do you think the general public know what a blog is

[briggidere]

This is a question flying round our office in the UK today.

Do the general public that use the web know what a blog is?

We have mixed opinions here and would like to get some more opinions.

There has been quite a lot of news coverage about blogs, so this is what makes some of us think that most of the general public would be aware of what they are.

please give your thoughts

Briggidere

[TimmyMagic]

Well about a year ago I put a section on my new site titled 'blogs'. This was intended to be a section where people would have their own blog on the subject of my site (a popular hobby). I eventually removed this section through lack of interest.

However, a friend of mine who saw the site didn't know what a blog was and actually thought it meant 'biogs' as in biographies of people in this subject.

It made me realise that not everyone knows what a blog is.

Tim

[physics]

Most people don't really know what a blog is. However they do hear about them when news anchors read them on the 24 hour news networks. Because of this I think that most people who recognize the word but don't run a blog think of a blog is some sort of web news thingie.
Also keep in mind that supposedly some people use My Yahoo! for example to subscribe to feeds but might not really understand that they're using an RSS reader to pull a blog's xml feed ;)

[rfontaine]

Nope they don't. The other day I played scrabble with 2 educated doctors age 39 and 40. I put down the word "blog" and they challenged me. Being new at scrabble, I told them it is a very common word. Thing is, "blog" is not in the dictionary and according to the docs it has to be to be a valid word - even though I showed them google results of millions for the word. I lost my first game of scrabble because of that.

So, alas, I must say that most people in the real world haven't a clue about blogs.

[AlexMiles]

Just asked my roommate what a blog is. Shes in her 50's, not especially web-savvy, but can use email.

She said "Its a diary, isn't it?"

Shes looking a bit puzzled that I didn't know and had to ask her :)

[ronin]

There has been quite a lot of news coverage about blogs, so this is what makes some of us think that most of the general public would be aware of what they are.

No, not a chance. Most of my friends work in a diverse array of non-technical sectors including local and regional government, the civil service, academia, research, translation, retail, landscape gardening, community non-profit and import/export.

I can only think of one of them who would be unable to give me a clear explanation of what a blog is. And that's because she writes one.

[marketingweb]

I've been working in web desing business for a few months now. I had never known what the word meant before I got my job.

I've just started my own blog and tried telling some friends about it. I got surspised questions, like: What do you mean you're starting a blog? Are you getting that serious with your job that you get to publish news?/ or what's that? And most of my friends are young - around my age, so out of all people they should be savvy...

It doesn't seem to me like the general public knows what the word means.

[badass101]

A friend of mine asked me for a good description of a blog the other day and I said something like 'They are a weblog. A site where the author usually lists comments/opinions that they are feeling at that time.'
I then told her that 'People may blog about their day, something interesting they discovered at work that others may want to know, their opinions, etc' and her reply was:
'Ah, don't they have anything else better to do!'

Also, one of our customers asked to know what 'blogging' was - he's quite a posh type and the way he said it was indicitive that he thought it might be something like 'dogging'. Made us laugh!

[debvh]

Keeping in mind that the plural of "anecdote" is not "data" - here is my experience.

Most of the people I know are well-educated professionals in their 40's, and I can't remember any of them ever mentioning a blog in a conversation about current events, for what that's worth. Whereas they will mention things they heard on the radio or on TV.

My kids (ages 10 and 12) haven't asked to start their own blogs yet, for what THAT'S worth.

I know what a blog is, but I don't know how people find ones that they are interested in reading, other than by running across links to them in news stories or discussion boards, etc. Am I going to get kicked off the board due to web-cluelessness now?

[oddsod]

I've been thinking of starting a blog but changed my mind after two well known IT journalists in the UK - and a programmer friend - needed me to explain what a blog was.

>> general public?
Let's get the geeks on board first. :)

[Frequent]

Is it really important that anyone knows what a blog is? Most people who use the internet have likely visited dozens of blogs and just don't realise it. A blog is basically just a very simple CMS. It creates web site pages for a publisher via a browser interface that are easily updated and added, usually (but not necessarily) organized by entry date. A blog doesn't have to scream "I'm a blog".

I look at them more like a really simple free hosting account with a built in site creator that is applicable to nearly any subject.

Freq---

[moltar]

A "blog" is just another buzzword.

It's short for "a website with a bunch of useless, recycled stuff that nobody wants to read anyways."

I don't think general public cares what the blog is. For them it's just another website. The fact that you can leave comments, doesn't make it different.

I had a hard time explaining this to my fater. He is computer savvy. He can install RAM and install Windows. He can fix networks, but it was hard to grasp the term "blog". He kept asking "so it's just a website then?" :)

The term blog is mainly used to the same demographic that uses iPods :)

[moltar]

Also have a look at the article on "The Best Page In The Universe."

