Why do people blog?  Why do people who would probably never stand in the middle of a street and deliver a speech on their personal life feel free to write down the same information and then make it freely available for anyone to read?

The actual concept behind a blog is nothing new.  At its’ core it is nothing more than an online diary or journal.  The principal difference between a blog and its’ traditional counterpart is one of accessibility.  A written diary is normally something that is intrinsically private and personal to the author.  Readership beyond the author, if at all, is limited to close family or friends.

A blog is different.  Authors seem to feel liberated enough to write personal information and details without the fear that would probably accomplish the publication of a written diary.  Perhaps most authors feel the Internet provides a layer of detachment and annoymity.

One of the interesting aspects of blogging is that it is not limited to individuals.  It has become almost de riguer for companies to have some form of corporate blog.  A company blog is a cheap and easy method of delivering information in a manner that lacks the formality of normal press releases.  A company blog can contain almost any information, and the very format enables the mix and match of subject matter without presenting an undigestable mess.

The reasons behind a blog are various, especially personal ones.  The authors seem to vary between the mundane to the naturally garrulous with all variations of the rainbow in between.

Just as varied are the topics that a blog can cover.  From information about family life to detailed technical announcements.  If you can think of a topic or subject, there is probably at least one blog out there covering it.

What is certain though is that irrespective of the reasons behind a blog, there will be an audience available.  The ability for people in general to be nosey and inquisitive into other people’s lives (as the readership of the celebrity magazines will testify) will never abate.

So why do I blog?  Well, I don’t actually write this blog for other people to read, if they are actually are any readers apart from myself.  I write this blog as a record for myself.  I also do it to improve the fluency and style of my prose.  As I work within a technical industry, written information often gets bogged down with a stogy style and, in many cases, plain bad English.  I’m not aspiring to be the next Keats or Dickens, but I do aim to improve my proficiency of the written word.  Hopefully, the more write, the more I will improve.  I can only hope.

One thing that you will never find on this blog is personal information.  That is my business, not Joe Public’s.  And yes, I do read other people’s blogs.