Well. I lied about the New York pictures. And my love affair with the Geek Squad is grinding to a halt even as I type. I have been completely unable to figure out the cheat code to get through to an actual PERSON when I call Best Buy to check on the status of my computer. I get horribly lost in a tangle of "Press 1 for repairs! Press 2 for store hours! Press 3 to actually speak to a carbon based lifeform--hahaha! Just kidding about that last one!" So, anyway, that's just a very long, roundabout way of saying that I don't yet have my computer back and it's just too complicated and OBVIOUS to bring my camera and cord into work to do a big photoessay from my desk.
Now for the interactive part! I ask--you answer! Woo--comment whoring at it's finest!!
Right! So! Lately I've been stumbling across awesome blogs left and right... and... and... I don't know what to DO!! I feel like my blog links over there on the left have already reached epic proportions, and I really don't want to have 400 links hanging out taking over the entire sidebar. But I also don't want to stop finding awesome blogs that make me laugh and cry and share my somewhat unhealthy obsession with shoes. I don't know what to do... I just don't know!
I've also become very interested in "blog etiquette" lately. I originally saw this topic brought up over at Becky's place, and it's stuck with me ever since. What are your personal opinions about linking and commenters/commenting on blogs? I think in the past I've actually lost regular readers because I didn't link back to their blogs after they linked me. I never meant it as an offense, but seriously, if we all linked to other blogs simply because they linked to us our blogs would be nothing but a big old link list. I don't link to people because I expect a link in return, and I don't play by those rules here--and believe me, there are PLENTY of blogs on that list over there that don't link back to me, and I'm fine with that. I read those blogs because I enjoy reading what they have to say and find them to be a fabulous source of entertainment.
However, I don't think that I snub any of my readers. I try very hard to acknowledge ever person that comments and thank people who are stopping by for the first time. It's been difficult lately to respond to every comment because I only have a limited time on email during my lunchbreak, but I still try to hit the majority of commenters back and swing by their sites to see who they are behind the screenname. There are quite a few blogs I read where I don't feel like the commenters are ever really acknowledged, and I guess it makes me a little more reticent to comment there. Of course some of these people get hundreds of comments a day, so there's really no way they could respond to every single one, but there are sites that I've been reading and commenting on from time to time for close to a year now and I've never gotten a visit back or acknowledgment of my readership whatsoever.
I'm truly not being a whiny-puss over here, I'm just curious about what other bloggers take on this subject is and how they handle their linky-love and comments! Anyhow, I'm going to go back to my attempts to get through to a human at Best Buy and check on the progress of my poor broken computer. And I'm making no more promises about NYC pictures--they'll be here when they get here!
I try to at least respond to most of the comments I get, especially if it's someone who's commenting for the first time. If they leave a link, I'll check it out. If I like what I see and keep reading it, I'll add it to my links list. I use my links list as a "list of sites I like and that you might like, too." I don't worry too much about linking or not linking to people that have linked me, mostly as a way of keeping my links list under control. There are people I link to that don't link back, which is fine, and there are people that link to me that I don't link to, which is also fine. If someone gets annoyed because I haven't linked them and they take me off their links list? Well, that's their choice and I'm just not going to worry about it.
Posted by: Dawn | August 08, 2006 at 05:47 PM
I was just thinking about that today..that I need to do something with my blog roll. I use bloglines, so I tend to add people to my bloglines without linking them to my site. I'm going to go through and make a link thing though..I really need to.
Posted by: baggage | August 08, 2006 at 06:48 PM
You are such a picture tease
Posted by: Pete | August 08, 2006 at 07:14 PM
I honestly don't respond to every comment that I receive, unless the person seemed to have misunderstood the post and I want to clarify it. However, I do go and visit everyone that comments to me (or try to) in return.
I also don't link anyone unless we have established an on-going stream of visiting/commenting b/c I actually do read everyone on it. Like real life, I don't like one-way relationships. I have people on my blogroll that get maybe two comments a day, but if they take the time to come visit me, I feel that I owe them the same courtesy.
Posted by: Becky | August 08, 2006 at 07:21 PM
I'm with Angela on the blogroll business. You're in the blogroll if I enjoy your blog regularly, that's it. It's a pretty simple philosophy that keeps me from worrying if I linked to so-and-so's blog, because Oh Crap, they link to me and I don't link to them, etc etc.
Also, I fight the urge to comment on those 100+ comment posts, because I feel like I'm whispering. It seems pointless.
This brings up a good point, Angela-- what about someone like Dooce, whose blog has almost become sheer entertainment. I've always wondered why she doesn't have a blogroll. I feel like it distances her a little from the blogging community, but at the same time, she's already on this blogging pedestal...
Posted by: Culotte | August 08, 2006 at 09:29 PM
Personally, if I like the blog, I'll link it. If I don't, I don't. Case closed.
No sense in advocating something you don't particularly like . . .
Posted by: Airhead | August 09, 2006 at 12:15 AM
If I like blogs they generally make their way onto Rojo (a fantastic feed reading website), tagged as "friend" so I can catch up when I have time. Having said that, I have been working all kinds of ridiculous hours recently so haven't had time to blog or read blogs as much as I might like.
Posted by: Jonathan | August 09, 2006 at 12:23 AM
You comment whore. :-)(I kid, I kid.) I try to at least respond to every commenter in the comments of the post they commented on. (Uh, or something less convoluted.) If I like you, I link you. If I link someone and they don't reciprocate, I certainly don't drop them. On the other hand there are sites I read regularly but just haven't gotten around to linking yet.
Every so often I'll go through my blogroll (I use Blogrolling) and update it. There are certain big-time bloggers that I read regularly but never comment. My thinking is that if someone's getting 100 comments per post, what are the odds they'll even read my comment, much less respond to it? Maybe that sounds bitter but I don't mean for it to be. I understand there are only so many hours in the day.
Posted by: Fraulein N | August 09, 2006 at 01:21 AM
My link list is for me. I try to visit all the links at least once a week to catch up. Many comment that they use my blogroll for their own surfing though and I think some have had hurt feelings that they weren't on it. Oh well, I try to be nice but as you said if I linked EVERYONE my blog would be google, not my blog.
Posted by: Grins | August 10, 2006 at 12:45 AM