DISQUS

louisgray.com: louisgray.com: Just Like High School: Your Blogging Clique Will Move

  • MG Siegler · 1 year ago
    I know I've been a bad blogging friend recently :( First it was due to the transition to VB, but now it has much more to do with moving. The movers are coming tomorrow, so hopefully by next week at some point my life will have a semblance of order again! By that of course I mean PL and some of the other side projects I have -- of which TecHaiku has a dear place in my heart :)

    On the upside, I will now live much closer to you, so we will finally get to meet in real life. Again, sorry we haven't done that yet, every time I'm in SF, I have no vehicle, but I will when I drive up this week. And of course if you're ever in the city, drop me a line! We will catch up soon.
  • CyndyA · 1 year ago
    I'm the girl sitting against the wall at the dance trying not to make eye contact with anyone yet hoping the cool kids would deign to talk to me in this analogy.
  • Matt Harwood · 1 year ago
    Get a DM you two!

    :-)

    Very valid points here Louis, great to see some mostly ignored trends in the blogosphere be talked about.
  • Louis Gray · 1 year ago
    Unlike with MG (see below), you and I HAVE made eye contact, and you even asked me to meet with you at your locker (Profy). Psst... I'll call you.
  • janequigley · 1 year ago
    I find myself posting in waves - but I'm trying to be much more consistent. I'm enjoying FriendFeed because I'm finding new voices to follow (like yours!) and I'm looking forward to when comments in FF can go right to your blog.

    Nice to meet you.
  • Hutch Carpenter · 1 year ago
    I liked D&D...
  • Joel · 1 year ago
    As my voice/blog changed over time my friends/links have changed. Now that my blog is more about my swimming and running with some swimming news mixed in my circle of fellow bloggers have settled down. I get spikes from day to day from various random posts but have a very small circle of regular posters/readers. I consider that a good thing.
  • Jeremy Toeman · 1 year ago
    I was one of the followup posters to the 5 stages of blogging post you mentioned above (http://tinyurl.com/5veb56) - I am still a huge believer that not everyone was really meant to blog. Whether its measured in posts, days, months, or years, I am still convinced that *many* of the bloggers out there ("a-list" included) are not in it for the long run. Heck, I've been at it 4 years, I don't know how long I'll continue - there are days I'm ready to walk away from it completely.

    But not yet... :)
  • Voyagerfan5761 · 1 year ago
    No, I'm not one of your peers, but whatever cliques I'm part of have seen less of me recently. I've been spending more time doing other things besides blogging, something I do want to change.
  • Sharon · 1 year ago
    I'm with Cyndy :-) Mind you, I think appearing on Techmeme would cause a mild panic attack, I'd never cope with the trolls that seem attracted to visibility. Blogging isn't easy. I use it to help think through and clarify thoughts that relate to my consulting activities, and write answers to common questions I get asked by clients. If it helps others, I'm happy. If it leads to connections with peers to discuss and refine opinions, it's the icing on the cake. I'm still giddy that David Weinberger covered one of my blog posts last week... :-)
  • centernetworks · 1 year ago
    I'm in, I won't bring my 100sided die (j/k) :)
  • Louis Gray · 1 year ago
    Allen, I would be honored to have you in my clique. But first, I have to get a lot more popular. And I'm sure there's some other geeky social activity we can find for entertainment, D&D not being one of them.
  • centernetworks · 1 year ago
    yea i wasn't a d&d guy - could never get into it - i was a transformers guy

    why do you have to get more popular for us to talk? im confused
  • Louis Gray · 1 year ago
    That's a quick joke, with the idea being you are a much bigger presence online than I am, and I have to work my way up to your level and deserve your friendship.
  • centernetworks · 1 year ago
    oh, nah - i've never cared about levels, i treat everyone the same. and trust me, we aren't that far apart in any case.
  • Charlane · 1 year ago
    I am new to blogging and I am not sure where it will take me......for the past 10 years I consulted high tech start-up companies in Silicon Valley now I am living in Reykjavik, Iceland....although I worked in the valley I am just now joining the social networking and blogging world myself....so I am enjoying reading blogs (I have been a subscriber to your blog for a while) and seeing where my writing will take me.

