Changes afoot, Batwoman
Apr. 24th, 2010 02:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
viciouswishesAfter far too many years of having the same layout, I went for a change. Of course, I spent a lot of time wrestling/re-learning LJ's change your style system since I hadn't ever changed anything on the newest (old already) system.
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I just started the 6th Sookie Stackhouse book, but I think I'll have to put it down. First, because they start to really annoy me if I don't read "real" literature in between. (I use "real" because I'm a jaded person with an English degree.) And second, because I didn't read the short stories and feels like Harris wrote the 6th book thinking you'd read all the shorts.
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Normally, I'm not one to be all "the sky's falling" when it comes to LJ. Actually, I still don't think it's falling. However, the newest way LJ is trying to make money is through affiliate programs.
Note: If you enacted ads on your own page to make affiliate revenue for yourself, this is not applicable to you and will probably mess up your ads if you execute this code.
What's an affiliate link: An affiliate link is where a special code's attached to an outbounding URL to a e-commerce shop. For my example, let's say it's a link to Amazon. When that link's clicked by you from LJ and you buy something on Amazon, a percentage of your money goes to LJ. (Amazon pays out up to 15%. I don't know what rate LJ gets.)
What LJ's doing: LJ's hired this URL service to add LJ affiliate links to all outbounding links from LJ on every post, whether it's public, flocked, or private.
What people are panicking over: 1) Someone's tracking your URLs even in flocked & private posts. 2) LJ's making money off your links.
Why I don't think it's panic worthy: 1) LJ tracks all your URLs anyway. You are using their system, and if you trust them enough to use the service, I don't see why you wouldn't trust their business partners. 2) Most internet users click on affiliate links all the time and have no idea. What do you think all those coupon sites do?
Why I removed my link: I have a permanent account. I've paid LJ for their service. I don't put affiliate links on my own sites.
How you can turn off this feature:
Go to the admin console.
Paste in: set opt_exclude_stats 1
Hit 'execute' after.
***
I just started the 6th Sookie Stackhouse book, but I think I'll have to put it down. First, because they start to really annoy me if I don't read "real" literature in between. (I use "real" because I'm a jaded person with an English degree.) And second, because I didn't read the short stories and feels like Harris wrote the 6th book thinking you'd read all the shorts.
***
Normally, I'm not one to be all "the sky's falling" when it comes to LJ. Actually, I still don't think it's falling. However, the newest way LJ is trying to make money is through affiliate programs.
Note: If you enacted ads on your own page to make affiliate revenue for yourself, this is not applicable to you and will probably mess up your ads if you execute this code.
What's an affiliate link: An affiliate link is where a special code's attached to an outbounding URL to a e-commerce shop. For my example, let's say it's a link to Amazon. When that link's clicked by you from LJ and you buy something on Amazon, a percentage of your money goes to LJ. (Amazon pays out up to 15%. I don't know what rate LJ gets.)
What LJ's doing: LJ's hired this URL service to add LJ affiliate links to all outbounding links from LJ on every post, whether it's public, flocked, or private.
What people are panicking over: 1) Someone's tracking your URLs even in flocked & private posts. 2) LJ's making money off your links.
Why I don't think it's panic worthy: 1) LJ tracks all your URLs anyway. You are using their system, and if you trust them enough to use the service, I don't see why you wouldn't trust their business partners. 2) Most internet users click on affiliate links all the time and have no idea. What do you think all those coupon sites do?
Why I removed my link: I have a permanent account. I've paid LJ for their service. I don't put affiliate links on my own sites.
How you can turn off this feature:
Go to the admin console.
Paste in: set opt_exclude_stats 1
Hit 'execute' after.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
on 2010-04-24 09:03 pm (UTC)Gabrielle
no subject
on 2010-04-27 03:23 am (UTC)Yes, variety is the spice of life. :)
no subject
on 2010-04-24 09:41 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2010-04-27 03:23 am (UTC)no subject
on 2010-04-24 10:09 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2010-04-27 03:24 am (UTC)no subject
on 2010-04-24 10:16 pm (UTC)I turned off the affiliate linkage once someone put the info up on how to do it. Mostly I was annoyed because I hate people putting stuff up and then burying the information somewhere where it's a bitch to find. If you tell me up front you want to do something, then I can make an informed decision and I don't get cranky.
no subject
on 2010-04-27 03:29 am (UTC)Yeah, transparency is so much better than secrecy. There are few times when secrets are actually useful or required about really anything.
no subject
on 2010-04-24 10:42 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2010-04-27 03:29 am (UTC)no subject
on 2010-04-24 11:40 pm (UTC)I never read the short stories and made it through all 9/10 however many books there were just fine. However, around the sixth book or so it does start to get just shark-jumping. You have to intersperse with better stuff or you to go insane. It's still far better than Twilight, though.
no subject
on 2010-04-27 03:32 am (UTC)Yeah, I started reading it going "wait, she never put anything in the previous books about Sookie's cousin being dead" and, of course, since I've seen the show, I know about Sookie's cousin and expected her to show up in the books...
When she started dating the Tiger, my shark-jump meter went off.