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December 10, 2009

Where

Using this blog as an example, there are no hard rules for where this blog is actually written. The length of the posts for this blog are much longer than my daily release blog. This drives me to use a regular editor and paste the longer posts into the blog entry window, and this actually takes most of the activity out of the Browser window. As explained in the How post, there is an annoying bug in the old blogger editor that impacts the act of composing longer, multiple editing-session, posts.
 
Having a local computer is handy for certain aspects of blog publishing, however, as long as you can get to an Internet Browser, you should be able to make a post of some kind. Using a G-Mail account as the e-mail attached to your blog, you can float the entire blog and all of the management tools in the Google cloud. This reduces the baggage of the blog to an e-mail address and an access password, provided that you can access the proper tools.

What if there is a Hole in the Cloud?

While it is true that the PlayStation 3 has an Internet Browser, as of operating system version 3.10, the browser is not fully compatible with Blogger.com or Hotmail.com. G-Mail appears functional, however, it is running in a basic HTML mode, and not in the same mode as it runs on other full-featured browsers like Safari, IE8 or Firefox. In time, and perhaps with some prodding, Sony will see fit to update the PlayStation 3 so that it truly does do (just about) everything.
 
In a pinch, I can switch over to Yellow Dog Linux and get online with a full-featured operating system and included Mozilla browser. This should work quite well, and is an option if my older PlayStation 3 is all I have as an Internet access method. I consider this a backup option. Clearly, where you write your blog quickly becomes a function of which places you can comfortably access the Internet and the appropriate tools.
 
For text blogs, just about anything will work. Any basic text editor can be used to capture keystrokes in cases when the cloud-based browser-dependent tools are inadequate. Photo blogs will need access to graphic manipulation tools, unless you shoot only what you need. I've seen a number of photo-blogs that have stunning imagery, and the image capture tools that these creators are using are professional quality. Technology makes a difference, and will add as many limitations as enhancements.
 
Blogs that include Video will likely leverage even more equipment and processing power. Video editing is more resource intensive than photo manipulation, and most of the basic video manipulation packages are not free. The time and creativity required for video is substantial, and after a short period of time, it is not difficult to imagine that the equipment payload for a video blog would not be grab-and-go portable. If you're currently producing a video blog, feel free to let us know what you're using and where you produce your magic.

If you've got something unique about the "where" of your blog, let us know, and as always if you've got questions or comments, please, by all means, use the feedback controls and leave a comment. It will be appreciated now, and far into the future.

One thing that should be made clear about this blog, is the fact that comments are welcome anywhere. Do make some effort to pick a related post. For those that are unaware, Blogspot blogs can be configured to send an e-mail to the address of your choice when a comment is left. It really does not matter where you leave your comment. I'll make it work.

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