Blogs Help You Cope With Data Overload -- If You Manage Them
If you're an information junkie, you've probably discovered the appeal of reading weblogs, those online journals that mix commentary with links to related sites. Obsessive blog creators scour the Internet for interesting tidbits in news stories, announcements and even other blogs, culling the best and posting links. A good blog is like the friend who always points out the best stories in the newspaper.
More and more, though, the growth of blogs is increasing rather than reducing information overload. By some estimates, the number of blogs out there is nearing three million. It isn't just amateurs either: Start-up media companies are creating blogs, too. Gawker, for example, publishes the gadgets journal Gizmodo (
www.gizmodo.com) and Wonkette (
www.wonkette.com), devoted to inside-the-Beltway gossip.
To help juggle all those blogs, I've started playing around with a relatively new phenomenon called a newsreader. Rather than forcing you to jump from one blog to another to keep up with new entries, newsreaders bring together the latest postings from your favorite blogs in a single place.
That's possible because many blogs now publish their entries as news "feeds." These are Web formats that make it easy for a newsreader program (or another Web site) to grab and manipulate individual postings. For a blog publisher, it's like sending out entries on a news wire service. To tell whether a site offers a news feed, look for a small icon labeled "RSS" or "Atom."
I've tested a number of popular newsreaders. At their best, they give you a customized online newspaper that tracks the blogs you're interested in. But using them is only worthwhile if you're willing to invest some time upfront getting organized.
Newsreaders come in several varieties. One is a stand-alone software program you install on your PC. In that category, FeedDemon ($29.95 from Bradbury Software) is especially powerful, with extensive options for customizing the way news feeds appear on your screen.
Other newsreaders integrate news feeds into your e-mail on the theory that mail has become the catchall information center for many users. NewsGator ($29 from NewsGator Technologies) pulls feeds into Microsoft Outlook, while Oddpost (
www.oddpost.com) combines blog feeds with an excellent Web-based e-mail service for $30 a year. For Mac users, Apple just announced it will include newsreader functions in the next version of its Safari Web browser -- a sign of how important the news-feed approach is becoming.
Overall, I had the best experience with a service called Bloglines, and I recommend it, especially for beginners. Bloglines (
www.bloglines.com) works as a Web service, which means there's no software to install and you can catch up with your blogs from any Web browser. You're no longer tied to the bookmarks on a particular PC, so you can check postings from home, work or on the road. The service is also free. Mark Fletcher, CEO of Trustic Inc., which operates Bloglines, tells me the site will use unobtrusive Google-style ads to bring in revenue.
After starting an account, you enter the blogs you want to track. When you visit Bloglines, your blog list will appear on the left side of the screen, along with a notation telling the number of new postings since your last visit; clicking on a blog pulls the new postings into a right-side window. The beauty of this is that you don't waste time visiting blogs that haven't posted new entries.
Of course, it's all pointless without interesting blogs to read. The best way to find great blogs is to follow your curiosity, tracking back links on blogs you visit. Here are a few to get you started:
GENERAL INTEREST: Boing Boing (
www.boingboing.net) is one of the Web's most established blogs, and one of its most popular, too. By "general interest," I mean of general interest to your average Internet-obsessed technophile. The focus isn't explicitly on technology, but expect it to skew in that direction -- over a recent week, posting topics included robots, comic books and a cool-looking electric plug.
ECONOMICS: EconLog (econlog.econlib.org) offers a thoughtful and eclectic diary of economics, tackling both newsy developments (the real-estate market, taxes) and theory. It also includes a list of other good economics blogs -- there are more than you might think.
GADGETS: Engadget (
www.engadget.com) can be counted on for a good half-dozen or more news morsels each day on digital cameras, MP3 players, cellphones and more. When it isn't the first to stumble across something good, it isn't shy about linking to another blog with an interesting post, so it's usually pretty up to date.
POLITICS: WatchBlog (
www.watchblog.com) has stuck with an interesting concept for more than a year now. It's actually three blogs in one: separate side-by-side journals tracking news on the 2004 elections from the perspective of Democrats, Republicans and independents.
TECHNOLOGY: Lessig Blog (
www.lessig.org/blog). OK, this one's about politics too. More specifically, it covers the intersection between regulation and technology. Its author, Stanford law professor and author Lawrence Lessig, weighs in on copyright, privacy and other challenging topics in high-tech society.
