Pyra Labs launched Blogger in 1999 as one of the first programs dedicated
completely to blogging. At the time, blogging was in its infancy, and the three
Web developers who created Blogger had no idea what their product would
grow to become.
Blogger is often credited with helping to boost blogging into the mainstream.
By offering an easy-to-use and easily accessible blogging platform, people
slowly began to realize how much power blogging could deliver. Terms such
as user-generated content, citizen journalism, and social Web became part of
the common vernacular, and people (and businesses) from all walks of life
wanted to jump on the blogging bandwagon.
But what exactly is a blogging platform? In the simplest terms, a blogging plat-
form (or blogging software) is the computer program that does all the work
behind the scenes to publish your content on the Internet. You type the con-
tent into your blogging software, such as Blogger, WordPress, or TypePad,
and the blogging software creates a Web site where your content resides (see
Figure 1-1). The blogging software formats your content, dates it, archives it,
and more. Suddenly, having a Web site was no longer a possibility only for
businesses with a budget to burn. With the birth of blogging and the popular-
ity of Blogger, anyone could have an online presence, become a blogger, and
join an online community that would come to be known as the blogosphere.
Blogger simply gives your blog a home online. Imagine Blogger as a banquet
hall. As host, Blogger offers a location for various people to create and store
their blogs just as a banquet hall gives people a place to hold events. What
happens on your blog and the success of your blog depends on you.
Unlike a traditional Web site that offers a static message, a blog works more
like an online diary with posts published in reverse chronological order. In
this way, blogs tell a story, and that story is completely up to the blogger,
who has the freedom to write and publish anything he wants. Although blogs
started out as very simple online diaries, they grew to be much more. Blogs
are still used now by many people simply for fun, but they are also used by
people who try to earn an income from them, launch a new career, or build a
business, for example. The opportunities that blogs create are seemingly end-
less. It’s all up to the blogger.
Of course, some unwritten rules of the blogosphere and secrets to success
exist, such as posting frequency, networking, and creating compelling con-
tent. However, a blog is the product of the blogger and evolves the way the
blogger desires. At its core, blogging is a simple concept. It requires little to
no monetary investment but could potentially demand a great deal of sweat
equity.
