Hear Ye! Est. 1998
Hear Ye’s 2nd Anniversary!
Wow, 2 years old. Has it really been that long?
Two years ago, on this day, I made my first proper post to Hear Ye! Exactly two years of archives accumulated over more than 700 days of posting. Excuse me while my head swells to thrice its normal size for a few moments :) That is quite a feat given the relative rarity of e/n sites that have existed for even a single, full year. If you’re wondering why I have that ridiculously long list of sites to the left, it’s because I was here from the beginning.
This site started in the beginning of ’98, a year before the term “everything/nothing” came to exist. I updated it for a full year before I got any decent amount of visitors. Today, the hits I get in a month are more than I got in the whole of ’98. The point is, hits are nice, but they are not everything. They are not my primary motivation for keeping this site. I write, because, as I did two years ago, it is a hobby for me. I get no money from it (in fact, I lose money from it). I read my archives and am reminded of events I would have otherwise forgotten. I get interesting mails from people all the way around the world. Do not start up an e/n site if your main reason is hits. With the amount of sites that pop up each week, even buying your very own domain name will not guarantee popularity (but it does help, I’ll give you that :).
There’s been a lot of bitching about the “e/n scene”. People complain of being bored by what they regard as a “passing fad” where everyone jumps on the bandwagon (or the boat, as Ramblings so infamously put it :). Equally, there has been disillusionment by people who keep e/n sites – those who lose interest and motivation in maintaining their site. Finally, there those that say, “I’m not really an e/n site, but if you really must, I guess you could call me that.” (And aren’t there a multitude of people that have said that?) Why do people say this? It’s true that many sites start up with no real goals and just die, but there are also many sites that have been around for a long time and don’t look like going any time soon. How do the sites that have been around for a long time stick around? And why do so many sites just disappear after a few months? Here’s my opinion, and it’s mainly conjectural.
E/N sites are inherently personal sites on public display. People write about what interests themselves. Since everyone is different, it can’t be expected that everyone visiting the site will find what they write interesting. If you try spending so much time only writing for the visitors, the site is no longer personal. You’re catering for the public, and as a result your site probably shows none of your character. You have no strong interest in what you’re doing, and as a result, there’s no motivation to keep writing. Write on things that interest you – things that you might enjoy reading later in life. It’s hard to keep doing something day in, day out, in life that you don’t find interesting, and are getting nothing for. You’ll find you get visitors from people who have an interest in what you have to say. In a cyberworld where population numbers in the hundreds of millions, you’re bound to find a few people out there who will listen. As I see it, an e/n site is essentially an electronic journal, with the added element of public interaction from a common audience that has formed into a loose community of sorts.
End harangue.
Anyway, thanks to all you regular visitors and a special shout to all those who were around in 98 and are still there (you know who you guys are :). You’ve made this site all the more enjoyable to keep.
11:45pm (GMT +10.00) 