[physics]

I know what a blog is, but I don't know how people find ones that they are interested in reading, other than by running across links to them in news stories or discussion boards, etc.

You're not alone there, there's no clear #1 blog search engine (though there are several that are trying to be ;) ). I think most hear about new blogs to read through references that friends or other sites make and also by looking at the top X blog lists.

In defense of blogs it should be noted that not all (and none that I read) are just people blabbering about their day. Corporate blogs like Google and Yahoo!'s as well as blogs with useful reviews and commentary like John Batelle's blog are certainly much more 'useful'.

[Essex_boy]

The term blog is mainly used to the same demographic that uses iPods :) - Goatee bearded, trendy glasses wear fools from Islington! All with a terminal case of head up ar*e diease.

[moltar]

In defense of blogs it should be noted that not all (and none that I read) are just people blabbering about their day. Corporate blogs like Google and Yahoo!'s as well as blogs with useful reviews and commentary like John Batelle's blog are certainly much more 'useful'.

In that case, I don't consider it a "blog". It's just another good website. Blog (weblog) by definition is a journal of the owner. And that is usually about a cat, dog, children's poop, etc... :)

I know, I know, I am getting into semantics, but I mean, really, blog is just buzz... I hope it goes away. I owned a similar fashion site (news in a reverse chronological order) way before the term blog even was invented :)

What really separates the blog from other websites? Lets have this discussion...

Is it the ability to leave comments? Then some sites disable comments. Are they not considered a "blog" anymore? What about if you disable comments only on certain posts? Is that post not a part of blog anymore?

Ok, if not comments, then it must be RSS feeds. But then there are gazillion of other sites that use RSS and they have nothing to do with blogs at all.

Maybe it's a type of software (MT or WP)? But I have sites running on WP, but I just use it as a CMS... No comments, no RSS...

So what does make a blog?

Here is what one of the SEs has to say about blog:

Blog is short for weblog. A weblog is a journal (or newsletter) that is frequently updated and intended for general public consumption. Blogs generally represent the personality of the author or the Web site.

A blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. The activity of updating a blog is "blogging" and someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Blogs are typically updated daily using software that allows people with little or no technical background to update and maintain the blog.

A blog is information that is instantly published to a Web site. Blog scripting allows someone to automatically post information to a Web site. The information first goes to a blogger Web site. Then the information is automatically inserted into a template tailored for your Web site.

A short form for weblog, a frequent and chronological publication of comments and thoughts on the web. They usually include philosophical reflections, opinions on the Internet and social or political issues.

[ronin]

Goatee bearded, trendy glasses wearing fools from Islington!

Errmm... I had a quick glance out my window and they all seem to have shaved off their goatees >;->

I agree though, they probably do have iPods in their pockets and probably do know what blogs are.

[moltar]

Not only they have iPods, they also read er.. listen to blogs in podcast format which is delivered to them via RSS feed through one of the numerous online RSS agregaros which in turn is delivered via RSS to their computer (probably a Mac) :)

[marketingweb]

Ok, the discussion here is surely about the English-speaking countries. What about the non-English-speaking countries? The word blog seems to be international, but how many people know what it is in Denmark or France or Eastern and Central Europe where the majority still have computers and the Internet... How many people use it there? I have a gut feelign that not too many. Am I wrong?

[physics]

To me a blog:

1) Has an RSS feed ... this is essential to qualify as a blog. And no it doesn't mean that everything that has an RSS feed is a blog.
2) It's easy for the blog owner to post new material. This means that many (even corporate) blogs are updated frequently whereas other pages on their site might not be.
3) May or may not allow comments. The more 'corporate' a blog is the less likely that comments are allowed ;)
4) May or may not do other bloggy stuff like trackbacks and pings.

It doesn't matter to me whether it's about my friend's cat or about Yahoo!'s newest feature.

[zulu_dude]

I'd say, at it's simplest level a blog is simply an online diary. Doesn't matter at all what cms is used to run it or what features are enabled/disabled. It could be used on a personal level or on a corporate level.

This is what wiki has to say about a journal/diary:

A journal (through French from late Latin diurnalis, daily) is a daily record of events or business. A private journal is usually an elaborated diary.

Sadly enough, the popularity of personal blogs is an indicator of the times... it's far easier for me to take 10 minutes out of my day and update my blog than it is to phone/email/text all my mates and family to let them know what I've been up to.

Granted, I wouldn't ordinarily update them every day, but they probably don't read my blog every day either. It's like having a cup of coffee and a conversation with all my mates every day. Except without the coffee. And it's a monologue. Unless comments are enabled, in which case it becomes some sort of dialogue. Or something.