Why Do Modern Gamers Love MMOs?

May 17th, 2012 by , in Thursday in the Zone
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Even just 7 to 10 years ago, most gaming took place on consoles, on games that took place on discs or cartridges. Once you played all the way through the game, found all the hidden stuff (and plugged in all the cheat codes), you were done. Oh, and if you wanted to play with more than four players, the extra people had to wait their turn.

But gaming has changed. Wow, has it ever changed! Most modern games now include a Massive Multiplayer Online (MMO) experience, where you can play with tons of people across all different regions (and countries)!

But why was there this major shift in game development? Well, it seems that modern gamers naturally gravitate toward MMOs, and I believe there are several social and gaming reasons for that.

MMOs Make More Individual, Innovative Game Experiences

Because of the online component of MMO gaming, there are a lot less “scripted” dialogues/events, and more off-the-cuff, genuinely new experiences. Basically, when you start the game, you’re never sure what new challenges await you.

I think of my experiences playing City of Heroes–you’re never sure whether there will be a Rikti Invasion special event while you’re playing, or which of your online buddies are going to be there to play with. It’s always a little unexpected, which is part of the fun. Unlike a cartridge or disc game, which is played thoroughly and then often set aside, MMOs give a player a truer, more responsive and “human” gameplay experiences, which continually rouses mental curiosity.

MMOs Provide Social Interaction

Instead of being cloistered away in a bedroom or basement utterly away from other humans, modern gamers have the option of real social interaction with other players through the MMO system. Now, sure, some of this interaction is made up of insult exchanges, random outbursts of rage, and the like, but some of it is actually worthwhile. You can actually find yourself talking about stuff other than the game, with people who are just as thoughtful as you. You just have to be willing to start a conversation–and MMO gaming gives you the chance to do exactly that.

For instance, I’ve met several good gaming friends through my City of Heroes experiences, and we have since become friends outside the game as well. We don’t just have to talk about “the game” or what characters we’re building next–we can actually talk about what we do when we’re not on the computer, any work-life stuff, all the kinds of things that friends talk about. This makes the “game” almost more than a game–it’s nearly a social network of its own.

MMOs Give Players Endless Replay Value

Because of the individualized, responsive gameplay I spoke of earlier, MMOs can be continuously replayed. Playing the game does not get rid of storylines, to be replayed the same way when you “finish” the game and start over; in fact, MMO gaming constantly builds on old storylines and introduces new plot threads in a fairly seamless experience. In essence, it’s never the same game twice, to paraphrase Disney’s Pocahontas.

This differs greatly from console games, which are generally locked into one major story that is only successfully played through one way. Even though returning to an old favorite game to replay it can give you warm fuzzies of nostalgia, it can also be a little boring to hack through the game the same way all the time. MMO gaming most certainly does not have that problem.

MMOs Always Have More Stuff to Do and Find

Because of developers and content creators working consistently behind the scenes, there are always new expansions, new story threads, new Easter eggs to find, and new graphic creations. Unlike console games, which don’t have much capability for innovation beyond what was programmed into the disc or cartridge, MMO games can always be updated, changed, patched (and repatched), etc.

City of Heroes, for example, has various timely expansions called “issues,” in which new costume pieces, new storylines, and other game developments are introduced. This ensures that the game is always fresh and has more challenges (which we gamers love!).

MMOs Can (Usually) Be Played by Anyone with a Computer

Lastly, unlike most console games, which are inextricably tied to a particular console to play, MMOs can generally be played by any computer. This makes MMOs more accessible to a wider swath of people–most humans these days have a computer for work or home use, but not everyone has a particular gaming console. When the computer becomes your gaming console, it’s a lot easier to game overall!

Having more potential players means that more people can meet and play together, increasing the strength of the game’s social network and boosting the innovation of the game experience. Plus, you no longer have the console wars to get in the way of good communication (i.e., you don’t have a bunch of Xbox players ragging on the Wii players, etc.).

