Your Style

Callie

It is easy for me to blog majority of the time because I discuss things that happen day to day or at least some of the week. I find that for me blogging is a natural thing just as breathing air. I do not concentrate on material or genre, that pans out as you continue to write and before you know it you will have readers that will fall into the things you write about. Find out and write about what your passion is!

I blog for release of life’s issues. In my life and I am sure others I tease and say for me it is therapy. Free Therapy. I can write about every detail of my life if I so choose, and feel relieved and get advice from other readers. Sometimes that can be a beneficial thing because it helps me to see what others see. It also helps me to relate to other people on many different levels. Among many other things I enjoy about blogging is meeting so many people in different lands of different cultures and establishing a connection with them. It is a great honor for me to be able to have that gift. My readers- and those that visit, they are gifts to me.

Blogging is not important in the aspect of work for me. It is something that I love to do and share with the world. It matters to me a great deal in the aspect of my life, because I am able to share my highs and lows. It also enables me to grow as a person in expression of my deepest thoughts in many areas that concern me that I may not be able to speak of otherwise. I am truly blessed to be able to use such a tool that can be used to change the world per se’. Therefore when you blog what is it that you want the world to know, but more importantly what are you wanting to say!

I do not consider my blog a success per se’. If anything I see it as a blessing. I am fortunate to be able to do something that allows me to be creative and yet honor the freedom of speech movement. There are so many in the world that do not have this opportunity.

As for my Inspirations, that would be my readers. I have had people tell me that know of me personally: “You have so many fans!” I do not get paid for what I do. I don’t wish too. I mean, I am flattered that people think my site is cool, which means a lot to me. All of the visits that show up on my stat counter that is a real treat for me. But throughout my period of blogging if you start at the beginning of my archives and read forward, you will see that my readers- especially those that have been with me from the beginning are more than fans. They are my family. There have been times we have cried with each other through the downs, and we have kept each other going through the Up’s. They have seen me at low points of bad relationships with men, high points with my ever growing faith in God, and just everything. I have seen my share of rough neck comments also. Believe me. *laughs* but because of my blog family I have weathered storms and come out. God placed them in my path. I am delighted in being in theirs. I guess that is my success.

You also can determine that in your blogging. Are you writing for monetary reasons, are you blogging for mankind, or just for kicks? Your blogging development and success is decided by the type of writing style you present, and the type of readers it gathers.

In other words, Blog because you want to- not because you have to. Blog to Blog!

love passionately and often and laugh...

EXSENO

Where do we go for the kind of freedom we long for, the unrestricted right to feel, do and say what ever we want. We go right here in Blogger Heaven.

Where else but in the world of blog, could a person express their self so freely. Where else but in the world of blog could a person live out their hopes their dreams, share their happiness and sadness and even live out their fantasies.

No where, but in the blogosphere, and a sphere it is, of our own little society. A society of people who have the total freedom to be anything they want to be. To say anything they want to say. It's your blog to do what ever you want.

I've seen a lot of things since I've been coming here, the good, bad, happy and sad. You've made me laugh and cry, sometimes at the same time.

Oh excuse me did I say seen, instead of read, was that incorrect? I think not, for I have seen your wonderful personalities shine through your words many times. Wonderful words that seem to have wings and take flight so that others can find them and enjoy.

A while back I came upon a site where two of my blogger friends were having a heated debate it made me stop and think.

In the past if I was asked why I liked to blog, I would have to really give it some thought. I would answer everything from I like to write, to I like to meet people, to I like to read other peoples views, and yet it always felt like something was missing. Why was it such a hard question to answer? None of those really totally was what I was feeling, yet I couldn't put my finger on it. It took running into this heated debate to make me realize why I blog.

Suddenly it all became so clear, if someone should ask me why today, it wouldn't be a problem. The answer for me would have to be Freedom.

I blog for the freedom (he most beautiful word in the world next to love) speech. For the freedom of being able to say what I feel, what I like, and what I want, without fear of reprimand. I blog because I love to blog. I blog because I can. I blog for the love of freedom!

To those of you who were here before me, thank you for allowing me to be a part of your world and to those of you who are thinking about being a blogger I'd like to say --jump in with both feet -- you will love it!

