But, How-To books are also a bit of a cop-out. We all know how to do something. It takes very little imagination or creativity to write down how we do that one thing. In fact, I would go so far as to suggest that a robot or similar automaton (like the kid in the drive-thru who is so stoned he can barely see straight, or the nose-picker at Best Buy who is sure he can help you find the perfect cellphone) could easily and without effort hack out a how-to about how to do just about anything they know how to do.

It’s low hanging-fruit.

The blogosphere (ha, I finally got to use that pseudo-word in a sentence) is littered with How-To blogs.

During a storm this summer, I lost a tree in my backyard. After I called a service to dice it and move it off of my newly mangled fence, I was left with a pile of very thick logs. I decided I’d split those logs and use them for our summer fire pit. Being mostly from an urban area, I knew very little about splitting logs ( a fact I’d prided myself on – having reached thirty years of existence and never once having been roped into the mind-numbing repetition that is yard-work).

So, like any good little technophile, I hit the Interwebs, looking for the secret of splitting logs. I found blog after blog, written by supposed experts on how-to split logs. One gentle man was from Chicago, and wanted his readers to believe that leaving his ultra-chic skyrise condo, his world of plastic concierge service and people too-trendy to point out the obvious, was actually fun for him. He called log splitting his therapy. Anyway, I follow his advice, purchased all the right equipment, did every thing as he said, and was able to split two logs. Then I rolled into a pile by the woodshed.

My point is, anyone can hack out a How-To, and if they sport even a modicum of cleverosity, a drip-drop of writing talent, they can come off as a reasonable expert. Course, expert is a highly subjective term.

Anyway, the ‘net is filled with Blog’s about How-To make a million dollars with your blog. Blogging for blog dollars, so to speak. Topics from 101-Ways to Blog Your Way to Millions to Three Ways to Make Your Blog the Best…

The frustrating part is that they all say the same thing. This leads me to believe there are only a few ways to make your blog the best and only a few ways to get your blog noticed. Of course, I wonder about these blogs, and their apparent need to simplify the information they provide. Quick and easy, the darkside is, but when you have to make it work in less-than-ideal conditions, does the 100-level blog have anything you couldn’t have figured out on your own? Where does the in-depth knowledge come in? When does the collective blogosphere leave behind their sophomore status and graduate to something more effective?