29 September, 2009

The end of Blogging


In 1996 I had a geocities website which I coded entirely in HTML using notepad. Old school. I also used HTML based chat rooms. That was big then. But times changed. 
10 years later I started blogging here on my desktop. And blogging as a concept came to be. 
A huge leap to be sure. But, as is the case with print media, blogging as we know it is dying. 
It was cute to see people describe thier blogs as ramblings, thoughts, opinions, and the like. It gave humans insight never previously available. Access to restricted news and innermost thoughts to humans. But, is this even valid right now?

I concider my self a good measure of when things are gaining popularity and when they begin to die. It is my opinion that blogging in that sense is dead. I really do not care what bloggers think anymore. 
Example: if you overheard someone talk about anything on a supermarket line or on a train or a bank, does it really matter to you? Probably not. It's just something someone anonymous to you said. So what? Why on earth would the same thing matter to me if it was printed on a blog?
Gaining an insight on peoples thoughts was once what blogs enabled you to do. Twitter has since took over that responsability. And still, twitter reflect only the tweeting community, not general public, it is then still a limited tool but it has two advantages. For one, I would think that hot topics and breaking news are better represented by an average of a group rather than the one sided argument of one or two bloggers. Trends in Twitter does that. I also think that the common blogger does not resemble the common man much, twitterers however, while still different, are a closer match. 
Twitter is not complete. It will either evolve or something better will come along. But blogs ceased to provide me with solid opinions representative of the masses or unbiased credible news.  
So are blogs dead? No. They are simple different. 
Specialized blogs are a valuble source of information and expression. While the musings of a random girl or the rants of some man start losing interest, specialized blogs by informed people gain importance. They resemble newspaper columnists. A finance website by someone with a solid background in finance or investment can provide valuable insight. Car blogs by racers and die hard car guys, fitness blogs by trainers or amature players and movie blogs by film aficinados are all good examples. 
It is from this understanding that I started two other blogs, arablish.net is one that focuses on the lack of respect and attention we show to the Arabic language, being an ex newspaper columnist and the son of a renouned poet I saw my self able to add value there. My other blog, ithnain.com is a video cast presented by my self and fellow blogger Eyad Ebrahim in Arabic as we both have around 20+ years of gaming experience. 
This blog (theredbelt.com), being unfocused has been losing both readership and my interest. Infact, most Bahraini bloggers feel a slump is taking place. Blogs, as they were, are ineffective in this age and have little, if any, impact at all. Posts are dwindeling and bloggers are stopping. In fact, if you are Reading this, chances are that you are, or were, a blogger yourself. It is a small closed inactive community. 
It is a shame but it has to be realized sooner or later. Blogs and bloggers need to evolve and provide significant value added. The times are achanging.

I used to blog from my desktop. But not anymore. I now wrote this on an email on a very different device. 
Times changed  We must change. 


Sent from my iPhone