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Is blogging obsolete? I was mocked recently for still doing this, but I’m not a luddite.
My first computer was a Commodore 64 and I’ve kept abreast of technology ever since. Now computers like my Asus ROG Zephyrus have so much power that upgrades can be less frequent but have I missed the boat elsewhere? Is blogging a platform capsized by the SS YouTube ?.
Prior to blogging the travel I did is lost. I spent 12 years shooting video and despite becoming proficient at editing never revisited any of it. From that I know photography works better for recording travel ‘how I want to remember it’ than video.
However that doesn’t answer the question, so I put it to a couple of younger people doing amazing things on new platforms as well as traditional ones – but this is a BlogX2 post so first a small detour.
How I came to ride motorcycles
When I was young home computers were rare. Computer clubs met in school halls once a month. I met someone who helped me learn my first computer, a Commodore 64 and we became lifelong friends whom I have often written about riding with in the Philippines.
The Amiga 500 arrived in the late 80’s and dazzled me with it’s 4096 colours and 4 channel sound. For reference IBM’s and Apple’s were still monochrome then – this was like stepping from a old Nokia to iPhone 4 in one go. It was the exciting albeit brief period of 16 bit home computing.
Australia’s distance from the rest of the world was very apparent then. Overseas software development was exploding, computers were taught in schools and widely used in tv and music while back home 99% were ignorant to what was happening.
Through the Amiga I met another enthusiast who would become a lifelong friend. He let me ride his XR200 and inspired me to get into motorcycling. A chance meeting that totally changed my life. He was the owner of the green ZXR750R and later MT-01 in this blog.
We were interested in the underground computer demo scene. This was an early form of computer art. Everything is dynamic, nothing is pre recorded. Animation or mp3 playback is not feasible when computer only had 1/2 a megabyte memory and 7mhz cpu.
That was the name of our group, Mystix. It was exciting times with constant new breakthroughs but also an odd time before computers became mainstream. To explain the underground computer scene further would entail a whole new blog, but for anyone interested this excellent book now rereleased is perhaps the best regarding the 8 and 16 bit computer demo scene.
My friend has recorded the old demos. Some of his work I have shared on YouTube along with history of the Amiga. None of this will be of any interest unless you grew up fascinated with arcade machines in your local milk bar or fish and chip shop. (edit – most of his uploads are currently offline)
If you have enjoyed anything I have ever published then it exists thanks to that Amiga 500. Shame I did not apply all that youthful exuberance to trading stocks or something but it was a fun time.
But is blogging dead? This is the feedback from a couple of young IT innovators who are very active on new media platforms:
“The importance of having your own domain with full control and ownership of content cannot be overstated. 90% of searching is still Google which does not index social media where content simply disappears. Loss of account access and content is much more common on Facebook and YouTube than people realise. Ultimately if money is not your goal then simply create what you enjoy.”
The last sentence resonates the most. Same reason we created on the Amiga all those years ago.
Blogging, with the use of an RSS reader, is something I hope never goes away.
Yes I use RSS also, I find it particularly good for news sites with so many articles a day, lets me quickly scan and not get drawn into anything that doesn’t interest me.
Huge timesaver – I wish there was a way to have everything from social media collected and presented in same condensed form and avoid having to use those platforms.
Haha this brings back some memories. I started with a C16 then went up to the C64 and later onto an Amiga600 which was physically smaller than the 500.
Bloggings not completely dead yet. Yes Youtube has taken over, but a lot of that is rubbish as well. There are some interesting channels though and I find that the interesting ones are very similar in content as a traditional blog, Itchy Boots is a good example of that. I also wonder if her channel would be so popular if she wasnt pretty. Who’s going to follow un ugly girl around some back country in Botswanna?
Hi Steve, wow you were really an early home computer enthusiast starting on a C16.
All the big Moto blogger channels are attractive girls.
I rarely look at their content anymore.
Haha yeah that’s about right
1.Who cares what the “cool kids” think, especially if you aren’t out to make money.
2. Most Utubers are dead boring to listen or watch. At least the written word allows you to read it in your own voice.
3. Blogs are great online diarys.
4. See # 1.
Cheers
Old skool Dave. ?
Hi Dave,
Yes I agree. I think the blog only has to please me and if a few riders find it interesting then that is a bonus.
But it was great getting some feedback on pros and cons of blogs Vs social media and video. I’d love some more in future on how to improve the blogs design and content.