Why aren’t there ever any google ads for those little corn on the cob holders? I never think about buying them until we are sitting down at the table to eat. I need a reminder.

Yeah, that’s it.

Yeah, that’s it.

I do have some adblocking features installed, so I only noticed the Google ads when I viewed the site in IE. I had noticed the book-cover roll in the right column, though. 

Since I don’t see the ads myself, any complaining from my end will be uninformed yapping — unless I play the principles card (or the "ads are obnoxious and make my computer groan" card), but  I don’t want to presume everyone shares my views. 

I do think it’s kinda sad that there’ll be ads on LM and FM (I’m  no member of the other sitesn, which means I don’t care all that much); I even think it’s kinda sad that I can see the good side to revenues from advertising — prizes, paper publications, LM t-shirts, LM bookmarks & bookends, etc). It means that, deep down, I’ve actually accepted the ads already. 

I do have one other question though: how is this going to affect our hosting?

—-
I had a childish dream of walking past apple trees in bloom, to a small mountain cemetery. We walked along with angels
— Prolapse, Essence of cessna

I had a childish dream of walking past apple trees in bloom, to a small mountain cemetery. We walked along with angels
— Prolapse, Essence of Cessna

Petroglyph wrote:

I do think it’s kinda sad that there’ll be ads on LM and FM (I’m  no member of the other sitesn, which means I don’t care all that much); I even think it’s kinda sad that I can see the good side to revenues from advertising — prizes, paper publications, LM t-shirts, LM bookmarks & bookends, etc). It means that, deep down, I’ve actually accepted the ads already. 

I’m going to try and keep them from being too intrusive into the site, since the idea isn’t ecommerce, it’s just fund-raising for expenses and improvements.

It just suddenly struck me the other day while talking with JW about people who do make a living off online ads, that while it may be more principled, it has been kind of counterproductive trying to grow the sites on the cheap when there’s no reason they couldn’t do a little work on their own for us.

Quote:

I do have one other question though: how is this going to affect our hosting?

Well, we’re not going to become an ecommerce site, and PoliticalSoup had no hassle about having a CafePress store for site souvenirs, so I’m pretty sure we’re okay.  We’re not becoming a for-profit unless we move anyway.  

Well, all I can say is,

"’Bout time!"

Sincerely,

An amazon.com addict

Seriously, I think it’s a great idea. As long as they don’t interfere with my reading or clicking, I don’t mind appropriate ads on a site I enjoy.

Now, if you’d done what ivillage did when they bought gardenweb.com? That would be a different story. They have ads that jump out in front of the main text, essentially commercials, of people pulling on their waistlines, talking about diets, bottles of laundry detergent, etc. That calls for adblock.

…unless we’re also willing to reimburse Icon for some of the startup/maintenance costs, wink wink.   

 At first I did wonder about the relevance of a couple of the ads I saw on one of the sites, but the ones presently here seem fairly discreet and pertinent. It’s really only the ones that are distracting or obnoxious that might defeat one’s concentration on creative writing or thoughtful reading, IMO. 

I did a triple-take when they first appeared, so I’m glad you posted about the ads, Icon—it reassured me that I wasn’t imagining things…("Were those there *before*?") Also good to know that your intent is not to turn the sites into crass vehicles for collecting filthy lucre, ha ha.  Just a little well-laundered, seemly lucre…We could think of them as the offertory section of the site, or the alms bowl, ho ho.

After some discussion and some further research, it appears that the Amazon.co.uk shop does not transparently refer to the US Amazon.com.  Therefore, since most of our members are in the US and Canada, I have switched all the links to the US site and reconfigured everything.

…but now I’m deriving entertainment from some of the ads.  Puzzling over their determination of what might be appropriate placement according to topic.  I think I spotted a couple here on LM for Biblical links (presumably in the context of literature,) and on MOL I spotted my first-ever online ad for Unitarian Universalists! 

Not sure whether Google ads enhance the church’s credibility…Wondering whether this was an approved directive at the national level, or an attempt at public consciousness-raising/brand awareness sponsored by a well-intended local group. 

What next…The Pope buying 30 seconds of airtime during the Superbowl? (Leaving out the possibility of wardrobe malfunction, or backup singing from Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake.)   Wondering whether it might be better or worse to have warring reglious factions focused on targeting "audiences" instead of each other…Ad campaigns, not bombing campaigns?

I decided that I like the Amazon link, because the ads aren’t obnoxiously floating around as though we’ve had Sudden Cataracts Onset.  The first couple pages of recommendations looked good (as opposed to being any old schlock); and if one doesn’t have time for a library or bookshop fix, one can take a quick dip into the Online Store.

I’m not entirely sure, but perhaps it’s the fact that I limited the selection of Ads to those concerned with certain keywords, like writing and publishing, and specified that when those run out Google should show public service ads.

The ads on Freeminded are supposed to be a bit wider range. 

At least now the Amazon settings reflect a US locale, since I’m sure people would not have been happy about the UK inflated prices.  I think it’s a little ridiculous that Amazon can’t act transparently and seamlessly through its sites. 

This is proving to be way more entertaining than TV.

I think this link was titled "No Cat Bully."  http://www.bottledblessings.com/nobully.htm?gclid=CN7hu-CGupMCFRcaagodZxHWCg   I must be desperate for laughs, because the names of the link, the web address, and the product are so absurd as to be mildly hilarious.  The text which describes the product is priceless, portraying a sort of multi-species Anti-Alpha spray.  Wonder if it comes in a handy purse-size? I volunteer to test it on humans.

I want to second that judgement: everything about it is hilarious. The concept, the product, the name… I wasn’t sure how you’d administer this liquid to your indecently dominant pet (in its food? into its eyes?), but the product info told me that you need to add a couple of drops of their stuff to your pet’s water bowl. That file is only one page long, takes up about 5megs, and plays heavily on the cuteness of well-groomed and family-friendly animals. The fake testimony they quote to back up their presupposition that this product is something anyone would want mentions a surprisingly similar product: New Kitty. Its description is equally hilarious:

• Promote social harmony
• Reduce territorial marking
• Smooth over irreconcilable differences
• Mediate whatever "issues" are causing problems between cats.

Am I the only one who is reminded of the "Dog for whom I feel nothing" sketch?

Also: that girl in the No Bully picture has one hell of an obviously fake smile. The boy seems to take things in good humour. He was probably told he could play with the dog after the photo shoot.

Does this mean that the google ads for this thread will start displaying this ad? What other absurdistic ads would we be able to net in, purely for fun-poking purposes? Perhaps some of us should start blogging about, say, breasts, needlework and puppetry, just for the crazy ads that would attract. 

<rant>
I’m not so sure if I’d want to mess with the dominance instinct in my pets; but given the default tail-clipping and the ubiquitous spaying/neutering that’s going on, this is just the next logical step. If you’re unable to assert yourself as the boss, then you shouldn’t own pets. Or stick to those rat-like doggies that fit in your shirt pocket. What’s next, dog breath mints? Cat food that limits their need to excrete to once a week? And no, I don’t want to see any posts that link to this kind of rubbish.
</rant>

—-
I had a childish dream of walking past apple trees in bloom, to a small mountain cemetery. We walked along with angels
— Prolapse, Essence of cessna

I had a childish dream of walking past apple trees in bloom, to a small mountain cemetery. We walked along with angels
— Prolapse, Essence of Cessna