Question

[kenjari]

This is precipitated by a conversation I had with my boss Suzanne the other day about blogs, and e-groups, and the ways those things are used.

Why do you use blogs/LiveJournal? What makes you keep using it? Why do you use it in preference to or in addition to other methods of communication (telephone, e-mail, etc.)? What do you like about it as opposed to other ways of communicating?

Comments

[digitalemur.livejournal.com]

Two things:

1. It's frequently a dumping point for the social nonsense I need to get out of my head (and that isn't really nonsense but sometimes it gets in the way) so I can go back to other things I need to do.

2. I live an hour or two from most of my friends. And my coworkers don't need to hear about my gaming exploits. LJ is handy, though when I have _time_ to focus on phone calls and IM, I do those too.

[ivan23.livejournal.com]

1. I can keep a large number of friends informed with very little effort. Additionally, while the "holiday spam" letters that used to be sent out seemed impersonal and cold, for some reason the journal is recieved as a more initmate means of communication by some.

2) By the same token, I can keep track of what a large number of friends are up to. That makes me feel more connected to them, and enables me to keep up with a much wider social circle than I could ever manage if I had to call or write everyone I know personally.

3) You meet a lot of interesting new people this way, through comments left on other friends' journals. Stumbling across someone fascinating is a reward in itself.

[kenjari.livejournal.com]

I tend to think it's the interactive aspects (comments, being able to define people as friends) that make it seem more intimate. You can enter into conversations with the post-er and the other readers.
And yeah, the efficiency of it all is a really big advantage.

[anacrucis.livejournal.com]

I use it for the simple reason that I have a very, very boring job.

The other reasons other folks usually give are definitely major benefits of using it, though.

[ladybird97.livejournal.com]

My LJ is like my online living room. It's a place where all my friends can gather and talk, all at the same time. It's where people who would never ordinarily have met can find each other, and discover that they have something in common.

Also, I have many friends who live in scattered places all over the country, and who lead such busy lives that we don't have time to talk on the phone or send individual emails as often as we'd like. So this is a way for all of us to exchange updates on our lives.

[kenjari.livejournal.com]

I love the "online living room" concept. I find that using LiveJournal does often feel very similar to hanging out with my friends over tea or dinner or some such.