Friday, April 18, 2008

FRIDAY FUN: PET PEEVE OF THE DAY
...live-blogging isn't really "live" - it's afterthought-blogging; note-taking posted later by some geeks

Everyone has little annoyances that get under their skin from time to time. They are not huge, catastrophic things - just the pebble in the shoe kind of things that irritate more than exasperate.

One of the little pebbles in my shoe is "live-blogging."

Live-blogging for the most part is a misnomer. Live-blogging really isn't "live." It's just delayed note-taking of an event that you attended live. In the current "live-blogging" world, someone's notes are usually revamped, or touched up by listening back to a simple recording the blogger made while the live message was being given so that they could make changes if necessary and their "live-blogging" post more thorough before actually publishing to their blog. This is referred to by industry geeks as "afterthought-blogging"; but as you can see, it's definitely not "live-blogging."

"Live-blogging" should live up to its name and be a "live-real-time experience." It should be for lack of a better word... live. Instead of: "I am personally attending a conference and am taking notes while someone is speaking; and I will try and post something on my blog about the talk I've just heard within three hours or so-blogging." Again, that's not live-blogging; it's computer-geeks at a conference looking for a reason to be there. 

For example: could you imagine ABC Sports advertising that they are going to be carrying XYZ sporting event "live" (they are "live-broadcasting"); but when you tune in to actually watch your "live-broadcast" you discover it's not being broadcast-live at all. It is a delayed broadcast that only has shown a highlight reel. That's essentially what guys are now doing in the name of "live-blogging."

So "live-blogging" a Christian conference is nothing more than taking some notes, improving upon those notes by maybe listening back to a simple recording you just made on a pocket recorder of the talk you just heard, and then posting it on your blog two, three, or four hours later.  Well if that's considered "live-blogging", then folks I want you to know that I will be "live-blogging" Ben Stein's new movie, "Expelled." I will also be "live-blogging" Chris Matthews Hardball AND Sean Hannity too. You won't want to miss it--stay tuned for details when it will actually happen. I will also take some pictures and "live-photograph" my TV screen for you and post those pictures up on my blog so that you can really feel what it's like to be there. :-).

Now, if you want to see live-blogging in action, watch this. THIS IS LIVE-BLOGGING.

So... next time a well-meaning Christian blogger is announcing they are traveling to such and such a Bible conference and will be "live-blogging" the conference for you. just smile politely and know what to expect. You can even take a little pity on them for their delusional geekdom. OR better yet, you could listen to the MP3's that most conferences have up now for free within an hour or so of it actually taking place.  OR, you could watch the live-streaming that many conferences offer as well. Then you can "live-MP3blog" or "live-video-streaming-blog" about it on your own blog for others to read who haven't heard the MP3's yet or missed the live-streaming. Really cool!  And what's a real added benefit is you save on the expensive conference fees; airfare; rent-a-car; hotel; meals, etc.  It's a win - win.

So everybody... let's try it!

Pick an event that you might be doing with your family - say walking the dog, washing the car, going to the movies, watching a TV show... and "live-blog" about it today. And here's the great thing - it doesn't have to be live - just make sure it's within a few hours of when you actually did it.

FYI: I have "live-posted" this article for you; you can "live-comment" if you'd like; and then we could "live-dialogue" about its content. :-)

Thanks for letting me get the pebble out of my shoe...
This has been Campi, "live-blogging" from COT national headquarters (my dining room) in sunny Nashville, TN.

PS - If you really want to live-blog check out Cover It Live.

19 comments:

Carla Rolfe said...

While I suppose there might be some bloggers who do actually live-blog (without going over notes, recordings, etc.) I would have to agree that what often passes for live-blogging, really isn't.

I did however, live-read this from Reflections headquaters (my game room), and this is a live-comment (as much as it can be, on coffee refill #1)

SJ Camp said...

Live-read... I like that.

I am live-commenting as I am live-reading your comment about the article I just live-posted.

Campi

chopstickschan said...

Okay, I won't live blog about a church service here in Iceland a couple of weeks ago. We were worshiping in song, in Icelandic, of course, and as they began another song, after the first few notes, I was struck with, "Hey, I KNOW this song, in English!" Another second, and it came to me, it was "Wonderful, Merciful Savior". Steve, you've been translated into Icelandic! :) Still, I can't help but sing the last refrain in English every time.

