Rebecca Blood Response

It is quite interesting to see how the world of blogging has transformed since first coming on the scene in the late 1990's. As Blood mentions, "weblogs" were few and far between as of 1998, when there were "just a handful" of sites containing these blogs. A list was soon compiled in order to determine where these websites could be found. In early 1999, the list was published on the website Camworld, consisting of all the blog-type websites in existence. At this time there were merely 23 sites in total. As the world of blogging became more popular these sites did as well, resulting in a substantial increase in order to cater to hopeful bloggers.

Weblogs began taking on a whole new meaning to those interested in the online community. It offered a location where people could express new ideas, as well as reflect on information given to us in everyday life. These blogs also provided readers with a place where new perspectives could be explored, beyond what the regular media was willing to present. Blood also makes an interesting point in saying that these blogs offer "a valuable filtering function for their readers". This makes a great deal of sense because if someone tends to agree with a certain blogger's viewpoint, then they will be able to look to that author's website for a substantial amount of information. Instead of taking the time to look up similar topics, they may find that the thoughts and sources provided by that blogger quite satisfactory in their quest for knowledge.

Not only can weblogs provide beneficial information to an interested reader, it can also provide the author with a place to look within and do some soul searching. Blood claims she thought she had a grasp on her interests, but found that after blogging and "linking stories for a few months I could see that I was much more interested in science, archaeology, and issues of injustice than I had realized". Not only can a blog be a place for an author to find more about the world around them, they can also use this vice as a way to learn about themselves. In order to understand what the heart is truly feeling, it is often beneficial to put experiences in writing so they thoroughly be deciphered.