And I think that's one of the things that makes this format so compelling: it's ease of use. You don't have to design a whole site. You don't have to write a big article, tell a long story, be some kind of creative genius to run a weblog. You can be joe average who loves the Yankees and wants to write about that.

A weblog should not mean, but be.

(props to Archibald MacLeish)

Meg {meg@hourihan.com}

I don't want to define weblog just like I don't want to define what a journal is to THAT whole group. We all have different ways of expressing ourselves in this medium and there is room for everyone.

I, for one, will continue to do both the log and journal and whatever other project comes up despite any hype or slagging.

Stef {stef@stef.net}

I've been publishing my personal site in that format for almost a year. My company has had an internal weblog since almost day one. And I co-created a product that helps other people publish weblogs.

But I still didn't think there was anything particularly revolutionary about this format until recently. I still can't tell you what a weblog is. But I know I love publishing my thoughts (*not* just links!) on evhead and seeing my visitors grow and getting feedback from all kinds of people. I think creating big, beautiful, daring things is great, too -- but I also know that if it weren't for my weblog I'd have virtually no web presence, because I would never take the time to create those things. And if I had no web presence, I wouldn't know nearly as many cool people. I also know that our weblog has helped my company build a stronger, more connected culture (despite our distributedness) and that weblogs (published, mostly, by individuals) have taken over a large percentage of my time online (which used to go to highly filtered corporate media).

So, what is a weblog? Hell if I know. But I do know, I like 'em. I'm addcited. And they're important.

Ev.

pb

some have brilliant design, some look like the web circa 1995. what kind you prefer is your choice, there is no wrong way to keep a weblog.

brig {brig@eatonweb.com}

Eventually, I spent enough time finding my own amazing things that I wanted to share it on my own site. I wasn't sure I could keep it up daily, or find enough material worth noting. Then a curious thing happened. I looked around at the growing weblog community and readership, and figured there was probably a lot of other people like me. People that found one or two interesting things worth talking about. I also noticed that the only feedback loop seemed to be private, personal email with a weblog author. I put the two together. My goal was to bring a bunch of people that could find 1 or 2 things worth linking each day, and add the ability for people to talk to each other about what was on the weblog. It's taken quite a long time, but I'm really enjoying the community that surrounds MetaFilter

I think MetaFilter carries my voice across pretty well. As it has grown, the number of voices has diluted it slightly, but it's ok though, I like the other opinions, and I put down the thoughts in my head at my old personal site. I keep them separate; personal, internal stuff on one, my viewpoint on worldly things on the other.

When it comes to reading weblogs, I enjoy those with a personality. I'd have to say my favorites right now are Ev's and Jason's because there's just as much about themselves as there is about other things in the world.

I'd say the definition of a weblog is evolving, what was once just a list of links is now a window into a person's life. The line between a diary, a journal, and a weblog is blurring by the day and there's nothing wrong with that.

If I didn't jot down some thoughts everyday, I don't know if I'd ever find the time to write long wonderful essays or make really cool web-based projects.

So, um, yeah, I like weblogs.

Matt {matt@haughey.com}