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I got a lot responses over the past two days in regards to my post about Google Losing Control and I have to say, it brought about another question that I wanted to express my opinion about tonight. It brought me back to something I remembered when I was in my Economic 111 class (I believe that’s the number) and that was the knowledge of Supply and Demand. What does that have to do with Adsense? Take a look…

When a company can supply more product, the price begins to go down. If a company can’t provide as much product, the price begins to go up. Well, the same can be said with Google. As more people start to use the product, they can start to pay us less and less because if five or ten of us leave, it won’t hurt them as much as if ten of us left when they were small. Basically, because they have gained so much damn power and so many people WANT to use them, they can take more of the profits. The demand is so damn great for a good CPC network and the supply is not as great that they are in control. Just like if you wanted to buy a potato and there was a potato famine, the same goes for this.

So, how can we slap this around and potentially take back what is rightfully ours? That answer, my friends, is in how we display our ads. One of the first companies that we all sign up for when we make a website is Adsense. Why? Because anyone can get in and anyone can make ten cents a day doing it. Woopdi do! Anyways…Since so many people want to be in it, they can basically charge us more (take more of our money out) because they are providing us this means of making money. What if we just…removed the ads? What if instead of putting Adsense up, we threw an Azoogle Ads up? What if we just said, “screw you Google” and boycotted their company?

Google makes a lot of people money, but then there are the people that don’t make all that much money. There are the people out there that could be making more if Google was not quite so greedy. What do you think? Should we remove adsense from our sites? Digg did it. John Chow did it. Why shouldn’t we? The sooner we can break out of our shells and admit that, perhaps, Google is not the way to go, maybe we will start to make more money. Yes, I still put adsense up. Yes, I like the service. But, if we all banded together and just stopped servicing the ads, do you think that perhaps, just maybe, we may be able to get our voices heard?

I thought that I would tell you guys what classes I was taking this year so you can perhaps feel a little pity for me. Okay, I really don’t want your pity, but since this blog is about my journey to hopefully get to medical school, I think it might be interesting to see the different courses that I will be taking now that I am in my upper level science courses. Last year I took the general biology and the general chemistry, that’s cool, but now we get to take a look at the more interesting classes. So, this is what I am taking.

Microbiology: Microbiology is the study of microbes, or better yet, microscopic organisms. Now, I am hesitant to say organisms because we also learn about viruses and those are not organisms (if you wish to understand why, leave a comment and I will dedicate an entire blog post about it). However, this is the study of bacteria, viruses, fungi, helminths, and all of those interesting things. It is extremely interesting, but extremely difficult.

Organic Chemistry: Organic Chemistry is the study of compounds that all have one thing in common: they contain carbon one way or another. Methane, Propane, Formaldehyde, and numerous others are all organic. There are millions. This class is fun; however, it is extremely difficult. I took a break from doing my homework now to write this and let me tell you, it is a tough course. But entertaining to say the least.

Calculus I: Now this is going to be the hardest class for me. Math is not my thing. No matter how hard I try, I really have a hard time with it. However, I am going to do as great as I can and if all goes according to plan, I will walk out of that class with an A. I need an A in it just so that I can really boost my GPA. That’s the goal for this semester. To MASTER Calculus because I will use it a lot in Physics.

U.S. History: This course is one I have to take because my school demands I have some general education courses. It is a piece of cake class. The last quiz I took in it, I got a 100, so that will be a definite easy A. Just read the book, write a paper, take a weekly quiz, ace the tests and I will be walking away with an A which will skyrocket my GPA. But, as always, we can only hope for the best.

So, that’s my course load this semester. The Math and two science courses are all four credit courses and the U.S. History is a three credit course, so that equates to fifteen credit hours a week. That’s a good number and I am excited about this semester. It is going to be busy, it will be hectic, but I have a good feeling about things and I anticipate that my earnings will only go up as I develop a better discipline over my time. But, one can only hope!

