Thanks for the amazing summary and bringing clarity to many of my points.
Kevin
· 9 months ago
If you check out the archives for the CBC Spark podcast you can find an episode where they talk about taking blog postings and printing them up now and again. I cant remember the specifics, but they either printed them on the backs of existing news papers, or printed them directly after to save on costs.
So I got "un-lazy" for a moment and decided to hunt down the link to the episode:
I like that London's "online community" (or at least the part I've come across) is quite small at the moment. It's very cool to come across the same people all over the blogosphere/twittersphere/podcastsphere, like all the people you've linked to here.
As it grows I'll miss that, but it'll also allow for more quality writing and ideas to come out, and perhaps gains some mainstream attention.
P.S. I like the idea of my blog being printed. I'm not so sure I'm sold on the idea of reading other blogs in print form. It's cool for people still hooked on newspapers, but how many years will that last?
Greg Fowler
· 9 months ago
Brian: I already do blog-to-print, in a limited fashion. I print out about 50-100 copies of an article that I think is deserving and leave copies here and there while I'm out and about. I don't know yet if it helps the traffic appreciably, but I thought it was worth a try.
Brian Frank
· 9 months ago
Wow, I've never had so many responses so fast. (You guys are putting me to shame for being a little absent from the local stuff lately.)
Titus, I'm looking forward to seeing what comes out from behind the scenes at PodCamp.
Kevin, thanks for providing a link to an article that contained the two links I just spent 5 minutes looking for. I thought it was different because the printing-on-backs-of-newspapers idea was new to me, but I should've clicked yours first (dammit!)
Printcasting looks kind of gimmicky and weak from a bloggers' perspective ("Choose articles and a template, and you're a publisher!") I have doubts whether it'll fly but I think it's great as an example of a newspaper really starting to get outside the old box to try different business models.
As for The Printed Blog, I really don't know. I think the way blogs are done now they won't transcribe onto print very well... Maybe if it's around long enough and enough bloggers really want to get into print (and so adapt their style and content accordingly) then it could evolve into something.
I agree with Phronk that the idea of being printed is cool but I'd never read blogs in print. I have a hard enough time reading magazines and books now. Maybe I would if I was retired or stuck in an elevator or something, or on a train. But I'm so used to scrolling on a screen (and usually bookmarking and cut-and-pasting and mashing-up multi-tasking as I go along) if something is available online there's no way I'll read it in print. Though I'm sure, as you say, some people are still hooked on print (as I was 2 years ago).
I expect, Greg, many people have enjoyed reading your printed copies but I don't know how many would have made the leap online (they probably hoped to find copies of your next printed article!) I'd be curious to know if you ever tried researching that.
There's a medium-for-medium thing. I don't usually check a website when they mention it on TV or in the newspaper because once I turn on the computer I start seeing all the other options available and I end up reading emails and twittering and writing very long responses to people who commented on my blog and I forget all about the site I intended to go to.
What I'm thinking of is not something we'd expect anyone to actually read but something symbolic -- a project, an accomplishment. Something that's like a joint effort -- and even if most people aren't putting an effort into it it's still something people identify with or aspire to (or even hate, which still accomplishes the same thing: making the community more, um, oriented around the same idea, involved in the same conversation -- love it or hate it).
Kevin
· 9 months ago
After my first year of blogging (Aug 05-06) I had all of my entries printed out in a book form (using lulu.com), at the time I am not sure why I did it, perhaps I wanted to try out he service, but now I understand how important this was.
Because I removed all of my early content from the web (for various reasons) I still have that printed copy that I can go back to , to see what was important to me on a specific day, or more importantly, I can see how my online writing/presence has progressed over the years.
Brian Frank
· 9 months ago
I was thinking of something like that too Kevin -- though my aim was to publish a book (or "print" a book sounds a little less self-aggrandizing) before I ever started blogging.
I'm glad you mentioned having a document to refer back to; that's a point I want to consider a little more.
Randy
· 9 months ago
I am new to the whole blogging thing. I find blogging is a lot easier than trying to get something published. I used to fancy myself a writer, now I know I am just some guy that writes and blogging makes it easy. Blogs in print? I don't know, I really don't have an opinion on that.
Bill Deys
· 9 months ago
I had the idea about making a newspaper from the Spark Podcast! It's doable. It would be the same model that Londoner in the Wednesday Free Press is.
And over the past few months I've really been encouraged to push more connecting events out there. When the meetup thing started it was honestly because I wanted to meet people and no one else was stepping up to the plate to do it. Same deal with PodCamp!
Oh and watch out for a lot more VERY cool Social Media Events in London. From the meetings Titus and I have had surrounding pclo in the past few weeks there is going to be a lot of tangential things coming up! Some of them are the reason I've been so late commenting!
Bill Deys
· 9 months ago
Oh and I completely missed half my point!
The reason I'm fascinated with print stuff is because there is a lot of reach and people find something that is delivered in that form to hold far more credibility!
Brian Frank
· 9 months ago
Randy, ya, I'd say blogging is slightly easier than conventional publishing... I'm fairly undecided about blogging in print too. But that being said...
