Media.mit.edu - RunLog - Keep Track of Your Runs

Whether you're a casual jogger who's just getting started or a serious marathoner training for the Boston Marathon, you need a place to log your pace, times, and distances. RunLog, a web app created somewhere in the depths of an MIT lab, helps you to keep track of this information in order to help you better chart your progress toward your running goals. It's basically a running social network; in addition to charting your data you can also hook up with other runners to swap information or go for a jog. To start, create a personal profile and enter in information about your runs. Once you've made more than one entry (distance, time) the site will average out your pace and add up your total mileage. If you enjoy the site, you may also want to check out their extremely popular Facebook application, which actually is home to many more users than is the website on its own.

"RunLog is a simple web application that keeps track of how much you run. For frequent runners, RunLog can be a useful tool to keep track of your running goals. But RunLog was built to motivate people who spend most of their day working in front of a computer. Many people start running, to get in shape as their new year's resolution, and hopefully RunLog will help you maintain your goals through the support of an online social network".

RunLog does offer some interesting features; for example, you can sign up for the RSS feed to see every time a RunLog record is broken. It's a pretty simple service with no bells and whistles, so no one should have a problem figuring out how to work it.

On its own, RunLog doesn't really offer anything different from larger and more elaborate competitors like Runner's World or MyFitBuddy; the secret of its popularity lies in the Facebook app. Why not merge the two? RunLog doesn't really feel like too much of a community; where are the forums and groups? Besides a simple post board on the main page, there doesn't seem to be many means of connecting users. Also, what about track runners who keep track of distances in meters and not in miles?