Thing #4 - 30 June 2008

Well, moving right along...I decided to start "Thing 4" and come back to it as I need to later in the course.

After reading the comment blogs I realized there is more to blogging than I thought. I'm ashamed to say I'm in that 9% who comment occasionally but don't become part of the community. I frequent scrapbooking blogs; but I guess as a beginner I felt like an intruder because it seemed that everyone else knew each other. I remember reading one blog, thinking to myself, "these people must know each other pretty well," not knowing that they are part of an online community. They became "friend" through their blogging. I should have realized that since I used to belong to an online AOL group many moons ago. Now I see how and why commenting on blogs is important to creating that sense of community. The more you are seen responding, the more familiar people become, and friendships can develop.

It was with great relief that I discovered through the commenting blogs that I can actually become part of those communities just by regular comments. I do have a couple of favorites that I will put on my list of "blogs to visit for the class."

As for other points brought out in the readings, I believe the do's and don'ts of blogging are just plain common sense. It's important to consider carefully what you say so it will not be miscontrued. I like what one classmate said about the smiley face - it's a great tool, no matter what you say since people cannot hear your tone of voice. Certainly never type responses in caps since that indicates yelling. Use of inflamatory words or remarks go against all that is decent. I could go on and on, but if one uses their sense of fairness and decency, blogging will be an enjoyable experience.

I had mixed feelings with the alias vs real name argument. I feel very strongly about protecting my identity, not necessarily my privacy, but probably that too. Since one cannot see the person on the other end of a blog, it becomes a potential safety issue - especially for teens and children. I prefer to remain anonymous as far as who I am and where I'm located. Besides if you say something stupid, no one knows who you are! :) However, I do believe it's important, if one wants to belong to the community of bloggers on a particular site, that an alias is established and used regularly to identify a person.

I chose from our group:

readandgiggle, partly because the name caught my eye. I actually did read and giggle. :) But after I began reading I discovered I really enjoyed reading her comments about the various "things" she was trying. I, too, write with a sense of humor - except when I'm trying to do an assignment! :)

teachartiscool - The first page background of the blog was so interesting that I wanted to see more. As I read I discovered we have some of the same thoughts and feelings about this class and education in general. I love looking at the artwork, too!

MsBrownie's Blog -After a comment about her blog on another bloggers site, I had to check it out. She's very entertaining, and besides we are twins...check out our avatars :) The face is a little different, though. Her comment about Thing 1 and Thing 2 really had me laughing because I had thought the same thing. In addition, I want to see how her blogging idea with her students develops.

Teddy Bear Blog - Her interest in genealogy and scrapbooking resonated with me! Those are my two passions.

JJ's Summertime Fun - Her blog is an easy read and quite entertaining. I like the way she explains the "things" she has tried and I love her taste in music!

Kimberly's Corner - I enjoyed reading her blog and that's one thing I look for - something that holds my attention. Boring loses me very quickly - her's is not boring!

OK, I chose six instead of five, but I couldn't decide which one to skip. I plan to comment on these blogs regularly as well as commenting on some of the others as time permits. I had no idea this class would take so much time!!! :)

Two blogs not from this class that I frequent are Booland Designs and JulieO. These are both scrapping blogs and I love their work. They are designers for Stone Accent Studios where I get the majority of my scrapping ideas and supplies...lots of freebies. I have been a little random with my comments [part of that 9%] but I plan to change that and begin to comment regularly.

I'll post updates as I comment on the blogs I've listed, but will create a new blog with "Thing #4" in it instead of adding to this quite lengthy post. I do tend to get a little wordy...