Help???

ok I actually took a day off work and read all the articles that I would download from time to time in a pathetic effort to make myself feel I was actually doing something...
I think I have some good stuff out there, but I have a few questions... can anyone help?
* Is there a good site (apart from Wiki) where I can get a good detailed chronology of the popularity of blogging? Thats the only piece of info I feel I'm lacking at the moment with regards to my first chapter.
* I'm seeing a lot of variation with regards to the definition of a weblog... some definitions like in Rebecca's pocket www.rebeccablood.net/essays/weblog_history.html make a distinction between the blog and the online diary. Does anyone know if this is still accepted? Are there any recently posted definitions of a blog? I have a few, but a few more couldn't hurt..!