Lazada Philippines

14.4.07

What's The Beef About Blogger Blogs?

Coming across remarks on blogs that say a Blogger blog is "amateurish and ugly" says a lot about the owner of those words.

No doubt, every blogger has the right to do what he/she thinks fit for his/her own blogging space. But to deride another party with caustic, dismissive statement without weighing the argument in a rational manner is certainly unwarranted.

Looking at the bigger picture in blogging, what impression would a newbie get when he/she reads this kind of crap? If not for free blogs, many would not be able to afford to blog at all. The blogosphere would be much poorer for it.

Thanks to Blogger, Wordpress and other blogging platforms for providing and encouraging free blogging. For some of us, we'll upgrade when we feel it's time to have a hosted blog. Not because some one tells you so.

If you go by looks alone, then there's no substance in the blog. We're talking about readable blogs. About editorial content that a visiting blogger would want to read.

Does it matter whether it's a Blogger blog, hosted or free? If the content is worth reading, then it's worth visiting. That's your prerogative.

What kind of criteria is it to conclude that a three-column blog is better in every way than a two-column one? Each has its own function, needs and virtue.

Given the view that blogs should have good if not unique content and be well-designed with the right use of typography and colors, there are many of them out there in blogosphere.

Well-designed blogs can be found on different platforms - Wordpress, Typepad, Blogger, etc. - you name it. And some have great content to boot.

In the same breath, there are just as many bad-looking blogs and crappy content on all the platforms.

So what's the beef about one blogging platform being better than the other one?

10 comments:

Carol King said...

Hi Mark
I agree 100%. There is far too much 'mine is better than yours' going on right now. Don't they know that (size does'nt matter.)
Live and let live, that is what blogging is supposed to be about.

Dale Ng said...

Hooray! Well said. There is nothing wrong with having a Blogger blog or other free blogs. In fact, it's them that encourage blogging and a healthy blogosphere.

Paris David said...

Amen to that, Markk!

Some folks are snooty and think that all Blogger blogs are spam or that non-techie people write them.

Little to they know that several blogspot blogs are in Technorati's Top 100, at least one who has still left her blog address with blogspot in it.

I love positive people who encourage. You're right, all the other comments speak more about the commentator than the blogger.

Be blessed,
Paula

Anonymous said...

I also agree with your arguments. Free blogging is a huge part of the whole blogging movement and there are plenty of good quality Blogger and Wordpress.com blogs.

It is unfortunate that snobbery is as common online as off, but that's life!

It is true that Blogger has been woefully abused by a large number of people to build Made For Adsense c**p and similar, which Google certainly need to do a better job of weeding out. Unfortunately, most things that are offered for free will attract certain kinds of people. However, to tar bloggers with the same brush is patently ridiculous and illustrates the ignorance of the proponents of that message all too well.

Ignore them - and happy blogging, wherever you do it from :-)

Anonymous said...

Hey Markk!

At first I thought that this was in response to what I wrote yesterday, until I saw the date. ;) I'm glad it isn't because I wasn't and wouldn't criticize blogger blogs. I was simply stating that WordPress offered some features that you can't get in other places.

You have a fantastic blog and I'm glad that I've been introduced to it!

steven wilson said...

Hi Mark
I have came across a few people over time that degrade blogger blogs for one reason or another.Content is content no matter what blogging platform one chooses to use.If one looks around the net they will see that some of the biggest gurus on the net use blogger blogs.There is alot one can do with a free blogger blog if one chooses to research it.
my 2 cents
Steven

M said...

Hi Mark -

I actually just did a post saying that I was switching from Blogger because I am fed up with publishing issues. You mention that if it wasn't for free blogs, things would be quite different in the blogosphere and I agree. Overall I think Blogger has a great free platform. Funny thing is that the issues I (and MANY others) am experiencing is because I use my own host and publish via FTP. It has become a daily battle over the last few months to get posts to publish - taking half a day on average. If I was still using Blogger only for my publishing, there would not be an issue.

-Mat

MK said...

> Maurice: Thanks for your input. Glad to know you think along the same line.

> Court: Yes, I wrote this post long before I got to know about you. I started with Blogger and now I also blog on two WordPress blogs. There are things I like about Blogger and, of course, I found WordPress to have some neat stuff, too. Either way, it makes no difference to me. Content is king.

> Steven Wilson: I accept your 2 cents, LOL. You're right all the way. Content is content.

> Mathew Butka: Without free blogs the blogosphere would be much poorer for it.

Anonymous said...

I agree.
This sounds like blog snobbery to me. It would never have occured to me to avoid reading these sites. Everyone has to start somewhere, and a lot of people aren't going to pay for their space if they see no need to or can't afford it.

Manick said...

Hi,

I wanted to write about this for quite some time and I am really happy to see your post. I have started off with Blogger and I love it. Even though I can afford to move to my own domain now, I feel like sticking to Blogger.

Unique content, interesting style, the amount of traffic and number of subscribers should determine the quality of a blog. Not the platform.

Great post. We support you. Thanks.


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