The internet was supposed to be the death of newspapers.

Fifteen years later after our predicted demise, we’re still kicking around. Newspapers, however, have changed significantly through the internet.

No longer are we bound by once-a-day printing. The News-Press’s site at www.stjoenews.net is updated throughout the day.

The business desk has gotten into the fun. This week we launched Around St. Joe, an online blog to track business developments. The blog’s first post was written by Agribusiness Reporter Clinton Thomas, who confirmed that Jimmy John’s Gourmet Sandwiches is opening a shop on the South Belt at the former site of Sheridan’s Frozen Custard. Mr. Thomas has been working on tracking down that little news item for weeks and was thrilled to finally get the word out.

Blog — a hybrid word for a web log — is like an online diary. Blog entries are different than news articles in that they are usually written in first person. It’s also a place to include newsy items that we’re eager to get to the public.

For instance, several months ago, we heard a report that Chick-fil-A was coming to the Shoppes at North Village. Reporter Jennifer Hall called Chick-fil-A, who told us they’d never heard of St. Joseph and had no plans to build a restaurant here.

Still, the report was credible enough we suspected they might be building here. Sure enough, a month later, the company filed plans with the city. Looking back, I wish we had something in the paper sooner.

The blog will help us fill that void and also provide helpful information to shoppers. Also this week, we posted early notices about Hollywood Video closing and how a story from Jennifer Hall has made a star of a local re-po man.

The blog will likely offer a variety of information about business openings and closings, monitoring construction and and personal finance issues.

I have to admit my favorite part is the beautiful header designed by political cartoonist George Stanton, with input from the photography staff.

The online content will not detract from the daily business section; it will add items we haven’t had the space or opportunity to publish. And it will still be governed by rules of journalism.

A lot of readers in this part of the country do not have computers or internet service, which we keep in mind in our coverage. A woman called in this week and reported that she reads the newspaper top to bottom every day. We appreciate readers like her, even more in the present climate.

Now, we’re offering something in addition to the printed page that will appeal to the generation that looks up driving directions not by unfolding a map, but by typing the address into Google.

The internet hasn’t killed the newspaper writer, but it is turning them into blogging stars. We look forward to seeing you Around St. Joe.

Business editor Susan Mires can be reached

at susanm@npgco.com.