I’ve been catching up on some blogs and there are some pretty good ones out there. If you have any suggestions as to what I should be checking out, let me know.

You will have undoubtedly noticed that I am actually blogging! Cripes!

The simple reason for this revelation is the iPhone. I was particularly delighted to see that WordPress had developed an app, and that the app allowed access and postings to a multitude of blogs.

That means moblogging has taken on a whole new meaning, and as I’m more likely to post while commuting or bored, it has become so easy to do.

So here I am. Let’s see if I can keep this up …

Over the past few weeks, I have been exchanging emails with Paul Crichton (wonder if he’s related to Michael Crichton, the writer), author of the BBC Access 2.0 blog; an “interview” of sorts about the impact of the Internet on the Deaf community and Deaf individuals.

The Access 2.0 article got mentioned over at Grumpy Old Deafies, which turned out to the 10,000th post to be featured on DeafRead. Ain’t that nice? It’s apparently quite “apt” that the first vlogger to post a vlog on the net in sign language gets a mention in the 10,000th post to appear on DeafRead.

This reminds me of the time when I was hailed the world over for being the first sign language vlogger, all the time consciously aware that I’d vlogged in my PJs!

BSL translation coming soon.

Jonny Nelson raised an interesting point on Deaf UK about vlogs, and what he says shows exactly how little is known about blogging generally, particularly among the Deaf community.

The first point I’d like to make is that all my vlogs are actually on my blog, and you do not need to go to YouTube to access them. YouTube just makes it easier for people to display vlogs on their blogs.

Secondly, all 2,500 DUK members do not actually need to trawl the web looking for vlogs. There is something called RSS feeds that makes it easier for everyone to keep track of blogs. Most people I know use Bloglines (www.bloglines.com); when you set up an account, you can add hundreds of RSS feeds so that it becomes a one-stop shop for reading blogs. You can view mine here.

You’ll probably recognise a few blogs there. You can also add e-groups like Videoblogging to bloglines, removing the need for emails altogether. For you to really understand RSS, I would strongly encourage you to set up an account with bloglines.

For more information about RSS, check this out.

Of course, there are also websites like:

Deaf Blogs – This is UK based, and the first Deaf aggregator. Note this website currently looks awful – it is undergoing a major revamp and should be re-launched at the start of June.

Deaf Read – a USA-focused aggregator, which is moderated.

Deaf Read Deutsch – this is a German aggregator

Deaf Pulse – this is not strictly a blog aggregator, but it pulls news from various sources. This is also USA-based.

These are called “aggregators”, which “pull” together all the blogs that have been submitted (using their RSS feeds), and display them in one place. This means you can browse through the posts, and click on the links to read the post in full.

There are other things you can do with blogs, if you want more detail read this post.

Thirdly, you shouldn’t assume that only a tiny fraction of people will read your blog. Grumpy Old Deafies (http://www.grumpyoldeafies.com/) gets 19,000 visits a month (with 70,000 hits a month). These people choose to visit, and are not, for example, defunct e mail addresses.

To sum up, what are the advantages of blogging/vlogging?

1) You have wider exposure to the world at large;
2) It is not restricted to English, and can include sign languages (no language barrier);
3) You can network internationally with Deaf people; and
4) You are not subject to group dynamics. As you own the blog, you take responsibility for the quality of your content.

Hope this post has given you all some food for thought.

That’s correct, I’ve actually been quoted on the BBC website (!), on their Ouch! Access 2.0 blog.

The article discusses the launch of the VeeSee website, its virtues and the criticism it has also attracted.

What I need to do is create a bank of posts that I can publish from when I don’t have anything to say or time is a bit short. Will get on to that soon.

This will not be the case any longer. I have now chosen the theme bloggingpro, and modified it to include the following features:

• Avatars: all posts will now have an accompanying avatar. Naturally, most will be written by me, but I have had and intend to have guest bloggers from time to time;
• Tags: utilising Ultimate Tag Warrior, all posts are now tagged (as opposed to categorised). A new tag cloud is also visible in the right sidebar, illustrating which subjects are more popular than others; and
• Calendar and Archives: for ease of use, I have now included a calendar and a list of archives so that you can browse previous posts according to date. Some readers (yes, you especially, A) had complained that North of the Stupid Line wasn’t searchable.

I hope these extra features will improve the reading pleasure of North of the Stupid Line. Do keep an eye out for future improvements, but in the meantime, if you have any suggestions or think I should add any more features, leave a comment and I’ll think about it .

I have to laugh at the latest goings-on on Deaf UK. The moderator (He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named) has basically accused everyone of being ‘lazy’ and ‘not interested in deaf issues’ simply because most members did not vote in two recent polls: a reduction in TV licence fees for Deaf people, and about the possibility of Freedom Passes in London being scrapped for Deaf residents.

This has resulted in a furore among the members, who are accusing the moderator of being autocratic and a troll, and for having unmoderated opinions.

Deaf UK is now arguably a farce. It is not longer a space for Deaf people to discuss like-minded issues. It’s just a forum for the moderator to have a go at everyone for no apparent reason.

I’d like to encourage all the current members of DUK (and those who have been banned in recent times), to talk about the issues close to their heart, on BLOGS. It doesn’t matter if in English or BSL. Just blog/vlog. At least you won’t be attacked for expressing your views, and you won’t be moderated.

If you’re not sure how to go about blogging, go here.

Will provide a BSL translation of this post later on today.

First of all, let’s determine: “what is blogging?”. There are a number of websites around that answer that question:

BBC Webwise – Ask Bruce – What is blogging?

Blogging is a way of collecting links to webpages and sharing thoughts and ideas with people online.

Blogs (or Weblogs) are basically online journals or diaries which are great for sharing information and ideas.

Blogger.com

A blog is a personal diary. A daily pulpit. A collaborative space. A political soapbox. A breaking-news outlet. A collection of links. Your own private thoughts. Memos to the world.

Hmmm. The next question would be: “why blog?”.

Bruce at the BBC says:

Surfing’s no fun if you can’t tell people what you’ve found.

How many times have you sent e-mails to your mates with the address of a particularly interesting web page, annotated with your own hilarious comments?

Wouldn’t it be good to get your own web page where you could publish these comments, plus the links you find, turn it into a daily journal of thoughts and ideas and make the whole thing available to the world?

Seems quite simple when you put it like that. In other words, I blog so that I can tell people what I’ve found on the web. I don’t do that much. I don’t tend to email my mates with particularly interesting web pages either (in fact, I tend to delete the ones I get – no offence!). You could call NOTS a “daily journal of thoughts and ideas”, but I don’t tend to post every day, although I’d like to, if I had something to say.

So, WHY DO I BLOG? First and foremost, because I like it (even though it may not seem it, due to lack of posting). Blogging has become a phenomenon on the world wide web in recent years, and it gives a good feeling to know that I’m part of a global community when I blog.

Initiatives like deaf-blogs.com, which I contributed to somewhat, reinforced the gratification that blogging provides in what was, for me, a major way. To think of myself as one of the first bloggers to post vidblogs in BSL is just so cool.

Anyway, I’m going to do what was done over at Sandhill Trek, and invite fellow bloggers to tell me why you blog. I’ll do a later post incorporating some of the more interesting takes on this subject, and see if I can reach some sort of conclusion on this issue.

Ok, it’s fiction, but still … !