The term "blog" as I understand it comes from "weblog" which is like a "daily column" of one person's thoughts.  A blog doesn't necessarily have to be an interactive community, but if that's what the blogger wants to make it, more power to him or her.  Many bloggers are columnists who are content to post their thoughts and have people read them with no interaction or response.  And by the way, i just pinched myself, so I know I'm real.

 Actually

I'm a composit of several old cranky ladies who have nothing better to do than argue with other imaginary people.

 I'm a figment of nobody's imagination (what?).

Great responses from all three of you :)  How would you answer this:  Does the technology and the nature of blogging itself, alter our behavior, and change the way that we interact with one another?  Is so, how? 

Does the technology lend itself to being authentic with one another?  Are friends that we make (or enemies for that matter) really true friends and true enemies, if we have never met the person?  Is there a certain artificiality to our interactions that is unique to the whole blogging phenomena?  In short, is blogging natural, or does it create a sort of artificial culture that is based on assumptions and perceptions that are completely ill-conceived and based on assumptions? 

 Blog

When I first started blogging (three/four years ago)  I was extremely thin skinned and got my feelings hurt a lot.    Then I realized that there are some hostile bloggers who are going to use the blogs as a weapon.  I refused to buy into their anger.  That's when I became a seasoned blogger. 

 Oh poofdoodle Blog....of course it alters how we interact with each other.  Meet and greets are a great example of that.  On here we get sarcastic and sneery at times but when we meet in person we're much more polite.  Even in disagreements we a lot more cordial.

Did anyone even mention party affiliations or religeous preferences at the meet and greets?   And there wasn't a fist fight in sight.

That's because Buffoo came late. :)

 Yeah, I've been on the receiving end of plenty of that too, AudreyB.  Thick skin is what is needed alright.  BTW, do you really think these people are really as mean when they get off of the internet?  Is it possible that at least some of them let out more of their ugly side when they are hiding behind a screen name? 

 Audrey, when I started here I was previously seasoned by TBC's earlier attempt at message boards.  I had already been called everything from a sleep arounder to "so sticky sweet my shoes stuck to the floor."  I was good to go when TBC brought the blog on line.  Well...as soon as I found it anyway.  :-)

 We take ona bit of a persona on these posts. Some people are even typecasted as beign the "Racist", "Conservatives", "Commies", whatever. I feel free to express my opinion whereas in reality, my profession does not always allow me to do that. If we all met in person, I'm sure that we'd actually like each other or find some amusing. The cyber world is also a virtual paradox in that we are close yet so far away. We express our opinions to others, mostly in political blogs, while we are actually talking "past" each other preaching our stances. There is no dialogue, just people sounding off for their cause. Occasionally we can find something tame to discuss (something humorous or noncontroversial).

 ROFL Random..good one.

 When I started on here I got roasted daily due to my stance on the Brothers' case. That was my main motivation for being on here but somehow someway, I got addicted to the commentary on here. The longer I'm on here the more I see the complexity in folks. It's an interesting world.

 Ah but Jf...those tame, humorous and non controversial blogs die out quickly.  You never see THEM running 4 pages.  LOL.

And the one-sided religious ones attract zero comments.

 and the illegal immigration rantings get old too

 Now now RF...You guys all responded to those religeous posts.  I don't think I ever saw one that didn't get multiple responses.

 See there, we're even arguing over the blog itself.  Sometimes I think we're all here because we like to argue.  Spouses probably wouldn't put up with it at home and if one has a spouse with like thoughts what fun would that be?

When I start arguing with my dogs, they go off and go to sleep.  So here I am.

Look at Buffoo's last several.  He deletes anything he can't answer, and therefore there's no "there" there.  No interest, because folks instinctively realize there's no intellectual value to be gained therein.

 Ah..ok..gotcha Random.

 Jfrancis

I use my name because it forces me to own up to what I say.  What you read here from me is really me. 

I try to be careful about what I say.    If I write something that sounds too harsh or untrue I will use the edit feature to change it. 

Wiriting is an old friend of mine.  I've been keeping a journal since age 13.  There's  now a shelf full of books detailing my life in the top of my closet.  I worked out any self delusions I had about myself while keeping those journals during the last 48 years. 

My problem now is what do I do with a lifetime of self revelation.  

 I think it all depends. I never take to many things personally, but do like see what others think or how they view issues. What I dont like is the few who enjoy attacking people personally for their views.