Beyond the PC

Personal technology at The Economist online

WE ARE entering what some in the technology industry refer to as a post-PC era. This does not mean that the personal computer is about to disappear. But according to estimates from Gartner, a research firm, combined shipments of web-connected smartphones and tablet computers are likely to exceed those of desktop and laptop computers for the first time this year, putting PCs in the shade. According to Morgan Stanley, an investment bank, there could be 10 billion mobile devices in circulation by 2020. Many of these will use bite-size chunks of software known as “apps”, some 18 billion of which are likely to be downloaded this year. As mobile, web-connected devices become ubiquitous, the volume of data they produce will soar. Cisco, a technology company, reckons that by 2015 some 6.3 exabytes of mobile data will be flowing each month, or the equivalent of 63 billion copies of The Economist. Much of that will be in the form of videos like the one below.

1. Industrial sleek design. Brushed aluminum-glass. Cheap plastic is repulsive.

2. Smooth tactile surfaces.

3. Maximizing screen size for the device face. Smaller frames.

4. Gorilla Glass: Tough smooth surface. Customers ask for it by name.

5. Touch screen glass. No keyboards.

6. Any color you want as long as it is black...or white. Fruity or pastel colors are discouraged.

7. Cloud based storage.

8. Flash memory instead of disk drive, hard drive.

9. Critical Wi-Fi connection. This is a network device not a stand alone device. 3G is less necessary.

10. The Prime functions are Web Surfing, Social Networking and eMail. These are obligatory.

11. Keyboards and mouse become obsolete. Only a handful of necessary external buttons, preferrably 3 or less. Everything else is handled through software and screen.

12. One necessary data output that remains is the headphone jack.

13. USB are becoming less necessary.

14. Lithium Ion batteries with at least a 1day preferably 2day function.

15. Preferably be handy, fit in your palm, and fit in your pocket.

16. Cost $99. Or $199. Or $299. Never $100.00 etc.

17. Made in China...this is by necessity. But the fact can be downplayed by saying "Designed in Cupertino".

18. Be intuitive.

19. Have a simple and flawless 'Out-Of-the-box Experience'. Usable and charged ready to go for the impatient consumer.

20. Be Tactile. Important to have a store with sample devices that consumers can fondle and hold.

21. Color Screen...black and white is obsolete.

22. Even though humans are getting fatter and fatter, everyone wants slimmer and slimmer devices.

23. Built in GPS and location based services.

24. USER FRIENDLY SOFTWARE. Critical but after 30 years, not even Microsoft gets this.

25. Manuals are disappearing, which is permissible with intuitive software.

26. Design use and around the literacy of a 12 year old. Not a Phd in computer science.

27. Have enough supply to match market demand on opening day.

28. Pay attention to Apple products. Reverse engineer them when you lack internal innovation. That is the policy of Microsoft, Hewlett- Packard, Dell, Amazon, Samsung, HTC, RIM Blackberry, Nokia and multiple Chinese and Taiwanese firms.

29. Pay attention to blogosphere. Bad reviews can sink a product just as quick as bad movie gossip. Negative reviews carry more weight than positive reviews.

30. Put in a 10 MB Digital Camera. People want it.

32. Do not give the customer too many choices--it confuses them. At most 3 choices.

33. Ideal release point is 3 months before Christmas. Superbowl ads are too late.

34. Smart Covers: Instant on with uncovering are better than an on/off switch and several commands.

35. Software embedded and integrated with hardware is far more efficient and smooth.

36. Clunky accessories and peripherals like a/c adapter should also be addressed in detail.

37. Less is More.

38. Good Design is about good editing. Leave out the Crap. And Keep the Essential.

39. Pay attention to the hand. The Ergo-dynamics of the device. How it is carried. Read. Interacted with. We would not have an epidemic of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome otherwise.

40. Make it Delightful. Customers want Magic and will pay for it.

Heavenly Thoughts

Peg Haustetter

What is blog to me? A blog is an organic, interactive, communication tool that lives on the Internet. A blog is the extension of our thoughts, hopes and dreams. A blog helps us get our work done. A blog is: diverse, interactive, relationship-based, addicting, organic, fun!!!!, educational, entertaining, a destination, self-serving, technical, pictorial, communication, creative, informational, an event, public forum, helpful, and much, much more....

I started blogging several years ago with a few of my friends. We blogged about the cool hot spots to hang out in the city, the fashions people were wearing, great restaurants we visited, and our non-existent love-life. We blogged about our careers - interactive marketing project managers, experts in SEO, online advertising, demographic analysis, marketing do's and don't's and website usability. We even blogged about blogging!!

