This is a really sore topic for me, as it is something that really pisses me off about how things are evolving in so many online communities. Everyone is trying to turn their site into a "Walled Garden" where you dare not link to any other site lest you be accused of spamming. Most of us hated the way AOL did that, and yet site operators, forum moderators, etc. are going right down this same path. Then along comes Microsoft, and takes it to a whole new level with Windows Live. Windows Live and the AOLization of the Internet. It would be easy to just blow this off as Microsoft trying to create a new AOL, but what bothers me the most is that this is part of a larger, more negative trend internet wide. External linking, traffic exchanges, link swapping, etc. were once time honored methods of sites helping each other grow. Now people are so obsessed with their own page views they think SHARING traffic is losing traffic. This is a terrible philosophy that is rotting far too many communities at their core. When sites share traffic, they gain traffic. That's how the internet works. Lets not obsess over ad clicks and pageviews so mindlessly that we forget what made the internet special. The ability to read a story, click a link for more details, return to post your thoughts, click another link for a similar story, etc. is what makes reading things on the internet so much fun. We forget this at our own peril.

Where exactly are you seeing this? I'm seeing quite the opposite trend in the rise of social networking sites and bookmark sharing services. I'd also question the assertion made by the article that "posting links to articles or information on other sites is a good way to get banned from many community forums".

Maybe I just hang around the wrong (right?) corners of the intertron, but I haven't really seen anything like this - let alone something "Internet-wide." Generally when I see links removed from sites, it's because they link to crap - either tasteless material, or straight up scams.

I can definitely say that when we kill links here at GDNet, it's for good reason - and has nothing to do with trapping people here.

I don't have any problems with people posting links, but I do mind when people join a community just to spam blog links because their "so obsessed with their own page views".

Every thread you've made has linked to something written by you, spanned over three different sites. You also seem to have few replies that aren't in your own threads.

Take your blog spam someplace else.

So, basically... you join communities, spam them with links to your "articles," and then the links get deleted and you get banned? Like you are doing here?

I have become a significantly more patient man, so rather than banning you outright I'm suspending you for 2 weeks over which you may reflect on the error of your ways. However, let us be clear: there's nothing wrong with saying, "Hey, I wrote this article, what do you think?" - case in point. Just stop being disingenuous.

(Enjoy your GDNet posting vacation! [smile])

Ha ha, "when websites share traffic, they gain traffic." Right.

So lets write an article and plaster it with Google ads, then try to "share traffic" with another site so that we can "gain traffic".

I feel a bit silly for getting suckered into the last post about netbooks now...

Meh. This is a game development community. I could care less if someone is posting links to articles and what-have-you (so long as it isn't spam or hax or anything like that). What I really care about is whether or not they actually contribute to the community. If they help out a great deal in the other forums then let them shamelessly plug their articles now and then. The OP wasn't such an individual so good riddance.

The only time I ever saw such link removal/prevention, is on forums run by businesses that try to prevent other business from just popping in and posting links to their own products.

For example:
A particular tea vendor I buy from requires you have at least 5 posts in the community before you post a link. Regular members regularly talk about other suppliers.

I was going to chime in that I haven't seen this either, but it's been handled already and I'm seeing a distinct lack of "Okay" in this sector... I guess that's an improvement.

Quote: Original post by Oluseyi

I have become a significantly more patient man, so rather than banning you outright I'm suspending you for 2 weeks over which you may reflect on the error of your ways. However, let us be clear: there's nothing wrong with saying, "Hey, I wrote this article, what do you think?" - case in point. Just stop being disingenuous.

Sorry for the confusion. I thought it was clear that it was an article I wrote. I did not mean to imply otherwise.

Also, I post and contribute in a lot of threads other than the ones I start.

From what I have seen on most forums, a lot of great discussions start off with a link to an article. Then everyone who reads the article is supplied with a lot of source material from which to start discussing a topic.

A lot of good discussions have happened in response to threads I have posted of that nature.

But again, I am sorry if it seemed I was not being upfront about the article being something I wrote. I will be more clear in the future.