Time for a change of focus for Webomatica.

Lately, I find myself agreeing with “technology avoidance” articles like Scoble turning off the Internet, Hugh quitting Twitter, Mark Evans declaring RSS feed bankruptcy, ignoring TechMeme and Mashable, and tech bloggers overwhelmed by stress.

I wrote about the New York Times article on the Blog Herald and mused about taking a “blog vacation”. Well, I’m going to take my own advice and do so.

I’m not completely down on blogging. I still enjoy writing, reading, and participating in conversations (wherever they may be). I’m really enjoying participating in the L33t Podcast and the Blog Herald.

It’s the pressure to blog constantly that I’m tired of. I don’t enjoy the feeling of having to chime in on everything. I don’t enjoy using the computer in the evening after work. I don’t enjoy tracking page views, RSS subscribers, and ad revenue.

I don’t enjoy this hobby becoming like work.

Last weekend, I went up to Marin where there was no television, no cell phone access, and I didn’t take my computer. Just my wife and I, hiking in the woods. It was the best weekend I’ve had in quite some time. And I want to do that every weekend - not just occasionally.

Lastly, I once read a post by engtech which had some really good blogging advice:

Two key things I learned over time were to avoid the echo chamber and stop repeating news stories with a slight spin, and to write new content instead of always linking to other people and blockquoting.

I plan to blog less, but when I do write something it will be of better content. I like how I do my “links of the week” as a single post on Saturday to keep the signal to noise ratio low. I will focus on better titles, telling stories and covering the four different kinds of learning. I will write more software, how-to guides, and book reviews as I read to learn.

The second paragraph is inspiring to me. I want to do better at adding value to the web and not just filling it with noise. I’m not exactly sure how I’ll do that or if it will be any good - but I’d like to try.

I’ll still write about tech, but only major events that really move me. The Techmeme chasing, the page view baiting, the “look at me” stuff, will decrease substantially.

If this description sounds like a bad idea and you’re moved to unsubscribe, I totally understand. Otherwise, see you on the other side.

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