Andy Culbertson: Updated the contents.

2014-06-01T04:38:35Z

Updated the contents.

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:38, 1 June 2014
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	~~Version 1.1, 5-1-05~~

	~~Welcome to my web journal and site updates page. And now, a history lesson.~~

	Many eons ago I ran across an online diary on somebody’s Geocities site. I didn’t think much of it and didn’t even bookmark it (which is strange for me), but I filed it away in my memory and moved on. A couple of years later a random person read my website and recommended Xanga to me. I registered and then completely forgot about it for a long time.		Many eons ago I ran across an online diary on somebody’s Geocities site. I didn’t think much of it and didn’t even bookmark it (which is strange for me), but I filed it away in my memory and moved on. A couple of years later a random person read my website and recommended Xanga to me. I registered and then completely forgot about it for a long time.

	I didn’t actually pay attention to things like online diaries and weblogs until a few days after September 11th, when I Googled my way into a message board for online diarists. In one thread they had been discussing the attacks while they were happening. The transparency and emotional energy of their posts gripped me. But still I moved on. A few months later I was looking up ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' books on Google and wandered into an entry from a diary called [http://urbanality.diaryland.com/ urbanality]. This time it stuck. The entry was so inviting that I had to read the whole thing. I read all the archives, and I discovered once again something I often forget, that people can be utterly fascinating–as individuals, not just as abstractions.		I didn’t actually pay attention to things like online diaries and weblogs until a few days after September 11th, when I Googled my way into a message board for online diarists. In one thread they had been discussing the attacks while they were happening. The transparency and emotional energy of their posts gripped me. But still I moved on. A few months later I was looking up ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' books on Google and wandered into an entry from a diary called [http://web.archive.org/web/20040828024837/http://urbanality.diaryland.com/ urbanality]. This time it stuck. The entry was so inviting that I had to read the whole thing. I read all the archives, and I discovered once again something I often forget, that people can be utterly fascinating–as individuals, not just as abstractions.

	Online diarying looked so fun that I had to try it myself. So I signed up with [http://www.diaryland.com/ Diaryland], urbanality’s host, and typed away. I called it ''Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper'' because I had just read the ''Prydain Chronicles'' by Lloyd Alexander.		Online diarying looked so fun that I had to try it myself. So I signed up with [http://www.diaryland.com/ Diaryland], urbanality’s host, and typed away. I called it ''Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper'' because I had just read the ''Prydain Chronicles'' by Lloyd Alexander.

	Then my friend at work [http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=thisismyfathersworld ~~April~~] ~~started a weblog~~ at Xanga. This brought my attention to the large number of Wheaton students who had Xanga blogs. An online community of which I could be a part! So I revived my neglected Xanga account.		Then my friend at work April started a [http://web.archive.org/web/20060831002854/http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=thisismyfathersworld weblog] at Xanga. This brought my attention to the large number of Wheaton students who had Xanga blogs. An online community of which I could be a part! So I revived my neglected [http://web.archive.org/web/20050530103126/http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=Skygazer Xanga account]. I blogged at Xanga until about the time I set up my new site here in March 2005.

	~~I like the blog format better than the diary format because the entries in~~ a ~~blog~~ are ~~more accessible~~, ~~but I don’t~~ like ~~the way most people keep their archives. Blogs are typically arranged in reverse chronological order so that the most recent entry is at the top. This makes sense if you’re a visitor checking~~ for the ~~latest happenings. It does not make sense if you’re a visitor reading through the whole series~~ of ~~them from~~ the ~~beginning. You have to read backwards. Therefore~~, ~~''my'' archives will be arranged in chronological order! You may feel perfectly free to start at~~ the ~~top~~ of the ~~page~~ like ~~a normal reader of English~~.		In recent years blogging has become a really big deal alongside other kinds of social media. While some bloggers are still online diarists, many bloggers are like syndicated columnists for newspapers, delivering informed opinions on the relevant events of the day, which sometimes consist of the posts of other bloggers. This interaction turns the various blogging communities into something like distributed forums with short threads but long posts, unless you count the comments.

	As I ~~stated at the beginning of~~ this ~~intro~~, ~~this blog is a combination web journal and site updates page~~. ~~That keeps~~ things ~~simple~~, and ~~simplicity is~~ something ~~this site can always use~~ more of! I ~~may keep~~ my other ~~blogs going for now~~, and if ~~so, I’ll keep everything unified by posting links to those entries~~ in ~~the ''Thinkulum'' blog~~.		I like this new ecosystem, but it's not something I can participate in very well. I react to things too slowly, writing takes me too long, and my ideas aren't formed or informed enough to give me something worthwhile to say about whatever's happening at the moment. I'm more of a topical thinker, and I use writing to work out my ideas, much like other people use talking. Since exploring the world of software engineering I've also learned the value of iterative development, releasing products early and often, even if they're in rough form.

