DEFINE WEB BLOG

Definition

A frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and Web links.
A blog (a portmanteau of web log) is a website where entries are written in chronological order and commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.


Information

A blog is often a mixture of what is happening in a person's life and what is happening on the Web, a kind of hybrid diary/guide site, although there are as many unique types of blogs as there are people.
People maintained blogs long before the term was coined, but the trend gained momentum with the introduction of automated published systems, most notably Blogger at blogger.com. Thousands of people use services such as Blogger to simplify and accelerate the publishing process.
Blogs are alternatively called web logs or web logs. However, "blog" seems less likely to cause confusion, as "web log" can also mean a server's log files.


Blogging consequences

The emergence of blogging has brought a range of legal liabilities and other often unforeseen consequences. One area of concern is the issue of bloggers releasing proprietary or confidential information. Another area of concern is blogging and defamation. A third area of concern is employees who write about aspects of their place of employment or their personal lives, and then face loss of employment or other adverse consequences. A number of examples of blogging and its sometimes negative or unforeseen consequences are cited here.


Types of blog

There are various types of blogs, and each differs in the way content is delivered or written.
By media type
A blog comprising videos is called a vlog, one comprising links is called a linklog, a site containing a portfolio of sketches is called a sketchblog or one comprising photos is called a photoblog. Blogs with shorter posts and mixed media types are called tumblelogs.
An Artlog is a form of art sharing and publishing in the format of a blog, but differentiated by the predominant use of and focus on Art work rather than text.
A rare type of blog hosted on the Gopher Protocol is known as a Phlog
By device
Blogs can also be defined by which type of device is used to compose it. A blog written by a mobile device like a mobile phone or PDA is called a moblog.

Rebecca Blood’s Weblogs: a history and perspective categorises blogs into ‘filter’ and ‘short-form journal’ genres. In addition, new tools have created a new type of blog; ‘distributed conversation’.
Filter blog
A filter blog is constructed around commentary of selected hyperlinks. On a particular topic the editor may draw attention to contrasting articles on other websites, and build these into a single narrative or discussion.
Short-form journal blog
A stream-of-consciousness record of thoughts, observations and events. The journal oeuvre is characterised by personal expression.
Distributed conversation (‘red-flag’) blog
publishing software has enabled new forms of blog to evolve.
Blog publishing software has introduced tools that have enabled new forms of blog to evolve. In particular the ability to add a response to a blog entry (comment) and automate the creation of links between different blogs (reciprocal linking) have had a marked impact on the nature of the blogosphere. These features have made space for ‘the reader’s voice’.
A distributed conversation (potentially coined by Mena and Ben Trott of MoveableType blog publishing software fame) uses an original blog entry as the starting point for an ongoing series of posts, either as comments or reciprocal links. As responses are received, they are listed underneath the blog, in order of posting. The original author is then encouraged to clarify, defend, or alter their original post―particularly where the blog relates to a technical subject.
For an example of a red-flag blog see Mike Davidson’s “March to your own standard” (challenging the web standards approach to web design).




Features

Title, the main title, or headline, of the post.
Body, main content of the post.
Permalink, the URL of the full, individual article.
Post Date, date and time the post was published.
A blog entry optionally includes the following:
Comments -
Main article: Feedback comment system
Comments are a way to provide discussion on blog entries. Readers can leave a comment on a post, which can correct errors or contain their opinion on the post or the post's subject. Services like coComment aim to ease discussion through comments, by allowing tracking of them.
Categories (or tags) - subjects that the entry discusses
Trackback and or pingback - links to other sites that refer to the entry