ooh oooh oooh…did I liknk to you…*checking* yep…I was good. I can stop worrying now.

Da Duck - LOL, no it wasn’t you. You’re a regular reader… you’ve linked to me more than once… you are perfect!

Hello! Your rant was perfect! I have a very small readership but I would hate for any of my readers to feel unloved and I like being acknowledged when I comment so I try to make sure I always either comment in reply or email… Anyway nice to rediscover your blog again. Have subscribed now so should be back more often! Take care.

kate1976 - I find it fascinating that the bloggers out there who complain that they don’t get enough traffic and never get any comments are usually the ones who don’t acknowledge the readers they DO have. Welcome back…

I sell my links.

Mist 1 - What’s the going rate? I’ve been thinking about trading links for sexual favors. I think you owe me a pretty wild night by now.

And let’s not even think about what Killer and Liz must owe me.

if i had a blog i would shout “amen!” or “yeah, what he said” and link back at cha. seeing as how i don’t blog i’m just seething over here for you.
xoxo

hello - LOL. I’m sure that rant is not really interesting to people who don’t have blogs. Hell.. maybe it’s not that interesting to people who DO… but it’s my site, my rant.:D

You’ve definitely hit one of my pet peeves, too. Taking the time to reply to commenters just shows common courtesy. Of course, there are the shit blogs like Dooce that don’t even take comments at all. Fuck ‘em all.

I never realized, until recently, it was discourteous not to respond. I have since rectified this. I am constantly learning from you.

Yes, Liz and I do owe you a great deal in linkage.

Avitable - Don’t even get me started on the shitliciousness that is Dooce. I *hate* that most of the blogging world holds her up as some idol. She’s a boring snobby mediocre-at-best photographer. I’m not jealous of her popularity, I’m dumbfounded by it.

Killer - You are learning well, Grasshopper. We’ll work out all those favors soon.

hey jester,

i’m still new to blogging (only since april of this year) and i am still learning the protocol. i know i have gotten so involved in writing a post that i forget sometimes who i might be borrowing an idea or photo from. i try my best to always link back because i realize that people are taking time and making an effort to rite intelligent posts (not all, but the majority that i read) and it sucks not to give them credit. so, i just wanted to stick up for us newbies that may have committed any of these offenses.

as far as, acknowledging comments, i am 100% behind the idea of saying thank you. even if it isn’t some grand gesture of thanks, a simple thank you sent by e-mail or posted back on the comments box is hardly a chore to do.

anyway, i hope you will count me as a loyal reader. i do have you linked on my feeds reader so far and i read your updates whenever they pop up. a link will eventually be added to my blogroll; i just haven’t had the time to so. but i will get to it soon.

Danny - I’m not such an asshole that I would be upset by the mistakes made by a new blogger… the blog in question that set me off on this rampage has been around for a LONG time. The blogger should know better.

And now, I see that other people have copied the content from the jerkwad’s post that he stole from me… so now I lose out on all the down-the-river links.

::Harumph!::

Fine, I’ll respond to your comments from now own.

othurme - You’d better, bitch!

must just be me, but i actually like what dooce writes. and i enjoy her photos (especially of chuck, but i am such a dog person). i go to plenty of sites where i can’t leave comments so i don’t care that usually i can’t comment on her blog.

amazing how many people hate her. good news is, those folks don’t have to go to her site. i’ll still check it every day. but i ain’t buying a t-shirt. ; )

Right On! Babe!

You are SO right on those! I am totally with ya!

hello - I think it’s all a matter of taste. I might actually attempt to read her site if it wasn’t being held up as the epitome of greatness. It’s like comparing a Hallmark Hall of Fame movie to an Alfonso Cuaron film. The HHoF movie might be decent, but I’m going to watch the hot Mexican guys everytime.

Dutchy - I knew that you would be!

I agree about the commenting. I try to my best to return comments or at the very least, pay a visit to the commenting blog!

ANO - You always were good about that!

mmm. hot mexican guys…Now I’m worried hat I have forgotten to link to you. Not, I think, that I have “borrowed” any content from you, but rather that I like to list the people I visit. And I appear to be stalking you. Only your blog though, I’m not creepy, I swear.

I’m off to go check.

Gina - LOL You wouldn’t be the first stalker I’ve had…. the prettiest, though!

aw. thanks.

Gina - *blush*

ok - who was it??? I don’t always reply on my blog, but i’ll always visit your blog and say hello there. I think it’s coz I never check for responses to my comments unless I know the blogger replies that it doesn’t bother me greatly either way. If you ask me a question i’ll reply.

TopChamp - I guess I’m a bit more narcissistic. If I take the time to leave a comment, I will go back and check to see how well that comment was received. It wasn’t you, btw. I would consider you a regular reader.

“If you are too busy to bother responding, you are too busy to have a blog. Blogs are about interaction… without interaction, it’s a billboard. I hate billboards.”

This is just my opinion, but some people don’t take blogging as seriously as others. I hate billboards as well, but nobody is forcing me to stare at them. I disagree with you re: responding to every comment and what blogs are. A blog is what it is…yours is about interaction, mine is something completely different and not really interactive. Different strokes for different folks.