轻松追踪你关注的网志
如果你热衷于搜集信息，那么你很可能早已领略了网志(weblog)的迷人魅力，它能够集评论、相关网站链接等功能于一身。那些迷恋创建网志的人在国际互联网上不断搜寻新闻报导、公告、甚至是其他网志中的各种趣闻逸事，然后挑选出最好的加入自己的网志以及建立链接。好的网志如同一个朋友，总是把报纸上那些最佳报导指给你看。
但是，网志的蓬勃发展非但没有缓解，反而更加重了网络信息的超载。据估计，网志的数量已经接近300万。并且，不只是业余爱好者参与其中，许多初创的媒体公司也在创建网志。比如，Gawker就建立了有关小器具信息的网志Gizmodo(网址
www.gizmodo.com)和关于街头传言的网志Wonkette (网址
www.wonkette.com)。
为了用好这些网志，我最近一直在尝试一种新玩艺儿：新闻阅读器(newsreader)。新闻阅读器可以把你收藏的网志所更新的新闻集中到一个地方，让你不必为了追踪最新的新闻帖而在各个网志间来回切换。
之所以能实现这一点，是因为许多网志更新内容都采用新闻信息包(news feed)格式，这种网络格式便于新闻阅读程序（或另一个网站）搜集和操控个人张贴的信息。对于网志出版人来说，上传信息就和通过新闻有线服务发布新内容非常相似。要判断一个网站是否提供新闻信息包，只要看能不能找到标有RSS和Atom的小图标就行。
我对许多流行的新闻阅读器进行了测试。它们最大的优点在于：能够追踪你感兴趣的网志，并为你提供一份个性化的网络报纸。但只有当你愿意花些时间去事先组织信息的时候，它们才真正值得一用。
新闻阅读器各式各样。一种是你能在个人电脑上安装的独立软件程序。在这类产品中，FeedDemon是相当不错的一个（由Bradbury Software生产，售价29.95美元），它提供多种选择，使新闻信息包在屏幕上能个性化地显示。
另一种新闻阅读器将新闻信息包与电子邮件合二为一，其原理是：对许多用户而言，电子邮件已经成为包罗万象的信息中心。这类产品中的NewsGator（由NewsGator Technologies推出，售价29美元）将新闻信息包与Microsoft Outlook合二为一，而Oddpost（网址
www.oddpost.com）则将新闻信息包与他们提供的一种出色的网络电子邮件服务结合在一起，每年的服务费为30美元。Mac电脑的用户还有其他选择，因为苹果电脑公司(Apple)刚刚宣布将在下一版的Safari浏览器中添加新闻阅读器功能。这一举措也表明了通过网志获取新闻已经变得何等重要。
总而言之，我在测试中对一种名为Bloglines的服务感觉最好，并向您推荐，尤其是对初学者而言。Bloglines (网址
www.bloglines.com)是一种网络服务，这也就是说，你无需安装软件，并且能用任何网络浏览器追踪更新的网志。你将不再被某台特定电脑中的书签捆住手脚，你可以在家里、办公室或路上查阅更新的新闻。这种服务也是免费的。Bloglines的运营商Trustic Inc.的首席执行长马克?弗莱彻(Mark Fletcher)告诉我说，他们的网站将通过不显眼的Google风格的广告来获取收入。
当你在Bloglines新开帐户以后，就可以去访问那些你想要追踪的网志了。等你再访问Bloglines的时候，你追踪的网志列表就出现在屏幕的左侧，并有简短的信息告知你自从你上次登陆后这些网志都更新了多少条新闻。点击一个网志，里面更新的新闻就会出现在右侧窗口中。这种方式的优点是：你不用在那些没有更新新闻的网志上浪费访问时间。
当然，如果你没有感兴趣的网志，那这些东西就全无用武之地了。想找到好网志的最佳方式是：顺著自己的好奇心，追踪你访问过的网志链接。以下这些网志可以供你一试身手：
普通兴趣类网志：Boing Boing (网址
www.boingboing.net) 是网络上最著名的日志之一，也是最受欢迎的日志之一。我所谓的“普通兴趣”是指对互联网中等入迷的普通技术爱好者。这些人关注的焦点并不完全是技术问题，但希望往那个方向发展。在最近一周，该网志上更新的话题包括：机器人、喜剧书以及外形很酷的电插头等等。
经济类网志：EconLog (网址econlog.econlib.org) 提供有关经济学的电子日志，都是深奥的东西，话题涉及新闻（比如房地产市场、税务）和理论。该日志上也有其他一些经济类网志的链接，可能超乎你的想象。
器具类网志：Engadget (网址
www.engadget.com) 相当不错，每天更新六七条或者更多有关数码相机、MP3播放器和手机之类的新闻。如果它不是第一个介绍好玩意的网志，它会毫不犹豫地通过一个有趣的帖子帮你链接到另一个网志，因此，它通常都是比较新的。
政治类网志：迄今为止，WatchBlog (网址
www.watchblog.com) 已经坚持一个有趣的理念一年有余了。实际上，它是三个网志的组合：三个单独的网志并排在一起，分别代表民主党、共和党和独立人士的观点来追踪2004年的大选新闻。
科技类网志：Lessig Blog (网址
www.lessig.org/blog)。其实，它也和政治有关。更确切一点说，它涉及的内容是行业监管与科技的交界点。其出版者是斯坦福的法律教授及作家劳伦斯?莱西格(Lawrence Lessig)。他侧重的内容是高科技领域的版权、隐私权以及其他有争议的话题。
