The UrbanDictionary of the web, riddled with memes and trends and other gems of popular Internet culture, defines bloggers as “anyone with enough time or narcissism to document every tedious bit of minutia filling their uneventful lives.”

When blogging first gained popularity the late 1990s, the blogosphere was indeed treated like a public diary of sorts. By the early 2000s, however, a distinction was made between blogging and social networking. In 2002, blogs were embraced by the journalism industry and have since gained increasing notice and respect across the web.

On the other end of the spectrum, social networking sites have long since provided average Internet users with a forum to write about their day-to-day lives. Many platforms, such as Twitter and Tumblr, have striven to close the gap between blogging and networking in a medium dubbed “microblogging.” Although many Internet users maintain personal blogs filled with self-expression, it’s never been easier for professional writers to be recognized for regular contributions to blogs.

Research from 2010 shows that more teens and young adults have taken to the social networking scene, where they can update their friends and followers with their every move made over the course of a day. Meanwhile the percentage of adult bloggers over the age of 30 has risen by nearly 10% since 2006.

Many consider these trends, particularly among teens, to be a result of their access to an overwhelming number of platforms that serve the same purpose. Teens, particularly in cyberspace, have the tendency to jump on the latest craze, and as a result often wind up with memberships to dozens of sites they won’t visit more than once. While not always the case, adults typically benefit from stability in their web presence and are more likely to facilitate & contribute discussions relating to topics outside of their personal lives than the Internet youth.

Regardless of that fashion in which they are used, blogs are read regularly by 77% of active Internet users, and over one million posts are added to the blogosphere within a 24 hour period. Web curators and aggregators have begun to include blogs in their field of focus for these reasons.

In the Best of the Web Blogs Directory, for instance, Internet users can find consistently active, high quality blogs sorted into relevant categories based on content. In addition to timely and newsworthy blogs, the Blogs Directory even offers a home for those used for personal matters. With the ability to subscribe to the RSS feed of blogs directly from listings within the directory, navigating the blogosphere has never been easier.

Earlier this year we launched the Online Degree Directory which lives up to its namesake by providing a comprehensive directory of online degree programs for all fields and academic concentrations ranging from Accounting to Writing. This includes programs for Associate’s, Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctorate level degrees as well as continuing education certificates and diplomas.

Despite its name, however, the Online Degree Directory offers much more than a resource for finding reputable distance learning degrees. It also provides listings of top-rated, accredited online schools such as American Intercontinental University Online. The directory does not neglect the needs of traditional campus-bound students either; it includes listings for over 100 prestigious brick & mortar institutions of higher learning throughout the United States, and is constantly growing as the talented BOTW Editors add new listings to all parts of the site.

Although primarily functioning as a catalog where students can find matches in higher learning institutions and programs based on degree type or field of study, the directory also presents students with the all the tools necessary for ultimately deciding upon which program best fits their own financial, academic, and personal criteria.

The Online Degree Blog, for instance, contributes frequent updates and aims to spark discussion among readers about all things college-related. The blog posts cover every aspect of student life such as in-depth evaluations of popular majors, student expenses, extra-curricular programs, job hunting, and general guidance. Each listing and blog post within the directory also points readers to additional authoritative sources on the subject.

Whether a student feels confident that they have found their match, or is juggling several featured degree or college options,  they then have the ability to request additional enrollment and program information directly through the directory listing. Thus the Online Degree Directory not only serves as an expert resource for locating the ideal degree or university, but also helps students initiate communication that can lead to enrollment.

Thanks to the Beers Design Team

I suppose now that we’re officially on the new URL and have the new interface in place it’s time to thank the folks that made it happen. A hearty thanks to the guys at Beers Design for setting up this WordPress theme.

The old one was getting a little threadbare, didn’t allow pictures of the size I’d have liked, and just looked its age. This is a vast improvement. I’d also like to thank our own Rob Schmidt for working with them to get it done. You guys did a great job, and that makes mine easier. Gracias gents.

And Another Writer to Enter the Fray

Also, rumor here at BOTW-land is that one of the talented folks from corporate is going to join me in the blog, so you can look forward to upcoming posts from Danielle. It’ll be nice to have another hand at the oar and a different perspective. You can find her bio info on the BOTW Corporate website. Actually if you’re reading this, that’s where you are now. Just hit the button up there that says “About Us.“

You Just Can’t Make Up Stuff this Fun

An article published today in The Tech Journal had this solemn headline…
“Facebook is the new cause of divorce”.