About a year and half ago, I moved from my lifelong home in the Midwest to the west coast to be with the love of my life. My blogging became more of a personal journal of my life's journey. It evolved into a place to share pictures, adventures and experiences with my friends back home. Plus, blogging has satisfied my secret dream of being a writer. I have always wanted to write a novel. I always say "one of these days". So, blogging satisfies that part of my soul. Maybe I will be able to take my blog entries and use them as the basis of a book, who knows.

IF blogs really are all of the things that I listed above, first and foremost they are communication tools. And the key ingredient in blogging "it is powered by PEOPLE"!! We can read each others opinions, expertise, heartaches, accomplishments and we can learn, laugh and experience from each other. It's great!! It's a bridge to each other in a world where we would have NEVER met in person. I love it!! Everyone can be a blogger, everyone can reach out and influence someone else. It's a wonderful world!!
Keep on blogging!

Peg Haustetter, blogging since 2004, currently lives in San Diego, CA. She loves life!! She has 12 years technical project management experience, and have managed 100's of successful projects. She is working as a Program Manager for an ASP in the Security/DRM space.

It's a Women' World

Lynda Winsor

When I first came to the world of blogging, the blogosphere, I had no idea what I was doing, what it was all about, or even what I would blog about. That changed real fast! I fell in love with the blogosphere, and, with blogging itself. I am addicted to turning out posts, day by day.

I was taught by the instructors of blogging (we have all read their stuff), that a blog should be a personal journal. I simply do not agree with that. A blog to me is an information center on whatever you, the blogger, feel is worth sharing with the world as a whole. For instance, I have seven blogs (lynda's loft, Writing for the Hell of It~, Heavenly Inclinations, It's a Woman's World, Life Line 101, Remarkable Bloggers and The G (Gentleman's) Spot), each on a different subject. And I have some more in storage, so to speak. Perhaps the facets of my personality need an outlet, or perhaps my intellect is so diverse that it needs release. Who knows? All I know is that I can sit and tap the keyboard, almost daily, about 7 different subjects, and, still have more to say on any given topic.

Blogging is an interesting communal effort. There are times when you feel that no one is out there reading your stuff; however, you find out that many are. They are simply silent in their passing through your pages to the next, sort of like butterflies. I said communal effort as, you are providing information, entertainment, news, or what have you, to the World Wide Web. These readers in turn are boosting your ranking, and, you are in turn reading and boosting their ranking.

The communal part of blogging is that many like minded individuals are assisting one another in gaining readers, and, popularity. Such as if you are into gardening, many gardening writers will visit your blog to see what is going on there; in turn you will visit their blogs, and, so forth. The end result is a network, a network that expands even beyond your area of expertise and interest. It is a social collaboration which works very well within the blogosphere.

I do not know if everyone or if anyone will agree with me, but, I believe that blogging is a source of diverse and profound intellect, which if done properly, can build a business, a reputation, a social network, and, lifelong friendships.

A blog to me, personally, is a source of emptying my brain of all the thoughts which I carry. I am a writer, and, it is The Best outlet I have ever experienced for getting these thoughts in order, in succession, and, in print. I find it extremely stimulating. I find it furthers my need to write, and, it grants me numerous ideas and avenues with which I can disperse of my thoughts. I love it~~~

There are many styles of blogs out in the blogosphere. Some are judged by content, some are hailed for their thought inducing facets, some are popularized for their technical attributes, and some are visited daily for their music, and, so forth. This is what makes blogging interesting. This is what makes it an awesome undertaking.

People from the old blogging school scoff at the newer bloggers. They feel that blogging has gone too far; that it has detoured from its original intent, which was web logging. Web logging is fine, for those who are corporate. For the rest of us, blogging is whatever we wish it to be. It is an open space of great minds, curious ideals, personalities, and individual intellect. Given the amount of people who are blogging these days, I would say that it is here to stay, and, that its general direction will keep changing. Change is good.

A blog is a personal venture. It has so many paths which can be taken. Even with a single post, you can then spin that into many different areas of thought. I call this thought weaving. I can write a single sentence, and, from that one sentence, I can expand upon words within that sentence into many areas of topic. A blog is an individual expression of what you might think worthy today. Tomorrow it could follow the same flow, or, go forth as something totally changed. Whatever comes of it, a blog is about the writer, creator, and, person who creates them. It is about sharing; it is about getting out into the world and letting your voice be heard. It is about making a statement. It is about being who you are, as, when you are blogging, the real you will show through no matter if you did not intend for it to do so, because, day after day, you are revealing what is coming forth of the internal you...

