When the Web was created it was expected that the content to be instantly and equally available to everyone and he also wanted everyone to be able to link to that content without restrictions. This vision of the Web is now a reality and it has manifested itself in ways that TBL never imagined. However, even though the Web provided content to "anyone, in any country,” it was still incomplete. Browsers, HTML and multimedia made it easy for the masses to receive compelling content from a variety of sources but it was not so easy for those same masses to produce content.

While creating and publishing content to the Web had become infinitely simpler and cheaper than similar pre-Web methods, limitations remained that often prohibited those lacking the aptitude or skills from creating and distributing content. A prime example is the "Home Page” craze of the late 1990s. Millions of people created free home pages and had virtually no idea how to maintain, manage or present their content and the result was a giant graveyard of poorly designed Web sites with stale content. The problem was that the masses did not have the time, energy or desire to master the skills required to create and distribute content.

The costs, while still lower than pre-Web costs, were still too high (or at least perceived to be too high) for the average Joe to realistically consider becoming an active content creator and publisher. To put this in the context of Blogs we can say that blogs are the modern day telephones. Or, to use a more appropriate comparison, blogs are the Browsers of Web publishing.

The Impact of Blogs

Blogs have made the creation and publication of content as simple as browsing the Web. Blogging tools have removed virtually all the technical barriers that previously pro

hibited publication by the masses. Now, everyone with something to say or share can do so without needing to learn new skills.Within this emerging landscape a debate is raging among bloggers, technologists, former Gatekeepers and self-proclaimed pundits about the true impact of blogs. Many argue that blogs are merely a passing fad while others believe that blogs will soon replace much of traditional media methods. The truth is probably somewhere in between the extremes but it is interesting that blogs share some characteristics with the Open Source and Peer-to-Peer movements.

Blogs are: * Decentralized * Driven by community rather than profit * Often subversive to existing power structures * Unmanaged and often unmanageable

It is those very characteristics that make the future of blogging so difficult to predict and the impact so hard to measure. Yet, while this debate rages on, a very significant aspect of blogging is being entirely overlooked. That aspect is not how blogs are affecting the Web or media as a whole but how blogs affect the individual.

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