Not sure if I would call people who blog or who I enjoy reading what they say as friends, but do believe if you put everyone who blogs in a room we would probably all enjoy each others company.

Audrey

I don't use my name because some of the things I say could get me in big trouble plus I have a fear of blowing my cover (Heck i wont even get tattoos or piercings to stay "anonymous"). My opinions are truly mine although I have a pseudonym. Whether you use your real name or not, your persona will be called out if your opinions flip flop or are not consistent.

 jf

I used my real name at work at it DID get me in trouble,  twice.  Even though I was blogging before work and during my lunch break.   There were two or three people who really wanted to shut me up, one an ex fellow employee.   So, all I can say is NERTS to them.

I have been involved with several varied "sites" where one blogs,interacts or not depending on the person's desires. I have seen worse,I have seen better. I do believe what jfrancis says is true,multiple personalities will tell,staying "in character" is tough to do day in and day out...though the urban legend is I am buffoo in disguise ,-).

I have my better more thoughtful days,others where for one reason or another "things" can hit me the wrong way. I try to be reasoned or just plain silly. All I can control is my reaction to things or words~sometimes with more success, the other times? Well, they are sooo rare ( sarcasm). But I am truly interested in people,how they "do" what they do,and some here have influenced me to be a better person. I may not agree with a idea,but sharing thoughts is a good thing.

However some folks get way to carried away,mostly I feel for them and wonder what has soured them.  I have a tendency to think people want to be nice,but I maybe so very wrong.There is one poster,who is just plain..out there. Enough said. I know I am a real ,breathing human~so I try to extend that courtesy to others.

I use my name because it forces me to own up to what I say.  What you read here from me is really me. 

Audrey, you've very quickly become one of my favorite bloggers.  Thank you for your conscientious posts.

I tend to think the same; my real name attached to what I write here forces me to carefully consider my posts to ensure that they reflect what i really think.

In short, is blogging natural, or does it create a sort of artificial culture that is based on assumptions and perceptions that are completely ill-conceived and based on assumptions? 

I'm a huge fan of blogging, particularly on this site, because it permits the sharing of a diversity of ideas.  Most of us would never meet in the real world absent this blog and we certainly wouldn't have the opportunity to share our views on such a variety of different subjects without the facilitation of this site.  That's awesome.

I have noticed, to a certain extent, a need for me to change my written communication patterns when interacting on this blog.  In college, I worked pretty hard to get over my childhood shyness and to develop confident, careful speech patterns that would support success in the business world.  I cut out a lot of the feminine communication qualifiers, hedges and other displays of hesitance that are often interpretted by others as a sign of indecision or poor confidence.  As a writer and editor, my work is focused upon being clear and succinct. 

That doesn't work so well on this site.  Short phrases tend to get misinterpretted more than long descriptions.  Writing on this blog, I've found a need to use "I think" or "I feel that" a whole lot more than I ever would in r/l because of the language conventions on this blog.  It's an interesting change likely necessitated by the absence of nonverbal cues and voice inflections that help us express our views in real life.  I'm not sure that qualifies as an artificial culture but it certainly suggests a renegotiation of the boundaries of communication norms.

 your name is Freecognate?

 Click on the handle?  Plenty of folks have referred to me as Jessica and not as Free, particularly when I first starting posting, so I assumed they figured it out.  The pic is actually me too, so someone even not bothering to click on the handle to get my real name could recognize me on the street as FreeCognate. 

But I am in the process of having my name legally changed to FreeCognate.  FreeCognate Korcok has a nice ring to it.  If I can't get it for myself, I know what I'll be telling the husband what I want to name our first child.

 Cool and interesting.

It is a community and a great one at that.  We all fight and joke around and shares stories.  There are a few jerks here (myself sometimes included) and I feel like things escalate more quickly here than they would in reality since you have to say everything at once rather than changing your phrases mid-thought in response to the people around you.

 Free

What's the worst thing that can happen if you speak the truth (as you see it) on the blogs?  Someone will threaten to come over your house and beat you up?   I already had that happen. 

What's the worst thing that can happen if you share something personal about yourself on the blogs?  Someone will call you filthy names and insult the way you look.  I already had THAT happen too.

The worst thing that can happen to me now is being kicked off the blogs  for my "earthy"  language.   

I learned to write from my daughter, Cat.  I always knew something was lacking in my own style, but it wasn't until I read something my daughter wrote that I understood what it was.   Simplicity and forthrightness.    T hose two things will make you a fearless blogger. 

PS  I like you too.

