The start of a little side project.

As if I don't already have enough shit I'm involved with I go and find Tumblr over here. Simply put, this is the most visually pleasing and uniquely inventive approach to blogging I've seen in recent memory. There are so many of us who have been blogging for many years and have developed all sorts of expertise regarding HTML, XML, Flash, CSS and all sorts of other goodies mostly out of necessity. Nothing wrong with the traditional blog experience at all if you ask me. But as we have become accustomed to Web 2.0 and we slowly approach Web 3.0 (yikes) there are more ways to blog from mini blogging a la Twitter to more traditional mainstays like Blogger. Plus, any social network tool like Myspace or Facebook has their own version of blogging, some having more or less to be desired. Alas, you cannot please everyone.

More often than not I believe many blogs fail and many bloggers become disinterested because it seems bloggers are presented with a blank slate (or a slate they really could care less for) and immediately they want to cram it with all sorts of bells and whistles. I'm not event mentioning their opinions, beliefs, humor and their general voice - the stuff that makes blogs interesting and unique. During the process of creating and maintaining their site they become bored or they become slackers at maintaining an active voice. One of the things that makes blogging so cool is that you get to share what makes you tick and what sparks your interest regardless of whether it has been shared a 1000 times over. Who gives a shit, right? So what if 999 bloggers posted the latest celebrity "crotch shot" on their blogs? Go right ahead and be number 1000!

But this might just be what a lot of people are looking for in a blogging experience. Tumblr not only provides a format that produces post with visual impact but it simplifies the whole process by eliminating on a lot of frills. But honestly, Tumblr does provide really modern looking posts through its design by style approach. For example, if you want to post a picture, Tumblr formats the post especially for photos. If its a video from Google Video or MetaCafe, a quote you heard or a link you want to share, its not a problem. Tumblr has a format already in place to help make a post faster, with less wording and looking great. That is pretty much the philosophy behind it.

So for the next week or so I will be playing with Tumblr and finding out just what it can do. I'll also be taking notes for a possible full review.

Go ahead and check out my own Tumblr here.

SYS