Why do I link to other Blogs?

Have you ever wondered how some bloggers choose to blogroll some blogs rather than others?

Over at Randon Thoughts: Do they have Meaning? , Jack blogrolls (i.e. links to other blogs) of those who frequently comments on his blog.

At the Art of the Rant, where I'm a contributing editor, Bill looks after the linking to other blogs. Usually Bill links to the contributors blogs (i.e. Stephen's and my blog) as well as those that comment frequently. Also, Bill has added "Liberal Blogs" links in order to tempt the blogs readers into reading similar content at other blogs. Basically, Bill links for both those that contribute to the blog, in both commenting and contributing content, and for interest.

What criteria do I use to link to other blogs? This question may be simple to ask, but is complicated for myself to answer. Basically, the main answer is I link to other blogs that I find interesting.

Sometimes I aimlessly wander around the internet and come across blogs that I find interesting. Or sometimes I come across an interesting blog through the regular websites I visit. Some examples:

1. Sometimes when I wander the internet I find blogs like Gary Dunford's. Dunford's blog I stop by periodically because he used to write a humour coloumn for the Toronto Sun before retiring a couple of years back. So I linked this blog because of past enjoyment of reading Dunf's columns.

2. Sometimes I find other blogs via regular blogs I read. This is howI found Jack's Blog (the same one linked above) via one of Bill's postings at The Art of the Rant. I found the blog to have hilarious moments and commenting on issues I found interesting or thought provoking.

3. Regular websites I visit, like the Toronto Sun's, I sometimes find interesting blogs that I like to read. The new link I added today, Glenn Garnett's, was added because I found his blog to be interesting. Garnett, via his blog, provides insight to the reader into how a major newspaper editing team builds a daily paper from the ground up on a daily basis. Garnett investigates how stories and pictures are chosen, how writers and columnists are chosen for assignments and much more. I find this blog to be intriguing because the blog pulls back the curtain on how the newspaper's day to day business is operated.

Now this brings up another question: "When do you remove a link?"

Basically, this is done when I either no longer find a blog interesting or is no longer updated. I currently cannot provide an example on when I lose interest in a blog, but I can provide an example of when a blog is no longer updated.

Antonia Zerbisias' blog on the Toronto Star website, I found interesting because she explored the varying world of the media in Canada. However, for whatever reason, she stopped blogging at the end of 2006. So I decided to remove it. I figure if you are not going to continue blogging and I've read almost every post, I have lost interest in your blog. So provide intriguing content or you will be removed! Bill Arends did this on The Art of the Rant recently as well.

I use the links on my blog to visit others on a regular basis. So if you are providing interesting content to me and update on a regular basis there will be a link. Failing this, the link will most likely be removed. With that in mind, I have to get going, Subwayblogger has some interesting design pictures on his blog of the new Second Avenue Subway stations of New York City's new subway line....