Kent Newsome on technology, music and life

11/15/2006


OK, Shelley, How Should Techmeme Work?

Shelley Powers has a post complaining about Techmeme and its secret formula algorithm for inclusion.

Specifically, she doesn't like the fact that traffic resulting from inbound links to Techmeme plays a small role in getting a blog considered for inclusion.  Here's Gabe's post about getting included on his memetrackers, in which he describes the inbound traffic effect.

I have a comment and then a question for Shelley.

First the comment.  What is so wrong with either the way Gabe has historically approached inclusion or the decision to give a little weight to inbound traffic?

I have talked a ton about Techmeme, and my love and occasional frustration with it.  For a while, my eligible posts would show up for weeks and then disappear for weeks, only to later reappear and restart the cycle.  Over time that problem has gone away, either due to a change in the secret formula or due to the fact that, in blog years, I have been blogging for a long time.  In a semi-perfect world, I'd like to see more of my posts picked up as lead stories (as opposed to in the discussion clusters).  I'd love to be included in the pool, with Scoble and some others, of blogs that get picked up semi-regularly as lead stories, not merely for the sake of seeing my posts up there, but because lead stories generally invoke a lot of conversation and conversation is my primary reason for blogging.  Having said that, however, I am grateful that my posts get picked up regularly as discussion links and occasionally as lead stories, so I'm not going to complain (although if Scoble would resubscribe to my blog, that might help a little- hint, hint).

Plus, I know that operating Techmeme is like drinking from a fire hydrant when it comes to filtering content and I'm sure every other blogger would like to tweak Techmeme's secret formula in their favor.  You can't please all the people all the time, and all that.

And isn't inbound traffic one of the primary blogosphere currencies?  When someone links to you and you link back, that's the blog equivalent of a handshake.  In other words, traffic is generally a shared goal and every other web site in the world gives at least token weight to inbound traffic- so why shouldn't Gabe?  And if some hard working newish blogger gets picked up by Techmeme thanks to sending some traffic, that sounds to me like a net flattening.

Now the question for Shelley.  How should Techmeme work?  I understand what you think the problem is- that's the easy part.  How would you fix it?

Technorati tags: ,
Posted by Kent @ 11/15/2006 10:17:00 PM | Permalink

Submit to: Digg | Netscape | Reddit | Tailrank
Bookmark on: Del.icio.us | Furl | Ma.gnolia
Reactions: 4 Comments | Post a Comment | Inbound Links

4 Comment(s):

First, the video I keep posting about it :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUg4xqGxo1Y

The general problem with TechMeme is heavy echoing of what A-listers are talking about - it tends to be very insular and incestuous. Just look at what happens whenever one of the BigHeads has a party.

The specific issue here is the post comes off as "Little Z-lister, give me, high and mighty aggregator, your attention (links, PageRank), and maybe - maybe - if you give enough to me, I'll give some back to you. No guarantees, and only people who turn out to be "somebody" are going to get anything back, of course - that's the way the world works"

It's kind of like when some politician outright publishs the equation between campaign contributions and access ("Send me some money, and if you raise enough, maybe I'll listen to you").

One can say at least it's honest, I guess. Still, it's irritating to have one's nose rubbed in how rank determines attention.

Disclaimer: I met Gabe once, I liked him personally. But, as he knows, the oligarchical structure of the bogosphere has long been an issue for me.

By Blogger Seth Finkelstein, at 11/16/2006 12:44 AM  
**************************

Thanks Kent. I'd add one more thing, a key point in fact. Links indicate relatedness. Some association between linker and linkee. I'm missing out on discovering things if I don't do this.

Bloggers search for people linking them all the time. It's not just about currency. It's about finding people and ideas to engage.

By Anonymous Gabe, at 11/16/2006 12:45 AM  
**************************

Yes Seth, and I recall you linking my personal blog immediately after I linked yours, back in June. Hmmm...

:)

By Anonymous Gabe, at 11/16/2006 12:46 AM  
**************************

This is Web 2.0, Seth, if you don't like a certain mousetrap, build a better one.

Some people in Web 2.0 will change the world. Other people in 2.0 will instead elect to spend endless hours kvetching in the comment sections. Life is unfair.

By Anonymous hugh macleod, at 11/19/2006 5:48 PM  
**************************

Post a Comment

Links to this post:

Create a Link
DISCLAIMER
Newsome.Org, Kent's blog and the related pages and content are solely the thoughts and opinions of Kent Newsome in his personal capacity and are not associated with any other person or entity, including, without limitation, any partnership or other business entity Kent may now or hereafter be associated with.