AlyssaS - 7:33 pm on Oct 21, 2011 (gmt 0)

The internet is FREE, not a cash cow for Google to milk.

Well the internet (system of interconnected networks) is free, and so is the WWW (system of hypertext invented by Tim Berners-Lee and given away for free).

However, any site operating ON the internet is belongs to whoever owns that website. Google is one website, google.com, and their schtick is organising the web. You have another website and your schtick is writing for adsense or sales or whatever.

You are free to organise your website any way you like, and so is Google. You are free to link to Google or not link to them, and they are free to link to you or not link to you.

Demanding that they should be forced to link to you and supply you with traffic for free while you operate your own site to make a living, is nuts.

I suspect the problem is that deep in your mind you believe that Google IS the internet. It's not. You can use the web without using Google - just type in website addresses directly into your browser, and bookmark the sites you like, and rely on word of mouth (and advertising of site names) to get your traffic, like they did in the olden days.

Incidentally, before G came along, Yahoo used to CHARGE websites to be included in their directory!

People keep saying over and over and over not to rely just on Google, and it's going over people's heads because they are thinking that they can't operate without the internet and that Google is the net. It's not, and once the penny drops you will suddenly see many many creative ways to get traffic without needing G (and strangely when that happens, G suddenly gives you plenty of love!)