One hears the term ‘blog’ on television, during meetings, seminars, social gatherings, etc. and even land up on blogs while surfing the internet. However, what is a blog and how does it work? Blogs are types of websites with writings published in the form of posts by one author. They appear in chronological order and are extremely easy to create and operate.
Blogs are great platforms that have enabled people to voice their opinions, express their ideas, thoughts, experiences and knowledge on a common rostrum. Today, blogging has become an integral part of our Internet world. Blogs help celebrities keep in touch with their fans. On the other hand, we also find politicians, celebrities and other famous people often butting into their rivals and falling into various controversies over things mentioned by them in their blogs. However, what’s blogging all about? What does blog stand for? Let’s find out.
What is a Blog Used for and How Does a Blog Work?
Blogs are actually websites, where one can write stuff on a daily basis. It’s an activity that takes place on a continuous basis, thus, is also a social phenomenon involving constant evolution of information. They are also referred to as online journals, wherein, it comprises news articles, personal experiences or commentaries about different things.
However, this does not mean that blogs only entail people’s personal feelings, thoughts and opinions as they do in their personal diaries. Personal blogs are just one form of blogs. Blogs have great number of applications, for example, they are used by companies to keep their customers and various stakeholders updated. They use it as a communication tool. Thus, besides personal blogs, there also exist business blogs.
If blogs are basically types of websites, then what is the difference between a typical website and a blog. A typical website entails a home page which is linked to several sub-pages within the site. For example, BBC site is a news website comprising myriads of articles organized in several broad categories. On the other hand, a blog is just a single page, with entries arranged in chronological order. Older posts are sent into archives, however, it’s the current entries that people are really concerned about.
The simplicity and ease with which blogs can be used, have caused their popularity to soar to the skies. They are easy to set up, as well as extremely easy to update. With blogs, there is no need to tackle those static html files and upload them to the server. Here all one has to do is write something for a post and click on the publish button. The blog gets updated, without much hassle. It’s as simple as that! One does not need technical knowledge to update and maintain a blog.
The person who writes and posts a blog is called a blogger, while the daily activity of updating a blog is called ‘blogging’. When a person enters the blog, to this reader, the blog is a web page. The reader can comment on the blogs and participate in the conversation. The postings on a blog are maintained in chronological order, which means the most recent blog posted will be featured above and the older ones will follow.
Since no coding knowledge is required, anybody and everybody can start a blog of their own. To start a blog, all one needs to do is find a free blogging service and register with a catchy name. For the layout of the blog you can take any one of the many website templates offered by the blogging service or make one on your own. There is an option for creating a post, wherein one can publish one’s posts. It’s that simple! And your blog is on the way! Ready to roll and ready to connect to the world. It’s also important to know how to promote your blog to increase traffic to the same.
Thus, blogs are rostrums that allow people to write, publish and distribute their opinions, thoughts and feelings on various subjects, via the Internet. These blogs are then arranged in chronological order thereby giving a more diary-like format. It’s a common platform where people from different parts of the globe are brought closer together.