"How I Know It's Just A Diversion"Written by Jim Peters
After 6 years doing business on internet I have come to conclusion that at least 99% of those who say they are here doing business are in actuality indulging in a minor diversion. Just something to occupy their mind when they find themselves with a bit of spare time. Something to fill those few minutes when commercials break into their favorite television show. Something to take their mind off real work a day world. Or maybe to fill that day during week that bingo hall is closedWhat brought me to this conclusion, you may be asking yourself. Well, let me tell ya. This list of "How I Know It's Just A Diversion" items has been growing daily since 1995 when I took my first baby steps onto Internet and into WWW. The very first thing I noticed were, what have come to be called "Banner Farms". You know, those sites that consist entirely of banners. Usually in 5 or 6 different sizes laid out without slightest consideration for aesthetics or even reason. You'll usually see about 30% of them are no longer attached to valid URL's and you have little x's peppering page. What disturbs me most about these sites is that owner is actually sitting around somewhere waiting for checks to start pouring in. The next thing that caught my eye and screamed, "DIVERSION" were those sites in neon colored backgrounds with a font type and color that made pages look like something my dog had regurgitate after eating a box of crayon's. Have you ever gone into a brick and mortar business and had interior lights of business burn out your retinas? How about signs in type so small you need a ladder to get up close enough to read them. No, you haven't, because they couldn't stay in business. How about ones that ask you to trust them, but have an e- mail address that bounces, or a phone number that's been disconnected. Even better than that ones that have no contact information at all!! ( actually these guys generally really are in business, business of ripping people off ) Then we get to really well camouflaged diversions. These actually look like well run business sites. Well laid out, great use of color and design. Contact information everywhere, endorsements from all best business organizations, even a picture of owner. Wow! This must really be someone that's running a business on internet.
| | "Lycos Jumps on 'Pay for Inclusion' Bandwagon"Written by Merle
Seems as if all of major search engines these days have instituted a policy of pay for inclusion, and it appears Lycos is no exception. In a few weeks they'll be launching their own paid inclusion program. Lycos boasts big numbers, claiming over 40 million users; making them a competitive player in search engine games.The exact launch date has not been announced, but you can sign up to be notified by email when it is and also receive special introductory submission pricing. Lycos will be offering two levels of service: 1) Lycos InSite Select: This guarantees your site's inclusion within 48 hours of submission along with a full refresh of your site every 48 hours. They'll also send you a "personalized site submission report" so you can see what has been indexed and when. It also includes access to "Search Services Central" which allows you to review your billing, make any changes or contact their support department. As an added bonus they give you a free subscription to their ezine, featuring tips and information on how to maximize your website traffic. 2) Lycos InSite Pro: This service includes all of features of "InSite Select" service plus benefit of a remotely hosted search function for your website. They give you code to add to your site so your guests can search your site quickly and find what they're looking for. The site search results page can be customized to match your site's colors and you can even add your own logo.
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