Thing 1. Set Up Your Blog

After completing the exercise of creating and customizing a blog, I am at a loss as to the value of incorporating an avatar as part of a site developed to establish a forum for discussing the creation, organization, distribution, retrieval, and use of information. From what I have been able to ascertain from recent studies and comments regarding such sites as Second Life, virtual alternative worlds appear to be a passing fad. The emergence of technology fads begs the question of how does one evaluate emerging technologies. Aaron Swartz, co-creator of the Open Library project, co-founder of Reddit, former adviser to Creative Commons, and co-developer of RSS, identified three key questions to ask regarding the implementation of new technologies during a current topics discussion group presentation at ALA Mid-Winter. His approach to the question was not to provide criteria for selecting winners, but to identify characteristics commonly associated with losers. Referring to the axiom "rules substitute for thought," he encouraged individuals to think for themselves by posing and answering the following three questions before implementing new technologies: (1) Does the technology fill a unique niche in that it is something people want? (2) Is the technology easily accessible in that it is something people can easily find? (3) Does the technology fit into reality in that it is something people can do?


Considering the incorporation of avatars as an integral part of a blog from my perspective and limited knowledge of the technology adds little if any value to electronic discussion forums designed to explore the delivery of information resources and services. However, having answered all three of the questions in the negative does not marginalize the entertainment factor or the acknowledgement of alternative realities as a new model for social communication. Succinctly stated, creating an avatar is fun but may not be particularly useful in achieving the desired goals and objectives of blogging.