 Okay, the awesome answers continue to pour in, but I have another question.  Is there any inherent danger (associated with the convenience of the blog scene) in substituting blog life for a "real" life---a real social life, a real family life etc.?  Is there an inherent danger in becoming consumed with blogging, to the detriment of other important dimensions of our lives? 

I use "real" for lack of a better term.  There are elements of "real" within the realm of blogosphere interactions, but then there are also multiple ambiguous elements that can lead to a variety of confusing and often frustrating interactions.  Sometimes it feels unnatural to me to be communicating with somebody I've never met before.  You don't really know who you're communicating with, apart from the words you see appearing on the screen. 

Furthermore, important social cues that we come to rely on and take for granted while we're in the "real world," are missing.  I've had a lot of fun, but it's also a little wierd, isn't it?  Is this what we've been reduced to?  In terms of social and intellectual interaction, is it really a step forward?  Sometimes it seems to me to be a step backwards.  Is it evolution of communication or de-evolution? 

 Blog

I was addicted to blogging at one point.  Now I blog for a few hours, then I'm off for a week or two.  It's keeps blogging from becoming addictive.

It's good to exercise that sort of self-discipline, AudreyB, but if you were truly addicted, would it be possible to simply use willpower to alter your blog behavior?  Or did it require more than simply will power? 

 Frankly, I'm too busy to blog every day.  

When I worked in front of a computer every day, with not enough to keep me busy, I would blog.  I became addicted from boredom.  

I think that's true of a lot of people on the blogs.

 I agree.  It's almost as if boredom and convenience, combined, have the potential to become the "pushers" of cyber addictions.   Maybe temptress is a better term.  Those things, by themselves lack the power to guide our behaviors.  It's what we do with the boredom and with the convenience.  We can take the path of least resistence, or we can find a way to challenge ourselves in ways that involve a greater, and more productive level of personal investment.

I yam what I yam!!  What I write is how I talk! or so I've been told!!! One on one - person to person, if I'm upset or happy with someone, I say so!!!  Always have always will!  Has it gotten me in deep doo-doo??  YUP!  If I am proven incorrect (can't say the "W" word! me and the fonz!) beyond a shadow of a doubt, I will be the first to apologize. 

 Blog,  No danger of blogging substituting for real life here although when we get together some of the family will reference the blogs since 4 of us put in apprearances here.  It's sometimes intermingled with our other political and social discussions but since we all tend to have the same outlooks we have to use the blog for dissension.

RE: Names.  I'm Nancy wherever I go but changed NancyG to Nancy II because of my job.  Now that I no longer work for the local guvmint I don't have to watch what I say.  Funny thing about even the first name.  I ran into a cousin a while back and she asked "That IS you in the paper isn't it?"  When I fessed up she said she knew it because I wrote exactly the way I talk.  I didn't know if that was a compliment or not and didn't ask.

At work, still under NancyG, I had clients ask about that all the time.  When the article came out in the paper with my name, and then later the commercial, I really got a lot of questions.  That's when I started to be more careful about some of the things I said.  I was held accountable by the clients in my groups.  And trust me...they don't miss much.  :-)

 I agree that using my real name/face keeps things more authentic than if I used a pseudonym.  No, I'm not named Baby.  But like Free said, it's a click away.  Yikes!

And Blog--your questions regarding the psychology of this venue are poignant.  I think it depends on a person's personality, ego, mental stability, tendency to be compulsive, etc.  I have too much snot on my brain to be eloquent right now, but what I'm saying is, a weirdo will appear weird (eventually) on a blog.  An intellectual bully will surface after a while.  People show up, we watch how they "behave," and generally get an idea of what the person is all about.

On this site, the heated threads attract those who are drawn to fiery discussion.  The more humorous or lighthearted threads attract those who prefer that flavor of banter.  So far it seems there's something for everyone, eh?

Ultimately I suppose if a person has something to hide, blogs are a great space for that.  The anonymity could be seductive to one who wants to hide his/her true whatevers.  Authentic voices mingle about as well.  Instinct can usually tell them apart.

Thanks for your reflections on the topic, all of you.  Each of you has a unique perspective, so it's good to hear from all of you. 

 Interesting observations, Baby.

 I gotta say I was more addicted when I had my foot surgeries.  I had no where to go, so being in contact with the outside world was wonderful.  Now, I'm free to move about the planet, so I'm not here so much anymore....I can literally walk away, lol.

 I try not to get "blogged down" with these things.