The CAPTCHAS Are Gonna Get Ya

Do CAPTCHAs Help or Hurt Blogs?

Spam. No, not the kind you might serve with eggs, fried rice or ramen. We’re talking about email and blog spam.

Especially blog spam.

Those pesky automated comments from sites shilling their wares. Folks looking for a backlink without any real contribution to the topic at hand. The saccharine flattery for your genius layout and “certainly distinctive understanding” of the subject, though the subject is never defined in the comment and the same flattery appears for more than one post.

That kind of spam is likely to give you indigestion.

Okay, the other kind might give you indigestion too. But anyway…

What are we to do about it?

The answer for many blogs seems to be CAPTCHAs, those twisted words

you’re required to decipher and type in to prove you’re not a computer. CAPTCHA stands for Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart.

Oh yeah. Now I can read what it says.

As a blogger, I appreciate the desire to ixnay the amspay, I find them rather irritating as a reader. When I have to squint, stand on my head or repeatedly type in collections of letters that look increasingly like the names of some Lovecraftian beast because my ability to type what I see the first time around seems to have inexplicably failed, I get a wee little bit cranky.

Sure, I keep commenting on blogs regardless of the presence or absence of CAPTCHAs because I do respect another bloggers desire to keep the spam at bay but I can’t say that I always will.

The FuzzyLogic Spam Filter Fur-Point-Oh defends against the sneakiest of spam.

Surely, there’s a better way to best the SpamBeast. The free version of WordPress offers a built-in Akismet Spam Filter that neatly wrangles the spamsters. WordPress.org also offers a free spam filter plugin. It seems likely that other blogging platforms have spam filters either built-in or available as a plugin.

Maybe we don’t need CAPTCHAs to keep our blogs spam free.

In my experience with Aksimet, virtually all spam is detected and collected in a spam folder. I can then delete the comments, save them for when I need a smile or future Gems from the Spam Filter posts. Aksimet alerts me to comments that seem iffy but may be legit and allows me to check comments from new visitors before approving the comment. This does take a little time but not much. Of course, I don’t get hundreds of comments a post either.

As my only experience with spam busting is through the built-in filter on my blog, I’m interested to hear other’s take on the situation.

So what do you think? Do CAPTCHAs work better than spam filters? Do they save valuable time for bloggers that get high traffic? Do CAPTCHAs irritate you as a reader? Enough to stop you from commenting?

Image Attribution (In Order of Appearance):
CAPTCHA Insanity by JillOW, on Flickr CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
DiffAngle by ColKorn1982, on Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0
Kitten vs Hand Wrestling by pinguino, on Flickr CC BY 2.0

Possibly Probably Related articles

• Are You a Human: CAPTCHA Alternative for WordPress (wpjedi.com)
• CAPTCHA-busting service relies on CAPTCHA to block bots (go.theregister.com)
• Civil Rights CAPTCHA Technique Fends Off Spambots with Human Empathy (hothardware.com)
• People, Please! Turn the Captcha off! (heartfeltbalancehandmadelife.com)
• CAPTCHA’s Effect on Conversion Rates (seomoz.org)

Night of the Living ROW

Final ROW80 Check in for Round 2, 2012

Having reached the end of another ROW80, Mortimer decides to take a well-deserved nap.

We’ve reached the end of another round of ROW80. This round, I haven’t been as attentive as I would have liked. Of course, lots of life intervened. But all we can do is all we can do.

My plans for this round:

• Update ROW80 page, for last round and this one: I updated the page at the beginning of the round but it needs another update.
• Spend 15-30 minutes minimum 4 days a week on new novella. I’m working on expanding Postcards from Hell and its sequel, Ants in the Mailbox into a novella. My MIP is on hold for now: For the last month, I’ve tried to catch up with work projects and a big move. I put a hold on writing work until I get settled.

What Do We Do When We Miss the Mark?

Sherry Isaac is over at the Life List Club talking about what happens when we miss our goals. Head on over and check it out!

1999. The year the artist formerly known as Prince asked that we party like.

That summer, chauffeur to soccer games, school dances and babysitting jobs, a familiar beat reverberated in this mother’s minivan. ‘Steal My Sunshine’, a one-hit wonder released by Toronto-based band, Len.

Click here to read more.

Also be sure to check out Jess Witkins’s post on fast drafting and Lara Schiffbauer’s post on not wasting energy on negativity (I know I need to be reminded of that over and over again).

Stay tuned. The Life List Club Milestone Party is coming up in two weeks! And it’s gonna be a whopper because the Life List Club is turning one year old.

The Get Tossed Mashup, Volume 1

As I sit here on this fine Tuesday, I realize it’s high time for another Tuesday Toss-Up Blog Mashup. However, since that’s a lot of “ups” in one title, I decree that the mashup will henceforth be called the Get Tossed Mashup.

