How We Can Improve Recent User Blogs

A blog is a special post which can include, but is not limited to: information, pictures, opinions, facts, or fiction. In fact, there are many different types of blogs, and many of which can be implemented here on JetPunk.

The Recent User Blogs (often abbreviated to the RUB) is a section on JetPunk where blogs are regularly showcased. The RUB is a good place to learn something new, or to understand what has been happening in the community.

However, the RUB has its drawbacks. Why I created this blog is because of a large influx in disruption in the comments of the RUB. The comments are a large part of the blogging section, so criticism must be constructive. This blog will also help you to understand what makes a good blog.

I would like to give an honourable mention to my great friend, Bread, for a fantastic blog he did on how to write a good blog.

The below list is just a guide as to what are usually accepted by the blogging community. This is also not a complete list.

"Good" blogs include:

✔ Fact blogs. However, do not overfill the RUB with these as it will get boring.

✔ Story blogs. These used to be quite popular, but are no longer common.

✔ Help blogs. The community is happy to help you with a question you have.

✔ Blogs like this, which help to divert people to the correct state of a blog.

✔ Puzzle blogs. These are among my favourite, and help to train the mind.

✔ Milestone blogs. Achievements can be celebrated, however an example of a milestone blog should not be "i just reached 10 blogs".

✔ Travel blogs. An interesting series is cuotak's Travelogue series.

✔ Educational blogs. This is similar to the fact blogs, but can also include things like cathlete's Eurekas of Maths series.

✔ Badge blogs. These are unofficial "badges" which can be earned by fulfilling the requirements listed within the blog.

✔ Unique blogs. A unique idea for a blog is sometimes appears in the blog section. Good examples of unique blogs are baptistegorce's Interview of a JetPunker series, and youtubeplayer's A Parody of the Blog.

"Bad" blogs include:

❌ "My quiz just got 100 takes!" - if everyone did this, then the RUB will be full of the same blogs.

❌ "I just hurt my arm, I hope it is okay" - personal matters shouldn't really be implemented into a blog.

❌ "I just reached 10 / 20 / 30 / 40 blogs" - celebrating the number of blogs in a separate blog is unnecessary.

❌ "My first blog" - you should try and make your first blog something interesting.

❌ "My quiz is doing well" - we don't need blogs like this.

❌ "I'm Back" - there were a lot of these recently. Unfortunately, a lot of these at once looks spammy, so an idea could be to include them in the end of a new blog of yours.

❌ "I'm leaving JetPunk", then returning a few days later. The blog now has no meaning.

❌ "Be my JetPunk friend / join my JetPunk group" - like the "I'm Back", this can be implemented into the end of a blog of yours.

❌"[Person] is terrible for doing this" - directly insulting someone is unwelcome here.

A good example of a "bad" blog would be this specially made blog by Bread.

This is a list which outlines some things that make a good blog:

1) A good title. This is the "selling point" to a blog, so make sure it gives a general theme about what the blog is about. Try to also keep it short.

2) Thumbnail. This also gives it a bit more quality, but make sure it is linked to the blog itself.

3) Blurb. The blurb is a simple summary to a blog, which gives a bit more information as to what a blog is about. Do not repeat the title - give some more information as to what it is about.

4) Optimum character limit. The ideal character limit is probably between 3,000 and 10,000 characters, so that is what you should aim for.

5) Clear layout. The use of relevant headings and dividers help to distinctly divide your blog into easy-to-read sections.

6) Good grammar. The blog conveys its point to the audience if it makes sense. Using the correct spelling and punctuation is ideal.

7) Use understandable vocabulary. Using some "fancy" vocabulary is okay sometimes, but don't overuse it, as people will think that Google Dictionary is your best friend. If you could write a sentence as "The pen has been an important invention for many years.", then write it as that, and not "The stylograph has persisted as an indispensable contraption for everlastingness".

8) Good topic. You shouldn't do a topic which has been repeatedly used many times, as this can be boring. Creating a blog with a unique topic can make it stand out in the blog section.

9) Research. When creating educational blogs, make sure that your research is valid (e.g. up to date). Research that is not valid or good will result in more corrections.

10) Plagiarism. When creating blogs, do not use someone else's hard work, and pass it off as your own. Plagiarism is bad, and can get you into trouble.

Here are 12 rules that you should follow if you are a blogger, or if you check the RUB every now and again.

1) Do not scold someone in the comments. Give them constructive criticism on how they can improve. The blogging community should remain peaceful, and this extends to the comments.

2) Do not be hypocritical. If someone gives you criticism, do not delete their comment, then go to criticise someone else in their comments.

3) Accept criticism. Criticism can help your blog to improve, so ignoring it and deleting the comment about criticism is a bad idea.

4) Do not delete comments unless it is necessary. Deleting comments because you hate someone, or because you can't accept criticism is not necessary. Spam is a necessary example for deletion.

5) Do not spam in the comments. It is annoying. This includes nonsense comments, or CSS spam.

6) Be respectful to everyone. We are all human and able to make mistakes. Some of us do not know what is right, so showing others what is right is important.

7) Do not block someone because you disagree with them. Blocking someone should be the last resort, and this is cannot be undone.

8) Do not create a lot of blogs in a short period of time. In order to have a larger community, we need to allow for other people's blogs to be seen. If you create a lot of blogs in a short space of time, then it means other bloggers cannot be seen.

9) Do not spam at the end of blogs to reach the limit. There is a character limit of 500 on blogs. If your blog is too short, then there is a possibility that the blog is not good enough.

10) Likewise, do not create blogs that are too lengthy. There is a limit on blogs of 50,000 characters. It is not a requirement to reach. Blogs that are too long are boring, and lose interest.

11) Verify the facts if you do a fact blog. Some fact websites haven't been updated in years, so do some additional research to see if the facts are true and up-to-date.

12) Make sure to proofread your blogs. This can help to remove any minor spelling or punctuation errors and improve the quality of your blog.

I hope this blog helps you to understand what good blogs are. Be kind to people, if you want them to be kind to you. Follow the criticism that people give you, and do not keep deleting comments which you do not agree with. Be kind in the comments, so we can ensure the RUB becomes the best it can be.

Important points summarised:

- Respect the community around you. Make friends, not enemies. Do not chat bad things where someone else can't see - it is disrespectful.

- Creating good blogs can greatly improve the blogging section, and make it a much more high quality place.

- Causing controversy or disruption is not needed here. We need to make the blogging community as a safe and friendly place, and not a school playground.