Blogs Falling in an Empty Forest is a New York Times article about blogging, specifically about the study showing an estimated 95% of blogs have not been updated in over 4 months.
Does this signal an end to blogging? The death of a communication tool? Not at all. As the article points out, much of the information conveyed through blogging can also be conveyed through other tools, such as Facebook and Twitter.
As with all tools, users will seek out the tool that best fits their task (or at least the best that fits their skill set, and will still accomplish the task). Blogging was an early “web 2.0” tool, and was adopted and adapted to serve many purposes. Through a combination of better tools for specific tasks, loss of interest/time/support for the creators, and the limits of readers to follow more than a given number of blogs on a particular topic, it is no surprise that many blogs are going into hibernation.
There is also a discussion regarding the expectations of the blogger. If one strives for fame, fortune and glory, go for it… but a majority of bloggers will not achieve that level. I suspect that more than a few people set goals beyond what the market could provide their particular skill set and audience.
When I set out to start blogging, I simply wanted to utilize a forum that would allow me to collect thoughts and ideas that I felt were important, and to use it to organize my own interests and actions, as well as to convey what I posted to those who might be interested. Over time the focus has expanded to include more of my thoughts and ideas (I still cringe a bit when using the word “I”), but still focuses on what is happening in the library technology world.
Blogging has been harder to maintain than I originally thought, but it has also been far more rewarding. I am still searching for the balance between all of the activities that demand attention, but I suspect that Libology will remain in the “active” category for some time.
found via ResourceShelf
