New Blog! (And a short history of my online blogging)

Well, I've done it again and created a new blog. I've used quite a few different blogging methods over the years of my time on the internet. Started with managing my own website and blogged with MoveableType way back in the day, then I started using LiveJournal at the same time. Tried TypePad and Blogger (before Google). Had a few others I don't remember in there. The problem with those is I only ever had a few readers who occasionally read what I wrote. It was more of an exercise in getting my thoughts and feelings out of my head and into some sort of textual form, without care if it was actually read or not. Eventually every blog I had fell into disuse, even when they were dead simple to update.

More recently, I started using Twitter and then I created a Tumblr. Both are simply amazing. And unlike with my past blogging, I'm finding it easier – even with limited internet access, which is a story for later – to update both relatively regularly. Both are even more simple to update. With Twitter, I can text from my phone, use the web, use Tweetie on my computer, or Twitterific on my iPod Touch. I follow a few people and even have a couple friends following me. It's fun and as long as I follow my own rules, it doesn't consume all my time (e.g. ignore all unread tweets that are older than 12 hours; only updating a few times a day when I want to share something).

Soon after getting my Twitter, I stumbled across Tumblr and was blown away. Someday I plan on writing a long post about the advantages Tumblr itself, but in short, I found it a very fun, easy and engaging way to post things I find interesting, and easily follow other people I find interesting. I'm finding myself using it everyday, and it too doesn't have to consume all my time. I can look at the recent posts of the people I'm following, quickly reblog some posts I really like or find very interesting, then queue up some of my own posts of my own findings across internet land. (Unfortunately at the time I write this, I've yet to get a single follower, so I don't know if anybody has been seeing my posts, but I hope for some soon.)

So then I got to thinking about starting a long form blog again, and hopefully be successful at updating it with some relative regularity. I was going to just use my Tumblr, but I decided I should save that for my Tumblings. I could have created a second Tumblr and linked the two, but I wanted something else so my long posts wouldn't interfere with the short Tumbls. I decided on a Blogger, as I'm using just about every other Google product. And the fun thing is my posts will be imported into my Tumblr automatically, but link to Blogger so they don't clutter things up.

All this is linked to my desire to have much more of an online presence. I'm not wanting to become an internet celebrity or anything like that, but I would like to be involved and connected more with some of the great online communities out there. Most of this stems from my huge obsession with YouTube which peaked last year. I really wanted to start vlogging and becoming involved, but various changes and a serious lack of internet connectivity kind of put a crimp in that plan, and my interest waned a little. However, lately with my escalating internet activity, I've wanted to start that again, and soon I hope to start posting videos as my life has settled down a bit.

Well, I think that's all I'll post for now. More posts will come soon.