A quick tip for the noobs
by Jason Alan
I’ll be reading a blog sometimes, as one does here on this wordpressiful site, and I’ll come across an insightful or interesting comment.
Click.
And there I am. At one of those instantly recognizable gravatar profiles.
Scroll down.
And… nothing. No blog link, no facebook, email or twitter. Just a name and a photo, and sometimes not their photo, just the standard blue and white default gravatar image.
Now, I understand that there is a segment of people who don’t have a blog or twitter, or whatever. They may be on facebook, but they wish to keep it private, and they like to read blogs and comment anonymously. I get it. That’s cool. Do your thing.
But…
There are those who do have blogs, and want more readers. Well, people who find your comment(s) interesting won’t be able to check out your site if they click on that little box and get to a dead end. So if this is you, go to your gravatar profile and put something there, would ya? You made it far enough to create it and it’s not that hard to add a link or two.
Thanks. That’s all I got for now. Bonjour.
Jason Alan. Writer, Character. 
Glad i am not the only one who has noticed this…
Nope. I’m just not afraid to tackle these highly controversial subjects. 😉
It is so frustrating when someone makes an interesting comment and you can’t find them to read their blog
Sometimes you’re able to google their e-mail address (it always shows when a comment is made, I believe). I don’t consider that Internet stalking, just a sort of forced curiosity.
Sometimes the gravatar name is also the wordpress address, too, but most people don’t go that far. Typing is hard and stuff.
Exhausting. One can even break a nail.
Perish the thought.
I agree!
That’s why I put in an illustration from a copy of Paradise Lost; it matches my personality so well.
Ha! I feel the same at times too!
Reblogged this on turbidus.
AMEN!
So true! 😉
Great advice… I have certainly been disappointed to miss out on what may be a great blog because it isn’t listed on their gravatar.
Preach, brother, preach!
Totally agree! Why do they do that?
I guess they don’t know or maybe don’t care.
I read this and my immediate thought was “Oh God, I’m one of those noons, aren’t I?” So I had to backtrack to the last page I “Liked”, clicked on my gravatar image, and found that I do, in fact, have a picture and links up. Phew! Thanks for scaring me, lol.
And by “noons”, I clearly mean “noobs”. Or “n00bs”, to use “1337 speak”.
autocorrect or thumb slip?
Thumb slip. For some reason I have great trouble writing the word “noob”. I started with noon, then tried nobb, oob, and booh. I just can’t do it. Ack.
It’s a dumb word anyway.
Thanks for the tip, Jason. I just confirmed my blog is listed under my gravitar. Phew!
I’ll be boob foreever. Sorry, Noob! Boob is a better word than noob… but not for this meaning! 😉
I didn’t think I would get so many responses from this one. Boob. Wait, what were we talking about again?
Ha! Successfully distracted. 😉 Talking about WP noobs things. I’d like to know how to stick a bio at the bottom of every post. Not sure if it’s a theme thing but I can’t figure out how to do it with my theme. Might get a new theme…
Other than having it saved and pasting it in, I don’t know. I do know that you can do a sticky post, which stays at the top.
It used to confuse me as well until I realized that these are the shy ones who are admirers and who may have nothing to say or wish to reveal nothing about themselves, for whatever personal reasons…and so, i let them admire me from their dark perch of security.
But, good topic…I was wondering if I was the only one with this concern. 🙂
I’m with you. I see no roolz stating that one must always drive traffic towards oneself. Some may simply like the sound of their own voices (say the ones in my own head).
My voices tell me to get ice cream.
Sorry everyone- I was a noob, but now I see! My ego has taken a blow at the revelation of my inferior web proficiency. I had a picture up, but no links. Hope the new and improved Gravatar is everything you wanted, now. I know it’s got me tickled pink.
Great. I have done my part to make the world a better place. Now I can just hit cruise control and watch the road.
Thanks for being so controversial. It is something I struggle with, myself. I am going to my gravatar to make any necessary changes now. Also, I like your poem > > >
Thanks. This post wasn’t the least bit controversial, though.
Heh. It was in the comment thread. Nuances, man.
Comments? Who reads those?
When they’re snappy, they’re snappy. Also, I thought that was the point?
It’s hard to detect sarcasm in text sometimes, so just assume most things I say are sarcastic and we’ll do fine.
I know, don’t worry. We are already doing fabulously.
Groovy.
1331n6 4 1337 5p34k312 15 70u6h w012k 47 71m35, 13u7 1 h4v3 70 4dm17 7h47 17 d1d m4k3 m3 14u6h. (Being a 1337 speaker is tough work at times, but I have to admit that it did make me laugh. — Yes, I was a great part of it at one point in time.) — n00b5 get all the glory.
I will also add that I have found this a time or two, or more than I care to admit, especially after reading a phrase like, ‘Check out my blog!’ …with no link attached. Automatically, without disrespect, the answer is ‘no’.
I don’t know anything about this 1337 thing. Maybe I’ll g00gle it.
“1337 741K” or “1337 5p34|<” as it was known during its prime, was simply the use of numbers in written language, to a complex degree that texters do not use and likely wouldn't understand. It was quite a rage among the technological geeks, and may still be. Those who considered themselves to be hackers, crackers, or phone-line phreakers often used the ‘1337 5p34K’ to throw people off, but also the give some aesthetic flare. — Use whichever search engine you enjoy for more information.
Ditto! Not including a blog links gravatars has been driving me crazy!
Excuse the typo- was supposed to say “blog links with gravatars.”
Yeah I got it. It sucks that we even have to do that. The image should go straight to my wordpress page.
Indeed.
Duh, what a lame comment on my part. 😉
Nah
Chuckle chuckle.
(We could probably just keep going with this semi-meaningless banter… but sometimes meaningless is good.)
One could argue that everything is meaningless.
and/or meaningful all the same.
And somehow I managed to make myself anonymous without even tryin.’ That’s a new one- I’ve spent almost my entire life trying to be anonymous (only to decide recently I’m over it).