Back From The Dead

Back To The Future?

[farmboy]

First, let me say a great big THANKS to Netmeg and IncrediBILL.

Hello to those of you who I've never met but I consider friends. It's good to be back in the Internet world,

For those reading this, I used to be a "regular" on Webmaster World.

I've spent a year dead, or at least very close to it.

I hope to write some things everyone will find useful as far as preparing for your death.

And I'm writing this on the AdSense board, I am a "former" Publisher who hasn't been paid in a year and has great difficulty contacting someone with AdSense.

It's good to be back.

I hope you take seriously what I write and prepare for what might happen to you any moment now.

FarmBoy

[farmboy]

I'd also suggest the "Separation of Exposures" approach. That's whether you're thinking about your computer, home, business or whatever.

For example: You're not really safe putting your data on a thumb drive thinking about being safe if a thief breaks in and takes your computer. A fire, tornado, etc. could take both even without any effort by a thief.

FarmBoy

[incrediBILL]

You're not really safe putting your data on a thumb drive

The thumb drive is on my keychain in my pants, along with my smartphone, so if they get those, I'm probably dead and really don't care anymore.

What should also be explored is a way to reset all passwords in the event someone steals your computer.

That's my biggest fear when I'm away from home is if my home computer becomes compromised someone can take control over everything I own.

Paranoid?

I once heard a sad tale at PubCon from a guy that hired some outsource guy to manage his server from Romania. The guy had access to his email on the server and used that to hijack all his accounts, reset their passwords, and stole his domain names and held them for ransom. Then took the money and asked for more!

Could have just as easily happened from a hacker, which has been in the news more that a few times lately.

Just to point out you should NOT give anyone access to anywhere that they can gain access to the email account used to control your domains and such. Bad idea.

Also shows you should spread your accounts across more than one email account perhaps, or as I've done on some that allow it, install dual email accounts so if they don't remove it, I can reset their reset ;)

Too many eggs tied to one email basket allowed hackers to wipe out a reporters complete Apple collection:
[wired.com...]

Of course that was due to stupid people giving up information over the phone, and you can always rely on the stupidity of others to undo your best laid security plans.

More importantly, if the service on one server with your primary email account goes down, which has happened to me, you need to be able to manage things from an alternate account so doing something simple like moving a domain to a new server that might require email validation doesn't suddenly turn into a nightmare. Happened a few years ago thanks to a major outage, I made the appropriate changes ;)

In the end it doesn't matter how well you plan, something will eventually hit the fan leaving you with an "AH HA" moment LOL

In the end, Google doesn't believe in tech support, that's the real problem we have here. If an algo can't solve your problem you're screwed. Thus the plight of Farmboy and his AdSense crops as they languish in limbo.

[farmboy]

Let me post this as an update and thanks to those of you who have expressed support.

I have graduated well beyond walking on a cane now. I feel great and I'm walking normally now.

I'm still putting myself through physical therapy 3 days per week.

I even started shooting basketball with success again this week.

Thanks again to everyone.


FarmBoy

[ken_b]

That's a great update Farmboy!

Keep on going!

[Planet13]

Glad to hear that, farmboy.

[farmboy]

Thanks ken_b and Planet13

May your site be infested with multiple AdSense clicks.

FarmBoy

[netmeg]

heh - infested? I love that.

[Planet13]

Well... mine is infested with bad css... does that count?

[farmboy]

I wanted to include some "Back To The Future" observations. You folks can use them however you think best for your AdSense efforts.

1. The old-fashioned practice of manners seems to have vanished. If one person was talking to another, in the past no one would jump in that conversation without an invitation or at least saying "I'm sorry" or "excuse me".

Now almost anyone seems to be carrying a smart phone. If two people are talking and one gets a phone call, that person just starts ignoring the talker and grants more importance to the caller.


2. I'm surprised at how many businesses advertise their email address on their business cards, in print advertising, etc., but don't have a good plan to respond to that email message.


FarmBoy

[ian_D]

#1 explains #2.
I do a lot of business enquiries through email, partly because of a disability that makes it hard to talk to a disconnected voice with no face to read, and because I like to keep written records of all business dealings.
I find a lot of onsite business contact emails go to the webmaster or site designer rather than who you intended. Our Govt websites are bad for this too.
If you do get your message delivered, many just brush you off with a phone number to call instead. Others reply with fractured nonsense, completely neglecting to acknowledge any questions. Or they seem bothered that they have to write a proper reply. Some don't know the difference between email and twitting, they treat it the same as some juvenile text chat thing.