No, Chat, it’s not different strokes. It’s common courtesy. If you have a blog and you enable comments, you’re expecting people to post comments. It’s a simple courtesy to reply to them. If you don’t, you’re either purposely being rude to people who are enjoying your posts, or ignorant.

And of course, by Chat, I meant Chad.

avi’s “and of course by chat i meant chad” made me snort out loud at work. thanks guys for helping to keep me going on a loooooooong tuesday and for letting my coworkers know i’m a slacker.

p.s. to jester
i don’t care who holds dooce’s site up as the be all end all, i read it coz i like it. if the world turned on you and said your site was shit, i’d still read it so long as i continued to be entertained / challenged / etc.

xoxo

when i first read this topic, my first reaction was “what an a-hole for putting all these expectations out there for how bloggers should handle comments!” then i thought about it and came to the same conclusion as jester.

much like avitable said, if you allow comments, then it must be because you want some interaction with the readers. if you don’t want to be bothered with responding back to comments then turn that feature off. then you don’t look like an arrogant a-hole and no one will be offended even if you are one.

Chad - I understand what you are saying… however, one must ask the question “If you aren’t looking for interaction, why are you writing a story?”

An author writes a book to sell it to others, and goes on a book tour to sign autographs and meet fans.

An artists creates a painting or photograph to share a vision of their world with other people.

A blogger tells a story to bask in the adulation of his smart, intelligent, and unbelievably good looking readers.

Avitable - I don’t know that I *expect* comments. Some days I’m astonished that anyone ever comes here to read what I have to say, let alone comment on it. I do believe that if someone has taken the time to read my sometimes lengthy posts and leave a comment that it is the very least I can do to respond. And if I don’t know the commenter I visit their site and read a couple of posts to see if it’s someone that I want to read regularly.

hello - Slackers are my core audience! I appreciate the sentiment, but now you’ve put me on the spot.. I have to keep being entertaining and challenging or you’re gonna stop reading?

Danny - I love that you thought I was an asshole. No one ever thinks that… or if they do, they don’t tell me. ;D (Cue a plethora of “you’re an asshole” responses…. )

“Expect” probably wasn’t the best word. “Encourage” is more like it.

I thought it would have been funny if you actually hadn’t replied to any of the new comments on this post.

Avitable - I actually considered that. But I was afraid the irony was too subtle.

Yeah, you’re probably right.

Jester, you bring up some good points, but first I want to answer Avitable:

“No, Chat, it’s not different strokes. It’s common courtesy.”

Sorry, but I disagree with you. It is different strokes for different folks. If one sends an email and gets no response, then yes, it’s bad netiquette. Comments on blogs are different. When I leave a comment, more often than not I don’t go back to see if anyone responded to it. I left it, it’s my comment, and it’s for the person who wrote the blog, not anyone else.

“If you have a blog and you enable comments, you’re expecting people to post comments.”

I have my comments enabled, but I don’t expect anyone to respond to them. When they do, it’s nice, but I certainly don’t expect it.

“It’s a simple courtesy to reply to them. If you don’t, you’re either purposely being rude to people who are enjoying your posts, or ignorant.”

Well, tell you what. Let’s just agree to disagree here. You take comments way more seriously than I do, and I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. It’s only illustrating my point…different strokes for different folks. Besides, if I responded to every comment I get I’d be online all day long. I don’t work behind a computer, and I really don’t like being in front of one for very long. If someone enjoys my posts and comments, I really appreciate it. Most comments really don’t need responses anyway. I only have a blog…I’m not running a forum.

Okay, now you, Jester.

“however, one must ask the question ‘If you aren’t looking for interaction, why are you writing a story?’”

My blog is for me, and me only. The fact that people read it astounds me at times, but read it they do. My current story I am telling is therapy for me…it’s a story I’ve had bottled up inside for a long time and it needs to be told, IMHO. It’s just an outlet for me, and not a forum.

“An author writes a book to sell it to others, and goes on a book tour to sign autographs and meet fans.”

Very true. However, I’m writing a blog simply because I like writing. I’m not making any money off of it. In fact, it’s costing me money. I pay for my own bandwidth for my podcasts, but have never put a tip jar out. As far as going out and meeting fans…well, I’m pretty shy in person and generally don’t understand why anyone reads my crap in the first place.

“An artists creates a painting or photograph to share a vision of their world with other people.”

Yes, it’s why I post my photos on my website. I just like sharing my world with whoever thinks it’s interesting enough to look at.

“A blogger tells a story to bask in the adulation of his smart, intelligent, and unbelievably good looking readers.”

[grins] Well, I guess I’m not a true blogger. Like I said, I’m usually too shy to meet anyone and mostly keep to myself. I live in North Beach for a reason, you know.

hey jester,

as long as you keep saying that your readership is ’smart, intelligent and unbelievably goodlooking’, then i will be willing to forego my initial impression of you as being an a-hole. we’ll call it even. ; }

Danny - I left out creative, generous, witty, humble, and eloquent. My apologies.

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damn skippy you had better stay entertaining and challenging, bitch! (see, it’s all about me)

hello - Since it is all about you, how about you tell me what entertaining or challenging thing I should write about next?

since you asked…
sometime i’d love to know your happiest childhood experience. while we are at it, how about your worst? and scariest.

xoxo

hello - As soon as I stop rocking back and forth in the corner clutching my blankie I’ll get right to it.