Summary

Because of the massive multiplayer online genre, we are seeing more interactive, responsive, and social games than ever. This has changed gaming, and I believe it’s for the better.

Now, do I still like console games? Sure, because they are simpler and better suited for one-player experiences. (They are also a nice change, and a little hit of nostalgia never hurt any gamer.) But if I really want an involving game experience, I’m much more likely now to turn toward an MMO myself. MMOs provide something no other digital game experience provides–a sense of real, human community.

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Being a Harsh Judge Isn’t Actually Christian

May 16th, 2012 by , in Wednesday in the Word
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1st Samuel 25:20-27
20 As [Abigail] came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, there were David and his men descending toward her, and she met them. 21 David had just said, “It’s been useless–all my watching over [Nabal]‘s property in the wilderness so that nothing of his was missing. He has paid me back evil for good. 22 May God deal with David, be it ever so severely, if by morning I leave alive one male of all who belong to him!”

23 When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off her donkey and bowed down before David with her face to the ground. 24 She fell at his feet and said: “Pardon your servant, my lord, and let me speak to you; hear what your servant has to say. 25 Please pay no attention, my lord, to that wicked man Nabal. He is just like his name–his name means Fool, and folly goes with him. And as for me, your servant, I did not see the men my lord sent. 26 And now, my lord, as surely as the Lord your God lives and as you live, since the Lord has kept you from bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hands, may your enemies and all who are intent on harming my lord be like Nabal. 27 And let this gift, which your servant has brought to my lord, be given to the men who follow you.”

In this passage, David has just talked about Nabal, Abigail’s husband, who has been mean and spiteful towards David even after David’s been doing a lot of nice things for him. Just before Abigail appears, David has vowed to practically obliterate the men of Nabal’s family for all the injustices the man has done.

Then Abigail meets David, and begins to floridly apologize for her husband’s wrongful actions. She’s already brought foodstuffs for David and his men, to make up for what Nabal had withheld when David had sent men to ask for provisions earlier. Now she seeks David’s forgiveness for this wrong, and proves herself a devout follower of the Lord in so doing; she believes that David is a Godly leader, and is under God’s protection because of that.

In doing this, Abigail proves she is wiser than her narrow-minded, judgmental husband, who has bigoted himself against David simply because of all the negative things he’s heard about David (primarily, his rocky dealings with King Saul).

For Modern Believers, It’s Hard Not to Act Like Nabal

We might think Nabal was pretty stupid, to not understand that David asked for provisions out of sheer need, to not donate a small portion of what he had in stores to someone who had already helped guard his property. What we might not realize is that we cast Nabal-like judgments all the time–judgments born of a refusal to open our minds and hearts, born of our own stubbornness.

For instance, judging that another person is not saved, based on their clothing? That’s a Nabal judgment. Being prejudiced against another believer because of race/ethnicity, or even political beliefs? Also a Nabal judgment. How about thinking that someone else’s service to the church is not as important as yours? Yep, that’s thinking like Nabal.

But in order to be wiser, more like Abigail, we have to be willing to open our minds to new ideas. Nabal didn’t think much of David; in fact, Nabal characterized David in an earlier verse as a “servant” who had broken away from his “master”. But Abigail had heard enough to know that even though David was having trouble with Saul, God was using him in mighty ways already. Though she likely heard lots of rumors, conflicting and agreeing, she did not blindly believe any of them until she thought them over and decided for herself. She then took the action that she felt was the most Godly.

Being a thoughtful, nonjudgmental Christian in this age of sound bites, quick news articles, and scare tactics is difficult. In all that we do (and hear) out in the world, however, we should remember that it is not our judgments that bear any weight, but God’s alone.

When we try, like Nabal, to judge a person harshly with a narrow-minded perspective, we forget that we, too, are going to be judged for what we do to others. And since our words and actions are the only clues others have to our personal faith…what message do harsh judgments send, as opposed to thoughtful and prayerful words?

