Betterness by Kawika Holbrook

TiVo-like

The The New York Times used the phrase TiVo-like three times describing how Cable and satellite TV services battle for eyeballs. I see similar articles all the time using "iPod-like." TiVo must be proud and worried, all at the same time, as competitors copy its features one by one. With a frofusion of acronyms such as DVR (digital video recorder), PVR (personal video recorder), and VOD (video on demand) services, reporters will continue to look for the easy explanations like TiVo-like.

The Blogonian

I have taken enough from the blogosphere, time to add something back. I’m launching a web publication called The Blogonian. From the Welcome message:

The Blogonian will be a weblog on weblogging. A professional journal on personal journalism. A place for people in the know to help those who aren’t. And vice versa. Because we all could use a little help now and then.

I don’t dare to presume enough knowledge to be the ultimate authority. However, I have struggled enough to publish my own weblogs to know what _I_ wanted and needed to help understanding this new publishing phenomenon. We’ll see how it goes.

On Tap

I've found bits and pieces of glossaries, primers, and resource links all over the blogosphere. In the next few days expect The Blogonian to bring you more -- in relatively plain English, no less.

Blogging for Business

Newly redesigned Inc.com finds Blogging for Business a “bona-fide trend.” Professional web-based journals with a personal touch are hot because they’re “cheap to launch and easy to maintain, thanks to powerful, easy-to-use tools. [They] provide a fast, informal way to share information—project updates, research or test results, product-release news, industry headlines—inside and outside your company.”

Welcome

This website actually began more than three years ago. In 1999 I discovered (quite by accident) the personal sites of Jason Kottke, Dean Allen, and Michael Sippy.

I wondered, “How’d these bastards do this?” How did they update their websites so … so effortlessly? I read, poked around, discovered something like software that could help you make a “web log,” or blog. I tried Blogger from Evan Williams, Manila from Dave Winer, and Grematter from Noah Grey.

I struggled. XML, CSS, CGI, PHP, FTP —what language were these people speaking? Somehow, though, I managed to maintain a blog called Fluxray. Amazingly enough, the site even made it into Jason Kottke’s “Not Recommended at All List.” Still, I struggled because the internet (which I shall never capitalize because it would be like capitalizing “air” or “electricity”) what I really wanted was a single site for weblog news (in relatively plain English), weblog reviews (compare features I couldn’t comprehend), weblog links (for finding inspiration or object lessons), and weblog analysis (to offer some perspective among the warring factions).

I survived. And now I want to give something back. Something that doesn’t just “add ether to the net,” as the tag line on my first weblog read. Something that speak to, for, and with anyone interested in what weblogs can offer them, their communities, and our society. That “something” is The Blogonian.

The Blogonian will be a weblog on weblogging. A professional journal on personal journalism. A place for people in the know to help those who aren’t. And vice versa. Because we all could use a little help now and then.

Enjoy.

Web Cliques Too Cool for School

According to Wired, "Cliques are a developing trend in online communities in which someone builds a site focused on a topic, say, anime, chocolate or Moulin Rouge. The owner then accepts applications from others with like-minded, well-designed sites who want to join the clique. The owner sets rules and conditions for membership and then provides links to all the approved member sites. On popular cliques, membership can number in the several hundreds. Once the clique is born, members communicate with each other via e-mail, chat, discussion boards and instant messaging. Thus, a community is born. ... A clique has several mandatory structural elements, which include About, Rules, Members and Codes sections. In general, a clique will clearly define its topic. Its rules section lays out the governing principles of the page, and its membership section lists links to many on-topic sites. In the codes section, small graphical or text-based buttons that link back to the original clique are presented for all member sites to post on their pages."

Fruit Crate Labels

Tonight, for no reason in particular, I've been looking at fruit crate packing labels from the first half of the last century. The Label Guys, Label Land, and Crate Labels Online are just a few of dozens of sites out there. Gotta love the web. Soon, I'll have to post other labels, such as Gay Johnny Texas Vegetables and Gay Cock Brand Fruits.

Mob-logs

It's pronounced "MO-blogs," as in mobile logging, but I like "MOB-logs" and "mob logging" better, especially after seeing the picture of Japanese schoolgirls taking pictures at the MTV music awards with their cellphones. From ABC News:

And some doubt moblogging will ever take off on a massive scale in the United States because they believe most Americans are still information consumers rather than producers. Denise Garcia, analyst with the Gartner G2 research group in Stamford, Conn., says there are already plenty of easy-to-use software tools that allow anyone to set up a Web site or standard blog. Yet not many are using them. According to Garcia's research, less than three-tenths of a percent of all U.S. Internet users are also bloggers. "People can self-publish now on the Web, but there simply is no incentive to do so," says Garcia. "People will still want to go to news sites where [the content] has been put through all the filters."

Veggie Fuels Feed Bottom Line

Environmental worries are the main selling points for alternative fuels like straight vegetable oil or biodiesel, but consumers and businesses are finding another compelling reason to drive green -- money. Take that, Saddam.

Another Zen Gardening Tool

sourcreamzengarden.com serves a clean, crisp content area under one of the most beautiful mastheads I've seen. Orange? Works here, as does the navbar's hover highlight and the sidebar's minimalist styling.