CléaRemember the old days of surfing the internet, looking at static websites, researching information from varied sources when the medium was young and fresh and exciting?
Then came blogs and we all got interactive and talking and discussing and debating.
Then we got sucked into the vortex of a blog crush before we moved on to memes, awards, interviews, podcasts and YouTubes.
Then we got into lurking, flaming, blogrolling, stalking, private blogs, then returned to the public blogosphere and at one point disabled comments, reopened them, switched on comment moderation, de-blogrolled some people, bought our own domains, customised our look and feel before we got bored with it all.
Then we started to frequent ‘professional’ blogs on faux news sites and comment on those as if our our diatribe really made a difference, while at the same time we wasted time on Facebook and Twitter and blamed them for our low attention span.*
Remember all that?
Time to get back to full circle.
Now that blogging has become It’s a blog Jim, but not as we know it** and the medium is being given its final rites by complacency, overload, and our Twitter attention span, I have recently rediscovered the joys of passive blogging.
- http://xkcd.com/ – Every life situation has a cartoon, much like the Simpsons when they were funny but this site does it with geeky flair.
- http://www.psdrecipes.com/ – Their bite size Photoshop gems don’t give you indigestion.
- http://www.leblogdelamechante.fr/ – Simply a beautiful girly site, with a retro feel. A visual feast, with a lot of photography, even if you don’t understand French.
- http://weblogtoolscollection.com/ – To keep the Wordpress geek in me updated with the latest.
- http://www.ohlalamag.com/ – While gossip and celebs aren’t my thing, stunning photography of male models and fashion, with the occasional travel postcard by the charming hosts are just what I need on a daily basis.
- http://vidberg.blog.lemonde.fr/ – A degustation of French news from the renowned newspaper, Le Monde, told through potato figures. I particularly enjoy his techie takes on the world. In French.
- http://parisbreakfasts.blogspot.com/ – A moving feast of Parisian food and imagery. Not recommended viewing on an empty stomach. In English.
- http://www.thefreedictionary.com/ - Simple and uncluttered site when words are all you’re looking for. For the writer in me.
Now that I’ve let you have a peep at some of mine, care to show me some of yours?
* I know this paragraph should be in the present tense.
** Title of a blog post fermenting in my drafts for over a year, with a nod to Star Trek.
Tags: cbmused, passive blogging
Egads! You’re an XKCD fan as well? That much an appreciation of geek humour you’ve got.
If you haven’t already read it, I think you might appreciate http://lifehacker.com It’s the place I go for all the geek tips on productivity on and offline. There is more than a handful of things there that will geek me out for quite a while.
I’m not sure how big a science fiction fan you are, but http://io9.com is where I go for the latest things on science fiction whether it be TV shows, movies, books or comics. It’s on the same network as Lifehacker.
Then there is http://lorelle.wordpress.com where you can find more news and tips on WordPress related blogs and blogging.
I do have plenty more, especially webcomics, but I don’t know how much you like them aside from XKCD because that’s a geek thing.
You made me crave for Parisian food after reading Parisbreakfasts. How could you!? Now I have to find good French food to satisfy my craving.
Edrei: Hehe… yes, love their work.
Lifehacker – I’ve been there on and off many times. i should add it to my feeds
i09 – I had a quick squizz, and I can see some parts will grab my interests. Like their space porn for a start.
I’m not into webcomics in a big way as for Paris breakfasts, that’s why I gave it a disclaimer. I’ve been craving chocolat chaud for weeks!
Oh yeah, I remember when it was all young & new & fresh … and everyone seemed so entralled with it all!
Cool list of places you frequent… my list is sooo massive and vast and random. I’d end up hogging your comment space if I posted ‘em all over here. lol
Some of those things you listed I never got into (and don’t plan to), and maybe I’m still stuck in the “olden days”, lol, cuz there’s something for you over at my place.
2nd post down, or <a href=”http://littlehmphf.blogspot.com/2009/04/im-zombie-peep.html”>here</a>.
LB: That’s not all my list, only those I’m willing to share.
Same here, I never got into monetising the blog and other things but have definitely moved on in so many ways, some of it has been with the flow and some of it I have grown out of with time. But you do what you enjoy, and don’t listen to me
I’ll pop over soon and check things out properly instead of the flying visits of late.
For my music addiction I have two sites that I frequent; One is free but the other costs money.
Free – http://www.woxy.com Lots of new indie music for me to listen to, and typically interviews/live songs from bands that I like.
Costs – http://www.emusic.com For about the cost of one iTunes album I get 50 downloads a month to use on only independent music labels. Some of the stuff that I’ve gotten here has become some of my favorite music. Some of it isn’t so great.
GSR: I admit I haven’t got into music sites in a big way yet (unless surfing YouTube for old video clips just to have a laugh counts). But both sites look like they’re worth checking out. Come to think of it, I haven’t been listening to music of late, not even my favourite bands
Now that I’ve read back over the posts I’ve missed over the past couple of weeks (gosh, has it been that long since I’ve visited? sheesh!), I really hate I missed the fibbing game. Great idea, that, and what a damn difficult list to pick the truths! Hope you had fun with that! =)
LB: Yes, I’ve missed you! But I understand too well when life gets in the way or when the mood isn’t right.
It was a fun exercise and it seems so long ago now, thought I still owe a reader his question and I’ll be working on it soon.
Hmmm…well there a couple of forums I fairly regularly post on, and two other biz related blogs I post to sporadically… none of which I can post here!!
I like the surf cam sites like Coastalwatch and Swell.com in the US ( especially over Xmas on the North shore of Oahu
), but I like the oceanic eye candy on Aquabumps too.
I mostly keep up to date with the word on geek street via Whirlpool, wordpress plug ins and updates from the official site, plus my fix of Linux stuff from too many to list.
I’ve also spent hours in the past on the offical PHP website, and follow a few dev blogs. Yup… all riveting stuff as you can tell LOL.
Gboy: And why not?!
Coastal watch – why am I not surprised?
Aquabumps – Some stunning shots there, and I can take some pointers. For the record, I’m not talking about those Bondi babes but the surfing shots, i like.
Whirlpool – I’ve spent many hours on there, on and off, and found it be quite an informative forum (apart from the odd w@nker or three who like to put down others)
Plugins – that’s where webtools comes in handy as well.
my fix of Linux… php… that’s geek pr0n!
I am proud to say that this is the only blog I frequent. Actually, it’s the only blog I visit, ever. That is not to say that I don’t have a facebook and myspace, but there’s no actual “blogging” going on in these situations. I guess you are just a special lady, C.
Mrs Mahd: I am extremely humbled. Always a pleasure to have you here.