Blogroll Makeover » What do you do to improve the quality of your blogroll?

When was the last time you do a blogroll makeover? Ok, when was the last time you checked your blogroll for dead links and abandoned blogs?

As bloggers, we know that a blogroll is supposed to be a collection of links to other blogs that we recommend to our readers. Therefore, the usual expectation is that, if you have a niche blog, your blogroll will link to bloggers that cover topics related to your blog, not just any random blog you happen to find cute. However, in my case I don’t consider this blog as a niche blog yet, yodisphere.com is a whatever-is-interesting Pinoy lifestyle blog, so you will find the links in my blogroll are kindda random. Those are the blogs I often visit - bloggers I met, groups I support and blogs that keep me entertained and updated.


Blogroll linking errors and etiquette

When I am on a blog-hopping mode, I find too many blogrolls became link exchanges to the point of being obnoxious. Zombie blogs usually have an annoying note on their sidebar headline saying “Link to me and I will link to you.” Of course, it is an unwritten rule in the blogosphere that if a blogger puts a link to your blog in his or her blogroll, you should reciprocate and add that blog's link in your own blogroll. Since it is unwritten, I often violate it. And I do link blogs even if they didn’t link mine: no hurt feelings. 

Bloggers who are using these link-listing strategy usually has five-page long scroll-down blogrolls – making the page cluttered and messy. I find such lists intimidating rather than inviting, and I usually ignore it – not click on the list.

I committed that link-exchange error during my early blogging years – until I happen to find my link listed beside a gay porno blog. WTF! SEO gurus say it is good for SEO. Yes, blogrolls equate to publicity and exposure across the blogosphere, but I don’t want my blog to become a copy-paste-SEO-zombie listed beside porno sites.

We approach this with our own blogging goals in mind. Sometimes I may not like a blog that links to me through its blogroll and there are many reasons why I may decide not to reciprocate a blogroll link. But as a good blogging etiquette, at least I review each blog that links to me to determine if I’d like to add that blog on my own blogroll or not.

My blogroll makeover

I lost my blogroll links during my blog transition and currently I’m looking for those blog links again. I consider my blogroll not only as reader recommendation but also as my personal weekly-sites-to-visit.

Here’s the makeover I did on my blogroll:

• Remove the long list on my sidebar (it’s like crazy long laundry list already) and transfer it on a dedicated page

• Retain a short list on sidebar (Yodisphere’s Radar) which serves as my “recommendations”

• Now, my blogroll page (via blogger pages) serves as my personal blog link list and blogs-to-visit, which could also serve as link reference for blog-hoppers.

To monitor who’s updating their blog on my blogroll and monitor abandoned blogs, I’ve added a few RSS code tweaks to show their latest post-with date and time under the blog title (you can automatically do that on sidebars via Blogger's Blog List gadget, but not on separate blogger page.) I’m thinking of doing a separate post for that trick.

Alright, that’s all for now folks! Should this blog got a space in your blogroll, let me know. 

Any blogrolling experience you might want to share? Thoughts… comments?
Do you really click on blogrolls?

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External Related Links

» What is a Blogroll and How Bloggers Use Blogrolls to Boost Traffic to Their Blogs

» It’s Blogroll Cleaning Time

» The Importance of a Blogroll

» What Type of Blog Hopper are You?

ABOUT

The Chronicles of Yodz was previously entitled “The Struggles of the Warrior of the Light” inspired by the author Paulo Coelho. It contains a few posts in 2004, totally neglected the following year and was revived in 2008.

I write a lot during high school - inspired by my teachers. One time in my life, I wished of becoming a writer – that is why  my subtitle reads “Taming the defiant psyche of a frustrated writer.” 

I changed the template, done a few code tweaking and tried as much as I can to update it. It was previously dedicated for philosophical notes on finding the “light” and other mind and human psyche stuff but I find it too rigorous for my simple and inexperienced mind. I created it more or less on a whim and later became my personal rant page and a record of anything that inspires me. I love reading and this blog is my way of sharing and recording the things that I find interesting.

This blog contains ideas and rants on personal effectiveness, family and interpersonal relationships, places and travel, humor, annoying and amusing things, pop culture, technology, commentaries on local politics and human idiosyncrasies in general. It also serves as a record of my eccentricity, shenanigans and personal musings – which I’m trying to avoid because I believe “ideas” are more important than useless personal rant about me, myself and I - Who cares about what I ate for lunch anyway.

If you are human, you will definitely find something interesting here.


The Author

The name Yodz de Veas y Insigne is the name behind this blog, inspired by the famous Jedi Master Yoda and the concept of the “Force.” Christian is my baptismal name, a name suggested by a Catholic priest and was accepted by my parents. 

Along the way I choose to become Yodz, - freethinker, introverted, agnostic, pragmatic, and a reliable realist. We are given free will, but choosing one’s name is reserved to our parents, hence I believe that it is our natural right to have a new name picked and chosen by ourselves.

I am currently pursuing my masters degree in a university somewhere (in short, hoping for a better job). I am amazed by web technology and hoping to develop a famous web application someday – I hope. Web  technology really inspires me. 


I am from the province of Occidental Mindoro - Republic of the Philippines, I.T. teacher by profession but currently trying to survive a corporate world. I love books, travel, freethinking and philosophy, coffee and peanuts. I sometimes seems reserved and distant to outsider although I often have a great deal of wit and esprit.

On this blog, I encourage all visitors to give feedback and intelligent comments, share ideas and thoughts.

Yodz de Veas y Insigne
Warrior of the Light

2008

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My Fellow Bloggers and visitors,
I'm having a slight memory gap :) so kindly leave your blog/website link at the comments section below, I'll check it out. If I find it amazing, I'll post it in my blog roll. Please don't post it in my message board.

Happy Browsing!