I'm the author of the post. Sincerely appreciate all the words here, this legit made my morning.
I wonder if part of this has to do with fewer people writing in their own space anymore. Most people post in sanitised UIs of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. So seeing a personal page is confronting, unless it's a vanilla theme. Not sure. Either way, I'd love to see more people maintain personal blogs again. And with RSS! Maybe we need to resurrect something like Technorati.
I think it's precipitated by the shift of the Web from an early-adopters world that is mostly exploring the idea of being online, to one where the property-ownership ladder has taken precedence.
The idea of being a "serious professional" is entangled in that of "the personal brand" and thus in your identity being your property. But it's not just that: it's also that this property has some assumed virtuous pattern of development(in the sense of Aristotle), and something that is not that pattern is incorrect, and possibly threatening because it disrupts their preconceptions of what is right - and it's always a preconceived thing, young kids aren't afflicted by this. They'd like to take the content - because it's valuable - while protecting those beliefs, so an urge rises to lash out, dismiss everything, give "helpful hints" about what to do better, or call it degenerate, because changing a belief is hard within oneself.
> I wonder if part of this has to do with fewer people writing in their own space anymore.
It's not just the blogosphere. This trend is everywhere. People don't just post vacation photos for friends, they try to become influencers. They don't throw parties, they try to be come DJs, they don't hack on little open source projects, they try to start passive income lifestyle businesses.
Everything's a hustle, everything's for money.
I don't know if this is born out of economic necessity because the middle class is hollowing out, or more just culture shifting to equate "success" with "rich". But it seems like fewer and fewer things are just... fun... anymore. It's always gotta be for something.
Hey mate, great post! I think that there's a slight renaissance in regards to blogging and personal websites. Of course, I could be biased as I "resurrected" mine two weeks ago :).
I will be building a new RSS reader/platform soonish. I will definitely think on the topic of resurrecting Technorati.
"Sanitized" Twitter certainly has that conflict too - and its relatively accepted there that no, people don't just post about one thing if they don't want to, while at the same time some people do complain about it.
You have a very nice website. some_furry's is great too.
This is the kind of thing I miss from the web of the 90s and early 2000s. A vocal minority might complain that it doesn't look like Medium with the useless hero image of a laptop in a desk, the 45 trackers and analytics and paywall, but I silently enjoy both the content and the personality, so thank you both.
Might be the culture I live in or I'm getting old and stopping to care, but I frankly wouldn't have a problem putting this as a reference link in some internal documentation or in Slack. We have a Manga Guide to Databases in our work library since forever, so maybe the mascot is fitting. A furry-themed blog would fit too, of course, as we have a few O'Reilly books (but none with a wolf unfortunately). Jokes aside, I find the mascots of both sites tasteful and nicely drawn, btw.
> Either way, I'd love to see more people maintain personal blogs again.
The basic problem is that in terms of foregone consulting hours, writing a personal blog and hosting it using custom software is roughly the equivalent of purchasing and then purposely totaling several Teslas per year.
I'm 53 and still laugh at fart jokes, let the dog lick my face, and wear shirts with collars as "office camouflage" only when necessary. I am way ahead of you on the timeline and will let you know when it's time to grow up.
Media publishing is about having a target market and not worrying about the segments you don't hit. Late night comedians don't worry about not having Rush Limbaugh listeners in their demographic and vice versa.
As you rightly say, your blog posts are part therapy and part knowledge transfer. That doesn't mean the "technical publishing" meta-tag doesn't also reasonably apply and brings a segment of readers with certain expectations.
I really appreciate that you opened the curtain a bit on their concerns and your disdain for them.
The day I stop laughing at fart jokes, enjoying doggie kisses, and start dressing like a standard-issue, business casual office drone, I hope someone hauls me off to a doctor to get checked out.
> Late night comedians don't worry about not having Rush Limbaugh listeners in their demographic and vice versa.
I mean, the lefty late-nights may not be hitting that market right now, but that doesn't mean that a competent one couldn't hit it without compromising the model.
I really wish we didn't put so much pressure to be professional and serious all the time. Working takes up 1/3 of my life currently and I can't actually be my self. Another third is sleeping. So for only 1/3 of my time I can actually act like my self. I hate that there is a pressure to talk a certain, act a certain way, express my self a certain way. I think we really need more of a emphasis on being human, less "circle back" and "work streams", more jokes, more smiling and experimenting.