The story leads off as follows:

The number of divorces occurring because of Facebook and other social networking sites has been on the rise since these sites have become increasingly popular, research claims. ~ Published in The Tech Journal – 5/13/2011

They may have a point
After all, I keep seeing a box on the other side of my FB page that shows a very attractive girl (about the age of my own kid) with a skimpy outfit and a caption that says “Guess who’s looking for you!”.

I suppose it *could* be true, but most likely it’d either mean  (*a) daddy issues are really getting outta hand at colleges or (*b) collection agencies have started using people we might really let find us.

Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
Seriously folks. Did the number of deaths by plane crash climb when people started using air travel? Did football injuries mysteriously rise when schools added the game to their athletic program? Heck, I’ll bet gunshot accidents rose significantly after the invention of firearms.

If they look REALLY close they’ll also find an increase in the number of people that got married as a result of Facebook since people started using it, not to mention a shocking (!) increase in the number of people who got unfriended on Facebook, and yes… a dramatic jump in meaningless statistics about people who do things as a result of using Facebook. Somebody needs to check into these things too, there’s a good chance we’re onto something.

On the bright side, the number killed in buggies powered by horses continues to decline in a figure inversely related to automobile sales.

There had to be government grant money involved in this powerful research project. Surely nobody came up with such an amazing statistical correlation without a considerable endowment with which to ponder such deep thoughts.

Obligatory Mention of Daily Trivia Challenge on Facebook
As you might guess, the only correlation that is totally escaping me is how to tie this all to internet directories, but it was just too classic to pass up. Guess I could say I put it here to plug the daily contests we’re doing on BOTW’s Facebook page. Yeah, that’s it. Go win some easy money on our Trivia Challenge… you may need it to pay the lawyer later.

Gotta love the internet. You guys have a great weekend, and for those that are married, behave yourselves on Facebook or I’m telling.

Blog commenting is a typical part of link building campaigns intended to raise the visibility of a site, but of course as with anything that helps, there are guys that over-do it to the extreme. When that happens, the big SEs make adjustments that decrease the effectiveness in a way that affects more than just the bozos that employ it wrong. Such is life.

You can go to any webmaster forum and find someone willing to take a small fee for a link building campaign, and in most cases they’ll describe it as “manual link building” and assure you they’ll be adding “quality” comments. Then they’ll quote you a fee of $50 to comment on a billion or so blogs.

I have to believe somebody is paying for their services, if only based on the amount of spam comments I see summarily canned by Askimet and similar spam guardians on blogs I work. I also have to believe that given women are just as involved on the web as men these days… roughly half of the people employing such services are female.

Here’s my question:

Where the heck were all these gullible girls when I was single?

Anyone that pays someone to spam the heck out of blogs is just dreaming. Sure, there are blogs that are unattended or built solely for the purpose of accepting such nonsense comments, but generic machine driven comments on any blog worth a backlink will be deleted manually if not tossed automatically. The few places they stick will be populated with a hundred similar comments… all guaranteed to fool people that’ve been on the net less than 5 minutes only.

Thank you for this marvelous post dear! I was searching for this most worthy information. Please post more about this topic. I have bookmarked this site and will come back often!

Yeah… obviously the work of someone that felt a burning need to commend the writer. For the record, its always a treat to hear from you, mister QualityTransmissionsRepairandHairSalon.co.whatever. Please stop in again (you dork).

I don’t think blog commenting is a waste. Anyone that actually takes the time to write a blog instead of relying on similarly worthless “auto-blog” software is always thrilled when somebody takes the time to read their work and make a comment that shows a sentient being engaged their brain and posted a reply.

Of course I figure when I finish this one… if nobody replies I can assuage my loneliness by going to the spam filter to see the comments no other human will ever see. No doubt I’ll have at least one that says…

“Thanks for your share!!! I am adding your RSS feed!!!”

~ QualityTransmissionsRepairandHairSalon.co.whatever

Argh. Lord, please take me now. ~ Rob

PS: If you’re looking for blogs on the topic of your choice that are NOT auto-written… see the BOTW Blog Directory.