Predictive text replies from mobiles really annoy me too. They don't even proof read before they send... close enough, back to texting.

...grants more importance to the caller

and loses my business. I'm sure I'm not the only disabled consumer who feels this frustration.

[farmboy]

A local billboard company proudly announces their email address right on their home page. I sent them an email this week about advertising on one of their billboards.

No response for 3 days.

So I called their telephone number. "She's not at the office this morning yet. Would you like to leave a voice mail message?"

I wonder if the owner of the business knows how much business he's not getting?

FarmBoy

[farmboy]

Here's something I've noticed, and has been confirmed since coming "Back From The Dead."

(1) If I have something I want to give away to make AdSense or other revenue from visitors

or

(2) If I have something I want to sell for profit and make AdSense or other revenue from visitors



(2) is more profitable in the long run. It defies logic but it sure proves to be true.

FarmBoy

[farmboy]

If you put more content on one page, will you get better results from Adsense?

For example, if you have a page about Red Rocks and a page about Blue Fish and you put it all on the same page, do you have the opportunity to have the potential to see the advertisers bid against each other and drive up the price?

FarmBoy

[netmeg]

For me it's way more about traffic than amount of content.

[atladsenser]

For example, if you have a page about Red Rocks and a page about Blue Fish and you put it all on the same page, do you have the opportunity to have the potential to see the advertisers bid against each other and drive up the price?

Not sure, but I've always thought it best to devote individual pages to a single subject/topic. Not that you can't discuss different things like you've mentioned within one article, but it's best for each article to be "about" one thing, to give AdSense the clearest signal of what your content is about.

[Khensu]

So farmboy, good to hear that you didn't "buy the farm". Personally, on my seventh life, got two left. Nothing quite as graven as your experience, kudos for your gallant recovery.

So your point is if your selling something that brings in a more productive clicker for Adsense opposed to offering a freebie?

Some kind of psychological conundrum? Those who would spend, would click on ads of greater worth?

[farmboy]

Thanks Khensu.

I just returned from another back to the future trip. This time I have a broken wrist.

Someone remind me - does AdSense send out a payment to close out the calendar year?


FarmBoy

[IanCP]

No - as far as I know?

[Khensu]

I hope it is your non mouse wrist!

Blew out my collar bone in a bicycle accident with a car when I was 20(third life gone). Arm completely fell off and sagged down to my waist , one of the weirdest experiences I ever had, 5 years to totally recover.

But it made me completely ambidextrous after that.

Since, I do everything I can with my left arm (driving etc) and hand, not to endanger my motor right functions which are paramount to making $.

So I hope it was your left wrist. If not, I guarantee you it is mind over matter, you can retrain yourself.

[farmboy]

Oops I broke the wrong wrist.

Now, along with everything else, I'm learning how to type with the left hand.

Thanks Khensu.


FarmBoy

[farmboy]

I have to ask this.

Who is still adding content and AdSense since the beginning?


FarmBoy

[netmeg]

I'm not sure what that means.

[farmboy]

Who has been adding content and AdSense and now you have a massive site? Or maybe you now have a large number of your own sites?

FarmBoy

[netmeg]

Umm still not sure I understand, but - yea.

[Khensu]

I think the question is. What is your progressive growth of Adsense? The formation of one large mother site with many pages? Or many smaller spawned niche sites? A portfolio of different focused sites.

[farmboy]

Yes. What Khensu said.

FarmBoy

[netmeg]

Oh! Both.

[farmboy]

Here's another I'm Back In The Future Now question.

Suppose I want to advertise my site that has AdSense ads on a billboard, in print publications, etc.

Is it best to advertise www.Webmasterworld.com or just Webmasterworld.com ?

FarmBoy

[RedBar]

YMMV however since 1994 I have always advertised example.com, never, ever with the www...even Tim Berners-Lee admits that was a mistake!

Anyway, if your htaccess is set-up correctly it really doesn't matter which people type in.

[farmboy]

Anyway, if your htaccess is set-up correctly it really doesn't matter which people type in.

Thanks RedBar.

I'm thinking of how others have things set-up.

When using Google to search, I've noticed using the www vs. not using it sometimes results in getting different destinations?

FarmBoy