Why I Am Still Writing a Blog#
More Inclusive and Open, Able to Express Relatively Freely#
Although the popularity of the internet has made creation and expression much easier than in the print media era, where everyone can be a creator, the current ecosystem of mobile internet is clearly very poor. Various content platforms are competing for traffic, becoming increasingly closed and exclusive. The opportunities are also shrinking tighter, with too much that cannot be said, creating a very oppressive feeling.
Algorithms are constantly calculating people's precious attention, and with the rise of short videos, the stimulation of a few seconds one after another seems endless. Bad content drives out good, leading to an endless stream of eye-catching clickbait tactics. Some platforms even intentionally promote divisive topics to incite emotions for traffic.
Blogs are a relatively clean space where one can express themselves more freely. Moreover, every word written belongs to the individual rather than the platform, allowing for freedom in formatting, editing, searching, and hyperlinking.
In my view, hyperlinks represent the fundamental freedom of the internet, equal access to information is a right that everyone should have. The constant jumping of links while reading blogs is, for me, similar to the pleasure of finding books through other books; it continuously breaks my existing cognition and serves as a good channel for exploring new fields and knowledge.
As Zuo Erduo Haizi said in “The Posture of Article Dissemination”:
The internet is open and shared, not closed.
I hope my articles can be RSS fed to various readers, I hope my articles can have a longer lifespan, I hope my articles can be indexed by search engines, and I hope my articles can be modified.
I hope my articles can become part of the ecosystem. The so-called ecosystem is about mutual integration, not exclusivity. This is the same principle as open-source software; open-source software is not just about releasing the source code, but about being compatible and supportive of existing software, which is the essence of software design.
I hope my articles are searchable, which means that even if the article was written many years ago, it can still be found, rather than being shared in social circles for 3-4 days and then forgotten. Today, CoolShell (CoolShell.cn) has not been updated for a long time, yet many articles within it are still being shared, searched, reread, and recommended, continuously read by later audiences. This is the benefit of being searchable, shared, and reposted.
Most importantly, I hope my articles and viewpoints can spark discussions, I hope my articles can be corrected and criticized, and ideally, provoke discussions and reflections, so that each of us can grow through communication. Often, the article itself may not hold much value, but the discussions and reflections it generates are far more valuable.
I personally believe that the correct posture for information dissemination is to be searchable, discussed, cited, organized, supplemented, and updated, rather than merely being reposted, liked, followed, subscribed to, and rewarded on social networks.
Making Like-Minded Friends#
Understanding a Person Through Words#
I certainly enjoy meeting friends and chatting, but I still believe that understanding a person through their writing is more effective, especially when reading someone's blog that has been updated for many years; it feels as if I have been conversing with that person for a long time. Therefore, for me, getting to know new friends through long-form writing and a person's written records is much deeper and more efficient than gathering around a dining table. It allows for exposure to broader and more diverse perspectives, free from the constraints of geography or nationality, and unbound by time and place; it can be said to be very liberating.
I really like Liu Weipeng's description in “Why You Should (Start Now) Write a Blog”:
Most of my admired friends are those who have been recording their thoughts through blogs for a long time, so even if we don't meet face to face, there is an unspoken understanding, and even if we have never met, we can sit down and chat enthusiastically.
Why does blogging have far greater potential for making like-minded friends than traditional conversation methods?
It's simple. First, blogs have no geographical restrictions; the entire internet is just a click away from A to B, while traditional methods of forming friendships are limited by geography. Second, and more importantly, if we follow the old way of making friends, we need to chat and exchange views to gradually become familiar, which requires a long process. When you meet another stranger, you have to repeat the entire process, expressing ideas you have already shared with old friends. But blogs achieve "one-time expression, countless readings." When I see a blog that has been written for several years, after reading it, I feel as if I have been conversing with that person for a long time; in the words of programmers, "blogs greatly enhance the reusability of discourse."
Gaining Strength and Courage from Words#
I am someone who can gain courage from sincere and powerful written records, which helps me understand many things. Perhaps it makes me more open-minded, perhaps it allows me to envision my ideal future life and work state, perhaps it shows me that many of my small concerns resonate with others, or perhaps it reveals that the things I want to do and the paths I want to take are already being walked by others who have succeeded, thus inspiring me. Maybe it’s the realization that the world is indeed vast.
For me, socializing is not just about simple eating, drinking, and having fun; I want to meet fellow travelers, I want the collision of curiosity, I want to encounter others who are also on the same path while exploring what I love. I came here to meet those who hold a light and see themselves in me; at some point, we recognize ourselves in each other. We share a similar level of dissatisfaction with the world, we each have different degrees of flaws and amnesia, yet we have not given up.
The environment is ever-changing, and perhaps this is a thread of certainty in an uncertain life.
Recording and Sharing, Establishing Connections with Others#
Accustomed to being solitary and focusing most of my time and energy on myself, I have gradually learned to reopen my heart, pick up the pen again, and learn to record and share, to express my true self, and to connect with humanity, even actively seeking like-minded individuals.
Han Bingzhe describes "the other" in "The Death of Desire" as follows:
Today, our culture is filled with comparison and contrast, fundamentally disallowing the existence of "the other." We constantly compare, classify, and standardize everything, seeking "similarities" for "others," because we have lost the opportunity to experience "the other."