Do you think that there is a possibility that Google is beginning to lose some of that power that they recently possessed when it came to Adsense? Do you think that perhaps their time has either come or reforms are going to be necessary else Google go under at least when it comes to Adsense? Part of me feels that Google is losing a lot of the power that they had once possessed simply because they are getting too greedy. The Page Rank update has yet to come, they are losing big publishers and I wonder if maybe something is going to happen in the PPC world.

Why do I think this? Well, let’s take a look at some recent events. Ebay decided to stop using Google to publish their ads. That was a big slap to Google because that was one big advertiser that was no longer advertising with them. Then DIGG decided to fire Google and hire Microsoft to service their ads. I mean, that’s a big publisher right there saying, “I’m not interested any longer.” So, that’s one big advertiser gone and one big publisher gone. But, there is more.

There are smaller publishers that are deciding that Adsense is not worth the bother anymore. John Chow decided to say Bye Bye Google and start selling more private ads in place of the old 300×250 ad he had. Granted, John Chow is no big potatoes when it comes to Google (we’re talking CNN, NY Times, etc), so Google may not feel the pain. But…What if others start to leave? What if I decide to leave? What if a load of small time publishers start to leave? There goes some of their profits for sure.

So, that leads me to my big question: is Google losing its control? I think yes. I think that Google was so worried about their big time publishers that they forgot the smaller guys. They forgot about people like me and John Chow who, while we don’t make millions a month off their program, we do account for SOME of the money. If enough of us leave, that is a chunk of their profits gone. What if New York Times leaves? That’s another big publisher that is gone. And if we all go to YPN or AdCenter, that makes them bigger and Google smaller. I think that Google needs to make some changes if they are really going to stay in control. But can they?

I have an addiction. No, it’s not heroin. No, it’s not alcohol (although a beer every once in a while is nice *hint hint*). My addiction is blogging. I do it all the damn time and I am always thinking of new ways that I can expand my blogging experience. I now write two blog posts a day for Dorm Earning rather than only one. I read tons of blogs a day and I regretfully say, I sometimes neglect studying because I am reading a blog. I am studying a lot more this semester, but damn, those blogs are just so damn interesting. I think from when I started to now, my addiction for blogging has increased tremendously. I love to do it. I love writing and I love thinking up new things to make my blogs better.

75%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Are you addicted? Do you think that in another six months, I may be even more addicted? Who knows? All I know is this…I love to blog and I am going to continue blogging for as long as I can. Or until I shoot myself in the head from so much stress. Probably the former though.

I have to say from working this first week with school, really getting things in control when it comes to time management can be extremely difficult. I’m not saying that I cannot do it, but I have to say that it is extremely difficult. Between the classes, the attempted social life, and the websites, it really can be difficult. But, there is a cure for this and I am beginning to come to the conclusion on what that cure is. Before I mention that, though, let me just say that things are beginning to look up despite the overload of work, so I am getting excited.

But, if I look at it, I realize two things: the first is that I fool around a lot on the internet and the second is that I get distracted in my dorm room. When I say that I fool around a lot, what I mean is that I go to DigitalPoint, read all these different blogs, check my earnings, go back to DigitalPoint, and the truth is, it gets really hectic and I tend to neglect my blog posts which is the majority of my work. Now, in the dorm room as I write this post, there is South Park playing. It is giving me a headache trying to focus on this rather than watch. The point is this: if I were to find a better place to work, I may be able to get more work done.

Time management is extremely difficult. It can be difficult to get things going if there are distractions. But, on top of that, it can be even more difficult getting so much done if there are distractions, books that need reading, tests that need preparing for, and then your websites. There are a few ways to help this out. The first is to really use time stamps. If you have the time to do extra blog posts, try and do tomorrows. Use each available minute. Furthermore, if you can get your work done before fooling around, you’ll find more productivity. And finally, if you set up a schedule, you can really get things done. Running a web network, studying, and having a social life is difficult; however, it is possible if done right. It just requires discipline and that’s what I am learning.