Part of ridding ourselves of harsh judgments is taking a moment to breathe, and think whether our words really honor God. Many times, we find that our words are not born of truth and Godly thought, but hate and stubbornness. (I’m definitely guilty as charged.) This moment of thought before speaking not only makes us think about how we’re saying things, but what we’re saying, too. You might just find that you no longer want to make such a harsh judgment, after all. (It works, believe me!)

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Life Hack: Using OxiClean to Clean My Combs

May 15th, 2012 by , in Tuesday on the Soapbox
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Most of us think of OxiClean and other super-detergents as being more for the laundry and really tough stain-fighting. But leave it to me to find another (creative) use for it!

The Problem: Strange Film on My Combs

I’ll admit, I’m slightly vain about my hair’s apparent cleanliness and tidiness. I could usually care less about being completely made up, wearing pretty (and painful) shoes, etc. But I absolutely hate when my hair looks dirty just after washing it, or when it has tons of ratty ends, flyaways, or a non-centered part. (OCD, much? :P )

This whole not-quite-obsession with having clean- and tidy-looking hair roared up out of my subconscious one recent evening, when I had gotten home from a workout and quickly hopped into the shower to clean up. My hair felt great after I washed it–felt squeaky clean, light, and generally awesome. I went to detangle it with my trusty wide-tooth comb…

…and a minute or so later, I looked at my detangled, “clean” hair in horror. My hair no longer looked shiny, but dull with dirt; moreover, there was a white filmy substance just barely visible on a few sections of my hair.

A serious “OMG-WHAT-DID-I-DO?!” moment ensued, culminating in the discovery that the offender was the wide-tooth comb itself. The white filmy stuff was clearly visible between the individual teeth of my comb; it could easily be scratched off with a fingernail or toothpick, rendering fingernailfuls of white goop that felt like gluey gel to the touch.

I was pretty sure this stuff had to be hair product buildup of some sort (found out later it had to be excess conditioner, because I don’t use my combs for anything but detangling just-washed hair), but I still wanted it off my comb(s). Both of the wide-tooth combs I had in my drawer were like this, and it disgusted me. The damage had already been done to my current hair wash, but I wanted this junk gone off my combs so that I didn’t have to worry with it the next day.

A Creative “Solution” (Literally)

I debated for a moment about getting an old or unused toothbrush and trying to scrub away at the “teeth” of each comb with some soap. And then, my eye lit on the huge tub of OxiClean powder under the sink, awaiting its myriad uses in laundry stain-removing and house-cleaning. “I wonder…” I thought. Well, it couldn’t hurt to try–my combs were solid plastic, after all.

So I filled up my trusty 12-quart dishpan (great for soaking delicates and small items) halfway with hot water, then put about a third of a scoop of OxiClean in it and dissolved it. After I was sure it was dissolved thoroughly (like usual), I threw both wide-tooth combs in the tub–and left it for a while, going about the business of getting dried off, wrung out, and dressed again.

The Result: Squeaky-Clean Combs, Squeaky-Clean Hair!

After about 2 hours of checking it, flipping the combs over in the water, etc., I went back and checked them. When I lifted one from the water, I saw a literal CLOUD of itty-bitty debris shake loose from it underwater, and I thought, “Oh wow, this might have really worked.” But I didn’t believe it for myself till I scratched at one of the teeth with my fingernail and came away with absolutely nothing. The OxiClean solution had indeed dissolved all that product buildup, leaving the comb clean as a whistle. HOORAY!

I rinsed the combs very, very well under both hot and cold water and let them dry overnight before using them again, and I have to say, my hair is turning out so much better. And to think, I thought all this buildup on my hair was the fault of some of the shampoos I was using!

