walking west iv
Latest About Archive Before Others

Other Weblogs

In my first weblog I linked to only seven others in the sidebar. Then the rot set in. By March this year I was linking to dozens—and finding new ones all the time. Something had to give: there had to be a cull. But how to club to death all those worthy blogs, looking up at me with their baby seal eyes, saying, 'Please don't, ark, ark, you liked me once, ark, you can like me again'?

The truth is I like them all, and still skim through them occasionally. But that's what personal bookmarks are for. I never planned this to be a weblog portal, and it's time to stop trying to make it one.

Instead, I'm going back to the beginning, by linking to exactly seven other weblogs—and not just any old weblogs. No links to the San Francisco A-list or the UK's 'big bloggers', because everyone already knows who they are. No link to the mighty JZ or the notorious Neale, who surely don't need the publicity. No links to Slashdot, MeFi, Memepool and the rest. Just seven blogs you may well not have heard of that keep me coming back again and again—every day, in fact.

One Day Soon

I might as well get the rampant nepotism out of the way first. James is my only real-life friend who logs, has his own domain-name, and all that. He lives in London and works in comedy, as writer and performer. If you've ever wondered how the British comedy industry works, his log will give you an insight; in August 2001, for example, he wrote extensively about the three-week run of his Edinburgh Fringe show.

Inflight Correction

Owen gets me thinking in interesting ways more than just about anybody. In this log he shares good design- and web-related links you usually won't have seen before; and in its companion, Stay Awake, he shares thoughts in longer form that you won't have heard before.

What's New Pussycat?

Shauna lives in Canberra, Australia, where she works in the web industry. In the hands of a lesser writer her confessional style of blogging could be corny or depressing, but wnp is always fun, and as often as not downright excellent. Addictive pussery, now with added dog.

Wombat File

In this little-known gem, four intercontinental friends in the US and Australia conduct an intelligent and amusing weblog discussion. Design? There is none; they still use an old-school Blogger template. But at Wombat File content is king, as it should be. Any blog that boldly announces 'we doubt you exist' by way of an email link gets my vote.

Virulent Memes

Graham casts his informed and gonzo gaze over the web and the news every single day, which speaks volumes about the entertainment opportunities available in regional Australia. He's also an editor for Grouse!, which is, and cracks the whip at Records Ad Nauseam, whose contributors include yours truly; and he's a Mike Oldfield fan and proud of it.

Dr Mabuse's House of Fun

Ed takes no prisoners in his posts about the web and the world (with an emphasis on film). His regular rants live here, while his occasional rants live at edrants. Dr Mabuse was once a fairly low-key blog, but in recent months—perhaps because he's been on an exponential growth curve of blog consumption—it's really taken off.

And...

There are several candidates for number seven. And they're all looking at me right now with their fluffy white coats and overpowering smell of fish. I just don't have the heart to save one and club the others. Here—you do it.