Writing Web Logs

Excerpt} A web log, in its various forms, is a web-based application on which dated entries of commentary descriptions of events,or other material such as graphics or video are posted. A weblog enables groups of people to discuss electronically areas of interest and to review different opinions and information surrounding a topic. Electronic communications were one of the first expressions of networked computing. They were developed to enable individuals, groups, organizations, and related systems to collaborateon documents, regardless of their respective physical locations. However, until recent times, posting content on networks was a task that only technology-savvy persons could perform. It required skills in navigating directories and coding Hyper-Text Markup Language (HTML). But, web logs (blogs) of various types are now relatively easy to set up and maintain and have become a ubiquitous feature of the Internet.3(In December 2007, the Technoratiblog search engine was tracking about 112 million blogs.) As a result, they are redefining collaboration and knowledge capture and storage among digital communities to great effect. Increasingly, they allow the creation of networks of practice (or communities of interest) based on the particular topic discussed.