1. Weblog benefits for research students Maryam Sarrafzadeh

2. Research program difficulties  Loneliness in research  Language difficulties  The stress of Writing a dissertation

3. What is a weblog/blog  A blog or weblog is a web page containing frequently-updated entries on a topic, usually posted in a column with the newest entry on top.

4. Blog features  Easy and free creating  Using a blogging software  No need to have html knowledge  As easy as creating an email account

5. Blog features-Cont  Interactivity  Comment system  2 ways relationships between the writer and the reader.

6. Blog features-Cont  Frequent updating  Continuously-running publication  Latest posts appear at the top  Encourage readers to visit the site regularly (big difference with website)

7. Blog features-Cont  Brevity  Informality

8. Blog features-Cont  Blog is multimedia and full of links  Image, photo, music  Links to other websites and other blogs  Blogroll

9. Blog features-Cont  Fast publishing  Blogs are becoming The fasting methods of broadcasting information and ideas throughout the web.

10. Benefits of blogs for research students  Reaching greater audience  Connection with other researchers in the same topic.  Extend connection beyond the academic community.  Reach audiences from different fields: encouraging cross-disciplinary collaboration.

11. Benefits of blogs for research students (Cont)  Obtaining speedy feedback on ideas  Share ideas rather than display them  Showing your own writing and opinion and get feedbacks from people with different points of views broaden your thoughts  Receiving information about other resources on the topic

12. Benefits of blogs for research students (Cont)  Recording thoughts  Timely expression of thoughts (hourly, weekly, daily)  Writing half-thoughts and naked ideas rather than saving them for carefully edited  Protecting ideas with publishing them

13. Benefits of blogs for research students (Cont)  Warehousing of captured knowledge  Storage of everything from your notes to links to researces and your reference list  Permanent archive  Searchable: look up the weblog’s content with search engine  Safer than saving in files in your computer

14. Benefits of blogs for research students (Cont)  Always access from everywhere  Always close to your research and resources

15. Benefits of blogs for research students (Cont)  Writing practice

16. Benefits of blogs for research students (Cont)  Building comprehensive links to valuable, important and up to date information and resources  Filter to the internet and overcome information overload  Staying current with your research http://www.rmit.edu.au/browse;ID=sg2kpobmtja oz;STATUS=A?QRY=staying%20current&ST YPE=LOCATION

17. Blog tools-1 Blogging softwares allows a blogger to create a blog without knowing a lot of HTML or working with complicated web templates. Blogger Live Journal Moveable Type Radio (Userland) Schoolblogs Finding and searching weblogs  General directories of weblog like Blogarama  Yahoo Directory  Open directory

18. Blog tools-2  Academic Blogs: http://crookedtimber.org/academic- blogs/

19. Useful blogs  research blogs http://jilltxt.net/txt/researchblogs.html This is an annotated list of weblogs that are used by researchers and academics as a part of their research practice.

20. Conclusion Thank you