Every several months or so, I type my name in a couple of variations
into google.
Why? Well, the first time I did it was after my natural father had found
me via the internet. I wanted to see just how easy it was to find me. I
wasn't trying to be hidden, or to be visible... I was just curious. So,
I typed in a handful of variations of my name in a few search engines.
This was in the pre-google days, and the altavista advanced search was
my favored search engine (back when altavista wasn't just another web
portal).
Every several months it occurs to me to repeat the excersize. I don't
really have any good reason for it. I'm not looking to see if I've been
keeping a low enough profile to be unobserved and I'm not looking to see
if I'm famous. I'm just wasting time basically. People do that at times,
ya know? I don't try all the search engines anymore, just google. ...but
I still try a few variations of my name. I've found that there are a few
folks with my first and last name who are somewhat famous. I'm not one
of them. There are also a few less famous folks with my name. I've had
email from three strangers asking if I was their long lost relative or
high school classmate. I'm not.
Today I googled for 'wickline'. It's my last name, and I'd expected to
see oodles of strangers and an occasional relative. I did *not* expect
to see something of mine in the #3 spot! ...but that's what I found!
As I type this,
http://google.com/search?q=wickline
has as the third hit
http://wickline.org/yapc/maps.html
Given the way google's page-rank system works, I'm interpreting that
result to indicate that this year's YAPC was more important than just
about anything wickline-related. YAPC beats out every wickline in the
world but two!
Bravo! Way to go YAPC! :)
On google images, there's a couple of nude women. I think you can
search for just about anything and find porn.
On google groups, strangers and relatives.
On google directory we find that use.perl.org is more important than
any wickline entry in dmoz.org (source data for google directory). My
name just happened to be on use.perl.org (because of that yapc post)
on the day it was last indexed by google, so as I type this, the u.p.o
page comes up on a search for wickline... and because u.p.o is better
ranked than any wickline-related page, it comes up first.
And if wasting time at google wasn't enough, I'm now wasting time here
talking about my waste of time.
What a waste of time. :) I think I need to get some sleep...
-matt
Re:google pagerank
wickline on 2002-08-08T04:08:27
> you might be ranked higher
> if you let google index the contents of your site.
...but I'm not particularly interested in being ranked higher.
If I were, I'd also have keywords and description meta tags,
more discoverable content, more content period.
> What's with having everything in <tt>tags?!
I post using the "code" option. I started doing that after
wrestling with the other posting options while trying to
post some comment about perl6 regular expressions. I got
sick of escaping everything. Now I don't worry about it.
> It's almost unreadable.
My recomendation would be to set your browser preferences so
that your default monospaced font is one which you can read.
Try using whichever font/size you use in your text editor when
writing code. Hmmm... Or do you write code in a variable-width
font?
> I often skip your comments because
> I can't be bothered deciphering the tt text.
It's a free world:) I'm don't think I've said anything of
much significance, so you don't need to worry that you're
missing much;)
...but just in case someone does say something of significance
in a monospaced font, you might want to tweak your browser prefs.
-matt
Re:google pagerank
merlyn on 2002-08-08T04:17:06
Ahh, finally found a purpose for that "Foe" ranking. Thank you for being the designated target.Re:google pagerank
wickline on 2002-08-08T04:35:04
> Thank you for being the designated target.
Is that because you're also not fond of monospaced fonts?
...or have I caused offense? (or both?)
I'm honestly not trying to annoy folks.:/
I didn't intend any "tone" to my text. It just means what it says.
It's good to set your browser preferences to make things easier
for you to read. Change fonts, change sizes, change stylesheets if
your browser lets you. It's *your* browser and *you* are the one
who has to read what it shows you. Make it work for you.
I didn't mean to be snide in asking if he coded in a variable-width
font. I never do, and it never occured to me until I typed that
sentance that anyone might. Maybe most folks do. I honestly don't
know.... Hence, the "hmmmm...." and questioning-out-loud.
sigh...
I seem to have a knack for pissing folks off without meaning to.
-mattRe:google pagerank
merlyn on 2002-08-08T06:29:25
In that case, please move out of the 80's, and into "real" text. I like to be able to adjust the width of my screen to a comfortable wrap. Your text doesn't flow into that wrap. And there are no constant-space fonts that look anywhere near as good as the rest of the text.I'm honestly not trying to annoy folks.:/ I'm actually pretty surprised at your response. I did figure you as some a-hole that says "damn you for even trying to listen to me, but I'll be continuing to speak in a manner of my choosing". Yes, I've known jerks like that.
If your intent is to communicate, then listen to the feedback you're getting, and adjust accordingly. If your intent is merely to speak in the manner of your choosing, eventually no-one will be around to listen. {grin}
Re:google pagerank
pudge on 2002-08-13T03:14:27
I post using the "code" option. I started doing that after wrestling with the other posting options while trying to post some comment about perl6 regular expressions. I got sick of escaping everything. Now I don't worry about it.
Try using Plain Old Text or HTML Formatted, and then use <ECODE> when you want to post code.
My recomendation would be to set your browser preferences so that your default monospaced font is one which you can read. Try using whichever font/size you use in your text editor when writing code. Hmmm... Or do you write code in a variable-width font?
You miss the point. Code is easier for most people to read in monospaced fonts, but prose is easier for most people to read in variable-width fonts. It's not about "tweaking browser prefs" to get a readable font, it's about using the right font for the right purpose.Re:google pagerank
wickline on 2002-08-14T19:40:14
> Try using Plain Old Text or HTML Formatted,
I am a reformed man.
Since earning a 'foe' mark, I have changed my ways. If you slash hackers were wondering whether the 'foe' idea was productive or not, I'm an example of how the feature encouraged pro-social behavior in the wild:)
> and then use <ECODE> when you want to post code.
I ran into an unexpected insertion of semicolons when I used it for some HTML in this post. Is there some documentation of ECODE somewhere or should I browse the source to see what I should expect of it?
-matt
Re:google pagerank
pudge on 2002-08-14T19:56:16
The "insertion" of the semicolons is not related directly to ECODE, but was a by-product of another bug (actually, it was incorrectly splitting on " " so it became " "). The post modes, including ECODE, are documented to some degree in the Slashdot FAQ. Re:google pagerank
wickline on 2002-08-14T21:49:20
> documented to some degree in the Slashdot FAQ
The FAQ... uh... Foolish me didn't bother to look before asking
(sheepish grin)
-mattRe:google pagerank
koschei on 2002-08-08T04:32:05
I don't notice his font anymore. This is mainly because I'm
using a text browser, so everyone comes out non-proportional.
I can tell it's him though, due to the narrow columns,
which, mind you, are generally easier to read.