So there.

Welcome to the first Get Tossed Mashup. I hope you’ll enjoy the following selections as much as I did…

Sometimes it’s “out of sight, out of mind” and sometimes it’s “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” But which is it when it’s your writing project that you’ve been away from? Natasha McNeely asks, “How Do You Return to a Project After a Break?“

Writing an ensemble can sometimes feel like a case of too many cooks in the kitchen. Jen J. Danna takes a lesson from Joss Whedon and explains How to Write an Ensemble.

The world seems to move faster everyday…maybe too fast. In another Avengers-inspired piece, Marcy Kennedy asks us “Do We Need to be a Little More Old-Fashioned?”

The mighty Bearded One, Chuck Wendig, shares another of his stellar “25 Things” with us in 25 Ways to Earn Your Audience.

Got Dark Tower? Anthony R. Schultz reviews Wizard and Glass by Stephen King.

A great teacher can inspire us to reach for incredible heights. But every once in a (hopefully) rare while, there’s a teacher that makes us want to fake a fever to get out of school. Cynthia Herron shares a difficult experience with a difficult teacher and asks “Can Great Leadership be Faked?“

What can humor do for readers? Margie Lawson guest posts at Jenny Hansen’s, telling us how Humor Hits Hook Readers.

Share the love: Do you have any favorite links or blog posts? Share them in the comments.

Hi-ROW, Hi-ROW, It’s Off to Work We Go

ROW80 Check In 5/2/12

These last two weeks have been pretty decent. I felt a little lost when I didn’t check in last week but I think I’ll adjust to an every other week check in quickly. In fact, I think the longer-term planning will help me both relax and up my productivity.

Where I’ve been since last check-in:

• Update ROW80 page: Yep.
• Open Scrivener file for Postcards (working title) novella and layout storyboard: *ahem* Not yet. But I have written tons of notes and outline points longhand.

Thus Spake the Dragon: How Useful is Speech Recognition Software for Writers/Bloggers?

*The awesome Sherry Isaac is at the Life List Club blog, talking about creating goals that really motivate us. Head on over and join in the conversation*

Some time ago, I heard about using speech recognition software for writing. One author (unfortunately, I can’t remember which one) was able to dictate thousands of words daily in less than half the time it would take to type them and without the associated strain on the hands and wrists. Although it sounded impressive, I was skeptical. The software, Dragon NaturallySpeaking, was not especially cheap and there were no free trial offers (I know, I’m a great big cheapo). There was an app, Dragon Dictation, available for free but I found it difficult and slow to use (or maybe I’m just slow and difficult). So, I shelved the idea for a while.

Fast-forward about a year and I found myself drowning in writing. I was working on my MIP, blogging, commenting and replying to comments on blogs and doing the social media tango. On a day when the words were really flowing or when the blog/social media scene was hopping, I found myself typing out a prodigious number words… and my hands, wrists, neck and back were not thanking me.

The ROWpocalypse is Nigh

ROW80 Check In 4/18/12

At long last, I’m jumping into ROW80 Round 2. I had planned to jump in at the start and have my ROW80 page all updated. Well…the best laid plans of mice and writers and all that.

Buuuut, none of that matters.

That’s the beauty of ROW80.

Tremble in fear, mighty ROW, for I have come to conquer thee.

Without further delay, here are my plans for this round:

• Update ROW80 page, for last round *blush* and this one.

• Spend 15-30 minutes minimum 4 days a week on new novella. I’m working on expanding Postcards from Hell and its sequel, Ants in the Mailbox into a novella. My MIP is on hold for now.
• Maintain blogging schedule. Try to have all posts schedule by the night before the posting day at the latest. All posts should go out by 4:30am CA time.
• Visit Twitter 1-2 times daily
• Visit Facebook at least 6 times/week
• Continue to take Sundays off with the family
• Read at least 2 fiction novels per month.
• Exercise 3 days per week.
• Reorganize Blog Menu in light of the changes to blogging schedule.
• Revamp post tags.

Where I’m headed this week:

• Update ROW80 page.
• Open Scrivener file for Postcards (working title) novella and layout storyboard.
• Keep up social media goals.
• Start Suzanne Collins’s Mockingjay.

This is gonna be a great round, fellow ROWers. Can you feel it?

Get out your digital pom-poms and rah-rah some more ROW folk here.

What’s on your list for this round of ROW80? If you’re not a ROWer yet, what goals will you be working on for the next month or two? How’s all the goal-getting going so far?

Image Attribution (In Order of Appearance):
Squint at thee by Tomi Tapio, on Flickr CC BY 2.0

Sherry Isaac is Posting at the Life List Club Blog!

Our brand-new Life List Club blog is up and running with the very first post by Sherry Isaac. She’s talking about life, lists and clubs. Come on by and say hello.