To Try This at Home:

  1. First of all, do not try this on any brush or comb that has rubber, silicone, or wooden parts. I don’t know exactly how OxiClean would react with these materials, but I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be good. A completely “hard plastic” brush or comb shouldn’t hurt, though.
  2. Use either a dishpan or a sink to soak out your chosen hair implements.
  3. Fill the pan/sink with only enough hot water to thoroughly submerge your brushes/combs. Note: Combs will float, but this is not a real issue–just flip your combs over every so often so all of the plastic, especially between the teeth of each comb, comes in contact with the water. (Hot water makes the OxiClean work better, I’ve found.)
  4. Dissolve a third to a half scoop of OxiClean in the water before you add your brushes/combs. (My measurements come from the scoop that came with my tub of OxiClean, which looks like a powder laundry detergent scoop.) If you’re soaking a lot of stuff or if it’s all absolutely caked with stuff, go with a half-scoop; otherwise, less is more.
  5. Put your brushes/combs in, and soak for at least an hour. Check periodically to see how it’s progressing, swishing the combs and brushes underwater. Your brushes/combs are clean when you can scratch at the bristles or teeth with a fingernail and come away with nothing.
  6. Rinse, rinse, rinse, and by the way, rinse your brushes and combs. Make sure there is no OxiClean residue left, otherwise you could do damage to your hair when you use your combs/brushes next.

One Final Note

In future, I’m going to keep an eye out for any more product buildup, doing the old fingernail-scratch test. I figure I’ll have to soak my combs again in a few months, perhaps. This isn’t something that has to be done every day, for certain, but every few months should be enough to keep all-plastic hairstyling tools in shape.

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HTML5: Basically, “Flash! Ah-Ah!”

May 14th, 2012 by , in Monday in the HTMLab
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[/shameless quote of "Flash" by Queen (see Youtube video here)]

For those of us who still code in the Stone Age of HTML 4.01 (*raises hand* guilty as charged), HTML5 is a vaguely strange new planet on the horizon of web development, and has been for a couple of years now. I have blundered around this topic for a while now, trying to decipher what exactly I need to know about this new standard of web development. What is it like? How is it different? And most of all, what can I make it DO?

I Wasn’t Kidding When I Made the “Flash” Joke

Really. HTML5 does things we HTML 4.01 coders never dreamed the language would be able to do…and if we did dream of it, we knew it could only be done in Flash. (That was what stopped me from doing a lot of “cool interactive stuff” on my page–I didn’t know how to do Flash and found it way too daunting to teach myself.)

With the advent of HTML5, however, there are now common-sense tags for all sorts of interactive and structural things, including:

HTML5 is Seriously Cleaned Up, Y’all

With new standards comes lots of new rules, as we’ve seen, but there are tons of fixes for the “old” rules as well. The developers wanted to fix much of what was wrong with 4.01 and roll it out into 5, as well as provide new features that 4.01 never did, so they did the following (quoted from w3schools.com‘s developer idea list):

(Valleygirl Voice) Ugh, These Tags Are, Like, So 1999

By the way, say goodbye to these old relics–they do not exist in HTML5 at all. (Of these, I think I only ever used “font”, “center” and “frame”…lol, shows how often these were used, huh?)

<acronym>
<applet>
<basefont>
<big>
<center>
<dir>
<font>
<frame>
<frameset>
<noframes>
<strike>
<tt>

What Does All This Mean to Ground-Level Developers?

Basically, we won’t have to learn 10 languages just to make an eye-pleasing, interactive page anymore. Nor will we have to make sure everything is cross-browser compatible concerning plugins and scripts. So much more of HTML5 is based on making everything very understandable for the browser, without a whole bunch of extra code in various other languages.

With HTML5, a lot of the useless bulk of coding has been removed, tightening up and better specifying what remains. Switching your page from HTML 4.01 to 5, then, is akin to me doing Zumba for 10 months–it loses a little of the extra weight, and trims up in several places, finding muscles it didn’t know it had.

