This is a how-to guide for anyone wishing to publish on the Internet. The book describes weblogs, Web-based diaries or journals, and the various products and services that have been created over the past few years to facilitate maintaining them.

The book is divided into three parts. Part 1 introduces weblogs, also called “blogs,” defining the term and describing how they are used. Part 2 discusses the components of a weblog, and describes tools and services that are available for maintaining one. Part 3 covers advanced blogging, and is oriented toward creating a successful weblog. Also covered here are the possible uses of weblogs in a business environment. Each part is broken into several chapters. Each chapter concludes with an exercise, to help reinforce the material, and references. The book is supplemented with a Web site, http://www.blogroots.com. This site provides news, and additional information about tools and services. The latter is useful, given the rapid evolution of Internet-related products.

Part 1 discusses the what and why of weblogs, such as what various people do with their weblogs, and the ways in which weblogs have been used. The text goes into areas such as online identity and how to manage it, weblog communities, and weblog genres.

Part 2 addresses the mechanics of weblogs. It first covers the basics of Web pages, such as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), links, and Internet protocols. Next is a description of the components of a weblog itself, for example, what elements an entry should contain, how HTML can be used in a posting, and so on. Since most weblog authors are likely to use one of the existing weblog hosting services, several of these are reviewed here. The reviews are quite good, including comments on the service’s user experience, performance, security, features, and so on. Part 2 concludes with a much more technical description of the internals of a weblog service, including a detailed discussion of a content management system, and an exercise to create one.

Part 3 covers style and marketing, plus a description of how weblogs can be used in a business setting. Here, one finds ways to connect with one’s audience, such as through a comment system, a guest book, or a mailing list. Also discussed are techniques for publicity, such as how to integrate one’s content with search engines, and syndication, which is a process and protocol for reaching a wider audience by providing a way for other Web sites to discover and find information about one’s weblog. The chapter on business uses relates weblogs to more formal knowledge management systems, and discusses the collaborative benefits that weblogs can achieve.

This book is written for Internet novices, assuming no prior knowledge of Internet protocols. The writing is clear and easy to read, and provides detailed how-to information for getting a weblog up and running. The reviews of weblog services provide useful information on the capabilities and other aspects of each service. The one weak spot in the book is the emphasis on content management systems, and the exercise in chapter 6 to create one. Such a system is quite a bit more complex than represented. Creating and, especially, maintaining one is not likely to be the straightforward process outlined by the exercise. Other than this relatively minor point, the book achieves its objective, describing how to publish online with weblogs.