Flyboy,
Just a constructive criticism, but try to break you paragraphs down into smaller bites. Long paragraphs with lots of words tend to be tiring for a lot of readers.

Including me.

And it adds punch to your writing, forces you to keep on a theme for a couple sentences, then move on, rather than packing it all into one place.

Hope that helps and makes sense.

Yeah I hear what you're saying 20mm, those entries were just an example of my subject/content. Obviously I would break it down for the final version.

OK, for those of you who don't know who I am, here is a bit about me...
I am a military helicopter enthusiast and expert and my favorite sim of all time is Longbow 2. I am currently the main person who is keeping the LB2 community alive, and have the only active and most extensive website available for the Jane's Longbow series. I have an interest in nearly all aspects of computing, military and technology and have a liking for writing down my personal thoughts on these subjects. I have contributed articles to SimHQ, have a good knowledge of game modding. I like to think that I have more knowledge and understanding of stuff than other kids my age - I'm 25 - well, than kids in Britain anyhow.

I just thought that instead of me keep writing personal reviews and thoughts and keeping them private, that I could publish them and hopefully get the interest of you good people. I am one of your biggest fans!

My aim is to educate people and make them think about stuff that may normally go over their heads.

What do you want? My CV!?

And to those of you who wouldn't read anything by me because 'who am I?' or 'don't care about my opinion', then why are you even on this forum? Who are any of these people here? If you are going to start ranking people in order of their 'importance', well, what can I say? As I see it, we are all here for the same reasons - we all like military/aviation/technology/etc. Or am I just barking up the wrong tree totally?

I think I've become jaded over the years. I apologize if you're offended by my brutally honest comment. I was taking into consideration the "general" mentality outside SimHQ.

You should be able to take hits like that flyboy. The internet outside SimHQ is not moderated. There are worse things people can say about your blog once it gets attention.

I have no advice on how to take hits and criticisms since as everyone knows here. I'm a loose canon myself when I'm pushed over the edge.

if you truly want readers just take any topic you have real interest in and then bash it as visibly as possible. that will get people reading!

Fly,
Please don't be defensive. You asked for people's opinions and that is what's happening.

I think when some ask who you are, they're really saying what distinguishes you. Why is a blog by Flyboy unique? Not a CV, just something that is different. IOW, they are trying to help, not diss you.

Yes, we're generally interested in military and aviation/technology. Don't think there's any doubt about that. What you bring to that table is the topic.

I hate to be brutal but here it goes:

1) The stuff you wrote in the "Future of Warfare" articles at SimHQ was partially decent, partially taken from games and TV-Series people knew them self already, and partially factually incorrect.

2) The stuff you wrote above about Firefighters is the same "I saw on TV..." thing again. You had some good impressions on the show, but there's nothing in it which I couldn't get myself by watching that show directly. So why should I rather read about it from someone else? You might have made this more interesting by branching off into some observations on the Australian Fires which were absolutely devastating. But SoCal Bushfires are so common, it's not like anyone will flip over at those news.

3) Sorry if this sounds rude, it isn't meant to be: But you are overestimating your abilities or your personal interest factor, which is not uncommon in many young people these days, so don't feel singled out. It reminds me of countless MySpace profiles. For example, you write you are an expert on military helicopters. How many of those have you flown in (passenger, not pilot)? How often do you hang out with pilots and people from the aviation industry? When was the last time a friend in the Armed Forces contacted you with Insider Info on some new Helicopter thing? What makes you an expert?

I spent the last four years building a career as Military Aviation Journalist, and I still feel only partially qualified on some subjects. Even as I focus on a very narrow range of topics. You are trying to cover a whole ton of topics, but can't possible do it in-depth enough that it goes beyond what the average interested visitor would find himself on a book shelf or in TV.

My suggestion: Specialize in some things, maybe the sim/real world angle, and make sure you get really good in that particular area. Then if you can get a truly new angle on things - beyond what an average intelligent reader in the subject matter might find on his own - go public.

Well, some mixed reviews here, mostly negative.

OK, I shall not bother with this venture. I shall not waste my time.

I think Colonel has put down the best advice by far on this thread.

As for me personally, I never had an interest or felt compelled to write blogs online because quite honestly I dont know any more about any particular subject than any other dedicated fan.

Colonel's post surprised me a bit. I was holding back on the technical details that's why I was focusing on your delivery instead.

This is going to come from me so you know that it is not just 20mm's opinion. I posted those to help you.

On the other hand, you'll never get anywhere if you just give up because of our criticism.

Go for it. Learn as you go. Everyone has to start somewhere.

Just avoid the mistakes here.

The Web's 11 worst blogs

I read this months ago. If you want advice on how to handle devastating criticisms, look at "The Adventures of Pat O'Neil"'s author. He survived the storm. He survived his blog being called one of the 11 worst blogs in the "world".

That would be my last say on this topic.

write to your heart's content, just don't expect the rest of the world to care. everyone is interesting in his or her mind. only a few actually are so to anyone other than their mother.

in other words, do it because you want to, not because you crave external recognition or validation. you're unlikely to receive either.