Blogging rocks and, I will blog until my fingers cease to allow me to...

My own universe

Zoia Tariq

Being a woman, especially in a conservative society, is often a complex, frustrating and wearisome experience. Blogs are a great way to express my thoughts, share my ideas and discuss my views.

Though I am not a passionate blogger, I do write when there is an incident that provokes me to. It is my platform to analyze, appreciate, criticize, observe, discuss and evaluate an issue that makes me think. My voice on the blog is not always a sane one, but it is definitely honest and mine only. Here I don’t have to be politically correct or restrained, as blogging is akin to talking to yourself, not to the audience. So I talk and the world listens and offers its point of view. Hence I get to learn different perspectives on various subjects.

Blogging for me is not a public service and I don’t do it to educate or enlighten, only to make people think about the stuff that often goes unnoticed.

Keeping a daily journal is considered one of the most effective stress busters. My blog is that and a lot more, for me.

I blog when something worries me or causes anxiety. When little gestures annoy or excite me. When I meet someone interesting or horrible. When I witness apathy or interest. When I get angry or joyful. How I see tomorrow? What are my regrets and dreams? What inspires me?

I know I don’t want to be associated with any clan, being a strong individual with a firm voice and active grey cells. Sometimes, even hyperactive! Hence not all my entries make sense.

I add photos, links, quotes, articles, travel experiences and anything  and everything that I find interesting.

Blogging for me is means of self-expression.

My blog is my world. A small universe of my own.

No Longer Ambivalent

Damaria Senne

A number of developments affected my aims and objectives as a blogger since I last posted on Fine Art of Blogging. The big difference is that I’m no longer ambivalent about blogging. I’m not addicted yet, but I enjoy it now.

Part of the reason is that blogging is now taking flight in South Africa, with local media houses setting up blog networks. My employer ITWeb was among the companies that launched blog networks where anyone could join. Employees are not under pressure to blog, but some of my colleagues joined up.

The increased awareness about blogging among my acquaintances made it easier for me to introduce people to my first blog, Storypot, where I post children’s stories and talk about parenting and writing.

I still feel naked when I talk about my creative writing or people comment about my children’s stories. But that is something that happens whether people who know me as a journalist learn that I write children’s stories from the blog or other means.

The second development was more internal - I have come to realize that as I grow as a human being, my blogging also evolves.

When I first launched Storypot in 2005, I was creating a place were readers can access samples of my work, and editors can see the variety of children’s stories I’m capable of creating.
I also created a combination parent/ writer’s journal, sharing how these two roles feed and influence each other.

The collection of children’s stories is slowly growing. Some need strong editing and rewriting, but they are out there, mostly reassuring me that I am doing something to make the dream of writing children’s books a reality. But the scope of my commentary is also growing as new elements come into my life, influencing my writing processes.

So Storypot is not what I started out with, and it’s not what it was when I first posted on Quasifictionalviews. But it reflects the evolution of my creative writing and the things that inspire me.

Through the blog, I also made connections with local children’s writers/editors. I also gained a measure of recognition for the blog. South African media analyst and ICT commentator Arthur Goldstuck also named me “Player of the Week” on the Mail and Guardian’s Thought Leader. A production company also approached me with a view of including me in its profiles of South African writers for a documentary.

I was content with the way things were going until, over lunch one day, a friend suggested I launch a blog on my employer’s network. This one would earn me enough for a regulator cup of tea, she said. I tried to explain that my schedule was hectic enough as it is; I didn’t have time to start another blog.

“All you have to do is write the posts, and I’ll put them up for you. And when I have time, I’ll help you promote the blog,” she said.

How could I say no when someone believed in my unborn blog enough to invest their own time on it? That’s how Mobile Life, where I look at the impact of mobile phones on the way South Africans work, play, learn and communicate, came into being.

I have strong views about the subject, but I also recognize that Mobile Life allows me to use my area of expertise as a journalist to develop a product that’s mine, helping me develop an independent revenue stream.

Promoting Mobile Life is also easier, in part because I now know how to promote a blog and have implemented a strategy that is slowly but surely growing my audience.