To cons, I'd add (or some people might think of it as a pro, I don't know): Some students get very uncomfortable when people outside the class comment on the blog, even when the comments are perfectly civil and respectful. You could argue that it's good to shake people out of their comfort zones, but still you don't want people to feel too unsafe in the space.

i agree with pullman's pros and cons, and i'd like to extend his list. well, i don't know if my post is an extension...but i'm interested in the mystery of blogging and what it requires. pullman's list seems to be compiling a list that deals with the end product, right? but what about the experience. i must admit that a large part of my difficulty with blogging is what it requires of my body. i don't like sitting at my computer reading text. and the blank window of a blog screen places all kind of pressure on me. i am aware of this difficulty stems from my socialization in the print culture, and so i need to begin the process of remediation. i wonder is the blogging experience enhanced if the user has a laptop. then i could replicate the old-school reading experience...sitting on my couch under my favorite lamp...propped up with lots of pillows on my bed...so along with the uncomfortability of constructing knowledge in an alternative space, there's the physical aspect. and, by extension, it affects the psychological as well. what to do? what to do?