Differences Between Traditional Web Pages and Blogs


While a blog is a special form of a web page, it differs from a traditional web page in several aspects.  First and most importantly, a blog is very interactive.  Blogs make information sharing a two way street. This is done by inviting readers to comment on posted articles and then displaying those comments to all readers of the blog.  While traditional web pages may invite some feedback, it’s usually limited and section-specific.  Comments or feedback from readers is not the primary focus of a traditional web-page, as it is in a blog. A second main difference between a traditional web page and a blog is the size of the audience.  In general, one could say that traditional web pages are meant to appeal to larger groups of readers. Blogs, on-the-other-hand, due to the specificity of their content, tend to be viewed by smaller groups of readers with special interests. Even though blog sites are as individual as those who author them, most have common elements.  In addition to allowing comments, the blog posts are time-stamped, show up in reverse chronological order, and most have an RSS feed. This RSS feed takes the news to the reader via a subscription which eliminates the necessity for the reader to "revisit" the site regularly because the latest news is "delivered" to them. Lastly, a difference between a traditional web page and a blog lies in the ease with which the author can maintain, update, and add new content to the site.  Changes to a web page require HTML code.  Entries can be added to a blog simply in the form of a written message – no programming required.