Update, Then a Return to the Sand

There are a few people who are seemingly paying way too much attention to this site and my activities online (or lack thereof) as of late. For the life of me, I don’t know why…and I don’t know why people pay attention to a blog that hasn’t been posted to in over 3 months. But hey…whoever said it had to make sense, right?

So, for those of you who want to know, this will be the official “update” post. I don’t know when I’ll be willing and able to post again…so this will once again be the last post in a while.

I’m Not Dead

Apparently, some people were wondering this. So there’s the first thing. I’m very much alive.

What I’ve Been Working On

IT-Related Stuff

I’m working on various IT-related projects right now, including some rather unusual ones (e.g. getting to hook a computer up to a 40″ Sony Bravia TV.) As the result of this and other projects, I’ve got issues to sort out with Dell and the clueless idiots over at OneConnect (possibly more on these guys).

I’ve found myself fixing dying/dead hard drives on multiple occasions as well…something that isn’t a pleasant experience at the best of times. I’ve also had to upgrade/replace a series of computers for various people.

Web Design Stuff

I haven’t worked on a lot of sites as such for people (other than the usual maintenance); however, I am involved with a project that I’m quite excited about. For various reasons, I’m not going to reveal that project here at any point, but I am glad to be working with a team that has experience with websites since the dark ages of the late 90s, and both has the experience to have lived through the dotbomb era and the foresight to recognize the impending arrival of Dotbomb 2.0 (i.e. the collapse of social media sites and applications, as has been discussed here before). I’m glad to be a part of it.

Why Haven’t I Posted Public Commentary as of Late?

I’m Being Censored…Even When I Defend a Blog Poster

When Doug Heil posted on iHelpYou forums about a blog post talking about how SMX Advanced went over to the dark side, I posted a comment there because I had some thoughts on the subject. My comments largely supported the original poster’s post (although not subsequent comments), only I dared to speak out against The Leaders (and one specific leader).

Don’t see the comment? You’re not going to. All comments there appear to be moderated…at the very least, mine was, and it never saw the light of day.

The SEO Industry Has Become a Sick Joke, It’s Taking Web Design Down With It, and Even the Good Sites and People Can’t Fight the Idiocy Anymore

I was watching RAW earlier tonight, and one of the wrestlers cut a promo, during which he said that the vast majority of people under the age of 30 were, and I quote, “spoiled, obedient sheep.” The disturbing thing about the promo is that, at least from the web design industry and especially the SEO industry point of view, it was completely accurate. Outside of James, Dan, and maybe a few others (I don’t know the ages of most people online, although I can get a rough idea by reading their posts and comments), most people online blindly follow bad advice and say and do completely idiotic things without any thought given to the ramifications and consequences of what they’re doing.

Some Forum Examples

Cross-posted forum spam is runnin’ wild (I see at least 1-2 examples on a daily basis, with almost no effort being made to curtail the problem…IHY notwithstanding.)
Everyone wants the community to give them all the answers. The only good thing about these types of threads is that the OP gets advice that is worth exactly what it should be…$0.00.
Entire forums are devoted to link exchanges, thus continuing to perpetuate the myth that somehow they’re useful to end users and that “natural link exchange” still exists.

And some of the quotes that I’ve seen lately from people make me want to remove my own eyes with a fork.

From this IHY thread:

I’m not here for promotion I am here to learn more on SEO, just like any other beginner, I wanted to learn the right and proper SEO technique.

News flash: in order to optimize a site for search engines, you’re optimizing it so that it can derive the maximum promotional benefit from search engines. Thus, SEO is a form of promotion.

And pretty well anything from yesterday’s Google rumor debunk post, for those who want other examples. Come to think of it…pretty much the entire Digital Pointless forum could be blown up and not one intelligent thought would be lost as a result.

Blog Examples

Pretty much anything on this blog, one of many which discusses the bizarre notion that social media sites are somehow related to SEO and are a viable long-term promotional solution (I can’t wait to see the look on you stupid bastards’ faces when that bubble bursts).

Of course, we also need to recycle the same drivel that others have been spewing for years.

