What’s a blogger to do?

Aug 9, 2003

In my quest to learn website design and Internet technology, I’ve tried out numerous weblog software programs and services (also called personal publishing tools). I started with Blogger, switched to Greymatter, and ended up with Movable Type. As you might know from reading The Daily Chronicle, I’ve had my eye on some new blogging tools, including Textpattern, TypePad and My Expressions, a new photoblogging service. Of course, I’ve had to try them out.

Now I’m in a quandary. Zuiker Chronicles Online is powered by the excellent MT (normally: see below for news about why the site is AWOL), but these other tools make managing a weblog so much easier. What you’re reading now is my TypePad weblog, and I love the control panels that you use to run your TypePad weblog. My Expressions, too, is a breeze to use. See my trial photoblog at mistersugar.my-expressions.com. TypePad also includes a photoblog feature – see my album at right.

What am I to do? I can’t continue to juggle so many different weblogs – I have blogs for the Zuiker 5 brothers, the Shaughnessy family, medicaljournalism.info, the j-school masters students, and others in the works for the J-50 class I teach and the Tar Heel Bloggers group I started.

If I could narrow my efforts, I’d be a lot more prolific in my writings and posting of pictures. And yet, my constant playing with new programs has given me some excellent experience and insights, which I used this summer to help write an online j-school course about global communication issues; my modules incorporated weblog history, development, use and discussion. I’ll post my outlines and study guides to THB later this month. I’m also helping to organize a seminar for journalists who want to understand personal publishing and incorporate weblogs into their journalism.

It’s a great time to be a blogger. Join me, why don’t you. It’s easy to sign up – Blogger is fast and free, TypePad is beautiful and intuitive but with a monthly charge, and My Expressions is a perfect way to share your digital pictures with the rest of us.

Anton Zuiker ☄