It appears that one of the cults within the church of technology is known as the early adopters. They’re like the scouts in the Wild West. “OK, pull the wagons around. We’re making camp here tonight.”  And another portion of untouched wilderness gets slashdotted.  But those in the lead are also those who find game first, get to eat first, survive.  They also get status and respect.  They probably got laid a lot.  OK, there are some differences between early adopters and scouts.

There’s another, practical reason to be an early adopter.  If you’ve put any effort into establishing your identity online, one sure way to “reserve” it is to register for any site that sounds even halfway interesting with your preferred username.  By joining a number of alpha sites and those new to the web, you sort of become an early adopter by default.  Of course, if you want to become an influential early adopter,  you’ll have to stick around the site after you’ve joined and provide feedback, commentary, invite others.  Those people seem to form an A-List; often it’s the same people at several sites.

I confess, I’m an early name reserver on a few sites.  In a textual environment, my name and pen name are a commodity, one that I want to be constant across the sites I enjoy visiting.

You know what it is?  It’s a flashback of my days with AOL.  One name, many sites.

Oh dear, now I feel so unclean.

There’s a lot of talk today on FriendFeed about the quality of blog posts. Some people contend there’s too little original content being posted. They say most blogs are nothing more than a rehash of someone else’s post with a link or credit, or a “me, too” entry.

I don’t dispute there are a number of bloggers, some even on the A-list, who provide links with hardly any commentary, or repost someone else’s blog entry with a sentence or two of agreement or disagreement. I’ll admit I’ve posted my share of those. I do it when I come across a well-written entry on a blog I suspect my readers won’t find themselves. I never hesitate to point my friends in the direction of a worthy blogger or website. It’s often the case that they’ve written so well that I would only detract from the message if I were to follow up with a long exposition of my own.

When I do have an original point to make, I wonder if I should make a long post to expound on every thought I have on the topic or if I should instead post a few key points and wait for the comments to draw the conversation out. I’m seldom consistent with my choice. It tends to depend on how well formed my thoughts are.

The very first writing I did with any regularity was poetry. I enjoy being brief and concise with the language. Writing poetry teaches a writer to say as much as possible in as few words as possible. It encourages the author to create images rather than simply construct sentences. Later I wrote screenplays. Between the stage directions and dialogue, a screenwriter churns out hundreds of words. Every little detail must be noted and often explained. No doubt these early experiences are evident in my blog writing. When my entries are short, I try to be poetic. When I can write at length, I have time to get more into the details.

So I don’t necessarily agree that the issue with content is whether or not it’s original. Even a “me, too” post tells me what the blogger is thinking, that he or she agrees with the original content they are re-posting. There’s also the linking of content that re-posting facilitates so that those who never would have seen the original post on its original site can be exposed to it. That’s not to say I can enjoy a blog that consists of nothing but links. There has to be some content at some point.

I always try to appreciate the content on its own merits. Does it make me think, does it challenge my preconceptions, does it encourage me in a positive way? If it does, I’m not going to worry if it was original with this particular blogger. Most likely I’ll follow a link to read the post on its original site, to see if I like the primary poster’s other entries. But I’ll still be grateful to the first blogger for pointing the way.

Poking a little fun at some of my favorite tech bloggers. Click on the image to view.

I’ve been reading a lot of comments from internet pundits lately predicting that 2007 will be the year that blogging will reach its zenith in popularity.

The blogging phenomenon is set to peak in 2007, according to technology predictions by analysts Gartner.
The analysts said that during the middle of next year the number of blogs will level out at about 100 million.
The firm has said that 200 million people have already stopped writing their blogs.

BBC News

Since I’m notoriously oblivious to most trends, I’m choosing to ignore this one as well. While I might agree that the number of quality personal blogs may level off or even decrease in the near future, I think we’re going to see an increase in the number of companies that embrace the blogging ethic to create a relationship with their customers and the public at large.

To help empower bloggers, I’m creating a forum for both personal and professional bloggers that will offer resources and support. Check it out and join up. Share your knowledge and pick up some hints, learn more about customizing your site and how to provide quality content. Any type of blogger using any platform/software is welcome. Bloggers need community, too.

Bloggers-exchange.com forum. Let me know what you think.