Webmaster Tools

I've been working on web site performance optimizations lately (though you might not believe it when visiting this site...)

I've come across a few useful performance-related resources that I've been using lately:

• Optimizing Page Load Time–An excellent overview of many issues that can affect web site performance
• Online web page benchmarking tool (webpagetest.org)
• Benchmarking APC vs. eAccelerator using Drupal (2bits.com)

Here's a nifty tool for your bag of tricks: JavaScript snippet that tags HTML elements with browser- and OS-specific attributes so you can target browser- and OS-specific 'peculiarities' without resorting to the usual bizarro selector tricks or Internet Explorer-specific conditional comments.

Using this script, you can target browser-specific elements via simple CSS selectors as follows:

.ie6 #targetElement { border: solid 1px #eee; }

OS Codes

win - Microsoft Windows

So far it seems that BlogRush is pretty much useless. I can't see how it has added any traffic to any of my sites - actually, it's more likely to take away traffic since it's another exit point.

At this point, I'm not even sure I understand why I should be using it - since it has generated little or no traffic to any of my sites, and the benefit of accumulating the BlogRush credits is unclear to me at this time, I see no point in devoting any of my sites' real estate to the latest widget. I suppose that one must promote BlogRush in order to truly benefit, and if that's the case, then it speaks volumes about the program.

So... I'm removing it from all my sites for now. I'll check it out later and see if it's worth using.

It appears that the ad blocking wars are heating up.

There are massive fortunes at stake, and you are fooling yourself if you think that advertisers and ad network owners will just sit back and let it happen without making any effort to defend their markets and income.

Blocking Firefox is a Bad Idea

A friend of mine forwarded me a link to WhyFireFoxIsBlocked.com (no, I won't link to them, because I won't feed this particular bit of link bait.) He asked: what are these people smoking?

My initial response probably makes him wonder what I've been smoking!

AdBlock Plus Is Not The Problem

In a nutshell, at least one webmaster has (and perhaps others have) decided to try to block site visitors who are using Firefox, because of the existence of a popular extension called AdBlock Plus, which has the ability to allow one to visit web sites and never see any ads.

I've been reading up on the issue, and it seems that Firefox-blocking webmasters' position is may be summarized as:

• Firefox users with AdBlock installed are engaging in "theft" (their words, not mine) because they are visiting sites that depend on commercial advertising revenues to support the site, and
• AdBlock developers have taken steps to circumvent webmaster attempts to detect and defeat AdBlock use by site visitors.

(There are other, non-essential and even more inflammatory arguments made about some Firefox users and promoters, but I won't bother with them here because they have nothing to do with the matter at hand.)

How do you ensure that your site is found and read by users? According to Ahmed Farooq on techsoapbox.com - you must promote. Actively. Relentlessly. Writing great content just isn't enough.

I agree. I've noticed that good content can get you some traffic, but ultimately you need to get the word out about your beautiful creations.