The friends I have met give me the courage to eliminate "self," allowing me to discover the existence of others, preventing me from being trapped in a space where only "self" is repeatedly perceived, and preventing me from drifting in a sea of "self."
At some crossroads where I hesitated or in valleys where I wanted to give up, they provided me with immense encouragement and affirmation, making me feel that I was never alone in this struggle. Thus, people like me dare to take step after step, gradually stepping out of my little world, and when picking up a sixpence, I also look up at the sky.
Day after day, working in a fast-paced city, I sometimes feel confused and empty, but remembering that there are passions like writing and painting, and like-minded friends, I still muster the spirit to live and work well, continue doing what I love, keep earning and saving money, hoping for more choices in the future, to do what I like more freely, and to realize my small dreams.
Remember the path I came from, continue writing and painting, and keep recording and sharing.
How to Build an Open Source Blog on the Blockchain#
First Encounter#
I first learned about xLog after reading Pseudoyu’s article “Weekly Report #25 - Personal Information Output and Synchronization System Based on Crossbell”, where I discovered that Crossbell now has several applications including xLog, xSync, xChar, and xFeed.
Later, I stumbled upon a post by DIYgod about xLog on Okjike, clicked on the homepage, and found that this person was the founder of xLog, which piqued my curiosity. I then read his article “The First Open Source Blockchain Blog System xLog”, which provides a detailed explanation of xLog's functions, technical implementation, existing issues, and future plans:
I don’t want my precious data to be held hostage by centralized platforms, nor do I want to bother maintaining a database or server; it needs to balance data ownership and convenience, so I chose blockchain.
xLog is an open-source blogging system based on blockchain, built using Next.js + Tailwind CSS + TypeScript + TanStack Query. All blog data, including website configuration, articles, follows, comments, likes, etc., are signed and stored on the blockchain, existing as NFTs, and can only be controlled by you, who holds the private key. You can follow your favorite blogs on the blockchain, comment on, like articles, or mint articles as NFTs. Highly customizable, with custom domains, navigation bars, custom styles, etc.
The blockchain used is the EVM-compatible blockchain Crossbell designed for social activities, which is faster and gas-free. It can also seamlessly connect with other ecological projects of Crossbell, allowing you to view all xLog dynamics you subscribe to in a feed format on Crossbell.io feed.
Each blog is an NFT that belongs to you, with its configuration and articles stored in a format compliant with Crossbell standards within the NFT. Creating a blog is like minting an NFT, publishing an article or comment adds content to the NFT, and following a blog modifies your follow list NFT. It is completely open-source, and if you are interested, you can directly check the source code on GitHub.
I also read Songkeys' article “Have a Decentralized Blog on Blockchain and IPFS in Five Minutes”, which provides a simple introduction to xLog and detailed steps for setting it up:
xLog is an application product based on the Crossbell blockchain. The underlying technology framework includes Ethereum, InterPlanetary File System (IPFS), and smart contracts designed for social content creation.
In simple terms, your information is stored on the blockchain (which means security and permanence); your privacy is protected; the chain's ecosystem makes social interactions full of endless possibilities.
At the bottom of each article, you can see the transaction hash, IPFS link, and other Web3 information. It’s simply cool. In the settings page, by clicking the Export data section, you can export all user data with one click, including your blog posts, and even save it in a well-formatted Markdown.
Setup Process#
So I followed this tutorial to start building my website on the blockchain:
Install an Ethereum Wallet#
First, I need to prepare a wallet. I chose a popular one, Metamask, and installed a browser extension from its official website, remembering to save the mnemonic phrase.
Get a Small Amount of $CSB for Free#
Since activities on the blockchain require transaction fees, the fee on the Crossbell blockchain is $CSB. Currently, you can get a small amount of $CSB for free at the Faucet. Just fill in your 0x address in the address field, and 0.02 CSB will be credited. Since this is my first encounter with these concepts, some of the steps were unclear, but thankfully, GPT patiently answered some of my very basic questions, as shown in the following images of my inquiries.
Create a New Site in xLog#
In the xLog dashboard, I created a new site and could also change the avatar, banner, domain name, etc. Then I could start writing!
User Experience#
After using it, I feel that xLog is quite good; the setup cost is relatively low, the default theme is quite nice, and the experience is good across different devices. The features basically meet my current needs for blogging, allowing for custom domains, homepages, navigation bars, etc. Whether it’s creating, editing, commenting, liking, or rewarding, it’s all very convenient. It supports importing MD files and can also export in MD format with one click. Most importantly, all the data is under my control.
Moreover, this is not just a place to create a blog; it is also a community with a good interactive ecosystem, allowing seamless integration with other related projects, and articles can also be accessed via the internal network. The founder DIYgod mentioned in this podcast that he checks the community daily to see the articles everyone writes, liking, commenting, etc., wanting the community to have more human touch. He feels that if more people read while writing blogs, it might provide more motivation.
After writing my first blog post “Weekly Report #1 - Art, Curiosity, and Beyond Code”, I was pleasantly surprised to receive likes and comments!
Continuing to write, continuing to explore joyfully!
Finally, here is the link to my xLog blog: https://hellotangman.xlog.app/, which will include my reading insights, photography works, programming studies, writing and painting, outdoor hiking, and ancient visits, exploring what I find cool with curiosity. I hope to meet more friends and spark more ideas through sharing what I see and think in an electronic newsletter.