A blog by any other name....

A blog by any other name us just as interesting, or is it? Such is the question that led to my quest to find truly interesting blogs – not just in information, but in presentation. The obvious contenders would be accessible, to their audiences, by many avenues: Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Pinterest to name a few.

The leaders would have “pizazz” and the ability to draw me to stay on their site a little longer.  Thus, the scientific method to my quest was born; winners = number clicks/scrolls I made on their blog sites (supported by the amount of data I used).

In the world of a million blogs I am prepared to announce my top five picks (drumroll, please):

Beer Labels in Motion (http://beerlabelsinmotion.tumblr.com/). A blog created on Tumblr that is essentially the coolest beer reviewer in the modern world. Not only does the author critique up and coming breweries, but he (wait for it) animates their labels! The blog is informative, personal, and has serious cool factor.

Inky Fool (http://blog.inkyfool.com/). Wordsmiths around the world must celebrate this elegant, yet witty site. It uses imagery in a tasteful, yet unexpectedly fun way for a site dedicated to rhetoric and prose. Not your stuffy professor pontificating about their superior use of language, but a delightful way to share the world of words.

This is Kottke.org (http://www.kottke.org/). The blog description says it best, “The editorial direction of the site is all over the place but clusters around a pair of hand-wavy ideas: the liberal arts 2.0 and people are awesome” (Kottke, n.d). Truth is I cannot articulate what this blog is about other than a peek into the coolest (and perhaps bi-polar) mind in the blogosphere. Words, imagery, and randomness nicely collide on this site.

The New York Times, Dot Earth (http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/). A true blog dedicated to quality journalism and professional photography. With story links, sources, and opinion by Andrew Revkin. A site for the grown up in all of us.

The Gameological Society (http://gameological.com/author/johnteti/). This blog made my top five because it pulled me into a world that I have no knowledge or even real interest in learning about. Gaming is a rising star amongst our newest generation of professionals and this site uses pictures and limited descriptions to help the unfocused yet anxious gamers locate information quickly. I have to take my hat off to this site for their use of directional imagery, profanity, insults, and clicks all to help their audience get to the next level. A fun site for the newcomer or serious gamer.

In five blogs you can introduce your friends to the coolest new brew, with a well stated toast, and meet your requirement to bring two topics of conversation to the table with your knowledge of the game world, current events, and complete randomness. Cheers!

References:

Carmick, T. (n.d.). Retrieved from Beer Labels in Motion website: http://beerlabelsinmotion.tumblr.com/

Forsyth, M. (n.d.). Retrieved from Inky Fool website: http://blog.inkyfool.com/

Kottke, J. (n.d.). Retrieved from This is Kottke.org website: http://www.kottke.org/

Revkin, A. (n.d.). Retrieved from Dot Earth website: http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/?_r=1

Teti, J. (n.d.). Retrieved from The Gameological Society website: http://gameological.com/author/johnteti