The most interesting parts of HTML5, for me, is what the developers mean by “better error-handling” and “visible development process.” Does this mean that one error on an HTML page no longer screws up everything else (like XHTML so famously does)? Does this mean that HTML5 is now an “open-source” project? There are many more bits left to be discovered and explored…and, for those of us who love web development, that’s 3/4 of the fun.

For Further Information

W3Schools.com’s HTML5 Section: Very informative (where I got some of the info for this article)
HTML5Demos: View live demos of some of the coolest features
HTML5 Rocks!: Up-to-date bloglike articles on HTML5
HTML5Doctor.com: Informative and well-sorted (but jargon-laden)…best for advanced coders (which sure ain’t me, LOL)
HTML5.org: Mainly an aggregator of more resources on HTML5

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Kitchen Creativity: 5-Minute Lazy Food Hacks

May 12th, 2012 by , in Saturday with the Spark
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Generally, I hate cooking. I hate standing on a constantly-sore ankle in the kitchen, with hot vapors from a pot engulfing my face while I stir and stir till the world ends. I hate waiting over an hour for food to be done in the oven, or having to do series after series of repetitive steps (or just lots of steps in general) to cook one meal.

Basically, I’m impatient and kinda lazy when it comes to cooking. If I wasn’t already really hungry, I wouldn’t have walked into the kitchen to cook in the first place, amirite? :P

I’m trying to get better at cooking, but it’s a slow process…so I decided to get creative, and tackle the problem of cooking cheaply with a little Robinesque innovation.

The following three food hacks came from two motivations: 1) I wanted to eat yummy food; 2) I wanted to be able to fix it without having to turn on the stove, because heat elements are scary. Thus, I give you the following food hacks. May they brighten your kitchen experience as they have mine!

5-Minute Soft Garlic Bread

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Spread each slice of barbecue bread with as little or as much butter as you wish. I tend to like a little bread with my butter. :P
  2. Sprinkle on garlic powder to taste. Try going easy on it at first–you can always add more when it’s done.
  3. Pop up to 4 slices in the microwave at a time on a paper towel, for about 30-40 seconds on default settings.
  4. For each diner, pour a small amount of pizza sauce in a little bowl, and microwave it for about 10 seconds.
  5. Serve, either by itself for a light meal or with a larger meal as a side. Pizza sauce makes an excellent dipping sauce for this soft bread (getting hungry just thinking about it, LOL).

5-Minute Chicken Tacos

Ingredients (all amounts will vary with number of people being served)

Instructions

  1. Lay out taco shells on microwavable plates, in groups of one to four per plate.
  2. Pull 8 deli slices of chicken out.
  3. Roll up the 8 slices into a tight roll, then use a knife to cut the roll into small sections. Think sushi-style.
  4. Layer 1-2 cut sections of chicken into each taco shell; you can roll up and cut more meat if you want more meat per taco.
  5. If you want cheese, sprinkle it on to taste.
  6. Pop each plateful of tacos into the microwave for 60 to 90 seconds on default settings.
  7. Once the tacos are done, add all the veggie toppings, hot sauces, salsa, etc., that your heart desires.
  8. Serve, and enjoy your nom. :D

5-Minute Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients

Basic Instructions

  1. Slice the cake into preferred portion sizes, and lay each one flat on a small plate.
  2. Spread jelly or jam all over one side of each slice (like you’re making a PB&J, but only with J).
  3. Spoon a dollop or two of whipped cream on top of each slice.
  4. Serve it before someone runs off with it. xD

For More Epic Results

  1. Instead of serving each slice individually after spooning whipped cream on top, stack the slices together in groups of 3 slices.
  2. Re-slice each stack into 3 or 4 fairly thick slices (so all the whipped cream, cake, and strawberry jelly/jam sticks together better).
  3. The stripey pieces that result should look kinda like a British ribbon sandwich at this point. If it doesn’t, that’s okay–it’ll still taste of awesome.)
  4. Serve (carefully), and listen for the oohs and aahs of amazement from your dining party.
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What is “Globalization?” Internet Superheroes, Living a Creative Life, and VisualDNA

May 11th, 2012 by , in Friday around the Web
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What Is Globalization?
How Princess Di’s tragic death shows how global our culture has become.