When I Have More Time and Other Lies We Tell Ourselves

Procrastination. One of my biggest weaknesses. The sweet siren song of “later…I’ll do it…later” calls to me across the great expanse of my to-do list. Does it call to you too?

Here is a piece I wrote for the delightful Pam Hawley one Life List Club Friday. If you’ve ever been seduced by the demon Procrastination or if you know someone who has…or if you’re one of those organized types and just want to point and laugh at us procrastinators, keep reading…

*originally posted at Pam Hawley’s blog on 10/7/11*

When I Have More Time and Other Lies We Tell Ourselves

How many times have you said the following things to yourself?

“I’ll start that diet…tomorrow.”

“I’ll take one of those writing classes after the holiday hubbub settles down.”

 ”I’ll try that Twitter thing when I’m not so busy at work.”

“I’ll lay my plans for world domination when the kids get a little older and don’t need me so much.”

“I’ll start/finish writing my novel when I have more time.”

If you’re like me, the count is somewhere around…well, you figured you’d count it up later and then forgot.

I know, I know. You have 542,367,895,129 to do in a day.

Adding one more thing, especially if it’s not for your day job or your home or your family, feels like it might just bring everything crashing down.

So we tell ourselves we’ll do it when we have just a little more time. But that’s a big fat LIE. Say it with me, “Liar liar pants on fire.” Because there will never be a little more time. And, if there is just a smidge more time, something else will come along and fill it up.

You know it’s true.

And day after day sneaks past us like ninja kittens until we are left looking back at a long span of years, scratching our heads and wondering how all that time went by without us pursuing our passions. 

Believe me, I know how it goes. I’m Queen of Later.

Bow down before me, all you procrastinators, or feel my wrath. Mwahahahaha. Um, what? Oh…really? Ok. Sorry. Back to the topic…

Seriously though, procrastination is one of my biggest weaknesses. Email piles up until my inbox is begging for mercy. Laundry piles up until we’re desperately washing tiny loads just to have underwear and jeans to wear. My exercise machine grows a fur coat of dust, my reading list grows and my outline languishes.

It’s so easy to put stuff off, especially if it has to do with writing. And especially when the writing gets hard. I tell myself I’ll just do it later. I promise this time.

But since we all know there probably won’t be a later or a little more time, we have to carve out time right now. Because the demon Procrastinator lurks around every corner and behind every dust bunny.

 

But, um, how do we go about this exactly? How do we smite the Evil Procrastinator?

Here’s some things that work for me:

• Make a list of goals and pick some folks to keep you accountable – Life List Club and ROW80 are awesome ways to put your goals out there and find a cheering/keep-you-in-line section.
• Start small – If the big goal make you feel like you’re standing at the bottom of Mt Everest, try making tiny daily or weekly goals. It’s easy to build on them and develop a sense of trust in yourself. I’m all about the baby steps. But, if you’re motivated by big goals, set big goals to challenge yourself.
• Get up early – I am so not a morning person. But, if I don’t wake up at least an hour before everyone else in the house gets up, it’s a huge challenge to get any writing done. Or you could stay up really late instead.
• Schedule reminders on your phone – Schedule daily writing times and program your phone’s calendar to remind you twice. Really pester yourself.
• Plan, plan, plan and list – It’s weird, I love to make lists but I used to hate making a daily schedule or an outline. I wanted to be spontaneous with my creative work and just go with the flow…except the flow usually led to nothing much getting done. So now I plan and plot and list. Plus, it’s fun to tick everything off my list.
• Visualize yourself succeeding and taking joy in every step.
• Leave yourself notes everywhere reminding you of your goals and cheering yourself on.
• Cut back on time-sucks – There’s almost always more play in our daily schedules than we realize. We putter around, watch tv, surf the net, etc. At least some of those things can go so we have more time to pursue our dreams.
• Give yourself permission to take a break – It’s easy to get overwhelmed. Cut back on your goal schedule or take a break. Just be sure to set specific goals for those cutback and breaks too so the goals don’t get abandoned.

So, even though it’s still a bit of a struggle for me, I’m learning to work around my wicked procrastinating ways. And, by all that is caffeinated, I will get my novel written (and the email read, the laundry done, the weight lost…)!

Do you put off your dreams? Procrastinate on your goals? How do you conquer that procrastination?

Image Attribution (In Order of Appearance):
Like Spinning Plates by Jameson42, on Flickr CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Plates by mallix, on Flickr CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Ahhhhhhh by kennymatic, on Flickr CC BY 2.0
Lego Joker by Adam Crowe, on Flickr CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Happy Haunting!

It’s that time of year again.

You know what I’m talking about. Pumpkins, candy, assorted monsters taking off their human skin and walking around as they really are, extorting the neighborhoods for treats…

…and hauntings. We cannot forget the hauntings.