Forum & Site Discussion
This month, a user who wishes to remain anonymous has given us an article about Blogs, it tells the tale of them since the start, over a year ago now.
~Jamster
Quality over quantity!
The Blogging World - By: Anonymous
November 24, 2006 was a special day. While it is a day on a calendar, in November, and on a Saturday in 2007, it also marked a special anniversary. November 24, 2006 noted the second anniversary of the creation of the Sal's Realm Forum. Whereas it was a day to celebrate and cheer, it was also a day to experiment with a new forum feature: blogs. Yes, blogs: short for web-logs - an online diary. This new feature started a completely new way of living at Sal's Realm. Blogs transformed into a personal place to express oneself in anyway one chose, whether it was constantly ranting or posting every RuneScape achievement.
When the blogs were installed, some members had no idea what to do. Some members did not know how to create and publish their entries, while some members did not even know "blog" was a word in the English language. It all started when one brave member created his blog, causing many more to follow. Who created the first blog? It was Salmoneus! Many more forum members created blogs, and it wasn't long before 50 blogs were created, then 100, and then 200. Today, we currently have over 800 blogs. Of course, many of those blogs are highly inactive today, but still, they count that a member made one.
Today, many people use their blogs in different ways. Some members use their blogs as a RuneScape log. They post screenshots of their most-recent levels and continue to create entries every time they achieve new levels. Other people use their blogs as personal diaries, in ways of explaining their day or ranting about the bad things in the world. Everyone has a purpose for blogging, whether it is to express themselves or to receive kind and helpful comments from other members.
However, some blogs were created for attention, or changed from something unique to something ridiculous. These blogs are generally notified as "noob blogs" or "spam blogs." Their entries serve no purpose whatsoever other than to attract attention. Some blogs started out like this, while others changed. Say, for instance, that a blog begins with some well thought out entries that don't receive many comments. The owner may decide that it would be "funny" to begin blogging nonsense for attention and comments instead. "Nonsense" would include talking in complete chatspeak, leetspeak, noobspeak, etc. Blogging like this also changed the member's way of making posts and topics throughout the forums. While we all have a right to blog whatever we want, it does not mean it's going to be liked.
Some members also decided to act as dim-witted monkeys in other people's blogs, posting comments that were generally childish, stupid, or unrelated to the entry's main topic. This started some controversy and suggestions about blocking members from commenting on other peoples' blogs. The suggestion became known as the "Blog Block List," a way of listing members' names down in a content block ordering them to not comment or face a method of punishment. Some people argued that a blog is a personal space and the owner has a right to kick people out, while others argued that blogs are a public feature on the forums and they have a right to comment whatever they want. The "personal space" argument won, and there is now a way to block people from your blog, officially.
Everything in life can be used, but also abused. The blogs are no expectation to being used properly and abused negativity. Overall, each blog has a unique purpose. A blog is special, and it's quite amazing with what you can do with a blog. Do watch out for what you blog about. After all, you might just be criticized in a newspaper.
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