Monday, March 23

BOOK OF THE WEEK:
excerpts from A YEAR IN HIGH HEELS by CAMILLA MORTON:
JANUARY
how to blog it
forget padlock.
increasingly, diaries are no longer private. Everyone loves to read diary, from handwritten ones to weblogs for the more technically inclined. If the internet is anything to go by, diaries are back in fashion- big time. If you feel like giving the world immediate access to your musing, rants, or inner turmoil, rather than leaving your diary open on a bus it's time to start a blog.
Expose your angst to cyberspace. As author KINGSLEY AMIS said, 'If you can't annoy somebody, there's little point in writing.'
blogging is an open forum to express your opinions on everything and anything, and a way for everyone, and anyone, to write back. And- be warned- they will.
the best sites to go for help when setting up your own blog are www.blogger.com ; www.diarist.net ; www.livejournal.com. www.mac.com have even included and easy -to-install blog/weblog options within their 'ilife' upgrades packages. Google have a 'blog of notes' sections that includes everything from new york cab driver's rant to dieter's agony.
making your opinion heard has never been so easy.
so, firts things first...what to do?
follow steps on your selected programme:
1. create an account.
2. name your blog.
3. choose a template.
www.blogger.com is the most established website, and therefore the most experienced in looking after first-timers. Before clicking on the options decide what you want to use your blog for. what do you want to say, show, discuss or record?
download a template, follow the instructions and registration steps 1, 2 and 3 and let your host site worry about layouts, graphics and HTML, all you need to do is write out the content.
BLOG BASICS
blogs first appeared in 1999, and by 2005 there were over 20 million blogs and bloggers. anyone can do it. the blog is like a chain of emails, starting from your most recent, going back to the oldest. it allows you to create an online streams of thoughts. people can log on and post opinions but essentially it is all about you, by you. you are your own editor, and you decide what stays live. you can post pictures, images, and even videos or audio, but don't run before you can walk.
BLOCKBUSTER BLOGGING
being really successful blogger could lead to a new life as published author.publishing success stories from blogs are on the up, so much so that there are even publishing houses dedicated to finding budding talent on the web, such as the friday project. the notorious call girl 'belle de jour' started documenting her life in a blog ; it became a bestselling book and has been turned into a television series. proof that computers are no longer only for the
geeky. and, because every industry needs to celebrate its stars, there are now bloggie awards, which started in 2000 in americ. the 2006 UK winner, GIRL WITH A ONE-TRACK MIND, got a publishing deal soon after. In the UK 'blooks' (blogs that are online books) are also gaining recognition. so now we can all be pepy, or atleast published authors.
one note of caution, particularly to the shy: you might want to think of a pseudonym before going to far with your online fantasies.
the british library recently begun recording the email habits of our time. any message forwarded to email@emailbritain.co.uk will be included in their archive.put yourself in the history books.

No comments: