A Passion for Running

Welcome to the home of Mark aka The Running Blogfather – a 40 year-old dad, husband and marathon runner who's beaten injury and is on the comeback trail!

blasted bloglines!

passion for running category: running on Monday, March 7 2005

First of all, let me say I think bloglines is a really wonderful service. Any service that helps me keep in touch and peruse over 150 blogs at a time without having to navigate to each individual blog URL is a-ok by me. However…

Is it just me or is bloglines transforming the blogosphere into a 57 channels and nothin’s on kinda thing?

Don’t get me wrong, I know you all have something to say. Really good stuff to say, in fact. But what I am finding is I’m starting to use Bloglines like a remote control. I click on blogline link after blogline link doing more skimming than in depth reading than I care to admit. I find it to be much like having a TV remote control with lots of channels at your fingertips.

Know what I mean?

There are just so many blogs to visit so you end up furiously trying to see as many as you can see. In doing so, you don’t stop and linger like you would if you actually visited the bloggers page. Bloglines also affects the number of comments I leave because comment links usually don’t show up on bloglines. So, what I end up telling myself is that I’ll read blogs on Bloglines and then go back later and comment. Well guess what? That often does not happen because I run out of time or fall asleep at the wheel. Grrr…

Here’s the last thought I have on this: You know how when you go on vacation and then return, your home looks somehow new and foreign? Well, that is what happens to me when I use bloglines. If I use bloglines for a few days without visiting a person’s actual blog, there is a bit of a surprise like “oh yeah, THIS is Dianna’s place”. And God forbid if someone changes the look of their blog. Then, I am left feeling out of sorts and like I somehow missed everything. How DARE you move the furniture around while I’m away!

Have you ever thought how homogeneous we all look on bloglines? Is that a good thing, a bad thing or just a thing? I mean, we each have our place on the net so we can have a special place on the net right?

So, is laziness and my short attention span to blame or are you nodding your head to any of this?




11 Comments

2501

Comment by jeff

Monday March 07, 2005 @

i was thinking something along these lines today. with a wacky weekend and not internet at home, i logged back on to 80+ new entries to read. wow…ended up scanning more than reading, which bummed me out. i realize that i have to cut my losses if i miss a couple days and instead just pick up with what is current. also, i’m finding that i have to keep the number of blogs i read at a reasonable level, or there’s no way i’d keep up. unless you’re willing to pay me to comment =)

2503

Comment by mark

Monday March 07, 2005 @

uh-oh. i think i am hooped.

2504

Comment by Pamalamadingdong

Monday March 07, 2005 @

you’re a nut

2505

Comment by Dawn (aka Pink Lady)

Monday March 07, 2005 @

Dang it I failed the code thingy. Now I can’t remember what I said…

Oh yeah. Bloglines takes too long to load when you select. So while its loading I bring up the one I want to comment on and then select another one to load while I make my comments. I also don’t read all the ones setup in my list. I read my favs and the rest when I have nothing better to do.

2506

Comment by Jon in Michigan

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

I was thinking the same thing the other day. I read all the blogs in my list, but if I don’t open the page, I wonder if people know I read it. I try to comment when I can. I think its ok to just read not comment though. Blogs should not be a burden and a social obligation, and I would hate it if people were reading and commenting because they felt they had to do it.

And tell Aaron not to talk about Viagra or male enhancement or porn because you’ll get 1000 hits for those just like potato curler.

2507

Comment by mark

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

Well, I certainly do not feel “obligated” to read or comment on people’s blogs. Most of the “pressure” I feel is in my own desire to keep up with people. It is just sheer interest!

I’ll pass the message about viagra etc to Aaron. I’m sure he will appreciate your advice!

2511

Comment by Chris Brogan...

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

I find that Bloglines cuts down on my likelihood to comment, as there’s an extra step or two between popping someone’s blog into a new window and sending out the comment. For whatever reason, I find that slows down my speed to reply.

The way Bloglines keeps me from reading indepth surrounds those people who post a few times a day.

The plus to Bloglines is that I’ve cut back dramatically on my “obsessive compulsive” checking for updates. There are, or there aren’t, and I don’t have to surf as much to check.

2512

Comment by Rebecca

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

I was certainly nodding in agreement as I read this post. I was starting to feel a bit guilty about my ‘skim and run’ tactics. God forbid a blog doesn’t allow me to read the “complete entry” on bloglines without having to go to the actual site. I think I’m starting to overcommit myself and subscribe to blogs I don’t even actually read, I just like the idea of reading them! Wow. I need help.

2513

Comment by mark

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

Thanks you guys. I guess we could start a support group? Wait…we already have one! :)

2518

Comment by air-run

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

Thanks for the advice Jon. You are right. Leaving comments with words like viagra, male enhancement, or porn would not be good!!!It is a good thing we have these blogs to learn from each other!!

2519

Comment by jank

Tuesday March 08, 2005 @

I find that I comment much more selectively when using bloglines. I won’t throw down a post just to prove I’d been somewhere, but only if I feel I’ve got something to add, or if someone had a great/terrible day and need or deserve recognition.

(It’s a RUNNING blog family, I figured I’d use a run-on sentence…)

(Ask me how long I’ve been wanting to use that joke…)

(Actually not that long. But I should have been).

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
A blue box by your comment means you do not have an avatar from www.gravatar.com!

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.