Skip to main content

I'm Not Giving up Blogging

Thanks to the Ancient Gaming Noob for drawing my attention to a recent Wired article in which Paul Boutin claims that blogging is a thing of the past.

Of course I don't agree but I do accept some of Paul's points. I agree that the time when you could "become famous" through blogging is probably over. If that is your motivation then you should probably pass over blogging and get with the next big thing be it twitter or face book or more likely something else that most of us haven't even heard of yet.

On the other hand there are many other reasons to keep a blog. It can be a personal creative outlet. It can be your very own soap box. You can use it as a kind of online diary. It can add a new dimension to your hobbies. It can be a social thing. You may be even be lucky enough to find a community of like minded bloggers.

Telling people to stop blogging because they have no chance of getting to the front page of Google is like telling amateur musicians not to bother because they have no chance of getting to Carnegie Hall.
Labels:

Comments

Anonymous said…
Really?

Type "West Karana" into Google :)

Not only is my site the first on the list, Google even breaks down my popular categories :)

I dunno about being famous, but I don't think it's that hard to be #1 in a Google search...
12:08 pm
mbp said…
Hi Tipa. OK ... I can even get my humble blog to appear top of the list by googling "Life is A Mindbending Puzzle". I think that says more about the power of Google than any particular noteworthiness on my part :)
12:22 pm
Anonymous said…
Anyone can become a famous blogger, if that's where they put all their efforts. People like you and me who are happy being amateurs won't be famous. And in fact, blogging about MMOs won't make you famous no matter who you are.

Two secrets to blogging, as far as I can tell.

1) Have an opinion.
2) Get other people to respond to your opinion.

If you can ace those, you're a successful blogger. After that, it's just a matter of scale.
1:57 pm
Anonymous said…
Construed ie my blog is nowhere near the top in google search but it's something to aim for..hehe..

I blog because I love to share my opinions in word form & have to agree with Tipas points re secrets to blogging.
2:11 pm
Anonymous said…
@DM: You changed blogs *again*!?

Okay, guess I have some catching up to do...
7:19 pm
Anonymous said…
@ Tipa - well this only my second blog so 'again' is a little overstated.
9:43 pm
mbp said…
Hi DM.

With regard to Tipa's two points
1) Is easy.
2) requires effort.
10:47 pm
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Android Tip 3: Sharing a Folder between multiple users of an Android device

Android has allowed multiple user logins for quite a while now. This is can be very useful for tablets which are shared by family members. Normally Android erects strict Chinese walls between users preventing them from using each others apps and viewing each others files. This is a useful security feature and ensures your kids don't mess up your work spreadsheets when screwing around on the tablet and should also prevent them from buying €1,000 worth of Clash of Candy coins on your account. Sometimes however you really do want to share stuff with other users and this can prove surprisingly difficult. For example on a recent holiday I realised that I wanted to share a folder full of travel documents with my wife. Here are some ways to achieve this. 1. If you have guaranteed internet access  then you can create a shared folder on either Dropbox or Google drive. Either of these has the great advantage of being able to access the files on any device and the great disadvantage of bein...
52 comments
Read more

Portal 2 two screen coop on one PC.

I mentioned before that I intended to try Portal 2 in "unofficial split screen co-op mode. Well split screen on a small computer monitor is a recipe for a headache especially when the game defies gravity as much as portal. However a minor bit of extra fiddling allowed us to drive two seperate screens from one PC. The Steam forums describes a complicated method of doing this that I couldn't get working so this simpler method which worked for me might be of use to someone. 1. First I followed the instructions in this post to get split screen multi-player working: http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1847904 A minor issue not mentioned is that you need to enable the console from the keyboard/mouse options menu I am using keyboard and one wired Xbox360 controller as suggested. Getting the controller to switch to channel 2 was tricky at first but as Chameleon8 mentions plugging it out and in again during loading works. The trick for me was to do the plug / p...
1 comment
Read more

Lotro: The Forgotten Treasury

Throg joined a Kinship group for the Forgotten Treasury instance last night. It was an enjoyable change from the solo questing that the now level 55 dwarf champion has been mostly doing so far in Moria. Some members of the group had tried and failed to clear the Treasury before so we knew it would be challenging but we were lucky enough to have a well balanced group with Guardian, Minstrel, Lore Master, Hunter, Burglar and Champion (Throg). Throg (level 55) and the minstrel (53) were both below the 56ish level of the instance but the others were all higher so it more or less balanced out. [SPOILERs ahead] It is a well designed enjoyable instance set in a circular chamber with balcony around. As you enter, a boss absconds to a locked side chamber with his treasure leaving the fellowship to clear trash ringed around the balcony. Once the trash are cleared you have access to a puzzle which must be solved in order to open the locked door. Clearing the (including six mini bosses) also get...
14 comments
Read more