Like the title says, September begins a new era for my online ventures. What this means simply is now that I have slacked tremendously at the end of August, I now want to focus on two things: my earnings and my schooling. This begins a new era for me, but there are a few specifics that I intend on changing during this new era. There are a few things that definitely need changes and then there are a few things that I think are nice things to change, so let’s just go into detail about those few things.

• I intend on putting adsense back onto Zero to Med. I will be putting it at the end of each post simply because it is not used for anything else. While it may not make much money, I think that it is still beneficial and with people investing more in advertising now that the summer is over, I think it might allow for some profitable days/weeks/month.
• Dorm Earning NEEDS to get an increase in posts. I have slacked on that since school started and that’s fine because I know that once I start posting again, I’ll get the traffic back again. But, I know that I need to really work on getting that blog up to two posts a day minimum. I’ve already changed where the Adsense goes on there and I have added Kontera. That blog, if all goes according to plan, will be getting a brand spanking new theme. I want one that gives me more options and allows for some really nice growth. But, we’ll see.
• Content Writing is going to become a necessity. I tasted the sweetness of instantaneous gratification and I have to say, I really love it. I intend on increasing the number of articles that I write tremendously and I am hoping for a really good turn around each and every month. If I had it my way, I’d make a few hundred a month just by doing that and use that money to invest in the growth of my other sites.
• Now that school has started, Science Chats really is going to get a kick in the ass to start going. Since I beginning to meet a lot of the incoming science majors at my school, I think that I could get a good following. I’ve thought about mentioning it to my professors, but since I have to slightly dumb myself down to increase activity, I don’t want my professors thinking I am a moron. What I speak about on the forum and my actual scientific knowledge are two totally different things. But, I have to ensure I write in a way that people with just a general interest can understand it. If I started talking about the chemical make up of a particular protein in the deoxyribonucleic acid using massive words, people may have no idea what I was saying.
• In the same breath, I intend on giving a good push for Debateful. I figure if I can talk to some of my friends, I may be able to convince them to join up and see what’s going on. If I can get about ten of my argumentative friends to sign up, it’ll be golden. I’ll be able to increase productivity and definitely see a profit. But, that’ll just take some time. But, with both this and Science Chats, the school months might really help.

So, as you can see, there is a lot going on right now. I have the sites that I love going for me, I will be getting my first Adsense check soon (things started REALLY slow), and I can finally start saying that things are looking up. I’m looking forward to these next few months and I hope that with an increase in work, I may be able to see an increase in profits. But if all else fails, content writing is a sure buck.

For those that don’t know, school has started for me. Classes have yet to begin, but I volunteered to be an orientation leader. That means that I will be doing a lot of work from 7:00AM until 12:00AM. As you can see, I will be working for about seventeen hours in one day, but I am alright with that. The only downfall with doing all of that work is that I will be unable to GET any website work done. I mean, my websites are going to lag, but I think it’s alright. August will be coming to an end and that’ll leave me a chance to make September amazing.

First and foremost is Dorm Earning will be getting a minimum of two posts a day. This is important because it’ll really increase traffic. Content is king and that is imperative. I am hoping that I can also get the RSS up as well as the PR to something other than 0 so I can get it some good link sales as well as some good reviews written. I intend on kicking out the middle man if this other program gets up and running. I wrote about it on my blog all about removing the middle man.

In the end, all that happens is that I will be working heavily on trying to increase the profitability of that blog. Since I am not going crazy on small content sites like I had intended at the end of last semester because it will be too much work, I have to ensure that the larger sites get even larger. I’d love to have a unique theme for Dorm Earning by the end of September, but I may not have the money. If I do, that is where my money will go without a doubt. But, in the end, what I need to do is get the site’s traffic doubled. But, this weekend I will be away, so the start of September will definitely be eventful. Let’s hope for the best!