    Cheers!
    Charlane
  • Mark Dykeman · 1 year ago
    Hi Louis, I like reading your blog. :)

    My "Hall of Fame" blogroll is for the people who were among either the first or most loyal in their support of my blogging (and it can never be long enough; I'm missing a number of other important and helpful souls) but I've noticed that I've been migrating to other realms as I explore the blogosphere. Perhaps it's just a natural phenomenon. I try not to forget anyone, though.
  • Daryl Tay · 1 year ago
    What's wrong with D&D?!

    You're right. Even though I've only been blogging for about 4 months, there have been slight shifts in the "circles" my blog runs in. But glad you're still around and glad I'm in yours! (right?)
  • Shane · 1 year ago
    Where is everyone finding the 'new voices'? It can be hard to tap into new sources of information. The blogosphere really can be self-reinforcing at times with the same people getting the lion's share of the attention, which in turn makes them more visible, which (of course) means they continue to get the lion's share of the attention.

    I understand the theory of quality will out in the end, but where are these untapped reservoirs of quality? I'm genuinely curious.
  • Louis Gray · 1 year ago
    Some of the best sources I have for finding new bloggers are FriendFeed, ReadBurner, and referral logs. FriendFeed users that like or comment on my activity often share the same interests. ReadBurner finds most common shared items and referral logs bring me links from people who found my activity interesting.
  • Shane · 1 year ago
    Right. I still haven't tried FriendFeed (I don't need yet another call on my time right now) but I keep forgetting about ReadBurner. I must try harder to remember, although when I checked it just before it seemed to still have a lot of the usual suspects. Maybe that's just a function of the time of day.
  • Corvida Raven · 1 year ago
    I'm already apart of your clique, and fortunately for me, my clique has yet to change. Though you don't promote me as much anymore. I wonder why? It better not be a Scoble thing again. ;)
  • Louis Gray · 1 year ago
    You're doing great on your own, as you already know. And I don't think your skills at determining conspiracy theories are as good as your blogging.
  • centernetworks · 1 year ago
    you are on RWW now - the big time - the broadway of blogging
  • CyndyA · 1 year ago
    Bahahaha. Says the girls who's surpassed all of us! RWW gig, Hit All Things D today... what's next? Taking over TechCrunch? I'm heading back to my chair against the wall now... ;)
  • Alex Hammer · 1 year ago
    Louis,

    I applaud your leading blogging efforts. Not only are you on top of the emerging top sites (thanks for the Toluu invite, that is one I really like), but you go so far out of your way to promote talent on the way up (as your post indicates, Yuvi of Statbot another great example). Community is currency. People talk about the digital divide, what about the friend divide? Look how many sponsors Arrington (TechCrunch) has leveraging their contacts for information and exclusives, Scoble with Fast Company and Seagate could be just the beginning (if friends and community influence and penetration are a currency, then Scoble is (or could be) RICH.
  • davidusher · 1 year ago
    feeling a bit lonely today:(
  • Dan · 1 year ago
    Ah but then you meet new and exciting people, honestly your blog has had me challenge two assumptions, and based on that challenge, the near removal of advertising off my blog. I also note that when you had my back, meaning I'll have your back someday too. While it is normal to mourn the folks that have gone on to bigger better things, or simply vaporised, there are always folks out there willing to be there as well. I still read your blog daily, and when/if you move on, I'll say bye, and see who else out there is able to challenge my assumptions.
  • shafqat · 1 year ago
    Intriguing post! Another analogy? I've been writing for a few months on the NewsCred blog, and only recently starting to get traction and love amongst the well-set bloggers. Its like when your parents tell you that you're moving and you have no go to a new school. Making friends, fitting in, finding your niche etc take time! But slowly, you grow to love it. And other's welcome you with open arms.