I am shocked and dismayed that people are emailing you because your blog is too fun and diverse.
It reminds me of my wish for anyone who is even semipopular on the internet, whether it be through a blog, Youtube channel, etc. I wish for them to ignore the comments. Log into your email, select all, and delete. That might be healthier, not just for you but for the world, because you would not be dragged down by their negativity.
I am surprised by what people say in the comments sections of various websites. But I am equally surprised when I see the author take them seriously and give them the dignity of a reply. Or a Youtuber who seems like a healhty happy intelligent person with interesting content start to talk about some of the crazy things people have been saying in the comments. "Why are you even listening to those people?" I think. But I try to remember that I myself would probably be tempted to wonder if they're right or to start replying --- and get ensnared.
If you're browsing the site on a mobile phone like I was, you probably won't see the image of the mascot on the right-hand-side. Even if you click the "mascot" link, you'll just go to a text description of it.
Speaking of the mascot, I admit I was a little put off by Rubi (that's her name!) at first. But, upon further review, she's just a normal schoolgirl-looking character with mismatched socks, drawn in an anime style. She's totally SFW, so, I can only guess my negative association was initially driven by "anime girl" stereotypes. She doesn't turn me off from wanting to read any more of the author's posts, provided they have something on a topic I'm interested in.
It's also totally valid to separate different aspects if that's what you are more comfortable with (e.g. have two distinct feeds). That's the nice thing about your own blog, you get to make those decisions as you prefer.
That struggle is real, especially when grappling with imposter syndrome or a shy personality too. Half the reason I love reading personal blogs is seeing the author's personality.
An old boss of mine said you can't truly fake enthusiasm. That's stuck with me since.
I generally take the amount of garlic in any given recipe to be a suggestion. I find that, most of the time, doubling the garlic makes a much more flavorful dish.
In some ways I feel like I have the opposite problem. I like to occasionally write tech related articles but my blog mainly features information related to my hobby and that’s what most people follow my blog for. Now I feel weird if I want to post a tech related article because everyone will get notifications for it when they’re expecting hobby related posts
I struggled with this too. I used to have separate blogs for different interests (especially anime, for fear of judgement, some of which has since come true in some of the comments below!) Eventually I merged them back to save on maintenance, and I'm glad I did.
People should expect that a personal site necessarily has your interests. I don't think it'd be weird at all for you to post tech-related content. And you never know, there might be an intersection with your exiting readers you didn't know about.
I've never understood the need to be an ongoing drone. Is this really the sort of thing people want in life, or is it from some notion of work makes the person? Some days I love what I do, most days I like what I do, occasionally I hate what I do. In none of those days do I define myself by what I do.
Good on you for writing what you want to. If someone wants to focus purely on a single subject that's great FOR THEM. Personally, I'm rather saddened by the fact that I keep starting and stopping blogs for decades; I'm also thrilled to see someone who has kept one up for 15 years. Great stuff!
To both rubenerd and some_furry - keep doing what you're doing. You write articles for your own enjoyment and your own communities. As you probably realize - you have no obligation to cater to anyone but yourself. :)
I wrote a collection of posts about a political event a few years ago. They were aimed a politically naive posh young professionals.
The posts were sweary, crude, but crucially written in my _own_ style.
The actual subject was very serious.
when they were widely shared on facebook (~37k impressions of 2 minutes or longer) I was amused by the "Oh I do wish they wouldn't swear" or "why are they making dick/vag jokes"
They couldn't seem to grasp that if I'd have written in in a dry, clean style, not only would they have not read it, but they wouldn't have understood my point.
Humour, irreverence and swearing are all tools to convey a meaning, point or story. Used well (I am fully willing to admit that I have not been masterful in my use) they can create a mental image far stronger than any other metaphor.
Rock on - so true - the web used to be a safe place to express oneself; now, saying the wrong thing results in hundreds of negative comments and F/J-finger wagging.
It would be great to get back to more individualism on the web.
Personally, I find the rubenerd site mascot to be tasteful. The shades of green and blue complement each other well, and the skirt's length isn't risque enough to raise my eyebrows. (But then again, I'm not exactly a prude.)
So many comments. Just wanted to say, never seen furry stuff before and found the art on the linked page quite pleasant. I’m flabbergasted that this is some kind of issue for anyone. Methinks the lady doth protest too much. I for one found my furiousity piqued by the imagery.
