1) Reciprocal links, while not becoming totally dead, are decreasing in value, and there will most likely be an algorithm update to lessen their importance. The original thought process behind importance of a link was that it was seen as a “vote” for linked-to site. Now that reciprocal links are everywhere, it is hardly a great way to count “votes” for a website. Reciprocal linking will continue around internet, although amount of people who try to get away with one-way links (by never getting back to you once you’ve added their link) will increase significantly. This will, of course, be an attempt to acquire one-way links, which brings us to our next subject....

Being a relative newcomer to Web I decided to foray into Search Engine Optimization to gain first hand experience and any insights I could. My assumption was that it would have a basis built on rational thinking and logical facts.

I pre-supposed a certain degree of agreement and transparency from many of established sources and opinion makers. My starting viewpoint supported by my association of Search Engine Optimization and Web as natural extensions of common sense, logical thinking.

In hindsight, I must confess I'm not more knowledgeable about subject than when I first started. I found very few opinions and practices based on fact. What I did find - and it came as an unexpected revelation - was general confusion and disagreement.

I found secret potion SEO, lurking-in-the-shadows SEO, ignorance as dogma SEO, Voodoo SEO, witch doctor SEO, magical chicken bones SEO, 10 blind men and elephant SEO, fancy and hearsay as SEO! In minority, I found but a handful of opinions based on cold hard facts and logic. How in world can Search Engine Optimization mean all those things?

OK, perhaps I did overdo above paragraph, but point I'm making is this: With infinite number of opinions, incorrect assumptions and dead wrong practices; how do you know what to believe? Imagine you're a small business looking for SE optimization; how would you go about it?

The Search Engines, of course, won't reveal more than general guidelines for optimization; other than that, they don't say much. I realize they do things in that manner because they can't explain much about their inner workings. If folks had skinny on formulas and algorithms, nothing short of SE pandemonium would ensue.