivable that most internet users regularly read a blog, and that nearly everyone has read a blog on time or another on some subject. In some ways, blogs are quickly becoming the mainstream media – users can access specific information related to their interests from their favorite authors.Read it must:Web 2.0 and Blogs
Information can be accessed at any time, and anywhere where an internet connection is present. Bloggers also tend to be a bit more creative as they’re free from the restraints of more streamlined forms of media – such as TV and newspapers. All of this makes blogging one of the newest and most popular forums of media today. As the internet evolves and blogging continues to be one of the most popular sources of news and information, what exactly is the future for the so-called blogosphere?Read it must: Web 2.0 and Blogs
Web 2.0
A phrase thrown around very commonly is ‘web 2.0’. While various definitions and explanations exist for what exactly ‘web 2.0’ is, the most common explanation is instead of the web being simple sites of just text, the web is becoming more interactive. Take for example Facebook or mySpace, two of the most commonly used websites today for interaction among friends. These sites are prime examples of the social networking phenomena the internet has become. Through these sites, the internet becomes more interconnected and people can communicate across multiple sites quickly and easily.Read it must:Unwritten Rules of Blogging
Through Facebook’s application platform, users of the site can already add their WordPress blog entries and integrate their blogs into their Facebook site all with a simple few clicks. Users can also create fan pages for their blogs so other users can note that they’re a fan of a certain blog or site. This can also work vice-versa. It’s also very possible to include a current ‘status’ of a facebook user on a blog. A simple Google search reveals a remarkable amount of ideas and tools, as well as ideas and tools for other blogging systems besides Facebook. There’s simply too many to mention in this article. Unwritten Rules of Blogging
Another product that’s gaining steam is ‘OpenID’. The concept of OpenID is simple. A user signs up for one account at one site. This account is then put into a central database. Thousands of sites use this OpenID system for account purposes. This means that the user only has to sign up for one account, but automatically has their login information sent to all these other sites. This makes it far easier to surf the internet and use sites that require registration without having to remember all of those passwords. Other similar systems are being developed, and security is still being ironed out. Some addons for blogs such as WordPress add in OpenID capabilities, along users to comment on any blog that uses the system with one central OpenID. Some other blog software packages support OpenID, but most don’t rely on it solely for accounts or have it included by default.
Vast Resources
Most people remember the days when they sat down at the computer, only to listen to five minutes of noises and finally connecting to the frequently slow internet. More people then ever have cable or DSL internet connections that are always on. These get faster and faster every day. The content and images of a blog that could’ve taken minutes to load before is nearly instant. Likewise, computer hardware has increased allowing blogs far more resources available to host their content. Disk space is almost a non-issue today, with hard drives reaching over a thousand gigabytes. Even bandwidth costs have been drastically reduced. Even the largest blogs can find relatively cheap options for hosting.
What exactly does this mean for bloggers looking for hosts? This means that the host with the most resources is no longer the best option when it comes to hosting. With all hosts being able to offer a large amount of space and bandwidth, hosting is becoming more about quality and customer service than simply who can offer the most space. Bloggers can pay more attention to uptime percentages, features offered by their host, and how quickly they address problems instead of simply the amount of resources offered.
Natural Selection
It used to be that starting a website or a blog was expensive, or required a significant amount of technical knowledge to setup and run. This isn’t the case anymore either. A few simple clicks and almost anyone can have a blog out there with content. Many internet users choose to have a personal blog, a blog about a particular subject, or a blog on many different general things. With a significant amount of blogs popping up about almost every interest, blog writers are constantly improving content to compete. Creating a blog is no longer about being the only blog in a specific field – instead, it’s about offering quality content that is interesting to users. In the future, with blogs being created nearly everyday, bloggers must pay considerable attention to the quality of their content, where they’re advertising their blogs, and how popular the subjects are that they’re covering. Blogging is becoming more aboutcraftsmanship and skill than simply money and technical knowledge to set one up. As the popular internet phrase goes, ‘content is king’.
Blogging is an ever-changing world. The new interconnectedness, the growing resources of hosting companies, and the ability for nearly everyone to own and write in their blog is reshaping the blogging world and the internet. It’s extremely important for bloggers to keep up on the trends in blog hosting to ensure the speed and delivery of their content, to make sure that they’re networking and not isolated from the blogging universe, and most importantly to ensure that they’re providing quality content to their users. Blogging doesn’t have to be a complicated endeavor, but even if blogging is simply a side hobby, it can be extremely advantageous to know where the blogging world is headed.
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