Will the students come to a university blog solution?

Cole wonders if students will come to a university blog solution since they already have facebook and other blogging tools.

I think part of the equation is that people use different online tools for different communities. I have heard stories of college students that got upset when facebook opened to high schools because other members of their family could intrude into their facebook lives.

Facebook may not be the place where students want to showcase their academic work, or engage in discussion related to their field of study. The same could be said of whatever blogging or social tools they may already be using.

For example, I started this blog even though I already had a blog of my own. My other blog is an amalgam of thoughts related to various topics, things I find amusing, links to personal photos, and few sprinkles of randomness. I decided I wanted a different venue to communicate about my work. I also wanted to get everyday experience using the blog platform here, since I have a hand in the project.

At the same time, maintaining multiple blogs increases mental overhead and can quickly become too much.

Of course I don't really know how the tool will be used here at Penn State, or how much it will be used. Only time will tell. I do see it as an important opportunity to offer, even with the facebook and blogger.com out there.