What is a blog, anyway?

Blogs, Wikis, hyperlinks, hypertext...so many crazy techno-terms for online writing, publishing, and creating. Sometimes I wonder why the language used for technology can't be a little more standard and a little less weird! More specifically, I've been thinking lately about the term "blog." I've read enough blogs created by others to understand it's a kind of online journal or diary. But where did the term "blog" originate; what does it really mean?

According to Wikipedia, the word "blog" stands for "web log," a website where the writer offers commentary on a prescribed subject or maintains a personal diary. I guess I haven't really "assigned" a specific topic to my blog, other than it being a place where I can empty thoughts, dabble in creative language, and (hopefully) communicate with other writers about writing.

My next task will be to scout out other blogs...see what's going on in the cyberworld of diary writing, and discover the effects of making one's private thoughts public knowlege.