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Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

lars-christian.com

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Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#101

Post by maroonblazer »

prmoustache wrote: post #87

I love personal websites but I don't really like blogs. I prefer when people can rework/refine some of their pages instead of publishing new blog posts related to previous ones when revisiting a topic. And as a writer it allows me to write whenever I feel like to. With a blog you kind of feel guilty if you don't publish on a regular basis, and end up abandoning it altogether too easily if you cannot sustain a rhythm.…

Can you share some examples of what you're describing. I enjoy blogs, have one of my own that I haven't added to in quite a while. I don't feel under any pressure, for many of the reasons stated in TFA, to update it regularly. But I'm now interested in exploring this alternative you describe.

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#102

Post by _heimdall »

reaperducer wrote: post #95
_heimdall wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I know it puts off some people who mistake that for anonymity and think this is ruining the web Its interesting that we got to a point where anyone would consider anonymity to be ruining the web. When I was growing up in the 90s and early 00s anonymity online was the whole point. Everything online was behind usernames, and usernames weren't expected to be connected to your real identity at all. Thank you Facebook,…

When I was growing up in the 90s and early 00s anonymity online was the whole point. Everything online was behind usernames, and usernames weren't expected to be connected to your real identity at all. You consider that the norm because that's what you grew up with. Before then, people would sign everything on the internet (and its predecessor networks) with their real names, work/home addresses, phone numbers, and m…

Sure, that is the timeframe I grew up with so there is bias there. It also happens to be when the internet was starting be used more broadly.

Correct me if I'm wrong here because it is before my time, but prior to WWW wasn't the common use for the internet government and academic research, and technical communications of those actually building the internet protocols? Unless I'm wrong there, I just wouldn't really lump that in when comparing how the average person uses the internet.

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#103

Post by prmoustache »

maroonblazer wrote: post #101
prmoustache wrote: post #87

I love personal websites but I don't really like blogs. I prefer when people can rework/refine some of their pages instead of publishing new blog posts related to previous ones when revisiting a topic. And as a writer it allows me to write whenever I feel like to. With a blog you kind of feel guilty if you don't publish on a regular basis, and end up abandoning it altogether too easily if you cannot sustain a rhythm.…

Can you share some examples of what you're describing. I enjoy blogs, have one of my own that I haven't added to in quite a while. I don't feel under any pressure, for many of the reasons stated in TFA, to update it regularly. But I'm now interested in exploring this alternative you describe.

Any personal homepage of the pre-blog era is a good example.

See here the personal homepage of the late Sheldown Brown, famous for his technical articles on bicycle maintenance, that is still maintained by his spouse Harriett Fell[1] who still add content regularly. I still visit once in a while: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/org/personal-pages.html

It may look like a big mess and it is ugly by modern standards[2] but it is a real pleasure to visit with tons of articles classed by topics. I find it more interesting to visit than a blog.

Here some humor pages Harriett Fell added in recent year to make fun of Zwift or OpenAI:

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/time-travel.html

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/openai.html

[1] which also happen to have her own personal page: https://www.khoury.northeastern.edu/home/fell/

[2] it doesn't have to be, this one simply was built in the late 90's

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#104

Post by defrost »

_heimdall wrote: post #102
reaperducer wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When I was growing up in the 90s and early 00s anonymity online was the whole point. Everything online was behind usernames, and usernames weren't expected to be connected to your real identity at all. You consider that the norm because that's what you grew up with. Before then, people would sign everything on the internet (and its predecessor networks) with their real names, work/home addresses, phone numbers, and m…

Sure, that is the timeframe I grew up with so there is bias there. It also happens to be when the internet was starting be used more broadly. Correct me if I'm wrong here because it is before my time, but prior to WWW wasn't the common use for the internet government and academic research, and technical communications of those actually building the internet protocols? Unless I'm wrong there, I just wouldn't really lu…

Mainly academic and military and spouses and family, yes.

FWiW shitposting on UseNet started very early on - binary porn coming from German airbases was a thing and while many official things were sent from @MyRealName there were plenty of handles used and an0n postings.

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#105

Post by Zak »

prmoustache wrote: post #86
langsoul-com wrote: post #14

The thing about irl blogs is how, if it's tech related, then it kinda follows you. So there's a pressure to keep things corporate to not scare away job opportunities. There's a reason why LinkedIn reads like garbage, and even if it's obvious, people neither point it out or stop.

I am using a pseudonym on my blog and I tend to use a different pseudonym on all websites/services/medias I use. I have often pondered wether I should just publish under my own name or not. The thing is once you do that, there is no going back and I have never felt ready for that. I know it puts off some people who mistake that for anonymity and think this is ruining the web, that people can't behave if they aren't t…

> I know it puts off some people who mistake that for anonymity and think this is ruining the web, that people can't behave if they aren't talking under their own name

I haven't run across this sentiment with regard to personal websites or blogs. Who is saying that?

I do see it for forums, comment sections, and social media. Those often bring together people who did not consciously seek to interact with each other, and do tend to reward antisocial behavior with attention.

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#106

Post by jackstraw14 »

maroonblazer wrote: post #101
prmoustache wrote: post #87

I love personal websites but I don't really like blogs. I prefer when people can rework/refine some of their pages instead of publishing new blog posts related to previous ones when revisiting a topic. And as a writer it allows me to write whenever I feel like to. With a blog you kind of feel guilty if you don't publish on a regular basis, and end up abandoning it altogether too easily if you cannot sustain a rhythm.…

Can you share some examples of what you're describing. I enjoy blogs, have one of my own that I haven't added to in quite a while. I don't feel under any pressure, for many of the reasons stated in TFA, to update it regularly. But I'm now interested in exploring this alternative you describe.

I think https://gwern.net/ is a pretty good example of a "personal site" that in another universe could be a regular blog. https://gwern.net/changelog is the only log part of it.

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#107

Post by rietta »

Yes, and I have been surprised by at least one who told me that I needed to blog more often. We have very little interaction since graduate school.

I have been running the same website, which has undergone several redesigns, for 25 years and counting.

It is also interesting about having a personal domain name. People pause when you give the email. No, I really did mean first@lastname.com. Yes, I've had this for decades. My sister tells a different variant, she at least once had someone comment on it and then stand up straight - which she interpreted as being a little impressed as if my sister was a celebrity or something. Very interesting in a world where most people do not have a domain with their family name.

The challenge for me has been that over time it morphed from a personal site, to a professional site, to a corporate site. Now that I have employees and this work supports my family I have less freedom to do just anything I want with it. It has to be on topic. That constraint does also bring freedom in its own way. I do not have a good place for personal interests that are not related to my cybersecurity work any longer though.

Re: Re: Do people IRL know you have a blog?

#110

Post by elric »

I have multiple blogs (the link to one of which is in my HN profile). The tech stuff is pretty safe, and so some tech people in my life know about it. The other blogs are reserved for people who are involved in other aspects of my life.

In general, I find I compartmentalize a lot, and there are very few people in my life who are part of multiple compartments.

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