Finding other blogs

Fortunately, people who set up blogs often create links to other blogs, so it can be easy to find examples of the different ways in which people are using this. There are some starting points here (below), but you should explore more to find others. As you explore remember to keep notes; when you are working on the WWW it can be too easy to keep clicking on to another page and then forget where you started from! Make sure you have a system where you can copy and save the pages you find. You should post a message to the discussion folder for blogs when you have explored a few:

• give the URL (the web address) of the blog so that others can find it
• comment on the style of the blog visually – does it look interesting? Are you persuaded to read the posts?
• read some of the blog posts and comment on the style of the writing – is the writer intending this to be like a newspaper article; or “revealing my soul”; or as a means to support other media (photos, podcasts)?
• are you persuaded to read more? How?
• are you persuaded to comment?

These are some preliminary questions to ask; you may find there are more comments you can make on even a first glance at a blog.

http://blog-efl.blogspot.com/

http://weblogg-ed.com/ (note: this blogger has moved to a new page, but the comments and reasons on the original page are also interesting)

http://booruch.libsyn.com/

http://edcompblog.blogspot.com/

http://nikpeachey.blogspot.com/

Review the blogs listed here and add your own (in the comments) if you know of any others Note the features and styles used in the blog Discuss your reactions to the blogs and why some features appeal more than others

When you have found a blog that you enjoy, you may want to know when the author has written a new post or when anyone has commented on the posts. You can do this using a “feed” programme. You can find an example of this on http://www.bloglines.com. Bloglines (and other similar programmes) will allow you to add a blog RSS feed (usually indicated on a blog by a small orange box) to the programme and then when you log in to bloglines you can see the updates on the blogs you are “watching”. You can also get apps for iPads/iPhones that will allow you to easily read the latest posts on blogs. For example: Blogshelf https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/blogshelf-ii/id518222515?mt=8  You can also see a list of alternative apps on http://alternativeto.net/software/bloglines/?platform=ipad

Do you use bloglines or a similar programme/app? Post instructions in the comments so that others can try it out and evaluate it by comparing it with others