Put yourself in the shoes of someone who wants to send these articles to their manager to support an idea/project of theirs. It absolutely detracts from the professionalism of the post.
Any joe-schmo can string together smart sounding words. You need to signal to me that I need to take these words seriously, and when you mix in your otherworldly passions, I can’t take them seriously, it’s too unfamiliar to me.
Aside from that, what it is about the anime and furry culture that pushes its participants to include it in everything? Every once in a while, I see a post on the cringe subreddit of some young man who has peppered anime and fursonas all throughout a school presentation. What is driving the need to include this in everything?
[+] [-] rubenerd|5 years ago|reply
I wonder if part of this has to do with fewer people writing in their own space anymore. Most people post in sanitised UIs of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. So seeing a personal page is confronting, unless it's a vanilla theme. Not sure. Either way, I'd love to see more people maintain personal blogs again. And with RSS! Maybe we need to resurrect something like Technorati.
Cheers :)
[+] [-] megameter|5 years ago|reply
The idea of being a "serious professional" is entangled in that of "the personal brand" and thus in your identity being your property. But it's not just that: it's also that this property has some assumed virtuous pattern of development(in the sense of Aristotle), and something that is not that pattern is incorrect, and possibly threatening because it disrupts their preconceptions of what is right - and it's always a preconceived thing, young kids aren't afflicted by this. They'd like to take the content - because it's valuable - while protecting those beliefs, so an urge rises to lash out, dismiss everything, give "helpful hints" about what to do better, or call it degenerate, because changing a belief is hard within oneself.
[+] [-] munificent|5 years ago|reply
It's not just the blogosphere. This trend is everywhere. People don't just post vacation photos for friends, they try to become influencers. They don't throw parties, they try to be come DJs, they don't hack on little open source projects, they try to start passive income lifestyle businesses.
Everything's a hustle, everything's for money.
I don't know if this is born out of economic necessity because the middle class is hollowing out, or more just culture shifting to equate "success" with "rich". But it seems like fewer and fewer things are just... fun... anymore. It's always gotta be for something.
[+] [-] stanislavb|5 years ago|reply
I will be building a new RSS reader/platform soonish. I will definitely think on the topic of resurrecting Technorati.
[+] [-] detaro|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] teraku|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ratww|5 years ago|reply
This is the kind of thing I miss from the web of the 90s and early 2000s. A vocal minority might complain that it doesn't look like Medium with the useless hero image of a laptop in a desk, the 45 trackers and analytics and paywall, but I silently enjoy both the content and the personality, so thank you both.
Might be the culture I live in or I'm getting old and stopping to care, but I frankly wouldn't have a problem putting this as a reference link in some internal documentation or in Slack. We have a Manga Guide to Databases in our work library since forever, so maybe the mascot is fitting. A furry-themed blog would fit too, of course, as we have a few O'Reilly books (but none with a wolf unfortunately). Jokes aside, I find the mascots of both sites tasteful and nicely drawn, btw.
[+] [-] ant6n|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] xupybd|5 years ago|reply
Not trying to say you should just interested in your motivation :)
[+] [-] Alex3917|5 years ago|reply
The basic problem is that in terms of foregone consulting hours, writing a personal blog and hosting it using custom software is roughly the equivalent of purchasing and then purposely totaling several Teslas per year.
[+] [-] el_don_almighty|5 years ago|reply
Media publishing is about having a target market and not worrying about the segments you don't hit. Late night comedians don't worry about not having Rush Limbaugh listeners in their demographic and vice versa.
As you rightly say, your blog posts are part therapy and part knowledge transfer. That doesn't mean the "technical publishing" meta-tag doesn't also reasonably apply and brings a segment of readers with certain expectations.
I really appreciate that you opened the curtain a bit on their concerns and your disdain for them.
They aren't your customers and never will be
Saddle up the unicorn and keep riding
[+] [-] pmiller2|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] microcolonel|5 years ago|reply
I mean, the lefty late-nights may not be hitting that market right now, but that doesn't mean that a competent one couldn't hit it without compromising the model.
[+] [-] tayo42|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] combatentropy|5 years ago|reply
It reminds me of my wish for anyone who is even semipopular on the internet, whether it be through a blog, Youtube channel, etc. I wish for them to ignore the comments. Log into your email, select all, and delete. That might be healthier, not just for you but for the world, because you would not be dragged down by their negativity.
