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Dan Gould Mentor

Dan Gould

Posted
Posted

Someone will have to explain to me what the point of a "blog" is - I don't see how a bulletin board or a mailing list or a newsgroup doesn't serve the same purpose and in fact, don't those do the job better?

Mike

A blog is a soliloquy.

A bulletin board is a conversation.

Leeway Newbie

Leeway

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Ah - thanks. So when someone spouts nonsense, there's no recourse.

Glad that I haven't missed out on anything. Life ain't a soliloquy - at least it ought not to be. I don't care who you are, input from others only makes things better.

Mike

At best, a blog should be written by a person with an informed, lively interest in the field and should give the writer a chance to "stretch out" on a variety of topics and interests. A BB like this sometimes has extended commentary, but typically is a place for brief exchanges, quick comments, relaying of facts, etc. I don't see any reason why a blog should be inherently bad. In the hands of a good writer, a blog could be an interesting place to stop in.

In fact, I think a number of people on this Board-- including you, Mike-- would make pretty good bloggers.

Thanks for the suggestions and links. I am checking them out.

pryan Newbie

pryan

Posted
Posted

Ah - thanks. So when someone spouts nonsense, there's no recourse.

Glad that I haven't missed out on anything. Life ain't a soliloquy - at least it ought not to be. I don't care who you are, input from others only makes things better.

Mike

At best, a blog should be written by a person with an informed, lively interest in the field and should give the writer a chance to "stretch out" on a variety of topics and interests. A BB like this sometimes has extended commentary, but typically is a place for brief exchanges, quick comments, relaying of facts, etc. I don't see any reason why a blog should be inherently bad. In the hands of a good writer, a blog could be an interesting place to stop in.

In fact, I think a number of people on this Board-- including you, Mike-- would make pretty good bloggers.

Thanks for the suggestions and links. I am checking them out.

I concur with much of what Leeway says as well as what Mike says. BB's are great for a variety of reasons, mainly because of the interactive capabilities. Blogs, from my limited experience in reading them, allow for lengthier, in-depth, and philosophical pieces. Joe's writing is excellent and I recommend bagatellen to anyone interested in improvised music.

  • 8 months later...
Michael Fitzgerald Newbie

Michael Fitzgerald

Posted
Posted

Actually, no, not especially - I am certainly very appreciative of the recognition, of course.

I do note that there is the occasional response published on Doug's site (at his discretion), but I still see absolutely nothing in a blog that hasn't been done better in a newsgroup or a bulletin board or an email list. It just seems to give the host the power to start a different small topic every day. I suppose there could be great depth, but I haven't seen it - these seem to be more quick little blurbs. I mean, there's nothing wrong with the content at all and I don't have any problem with drawing people's attention to articles, books, websites, etc. I just would rather read something where there are a number of equally qualified people who can offer their own perspectives, and who aren't obligated to start the topic every time.

But since I don't see it mentioned above, let me recommend Marvin Stamm's website - specifically the "Cadenzas" and "In Response" sections.

http://www.marvinstamm.com

The setup is a bit confusing (to me) at times because the discussion isn't threaded. But there's a world of information in there.

Mike

neveronfriday Rookie

neveronfriday

Posted
Posted (edited)

... but I still see absolutely nothing in a blog that hasn't been done better in a newsgroup or a bulletin board...

Hm.

Each one of those has its merits. And I've seen tons of blogs that do their stuff a lot better than newsgroups and bulletin boards ... just not in the jazz field:

... I suppose there could be great depth, but I haven't seen it ...
.

In the field of web design with standards (CSS/XHML), for example, some weblogs show a lot more attention to detail and persistance whereas some of the big newsgroups, forums and whatnot often get derailed along the way (some discussions here on the big O are also a good example). When you get too many cooks around the pot, the dish does not automatically improve.

Edited by neveronfriday
Dr. Rat Newbie

Dr. Rat

Posted
Posted

Coincidentally, one of the things I've studied quite a bit is the emergence of periodical publications in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The problem you see with blogs is one you often see with new forms--people seem to have some feeling for the new possibilities opened up by the new form (in this case the blog) but they end up using it largely to replicate older forms (newsgroup, bulletin boards). For instance, when printing was invented it was mainly used to supplement the manuscript book production, and it is sometimes difficult to tell the difference between mass-produced manuscripts and early printed works. It took years and years for printers, writers and readers to explore the possibilities opened up by the availability of relatively cheap printed products.

The blog is still a form in development, but obviously the possibilities of this kind of publication have struck a chord with both writers and readers. I see them as something of a return to the early periodical essay (Addison & Steele, etc.) where there is a value to the maintenance of a particular authorial voice, where there is managed give-and-take with the audience, and where establishing a sense of community may be the biggest factor in the success of a blog (as opposed to anything the blog might actually talk about).

With the possibilities of hyperlinking syndication and powerful search engines, though, blogging is WAY more content-intensive than early periodicals. And with the proliferation of many many blogs, it is interesting to see how specific and detailed many of them can get. (For instance, there are good blogs by experts on climate science, on chaos theory, on evolutionary psychology that laypeople can puzzle out if they so choose.)

Blogging might be a fad, but it might also be one of the big forms of the future. I think you are already seeing blogs that are staking out interesting new territory in the realm of literary form. But you have to come to them with a full knowledge of the older conventions they might use (the bulletin board or whatever) and an acceptance of the way they might defy the expectations developed by those earlier forms.

--eric

Actually, no, not especially - I am certainly very appreciative of the recognition, of course.

I do note that there is the occasional response published on Doug's site (at his discretion), but I still see absolutely nothing in a blog that hasn't been done better in a newsgroup or a bulletin board or an email list. It just seems to give the host the power to start a different small topic every day. I suppose there could be great depth, but I haven't seen it - these seem to be more quick little blurbs. I mean, there's nothing wrong with the content at all and I don't have any problem with drawing people's attention to articles, books, websites, etc. I just would rather read something where there are a number of equally qualified people who can offer their own perspectives, and who aren't obligated to start the topic every time.

But since I don't see it mentioned above, let me recommend Marvin Stamm's website - specifically the "Cadenzas" and "In Response" sections.

http://www.marvinstamm.com

The setup is a bit confusing (to me) at times because the discussion isn't threaded. But there's a world of information in there.

Mike

  • 4 weeks later...
Guest

Guest

Posted
Posted

The forums don't have enough for you to read?

;)

See if you like my multi-media Jazz blog:

<http://davidvaldez.blogspot.com/>

It has streaming Jazz videos, player features, in depth harmony articles, impov lesson, practice ideas, links to transcriptions and much more.........

  • 2 years later...

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