BEIJING, June 29 (Xinhuanet) -- Bill Gates, the world's richest man, reportedly may soon join the ranks of the bloggers with his own online diary.

    Dairies of this sort have been the rage among techies for the past three or four years, CRIENGLISH.com reported Monday.

    A study shows that about 2 percent of U.S. Internet users contributing to the Web maintain their own blogs.

    Bill talked a lot about the power and advantages of blogging over other communication means, such as e-mail and Web sites, at Microsoft's CEO Summit last month.

    Gates' mention of blogs set the tech-world buzzing about Microsoft's possible entry into the world of blogging.

    If and when Microsoft gets into the space of blogs, it would mark the beginning of another battle in the Web world - Microsoft on one side; and firms like Google, six Apart and UserLand, who develop blogging tools, on the other.

    In case you didn't know, a blog is basically a journal that is available on the web. Updating a blog is "blogging" and someone who keeps a blog is a "blogger." Blogs are updated, usually daily, using easy-to-learn software.

    (CRIENGLISH.com)