(FORTUNE Small Business) – Imagine Hunter S. Thompson writing about the new Mac operating system. That's the wacky spirit you can expect when you check out the online narratives known as Weblogs. While these sites represent both the best and worst of Web self-publishing (the virtual tour of ugly couches wasn't for us, nor were the angry ex-girlfriend sites), several of the technology Weblogs are worth checking out.

Tech "bloggers" (that's really what they call themselves) are most often industry pros who keep their Weblog as a hobby--something to do at 2:40 a.m. While some of the sites offer straight tech news, most are sprinkled with a lot of personality, authoritative firsthand information, and fresh insights. With so many tech magazines out of business (we're not naming names), these e-newsletters, once solely for tech heads, are becoming mandatory information sources for the mainstream.

Blog-reading beginners should start with Steve MacLaughlin's e-newsletter (saltire.weblogger.com). His well-written essays focus on technology's role in society and business. A recent piece on the future of wireless provocatively considered the implications of Starbucks' installing wireless networks in 500 of its stores, with plans to wire them all within two years. Next up, he says: cars, boats, and grocery stores. We say: Yikes!

Three of the writers of the bestselling business book The Cluetrain Manifesto keep good Weblogs. If you can put up with the cursing and stream-of-consciousness writing style, Christopher Locke's Webzine (www.rageboy.com) may teach you something about marketing and branding in the Digital Age. Read how "the artist formerly known as advertising" must change its attitude. Doc Searls (doc.weblogs.com) covers industry news well; he's big on Apple's latest doings. And David Weinberger, a former writer for Woody Allen's comic strip, entertainingly tackles issues like how to get your customers to help each other and what's happening in the Linux world in JOHO: Journal of the Hyperlinked Organization (www.hyperorg.com).

The list goes on, and many of these guys are inexplicably named David. Weblog pioneer Dave Winer is a friend of small business, crusading against the "BigCos" and software patents (davenet.userland.com). And the straightforward and geeky David Strom (www.strom.com) gives solid networking advice; he also thinks your fridge could be a security risk. Okay.

If you need more compelling personal commentary, we're sure it's out there (remember the ugly couch tour?). And it's probably raw, funny--and smart.