A great new short video tutorial from the CommonCraft Show introduces "blogs", as well as their characterizing traits and unique online publishing advantages to non-technical people.

Photo credit: Blogs in Pain English by Lee and Sachi Lefever - CommonCraft Show

You've almost certainly heard the word "blog" before and you might have a rough idea of what a blog is, but as you will see opinions may differ a lot, and some time to better understand and clarify what you are about to embark on, is always a time well spent.

The word blog is a contraction of "web log", a phrase not so commonly used these days. In the simplest definition of the term, then, a blog is a log of your thoughts, ideas, useful links, photos, videos, or the latest news.

This site by itself is published and maintained the same tools that "normal" bloggers use. As a matter of fact, Movable Type, the blog publishing platform behind Master New Media is one of the oldest and most popular professional blogging tools among online independent publishers.

This is why you should not get stuck with the stereotyped idea of a blog being only a personal journal in which one writes and shares his interests with others. Blogs can be used to publish anything, in the format, style and frequency that you deem best for your own goals.

A blog is just the most direct and simplest way to publish news and information on the Internet without having any specific technical know-how. This is the true characterizing trait of blogs, along with their characterizing commenting system, RSS feeds, and reverse chronological order posting features.

But if this still makes little sense to you, Lee and Sachi Lefever have produced a new introductory three-minute video lesson about blogs that will likely clarify any remaining doubts you may have.

Here it is:

Blogs in Plain English

by Lee and Sachi Lefever

Duration: 3'

Text Transcript

You’ve seen the word, you've seen the web sites and you may even have one. But have you ever wondered: What's the big deal about blogs?

This is blogs in plain English.

To make sense of blogs, you have to think about news and who makes it.

We'll look at news in the 20th vs. the 21st century to make our point.

In the 20th century, the news was produced professionally. When news happened, reporters wrote the stories and a tiny group of people decided what appeared in a newspaper or broadcast. Professional news was mainstream: general and limited.

The 21st century marked the point where news became both professional and personal.

A new kind of web site called a weblog or blog came onto the scene that let anyone be a reporter and publisher - often for free.

As blogs became popular, they created millions of news sources and gave everyone an audience for their own version of news.

Of course, we're using the word "news" loosely. But really - isn't everything news to someone?

With a blog...

• A business owner can share news about his business
• A mother can share news about her family
• A sport star can share news with fans

These people are all "bloggers".

How did this happen?

Well, blogs made sharing news on the web easy. Anyone with an idea can start a new blog with the click of a button and share news minutes later.

Here's how blogs work.

Blogs are websites that are organized by blog posts - these are individual news stories, like articles in the paper.

Bloggers simply fill out a form like this to post a new story.

With the click of a button, the blog post appears at the top of the web page, just above yesterday's news. Over time, the blog becomes a collection of these posts, all archived for easy reference.

Also, each blog post can become a discussion through comments left by readers.

Blogs make the news a two way street.

But really, the fuss is not about how blogs work - it's what people like you do with them that matters.

Let's say you have a blog about green living and outdoor photography. It reflects your unique perspective. This helps you build relationships with your readers and other bloggers with similar interests.

Speaking of relationships, bloggers often work together.

In addition to comments, you'll read each other's blogs, quote each other and link your blogs together. This creates communities of bloggers that inspire and motivate each other.

Whether it's their ease of use or the opportunities they enable, blogs have been adopted in a very big way.

Since 2003, there have been over 70 million blogs created, each with it's own version of news.

So, the big deal about blogs is that they gave people like you the power of the media and created a personal kind of news that appeals to a high number of small audiences.

So, it's up to you - what will you do with this new power?

There is likely a group of people out there who want to hear what you have to say.

You can search for blogs at:

blogsearch.google.com
technorati.com

Or start your own blog for free at:

Blogger.com
Wordpress.com

Find out more about blogs and what they are:

What Is A Blog? Video Remixes Say Lots More Than Words

What Blogs Are: A Collaborative, Open Model For Information Exchange

How To Blog: A Beginner's Blog Publishing Guide

What is a blog?

Originally written by Lee and Sachi LeFever for the Common Craft Show on Nov.30th 2007 and entitled "Blogs in Plain English".

International versions of this video.