	~~Also, you should notice in~~ my ~~blog’s navigation links that~~ I have a ~~page for links~~ to ~~other people’s sites~~. ~~There you will~~ find ~~some terrific people I know online~~ and ~~off who~~ have ~~websites~~. ~~When you want~~ to ~~read about somebody’s life but get tired of mine, you can visit ''them''~~. :)		So I've added a wiki to my site so I can make use of these considerations. I don't have to think much about the timeliness of my writings because a wiki tends to be oriented around topics rather than dates. Wikis also tend to encourage the growth of an article from a seed and, if they know where to find the updates feed, let the readers watch the growth. Blogs encourage the writer to plant fully fruited trees, and if they feel compelled to improve on earlier trees, they have to graft the branches on messily and hope the readers go back and notice. Wikis also tend to offer a few more pathways between trees via tools like "[[Special:WhatLinksHere/Blog_Introduction\|What links here]]."

	~~Enjoy!~~		Some people have interesting lives full of family members who say funny things or travels to unusual places. My life is pretty pedestrian. And since my ideas are what I really care about and my everyday experiences aren't, you'll probably find me posting much more to my wiki than my blog, which for now will mostly contain updates about what I've been posting to the wiki.

	[[Category:Site]]		[[Category:Site]]

Andy Culbertson: Added the Site category.

2014-05-07T04:24:07Z

Added the Site category.

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:24, 7 May 2014
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	Enjoy!		Enjoy!

			[[Category:Site]]

Andy Culbertson: 1 revision: Import of WordPress content

2014-05-07T03:57:50Z

1 revision: Import of WordPress content

← Older revision	Revision as of 03:57, 7 May 2014
(No difference)

Andy Culbertson: Imported from WordPress.

2005-05-01T00:00:00Z

Imported from WordPress.

New page

Version 1.1, 5-1-05

Welcome to my web journal and site updates page. And now, a history lesson.

Many eons ago I ran across an online diary on somebody’s Geocities site. I didn’t think much of it and didn’t even bookmark it (which is strange for me), but I filed it away in my memory and moved on. A couple of years later a random person read my website and recommended Xanga to me. I registered and then completely forgot about it for a long time.

I didn’t actually pay attention to things like online diaries and weblogs until a few days after September 11th, when I Googled my way into a message board for online diarists. In one thread they had been discussing the attacks while they were happening. The transparency and emotional energy of their posts gripped me. But still I moved on. A few months later I was looking up ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' books on Google and wandered into an entry from a diary called [http://urbanality.diaryland.com/ urbanality]. This time it stuck. The entry was so inviting that I had to read the whole thing. I read all the archives, and I discovered once again something I often forget, that people can be utterly fascinating–as individuals, not just as abstractions.

Online diarying looked so fun that I had to try it myself. So I signed up with [http://www.diaryland.com/ Diaryland], urbanality’s host, and typed away. I called it ''Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper'' because I had just read the ''Prydain Chronicles'' by Lloyd Alexander.

Then my friend at work [http://www.xanga.com/home.aspx?user=thisismyfathersworld April] started a weblog at Xanga. This brought my attention to the large number of Wheaton students who had Xanga blogs. An online community of which I could be a part! So I revived my neglected Xanga account.

I like the blog format better than the diary format because the entries in a blog are more accessible, but I don’t like the way most people keep their archives. Blogs are typically arranged in reverse chronological order so that the most recent entry is at the top. This makes sense if you’re a visitor checking for the latest happenings. It does not make sense if you’re a visitor reading through the whole series of them from the beginning. You have to read backwards. Therefore, ''my'' archives will be arranged in chronological order! You may feel perfectly free to start at the top of the page like a normal reader of English.

As I stated at the beginning of this intro, this blog is a combination web journal and site updates page. That keeps things simple, and simplicity is something this site can always use more of! I may keep my other blogs going for now, and if so, I’ll keep everything unified by posting links to those entries in the ''Thinkulum'' blog.

Also, you should notice in my blog’s navigation links that I have a page for links to other people’s sites. There you will find some terrific people I know online and off who have websites. When you want to read about somebody’s life but get tired of mine, you can visit ''them''. :)

Enjoy!

Blog Introduction - Revision history

Andy Culbertson: Updated the contents.

Andy Culbertson: Added the Site category.

Andy Culbertson: 1 revision: Import of WordPress content

Andy Culbertson: Imported from WordPress.