I have been toying with this thought of an article for a few weeks now. What is a blog?

Wikipedia describes it like this:

A blog (a contraction of the term “Web log”) is a Web site, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.

Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs (photoblog), sketches (sketchblog), videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting), which are part of a wider network of social media. Micro-blogging is another type of blogging, one which consists of blogs with very short posts. As of December 2007, blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs.[1] With the advent of video blogging, the word blog has taken on an even looser meaning — that of any bit of media wherein the subject expresses his opinion or simply talks about something.

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I started blogging about 20 months ago. I have yet to be satisfied with a particular style or theme of my blog. I’m not talking about content. I mean layout. Colors used. Information placement.

Some of my blogging friends have given me some amount of grief over the fact that I will change the layout and colors of my blog at a moments notice, or with no notice at all.

Currently, on Scott’s Morning Brew, I am using WordPress as my blogging platform. Or “system” used to create the blog. Arguably it is one of the best, and most popular platforms.

But along with that popularity, comes a plethora of add on and options for that system to make it “better” and do more things. And look a lot of different ways. Really COOL things, really COOL looks.

I am using a magazine style theme. It’s called Proximity by a very talented designer named Nathan Rice. It’s an incredible theme that gives the blog the look of a “top shelf” magazine website. Like say “People” or “Redbook” or something similar. Or an online version of a newspaper like Pilot Online or Daily Press.

I love the layout of the page. But it comes with some amount of baggage. To put a post up in anything but the “General” category, requires I generate two images of a specific size, one for the large thumbnail (300×200) and one for the small thumbnail (100×100). There may or may not be an image inside the actual article.

On another site I maintain for the Portsmouth Police Department, I use yet another magazine theme called Revolution Magazine by Brian Gardner. This is another great theme that is easy to set up and tweak but has the same concerns. I must include images when images aren’t always called for.

With all of these whizbang golly wow doodads for blogs… have we lost sight of what a blog really is?

If I wanted to create a “news magazine” then I should be focusing on that aspect and stop calling it a blog. In my opinion, a “blog” is simply a reverse chronological listing of articles, posts, which may or may not include graphics, photographs and videos. It should focus less on layout, and more on content.

Take the blog maintained by Michelle Malkin for example. Couple of sidebars with information. But one of the top rated and most read conservative political blogs in the country… is just that. A blog. Take a look at The Jeffersoniad blog roll. With the exception of Scott’s Morning Brew and Bearing Drift. They are blogs with a blog look. (Note: Bearing Drift has grown to the point it needs to be in a magazine style format. It is fast surpassing the definition of blog.)

So where am I going with this?

When I write an article for my blogs, I want the article to be read, commented on and linked to. The layout? In my opinion should be clean, simple and provide just enough information so as NOT to distract from the content.

It’s all about the content folks.

Do you recognize this layout? It’s simple, header with the name of the blog. One sidebar with a few functions in it. And… the CONTENT.

This is the default WordPress blog theme that comes prepackaged in every single ZIP download of WordPress you get. WordPress Classic 1.5 by Dave Shea.

What does my blog at Scott’s Morning Brew do that this one doesn’t? Think about it. You may be seeing some changes. Sometimes new isn’t always better. Neither is more.