Peter Pan, Purring and Snarling

Kilian 7/8

"The Webby Awards recognize many types of blogs"-124
I had no idea there were awards for websites/blogs, so I visited the Webby Site. There are over 70 categories for websites. There's even a category for "weird".

some weird winners:

Peter Pan's Homepage-this man believes he is Peter Pan-this is a prime example of what can happen when anyone can create a website.

rathergood.com-I have no idea what this one is about. I can't tell.

snopes.com-rumors, folklore, and generally entertaining stories

I'm going to use 'Peter Pan's Homepage' as an example of an introvert blog-i don't know how anyone could possibly call this man an "extrovert". It certainly wasn't made to look professional. Most of the (long) paragraphs contain at least one of those evil smileys, and "Peter" frequently uses the words "kewl" and "boi". They say even when web writing, a person is writing to an audience. What was this man's audience???

But I suppose blogs allow people that are extroverted in real life to be introverted. I have said this before, but the lack of actual human contact can be a buffer and mask, giving a person a feeling of protection.

"a hazard of the job blog, of course, is that it can cost you your job if you're indiscreet"-126
I think it's best to stay away from this type of blog. One slip of the tongue (or in this case, the keyboard) could cost you your job. Even posting seemingly innocent pictures from an office party could spell disaster. Many jobs even ask to see your facebook and myspace profiles now. I think many employers find blogs unprofessional. We've been saying this all year: be careful. Or, better yet, don't let an opportunity to be unprofessional even present itself. Stay away from the job blog. 
 
That said, this type of blog would suit people working for such organizations as Doctors Without Borders.

"you don't have to be a full-time journalist to run a news blog"-127
But at leat with a full-time journalist, the reader can assume a level of credibility. What credentials does a normal, average person have to run a blog on politics? None, really. Maybe these blogs exist to point readers in a desired direction, via links. But personal commentary can quickly turn into a one-sided rant.

"the change in format seems to make your text infamiliar, so the errors are easy to spot. Then it's easy to go back, correct the error, and re-post it."-131

Very true. Many times I have noticed errors only when hitting the "preview button" at the bottom of the page. The black and white of the moveable type entry page seems to make all your writing blend together. The sudden briteness and heading of my main blog page makes the entry more noticeable, especially since the decorative elements are a lot darker.

"compose a post as a draft, let it cool off, and then return to proffread it before posting"-131
I like the draft options because I don't have to publlish what isn't finished. Right now, I'm on a break between classes. This blog probably isn't going to get finished before 1 pm, but at least I can save my headstart.

Another thing I like about moveable type is that you can go back and edit an entry. Instead of posting a revised blog, the entry appears as if it never contained an error. The mistake isn't on record for people to mock you with (maybe that's a little over-dramatic). Your first time around may not be professional: we all make mistakes. In a rush to get entries out, I've churned out my fair share of typos.

The section on resumes: There's just something about posting an internet resume that seems unprofessional to me. It's fine for someone applying for a job in html programming, but I feel that employers would rather have a binder or folder full of the proper papers right on front of them instead of having to click on a bunch of links. I like the traditional form better: it seems more tangible.

 Kilian 8:

"many words have complex connotations...they convey some kind of emotional aura as well" 137

"semanticists like to distinguish between purr words and snarl words...such words may refer to the same thing, but carry very different meanings" 138

This quote reminds me of a "non-sequiter" cartoon I have on my door at home. the cartoon features two identical pictures of a man and his client in a office. However, the captions and bubbles read

panel 1 "What they mean"

man: "bwahahaha, screw you pal!"

panel 2: "When they say"

man: "This is your standard buisness contract"

It was only using the second wording of the statement that the man would have been able to convince the client to sign the contract. Would I say the man out and out lied to his client? No, because many people understand the code of buisness jargin. it just so happens that the client didn't, so the man manipulated him using ignorance and ambiguous words. Standard doesn't have a "standard" meaning: I guess that's the beauty of the word.

"register doesn't just convey the proper manners for the ocassion. It can aslo determine the content of your message"-138

I hate it when politicians use the word "folks." It makes them sound like they're trying too hard to identify with the common, and I believe people do not want to be humored. People want sincerity. We already know the candidate is not a common person: it takes an extraordinary individual to get elected. There's such a thing as trying too hard.  

"yet manipulating readers by appealing to their fears and insecurities is deeply disrespectful"-140

And the real life political parallels just keep appearing. Campaigns play on people's fears all the time, especially the economic ones. I'm not going to talk about how stupid the infamous "Paris Hilton" ad made McCain look (which was an example of black/shock propaganda), but I recall one of the lines in the commerical is "He's the world's biggest celebrity....but is he ready to lead?" By comparing Obama to Brittany and Paris, McCain was trying to put the idea into our heads that Obama is no more fit than those two ladies to be president. And can you imagine if Paris Hilton was our president? That is a scary thought, and I'm not being sarcastic. Yet again, McCain's campaign (that rhymes) was playing off the "lack of experience fear." Then again, Obama's campaign could have spun the fact that McCain is much older into "he's not well enough to be president."

The rest has all been said before. Credentials are necessary. About.com experts don't have P.h.D.'s: they're just ordinary people. Don't quote them in your research papers.

 and now for a completely irrelevant shout-out:

"Glittering Generalities: "Liberty, Equalitiy, Fraternity"

I knew I'd seen this somewhere:

Paris, may 2008