Internet Superheroes
Meet Google, Facebook, Reddit, and many others…in a different light than perhaps you’ve seen before. (Points for you if you figure out the comic superheroes they’re all based on!)

Living a Creative Life
If you’ve ever wondered how to live a more “creative” life…this might help you. Or you might just giggle at this and get inspired instead. :D

VisualDNA
A visual personality test–click on the image that draws you, and see what it means!

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Movie Clix: Fitting Tribute, or Just Marketing Savvy?

May 10th, 2012 by , in Thursday in the Zone
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Several HeroClix box sets and special promo figures have been made alongside comic-book movie releases, such as Incredible Hulk, Green Lantern, Captain America: the First Avenger, and now The Avengers. Now you can play a figure of Captain America as he appeared in the recent movie, costume, facial features and all; same for Thor, same for Iron Man, and on down the superheroic line.

Many of the people I play Clix with enjoy the movie Clix packs…but some see them as a waste of time (and plastic). I both like the Clix tie-ins to comic book movies and dislike them, and have several reasons for each:

Why Movie Clix are Great

Why Movie Clix Aren’t
  • Work well for kids who’ve just seen the movies and never read the comics
  • Function as a good intro to Clix for new players
  • Provide a way to play old favorite figures with updated looks/costumes
  • Are packed in small box sets/promo figures, which are less expensive than regular Clix boosters
  • Not worth the money for longtime players who already have similar/identical pieces in their collection
  • Annoying to purchase for adults who aren’t interested in miniatures, but whose kids are because of the movies
  • Are an almost too-obvious product tie-in–somehow doesn’t feel like a “legitimate” Clix product
  • Caters possibly too strongly to a non-comic book/non-miniature player crowd, which may cause difficulties between established miniatures players and “just” comic-book movie fans

What’s Your Take on Movie Clix?

What do you think? Are movie Clix just a marketing ploy for more money, or does it have the potential to truly draw in more players? Can you think of any other reasons why movie Clix are and aren’t great? Tell me in the comments!

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Jesus: Not Political Victor nor Problem Solver, but Savior

May 9th, 2012 by , in Wednesday in the Word
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1st Corinthians 1:22-24

22 Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

The apostle Paul preached about Jesus all over the known ancient world, and Corinth was no exception. Corinth was also no exception in that it had its share of false teachers and people who were being led astray by such teachings. With these two verses, Paul sets the record straight.

The Jews in the crowd wanted a Messiah, but they wanted one who would actually lead their nation politically. The Greeks (and presumably, many other folk) wanted a Messiah, too, but they wanted one who would fix all the world’s problems with His wisdom. Jesus did neither of these things–instead, He was crucified for the sins of man, to bring us back into a relationship with God. He was not the Messiah that some expected, and thus many were easily pulled into false doctrines.

Are We Falling Into the Same Theological Traps?

Today, two millennia later, many humans are still confused. Many still seek “signs” that Jesus is coming back, “signs” that God exists, etc.. And many still wait for God to solve their problems, believing that if they are only just Christian, then their lives will be perfect.

There is a significant problem with these two viewpoints. If we need “signs and wonders” to believe in Jesus, then we’re not ever going to see Him. And, even if we do witness Him working, we won’t have the capacity to believe in Him, just as the people Paul was preaching to had difficulty believing in Jesus (a convicted criminal) as Savior.

Jesus did not die to solve the world’s problems, nor did He come to unite a human political nation (or a political world, for that matter); He came, lived a sinless life, and died bearing all our sins, that we might each personally accept His sacrifice for us and be saved from that sin. We need to want the eternal power and endless wisdom of God (Christ) in our lives, rather than spectacular signs and human-sized wonders.

