While the world is growing at an impressive rate, it is becoming smaller and smaller as new methods of communication are introduced. In her article, “Weblogs: A History and Perspective,” Rebecca Blood states that weblogs pave the path for future writers as they can openly express their thoughts and experiment with various types of writing styles. I agree with Blood because weblogs are like personal online journals where everyone is given the chance to express themselves freely, communicate online with people from different countries, and improve their writing skills.
The weblog is a communicative technology that has evolved mainly because of its tremendous socio-culturally driven base of followers. Extreme technological determinism has caused significant change by allowing the art and availability of weblogs to grow immensely over the decade. In 1998, there were only a few websites dedicated to weblogs, compared to the hundreds of sites available today. One reason for this immense growth in blog users was due to propagation. The first primary blog sites such as “Blogger” had the very basic layout of a weblog. It allowed the user to add links, and share opinions regarding someone else’s blog posts.
However, as more and more people became interested in weblogs, modifications on weblogs arose. This sudden spark in interest is an example of delayed adoption, which is the progress of a technological device from being a proof to a widespread concept. This concept follows the thirty-year rule developed by Paul Saffo. Normally, brand new technologies take thirty years to progress. The first ten years are filled with excitement and puzzlement of the new technology. The next ten years are a time of instability and diffusion, and the last ten years are a time of adjustment, in which a new technology transitions into a standard technology. The weblog, however, contradicts Saffo’s thirty-year rule because blogs have only been introduced for ten years, and yet people have adopted them with great ease. For example, in 1999, Pitas created the first free build-your-own-weblog, which expanded its network service to hundreds of people. In that same year, Pyra introduced the modern Blogger. Blogger allowed people to share their thoughts freely with others; it didn’t have any restrictions as to the form or the content being posted. It gave its users the freedom to add links to videos and pictures pertaining to their particular article of focus. It also gave many people privacy because they could disguise their identity while being involved in the virtual world of “blogging”.
Blogs have connected people from all over the world with common interests to each other. For example, a person in Belgium may share the same viewpoints on global warming as another person in Australia. They can share their opinions by posting comments on each other’s blogs. I, being a connoisseur of books was looking for an inexpensive copy of my favorite Harry Potter book written in French to add to my book collection. To get help in finding this book, I wrote a blog on the importance of having a book collection. To my amazement, people in France and Canada read my blog and responded with helpful websites and posted the addresses of the stores with the best-priced books. This feedback provided me with insight into the blog commentator’s interests. For example, my friend Zain, who lives in Canada, decided to do a project on the Ginkgo tree. He wrote a blog regarding his project and asked if someone could help him understand the medicinal properties of this ancient tree. I was a neophyte at blogging back then, but I explained him that the Ginkgo is prized for its antioxidants and aids in ageing, memory loss, and poor circulation. Ever since then, Zain and I have been great friends.
In addition to connecting people all over the world, posting blogs can likely result in the user’s improved writing skills. The user might be an international student attempting to learn English. Practicing writing and grammar skills overtime and receiving feedback will likely improve the user’s communication skills. Ultimately, the user might explore other types of writing styles such as poems, plays, and short stories. My Indian friend, Rahul told me that writing stories in English and posting them on his blog have significantly improved his grammar skills. He says that English teachers read his blog, offered him advice on using a variety of sentence structures, and suggested links to online practice exercises.
Weblogs are helpful for the emerging society because they are progressing through the technological age of free expression. Weblogs have improved many lives in terms of communication, gave the users more confidence in expressing their thoughts and introduced them to various cultures of the world. Who knows what the future of blogging holds? Perhaps people will be discovered as famous poets and authors from their blogs. Until then, it is a safe haven of free expression due to its free services and ease of accessibility that are available to everyone in the world.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
The Deluge of Information
In the overflow of information in the world today, knowledge is the key to success. The capacity to gain knowledge is finite thus the ability to filter and process information will become more important to thrive in the competitive world. In Cairncross’s prediction, “A Deluge of Information”, she believes that companies will have to develop new information technology devices that will sift information into manageable quantities for human utilization. Today the Internet “sifts” the keywords typed in by the user to search for relevant information. Companies such as Yahoo, Google and various other search engines are based on the idea of processing particular information. This prediction is seen valid today because the deluge of information is more organized, is easier to access and is easier to understand than when Cairncross wrote the article.
The Death of Distance
While the world is quite large geographically, it is becoming smaller and small as we progress through the electronic age. In the upcoming years, distance will no longer dictate the costs of business or communication. In Cairncross’s prediction, “The Death of Distance”, she states that the world’s work force will be divided amongst the “three time zones”: The Americas, East Asia/Australia and Europe. She hopes that this fusion of countries and cultures will improve work efficiency and lower costs for business and communication. This however may not be the case in the future since the World is divided into twenty-four different time zones. However, if developing countries in Africa and the Middle East are included in this scheme, it my benefit the status of their developing economy and impact the world significantly. If this hypothesis proves true, it may essentially introduce a new “fourth time zone.”
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
