A blog is somewhere you can share your thoughts, ideas and views with the world so the idea of a private blog sounds like an oxymoron. But a blog can be much more and can have uses beyond that originally intended. A private blog may be the very tool you need for the job at hand.
First what is a private blog? A private blog is one that you control access to. It is not open to public view. It may be one only you can read or one that only selected people can read or optionally post to.
Most blogging platforms have some type of privacy controls. WordPress.com allows a totally private blog, one to which only you can have access, or one with controlled access, you select who can read and post to it. Other blogs may allow you to control access to the whole blog or just individual entries. Look for Privacy or access levels or it may be like Vox and ask “who can read this?”.
So you have a private blog, what can you do with it? The answer is almost anything but here are a few ideas.
OK the simplest one first, a personal diary. As long as you keep the password secret your innermost thoughts are safe from curious partners, siblings or house mates. Better still keep its existence secret.
A private blog can be a basic form of groupware. You have an idea for a scheme that will make you a fortune but you need some help getting it off the ground and your most trusted ally is on the other side of town, country or planet. You need somewhere you can bounce ideas around until you come up with the prefect plan. A private blog with you selecting just the two (or more) of you to have access and you are set. More colleagues can be brought on board as needed.
You travel regularly and carry your contacts, schedules and meeting notes on your laptop, pda, cellphone etc. What happens when it is stolen, lost or just stops working, do you have a backup? If you had entered all that information on a private blog you do. Just find the nearest internet café. Give your assistant access too and any updates are there when you need them. After the meetings add your reports and they are back are at the office and hopefully being acted on before you get back.
Your family is spread across different time zones but you still want to feel close. A private blog only the immediate family can access is the perfect place to share your news, photos or whatever.
What about an electronic sticky note? There are applications for your desktop but if you use a number of computers a blog can be a temporary storage to keep notes, addresses, numbers etc.
These a just few ideas you may find useful. But what could you do with a private blog? Do you use one now? and what for?
Techodyssey 