I wish that you and others could remember that it takes a certain kind of person even to begin writing an email to a stranger with a blog. They are likely neurotic, https://web.archive.org/web/20170430010047/https://www.truth...
I am surprised by what people say in the comments sections of various websites. But I am equally surprised when I see the author take them seriously and give them the dignity of a reply. Or a Youtuber who seems like a healhty happy intelligent person with interesting content start to talk about some of the crazy things people have been saying in the comments. "Why are you even listening to those people?" I think. But I try to remember that I myself would probably be tempted to wonder if they're right or to start replying --- and get ensnared.
[+] [-] quicklime|5 years ago|reply
The image is here: https://rubenerd.com/[email protected]
[+] [-] Igelau|5 years ago|reply
It's the socks. Those mismatched socks are clearly triggering the kinds of people who serially straighten out picture frames.
[+] [-] pmiller2|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] hitekker|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Tade0|5 years ago|reply
But posts like this one here show me that it was cargo culting from the get go.
I have much to say, but to date dismissed most of it, because (oh the irony) I thought I shouldn't make this personal space of mine too personal.
[+] [-] detaro|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rubenerd|5 years ago|reply
An old boss of mine said you can't truly fake enthusiasm. That's stuck with me since.
[+] [-] k__|5 years ago|reply
I did too and it worked very well.
[+] [-] hinkley|5 years ago|reply
I know people who would say that everything could use more garlic. I suspect that would also extend to blogs.
[+] [-] pmiller2|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] 082349872349872|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] AaronNewcomer|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] rubenerd|5 years ago|reply
People should expect that a personal site necessarily has your interests. I don't think it'd be weird at all for you to post tech-related content. And you never know, there might be an intersection with your exiting readers you didn't know about.
[+] [-] duckmysick|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] cik|5 years ago|reply
Good on you for writing what you want to. If someone wants to focus purely on a single subject that's great FOR THEM. Personally, I'm rather saddened by the fact that I keep starting and stopping blogs for decades; I'm also thrilled to see someone who has kept one up for 15 years. Great stuff!
[+] [-] a_t48|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] KaiserPro|5 years ago|reply
I wrote a collection of posts about a political event a few years ago. They were aimed a politically naive posh young professionals.
The posts were sweary, crude, but crucially written in my _own_ style.
The actual subject was very serious.
when they were widely shared on facebook (~37k impressions of 2 minutes or longer) I was amused by the "Oh I do wish they wouldn't swear" or "why are they making dick/vag jokes"
They couldn't seem to grasp that if I'd have written in in a dry, clean style, not only would they have not read it, but they wouldn't have understood my point.
Humour, irreverence and swearing are all tools to convey a meaning, point or story. Used well (I am fully willing to admit that I have not been masterful in my use) they can create a mental image far stronger than any other metaphor.
So I commend your post, you dick. <3
[+] [-] nowandlater|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Tomminn|5 years ago|reply
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ainyK6fXku0
I know this because Ben Folds had a hand in it, and I'm a long-time Ben Folds fan.
[+] [-] dctoedt|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nartz|5 years ago|reply
It would be great to get back to more individualism on the web.
[+] [-] stanislavb|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|5 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] some_furry|5 years ago|reply
I get a lot of similar feedback for using art of my fursona in my blog posts (i.e. for the purpose of added emotional inflection).
The feedback was sufficient enough to warrant a dedicated response post: https://soatok.blog/2020/07/09/a-word-on-anti-furry-sentimen...
Personally, I find the rubenerd site mascot to be tasteful. The shades of green and blue complement each other well, and the skirt's length isn't risque enough to raise my eyebrows. (But then again, I'm not exactly a prude.)
[+] [-] nkingsy|5 years ago|reply
[+] [-] throw_24537147|5 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] jbob2000|5 years ago|reply
Any joe-schmo can string together smart sounding words. You need to signal to me that I need to take these words seriously, and when you mix in your otherworldly passions, I can’t take them seriously, it’s too unfamiliar to me.
Aside from that, what it is about the anime and furry culture that pushes its participants to include it in everything? Every once in a while, I see a post on the cringe subreddit of some young man who has peppered anime and fursonas all throughout a school presentation. What is driving the need to include this in everything?
[+] [-] furfags_go_away|5 years ago|reply
[deleted]