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To the Man I Saw on Broad River Bridge

May 8th, 2012 by , in Tuesday on the Soapbox
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This poem is based on an actual experience I had about a week ago.

You were just standing there,
leaning on one of the posts
I saw you just in passing
Your eyes were cast down

All I saw was the side of your face;
you looked a little pained
I don’t know if you were crying
I was going by too fast to see

I couldn’t slow down or stop for you
because of drivers behind me
But as I passed I wondered
As I passed, I worried

A small request to God was made
in the moments right afterward
as I drove away

I prayed for you not to jump
Prayed you’d be all right
Prayed you’d know it would get better soon
and wouldn’t take flight

I don’t know what you were there for
or if death was even a thought
But I’ve stood on a bridge in my mind
too many times to count
…and one more prayer can’t hurt

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How Social Networks Killed the Personal Blog

May 7th, 2012 by , in Monday in the HTMLab
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I remember when I first began web design, personal blogs were all the rage. Yes, yes, I know, imagine me sitting in a rocker with a blanket over my knees if you wish, but I was kickin’ around the Web in the early 2000s and saw it with my own screen.

Back then, blogs had a more longform, intimate style of writing. They were how you shared your life stories and thoughts with others, mimicking the diaries so many of us likely kept–except that these “diaries” were online, and viewable by many people. Not only that, you could be an anonymous writer if you wished.

But now, the era of the “personal” blog seems to have waned. Blogs are now more for site updates, and maybe a little project tracking–they are more about topics than about lives. My own is a rare multi-topic blog, but not one of those topics is my life (and you’re much better off reading something that isn’t about my life, I assure you :P ). Personal blogs just aren’t as important to us anymore.

Why? I believe the answer lies in two words: “social networks.”

How Social Networks = Easier Personal Blogging

Believe it or not, early blog websites, like Diaryland, Blogger, Livejournal, and so many others, were some of the first social network sites. They allowed bloggers to talk to each other in ways that were system-constructed, with comments on blog posts and the like. So the Internet foundations of functioning social networks were already laid when networks that focused on shorter-form writing (such as FriendFeed, Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter) came along.

But these days, each of us likely writes several short textual bursts about our life in one day. We don’t all have to be gifted writers to write about our lives anymore; we don’t have to catalog what we did all day in a single, long blog entry. We can simply write about the interesting stuff that happens to us, as it happens, and not have to work it into a grand thematic short story of our day.

Why I Largely Ditched Personal Blogging for Social Media

As a creative writer who inexplicably hated keeping diaries and writing personal blogs (because my life is just that boring), I gravitated to the social network. Why? Because the social network didn’t make me JUST blog about myself to be considered “active.” I could comment on other people’s life events, like their pictures, play a few games, share a few links–all on one website. Just like big-box stores like Walmart capitalize on having “all you need at one store,” social networks like Facebook capitalize on sharing “all of your life on one site.”

But I realize that with the ease and ubiquitous nature of social networks came the inevitable waning of more “personalized” blogs. I gradually quit writing on my own Livejournal about my life after a while of being on Facebook, with this simple reasoning: “why write about my day on a personal blog, when I’ve already written a status message or two about it on Facebook and shared it with friends?”

I can imagine that many other Internet users have thought the same way, about whatever social network they prefer to visit and post on. Social networking makes it easier to post about your life, and takes less time than a blog.

There’s a Big “But” Here

Not everyone has stopped doing personal blogs, though. In fact, the number of small blogs and free blog websites has only risen in response to social networks, even though less people visit or make personal blogs these days. This trend, linked to the sheer number of topic blogs being produced, gives me hope that people aren’t completely getting away from “real” writing and longer article-driven blogs in favor of quick tweets and likes.

Though much of the Internet’s attention has been drawn away from this longform, diary-style life narrative, there still seems to be a call for it among individual users. Perhaps the demise of the personal blog is inevitable and in process, as it appears…or perhaps a new generation of Internet users will gravitate back to it.

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