To help you make the most of the library’s new blog as well as all the other
great blogs out there, the library has put together a basic introduction to the
topics of blogs and readers.
What is a blog?
Who writes blogs?
What topics can I learn about
in blogs?
How can I find blogs that
interest me?
How can I keep track of
blogs I want to read?
What is a blog?
Short for weblog, a blog is basically an online journal. They are usually
composed of entries that appear in chronological order, and each post provides
new information or builds upon a previous topic. They may allow comments from
users, though that is not essential; the “conversation” can be one way. Blogs
are a dynamic format. The best blogs are constantly updated, timely, and
relevant, and they are a way to start a dialog or communicate quickly with
readers. A person who writes for a blog is called a blogger. To see a glossary
of blogging terms and more information, visit
this page from the
University of Oregon.
Who writes blogs?
While some blogs are personal diaries, blogs are just as often used by
individuals, schools, companies, non-profit organizations, etc. Any person or
organization that wants to frequently provide updated content to viewers might
want a blog. They can be written exclusively by one person, or there may be a
group or community of authors.
What topics can I learn about
in blogs?
They can cover any topic: politics,
sports,
news,
government information, books, and
much, much more. They can be fun and light-hearted entertainment, important
business communication, or serious, thoughtful discussion.
How can I find blogs that
interest me?
There are many blog directories and search engines. Some of the most popular
are:
Technorati
Google’s BlogSearch
Sphere
A larger list of these tools can be found at About.com’s “Blog
Search Engines” page.
Once you find blogs you like, look to see if they link to any other blogs. Most
will have a list of links (sometimes called a blogroll), which can be a great
source for finding blogs with a similar writing style or subject matter.
How can I keep track of
blogs I want to read?
There are three main ways to read blogs.
Visit the blog’s site directly
This is probably a good option for a blog you only want to consult once. Of
course, the best blogs are updated often, sometimes many times a day. If you
don’t want to miss posts, checking directly is not a good option.
Email subscription
If you want to read new content often, you will want to subscribe to the blog.
Some blogs offer the option to subscribe by email. For example, the
Roosevelt
University Library Blog allows you to input your email address (near top
left corner of page) and receive
notifications about new posts in your email inbox. This might be a good option
if you only want to read one or two blogs. However, it can add a lot of traffic
to your inbox, and if you want to stay current with multiple blogs it can get
unwieldy.
Feed Readers/Aggregators
The most flexible way to read blog content is with a feed reader, sometimes
called just a reader or an aggregator. Feed readers are programs that allow you
to receive the latest blog updates in one location. How do they work? Most
simply, blogs can syndicate their content. One common method for syndication is
RSS feeds, which are XML files that format and distribute content. (The most
popular definition for the acronym is Really Simple Syndication). You do not
have to understand the technical aspects of feeds to use them, however!
Feed readers take the information provided by feeds and display it for you. A
similar analogy might be your email. Your email program takes the electronic
code, displays the mail in a format you can read, stores, and organizes your
messages. Even if you log in infrequently, many feed readers retain blog content
until you view it. Most blog users utilize feed readers because they allow you
to view and manage content from all your blogs in a central location.
Newer versions of both Internet Explorer and Firefox offer the option of feed
subscriptions right in the browser. This might be a good option if you have a
moderate number of feeds you want to track, don’t care about display options, or
plan to always view your feeds from the same computer. You can also get a
web-based feed reader, which allows you to log in to a website and see your
feeds. This simple option allows more customization, giving you additional
control over how, when, and where contents display. If you have multiple feeds
to read, only check in on your blogs infrequently, or think you might increase
your blog use over time, a web-based feed reader is the recommended option.
To find out more about subscribing to feeds, read the Introduction to Blogs and Feeds Part 2.