Bill, I'll certainly be cheering you on if you give it a shot.
Until that time though, my feeling is there has to be a bigger base to draw content from (then again the newspaper might be the best way to grow the base by reaching more people, as you pointed out). I don't really know. As I wrote a while back:
as long as there’s paper and ink for printing, there will always be people motivated to run grassroots-type publications, hustling up advertisers and scratching content together for community newsletters and the like. Success here has as much to do with tenacity and connectedness of their [founders] as anything else.
In other words if you've got the will you can make it work. Obviously you've got generous amounts of tenacity and sociability to put together PodCamp London -- so I'm in no position to doubt your ability to pull anything off!
Props for all the organizing btw. The MeetUp was great for getting my reclusive ass more locally involved. I'm definitely looking forward to more.
Shari
· 9 months ago
Thank you - I really enjoyed reading your blog. I am new to social media, but used to be a Business Systems' Analyst/Software designer/ Cobal programmer in the early 80's. Have since explored other aspects of my career. Now I would like to bring it all together and I am very excited about what social media can do. My imagination has been working overtime lately thinking of the possibilities. See ya around town;)
Brian Frank
· 9 months ago
Thanks Shari, I know what you mean about "imagination working overtime" about possibilities... Looks like you're putting your energy into something good.
Elizabeth
· 8 months ago
Brian, how can I change it so my RSS feeds are not only titles? Thanks!
All Comments
So I got "un-lazy" for a moment and decided to hunt down the link to the episode:
http://www.cbc.ca/spark/2009/01/trend-turning-b...
As it grows I'll miss that, but it'll also allow for more quality writing and ideas to come out, and perhaps gains some mainstream attention.
P.S. I like the idea of my blog being printed. I'm not so sure I'm sold on the idea of reading other blogs in print form. It's cool for people still hooked on newspapers, but how many years will that last?
Titus, I'm looking forward to seeing what comes out from behind the scenes at PodCamp.
Kevin, thanks for providing a link to an article that contained the two links I just spent 5 minutes looking for. I thought it was different because the printing-on-backs-of-newspapers idea was new to me, but I should've clicked yours first (dammit!)
Printcasting looks kind of gimmicky and weak from a bloggers' perspective ("Choose articles and a template, and you're a publisher!") I have doubts whether it'll fly but I think it's great as an example of a newspaper really starting to get outside the old box to try different business models.
As for The Printed Blog, I really don't know. I think the way blogs are done now they won't transcribe onto print very well... Maybe if it's around long enough and enough bloggers really want to get into print (and so adapt their style and content accordingly) then it could evolve into something.
I agree with Phronk that the idea of being printed is cool but I'd never read blogs in print. I have a hard enough time reading magazines and books now. Maybe I would if I was retired or stuck in an elevator or something, or on a train. But I'm so used to scrolling on a screen (and usually bookmarking and cut-and-pasting and mashing-up multi-tasking as I go along) if something is available online there's no way I'll read it in print. Though I'm sure, as you say, some people are still hooked on print (as I was 2 years ago).
I expect, Greg, many people have enjoyed reading your printed copies but I don't know how many would have made the leap online (they probably hoped to find copies of your next printed article!) I'd be curious to know if you ever tried researching that.
There's a medium-for-medium thing. I don't usually check a website when they mention it on TV or in the newspaper because once I turn on the computer I start seeing all the other options available and I end up reading emails and twittering and writing very long responses to people who commented on my blog and I forget all about the site I intended to go to.
What I'm thinking of is not something we'd expect anyone to actually read but something symbolic -- a project, an accomplishment. Something that's like a joint effort -- and even if most people aren't putting an effort into it it's still something people identify with or aspire to (or even hate, which still accomplishes the same thing: making the community more, um, oriented around the same idea, involved in the same conversation -- love it or hate it).
Because I removed all of my early content from the web (for various reasons) I still have that printed copy that I can go back to , to see what was important to me on a specific day, or more importantly, I can see how my online writing/presence has progressed over the years.
I'm glad you mentioned having a document to refer back to; that's a point I want to consider a little more.
And over the past few months I've really been encouraged to push more connecting events out there. When the meetup thing started it was honestly because I wanted to meet people and no one else was stepping up to the plate to do it. Same deal with PodCamp!
Oh and watch out for a lot more VERY cool Social Media Events in London. From the meetings Titus and I have had surrounding pclo in the past few weeks there is going to be a lot of tangential things coming up! Some of them are the reason I've been so late commenting!
The reason I'm fascinated with print stuff is because there is a lot of reach and people find something that is delivered in that form to hold far more credibility!
Bill, I'll certainly be cheering you on if you give it a shot.
Until that time though, my feeling is there has to be a bigger base to draw content from (then again the newspaper might be the best way to grow the base by reaching more people, as you pointed out). I don't really know. As I wrote a while back:
In other words if you've got the will you can make it work. Obviously you've got generous amounts of tenacity and sociability to put together PodCamp London -- so I'm in no position to doubt your ability to pull anything off!
Props for all the organizing btw. The MeetUp was great for getting my reclusive ass more locally involved. I'm definitely looking forward to more.
See ya around town;)
Thanks!