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Wordpress adds links to your post?

  1. cparente
    Member

    Hi all. Excited to see decent traffic on my most recent post. I noticed some clicks on a link I didn't put in post. When I checked comments, WordPress has added four links as "possibly related":

    Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

    * RIM - Dancing with the devil
    * RIM Engineers Call Touchscreen Blackberry “Apple Killer”
    * iPhone developments may pose trouble for RIM, Palm: analyst
    * iPhone developments may pose trouble for RIM, Palm: analyst

    Is this typical? Thanks for any information.

    Chris

  2. wolton
    Member

    Yes, I've just found them on my recent posts - I don't want them unless I ask for them! Most have been obscure and strange, not relevant at all.

    I've tried to delete them and can't.

    Support continues to say it's closed.

    I thought this was my blog, not someone else’s and indeed I haven't authorised these links.
    How do I get rid of them?

  3. thelifeofmarkwhitecotton
    Member

    To get rid of them. On dashboard click on Design-->Extras--->Select second option, "Hide related links on this blog, which means this blog won’t show up on other’s blogs or get traffic that way." Click update Extras.

  4. wolton
    Member

    thanks diamondfirstwerny!

  5. bugsnetts
    Member

    is it any related with a spamer? Today i have that problem to

  6. thelifeofmarkwhitecotton
    Member

    No, it's not a spammer. It's a new wordpress feature. http://wordpress.com/blog/2008/04/25/possibly-an-announcement/

  7. sphere
    Member

    Hi all - very active conversation - :)

    The goal of the new feature is to create opportunities for readers to discover more content that is related to what you're writing about. We've included content from your archives, from other WordPress.com blogs and for Mainstream Media sites (MSM).

    Like any technology, we're making lots (and lots) of tweaks on the fly to get the filters properly tuned. While subjective, we've been successful in making these tweaks on a large number of partner sites (www.sphere.com) so I'm hopeful (with a little patience and goodwill), we'll make improvements as we go along. In the meantime, you're input is really critical for us to make those improvements, so please keep sending.

    Tony

  8. brucewagner
    Member

    The only "Possibly related posts" I want to appear... are possibly related posts WITHIN MY OWN BLOG.

    How do I turn THAT feature on?

    And leave the external content off...

  9. stumblingtoheaven
    Member

    Thanks for that Diamondfistwerny - did the job....

    Actually, Brucewagner, as I noticed that even one of my own posts 'automatically generated' wasn't really related, well not to my fading memory at least - I'd rather just pick my links and be done with it...

    Sphere - thanks for the continuing tweaking, but well, this wasn't the tweak I was looking for. Until, of course I change my mind...

  10. mikecane
    Member

    @sphere: It's not useful. It's vandalism.

    THIS would be useful:
    http://en.forums.wordpress.com/topic.php?id=27674&replies=1

    Make it so.

  11. raincoaster
    Member

    Mike, as has been pointed out your theme does that already.

    Bruce, do what TT used to do: put those links in by hand. I think she used the Search box to find them.

    I will not use this until we are provided the option of excluding the mainstream media. They do not use this feature to link to us, so why would we bloggers throw the power of our blogs behind an industry the blogosphere arose to subvert in the first place? Rupert Murdoch will never thank me for my hits.

  12. h0bbes
    Member

    It sucks & some links are certainly inappropriate. The option should be OFF by default, not ON-that is an invasion of my privacy.

  13. brucewagner
    Member

    If you look at one post individually.... Like on the Comments page....

    You will see "Possibly Related Posts" which lead people AWAY from your own blog.... out to who-knows-where.

    Often people complain that those automatically-assigned links are NOT related at all.... and are, in fact, very inappropriate.

    To get rid of them. On dashboard click on Design-->Extras--->Select second option, "Hide related links on this blog, which means this blog won’t show up on other’s blogs or get traffic that way." Click update Extras.

    It is a "feature" that most certainly SHOULD HAVE BEEN off by default.

    Bruce

  14. jamesewelch
    Member

    I've yet to hear anything positive about the new WP.com feature, but maybe that's just how internet forums are...

    Users that like it, aren't going to come here and ask how to get rid of it or what it is. Users that don't even know that they have an option to turn it off will also never come here to ask what it is or how to turn it off.

    I don't really think it's a Sphere problem. The technology is kind of cool, but needs lots of tweaking especially when relating to more sensitive topics, SPAM, sploggers, adult content, etc.

    The biggest problem with it is the WP.com issue of enabling it by default by using the opt-out method instead of the opt-in method. This would have limited the forums to talking about how useful it is instead of how unpleasant it is.

  15. jacqueline1230
    Member

    Is there a way to sort or edit the autogenerated links? I see the benefit traffic-wise, IF they're relevant. Mine have been sort of 50-50 but it doesn't look good if they're not (not good for wordpress as a tool/organization; not good for blogger) quality-wise....

  16. jamesewelch
    Member

    There's no way to interact with the auto generated lists. They are working on adding something for us bloggers, but it'll be a new feature blogged about by the WP.com guys when they release it (so stay tuned to the WP.com blog for details).

  17. imperativa
    Member

    It appears that the autogenerated links are getting worse. The most recent on my site is an ad for Businessweek (a simply wonderful publication but utterly irrelevant to my site), particularly since the site carries no advertising or sponsorship for all sorts of reasons.

    Can wordpress PLEASE give us an urgent update on this situation? The idea of autogenerated links is fine in theory, but not if WordPress's control over it is this limited. Surely you guys would agree that (at a minimum) acceptance of advertising or not HAS to be a reasonable option.

    Thanks

  18. jamesewelch
    Member

    @imperativa, you know that you can turn this off right? If you don't like it, then don't use it or don't use it until it offers the features that you need.

  19. raincoaster
    Member

    imerativa, if you log out and clear your browser cache and cookies and then go to your site via a search engine, you will probably see the ads that WP.com is running on your site. Blogs at WP.com are not free from advertising, although you don't normally see it.

    But links and ads are supposed to be different.

  20. fromtheleft
    Member

    It's the most useless, dumb feature WP has invented and does nothing to increase traffic.

  21. morris108
    Member

    On a related note, i tried using sphere once or twice, and it was not so reliable (I thought) for showing related blogs, sometimes it was, sometimes it wasn't. It seems it is the same engine with a similar criteria, It will be great when it is tweaked rightly.

  22. hanoverstreet
    Member

    Hate those auto generated links! Utterly irrelevant. Thanks all for letting me know how to get rid of them!

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