Bless from the land of fire and ice!

SJ Camp said...

ljchan
Wow! Iceland... I was there many years ago and thought it was such a beautiful country.

That is wonderful about the song. I recorded that back in 1994 and the Lord is still using it. All praise to Him!

Bless you to and may the Lord continue to honor your faithfulness to Him.

Grace and peace,
Steve
Col. 1:9-14

bluewoad said...

Well, perhaps we should have 'live blogging' and 'liver blogging'... or something. The former being what it is, and the latter being what the former should be.

By the way, Steve, did you see you made it to Purgatorio's Divine Vinyl? :-)

Alice said...

Airing pet peeves is cathartic. Where I work we actually have monthly meetings to talk about our language pet peeves (we're editors. And geeks too.) But live blogging would definitely make the list. :-)

SJ Camp said...

Blue
By the way, Steve, did you see you made it to Purgatorio's Divine Vinyl? :-) No I didn't? I like his site very much. I will check it out today.

Thanks

Alice
I can only use the word geek because i am one too :-). Well, almost.

Language pet peeves - I like that. Mind sharing one or two of them with us here?

Brian said...

lol!

Alice said...

No problem, Steve: using perfectly good nouns as verbs (aka business speak) such as access or impact; saying "prior to" instead of "before"; or the word "utilize" (c'mon people, it's USE!) Then my boss puts all our peeves in a nice geeky spreadsheet in an e-room so we can look at it whenever we want. I'm considering live-blogging our next meeting now. :-)

SJ Camp said...

Brian
Thanks for having this "live-conversation" with me today. :-).

Alice
Thank you for "live-sharing" with me (OK, I'll stop). If you implement Cover It Live; let me know and I will join you on your next "live-blogging."

Campi

Unknown said...

Okay, I'll take up the challenge and live-blog my son's baseball game tonight. Nothing like the excitement of a bunch of 30 and 40 something parents living vicariously through their 7 and 8 year old sons. :-) (And it should really be a doozy....) "Doozy"-now there's a language pet peeve.

BTW, can I share a couple of culinary pet peeves? (I won't wait for an answer, I'll just go ahead and post and hope that you're not peeved that I went ahead).

First, I can't stand to see a customer in a restaurant being rude or condescending to a waiter/waitress. It's usually uncalled-for and just an attempt at making oneself feel important.

Second, (and this may a little conflicting to my first pet peeve) it bugs me when you go through a fast food drive thru, and you get down the road before you realize that they've left out a straw or napkins-essential accessories for eating on the run (or put pickles on your son's burger when he has an aversion to them). And I very rarely go back and get it corrected, because if I'm in a drive-thru in the first place, I'm already in a hurry, so I don't have the time to drive all the way back and get back in the drive-thru line.
(Now that's a rant! Thanks for letting me de-pebble my shoes here as well).

--LG66

P.S. Seriously.....are you really going to see Ben Stein's flick? If so, please let me know if it's worth the ticket price; I'd like to take it in myself if there's any merit there. (I like to see how many "Puffs" Campi gives a movie before attend a showing). :-)

SJ Camp said...

littlegal
I am going to try a real live-blog soon. But I couldn't get to the Ben Stein movie tonight. But will soon.

Campi

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

.....in sunny Nashville."

What happened to "sunny Nashville" yesterday afternoon? True to my word, I attempted to "live-blog" my son's game last night. What a joke.....every try to blog in the midst of a spring downpour, LOL?

Unknown said...

Sorry....that should read "ever" try, not "every" try. (I guess I'm still waterlogged this morning).

Chris said...

I first noticed the "live blogging" when I attended the Ligonier National Conference in 2007. By the way, all the "live-bloggers" use Macs. Arminians use windows I guess.

Unknown said...

Has anyone read Schaff's live blogging of Church History? I'm going through it now. It's pretty amazing stuff. :D

SJ Camp said...

Lane
Best line of the thread my brother! LOL!

Campius

Mark Pennington said...

Never thought of that before... It does bug me when I watch something "live," on the West Coast, that was pre-recorded three hours prior on the East coast.
Check out these Top 40 Vocabulary Pet Peeves, but warning… you may cringe on a few that you have misused.