And my personal favorite…this bizarre and totally illogical series of statements in favor of link exchange. Notice the mention of “high rank” (but not necessarily high referral traffic and/or sales). Notice how he discusses “natural links” and “acquisition rates”, completely ignoring the fact that true natural links occur randomly and therefore may be subject to spikes and dips, as would just about any other form of marketing. And notice the term “full duplex link exchange”…when did link exchange ever get tied into electrical equipment, anyway? Does anyone else think that term sounds completely retarded?

And why do we keep seeing idiotic things like this, over and over again, without anyone standing in the way to stop them?

BECAUSE THE “LEADERS” KEEP FEEDING THE MASSES SELLOUT BULLSHIT, AND THE MASSES KEEP SWALLOWING IT!

(Note to those who have already seen the Bruce Clay post: many of the readers of this blog would not have seen the aforementioned post or heard anything about this. Not everyone who reads this thing knows of the SEO industry. Bear with me.)

Danny $ullIvan

In the Bruce Clay blog post I mentioned earlier, Lisa Barone mentioned that she felt the SMX Advanced concept was excessively blackhat. The amazing thing to me wasn’t that she said it, but how unbelievably arrogant Danny $ullIvan (yes, the god of all things search according to the masses) tried to Sphinn…er…spin doctor and bully his way into getting his point across.

Some of the highlights of the comment in question:

First, I wished you’d taken a moment to ask me before posting. Had you done so, you’d have had a better article since I agree with much of what you found.

It wasn’t an article! It was a woman stating her opinion (and one that could easily be said of pretty well every site you’ve got your grubby mitts on). So now we all have to check with you first before we offer an opinion about a conference or a site or an article? No wonder no whitehat could ever offer an opinion…you’re too busy censoring them.

I don’t think SMX Advanced went over to the dark side, but yes, I think there was a lot more black hat stuff than I would have liked to have seen.

And you control the conference! If you don’t want to see that stuff there, or if you want to limit it, then you’ve got full power to do so! You’ve got no one to blame but yourself for that.

If you go back to this article I wrote:
http://searchenginewatch.com/showPage.html?page=3501146

Am I the only one that has noticed this $ullIvan pattern? “If you go back to something I said to support what I’m saying now, you’ll see that what I’m saying now is completely right.” He does this just about every single time he posts a blog or an article or a comment or anything in general…”just refer back to my thoughts where I said this, and it’ll support this theory now.”

Do we all get to do this? There’s nothing wrong with self-referencing supporting material, but he gets a link in to something he’s doing every single time!

think you over estimate what I was “gunning” for, and maybe you should give me a bit more credit given the stuff I’ve written about and recommended in the past.

No, I’d say she got it pretty well bang-on. You sold out to your ethical criminal buddies because they paid up, rather than actually providing useful advice that will help businesses grow long-term. You’re a sellout, Danny. That’s all you’ve ever been. Then again, I’m talking about the same guy who spent years gathering knowledge about how to run conferences successfully while getting paid to do so, only to turn around and start a competitor with the knowledge gained.

Aaron Wall

Rip the Evil Google corporate giant, and the masses will follow.

Every Other Leader Wannabe

See Aaron Wall.

My Nephew’s Soccer Team

The other reason I haven’t posted much lately is because I’m trying to learn more about the game of soccer…of which I know next to nothing other than how to score (which one would think is a rather useful skill, but since there are many other aspects to the game…I figure I should learn more about them, too.)

I’ve found myself, despite having only been to a couple of games, in the uncharted territory of “assistant coach/practice goalie” for a team of 10-11 year old boys (along with my nephew’s dad and another parent/the head coach). For some reason, the kids listen to me. Why? I haven’t got the slightest idea. But I figure if I’m going to be a coach…I might as well learn how to coach and do it right. Besides, it’s a lot of fun when the kids listen and can do what you want them to do.

The Gym

I’d rather spend a couple of hours in the gym improving my body than posting things online right now. And for the first time in my life…I’ve got pecs. Small pecs…but pecs.

So…to summarize all this, I’m finding more and more that I’m no longer interested in fighting a battle that I largely consider to be a losing one, and one with no real reward. I also have better things to do with my time right now. These are a few of the reasons, but I don’t have the time to go into all of them. This should suffice, though.

Anyway, if you’re looking for me…I’m busy.

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