One of the hardest things I think for me when I first started on the web was starting. Look, I may not make a lot of money and that’s cool, but the hardest part for me was actually getting started. I was nervous to jump into this field and I was especially nervous to make a blog. It’s one thing to content write. I did it all the time. But, when it was time to create a blog and start getting more personal, I had no idea what to write about. I mean, if I were to paraphrase a conversation I had with my friend Lithman, it would sound something like this:

Me: So, what do I talk about?
Him: Whatever you want.
Me: So, if I wanted to talk about how microbiology sucked today, I could?
Him: You talk about whatever you want, it’s a personal blog.

I think that was the hardest part for me was getting started. So, I thank David for giving me that push to really get my blog started. Now, I’m going to do the same thing. I’m helping my friend get started. She’s making a blog, has never made one before, but I told her that I would help her. She wants to make money, but, I think she understands that you need a passion for writing on a blog to make that money. Blog for fun and you’ll make cash; blog for cash and you won’t have fun.

So…In a sense, I’ve become her mentor. That’s a good feeling knowing that someone will ask me questions and ask me advice. I want to give her all the advice I can because if she succeeds, it means that I helped her. Or it means that I just suck and she took better advice, which is a big possibility. To be completely honest, it really could benefit a lot of people if there were more people like David who offered help to a complete newbie like me. I was as dumb as possible about blogging. But now, I know a thing or two. Offering help is alright and that’s something a lot of people don’t really appreciate these days. We all started somewhere and rather than shunning people away, be a mentor. Offer help. So, that’s what I’m going to try and do. I’m going to help my friend create her blog and get her set up so she can really start going somewhere. Let’s hope for the best, eh?

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I believe in a very simple theory when I do work on the internet. Actually, it’s my theory straight across no matter what. My theory is very basic: be honest with the people who make you money. Now what does that mean? That means that since WE are the publishers, it is of great importance to companies to be honest to us. Don’t lie to us and definitely don’t steal our money. You’re doing us no favor. We’re doing you a favor. Without the publishers, you’d have no money. But, we could still survive because we could sell text-links or banner ads or reviews or anything else privately. So, don’t lie to us.

Unfortunately, the owners of Auction Ads seem to feel that this is a good call. On Digital Point, a thread was made about Auction Ads. You can view it here. Now, one of the members, GTAce, decided to question some of the things that were going on behind the scenes of Auction Ads. Now, if you remember, Shoemoney sold Auction Ads, so whatever I say here has absolutely NOTHING to do with him. I hear the program was exceptional until it was sold. Now, as you can see here, he has a few queries about what the hell is going on. First and foremost, why is it that suddenly, he’s made NO money? Now, it’s not that he isn’t making money that irritated the owner of Admin Fusion. It’s that the questions weren’t being answered.

Twice he submitted a ticket to the company. Now, this is the same company that owns Text-Link-Ads (I use them on this blog, but I am beginning to question whether I really want to). From what I’ve seen, they have been exceptional with their customer service. Yet, numerous publishers have been complaining about what was going on. No profits, hundreds of clicks, but no money. And when questions were asked, the company did not answer. They were either ignored or given fluff. Fluff is a bullshit (and I will curse) answer to a serious question. Did the company decide to finally start making money? If so, they ought to let the publishers know.

Personally, I think it is absolutely irresponsible of this company to have such horrible responses. Or no responses whatsoever, which really is bad. It’s one thing if one of the e-mails just goes unread. We’re all human, we make mistakes. But, if GTAce really did submit TWO separate tickets about this and instead of answering the question, it was denied that it was even happening. Now…I’ve stopped running AuctionAds because I was making crap from it. But I will say this…Honesty is of the utmost importance when you’re dealing with people who make your money. We make those companies money. We do the work, we make the money. Perhaps kicking out the middle man is a good idea. Whatever is going on…If this continues, I might question the security of my earnings on TLA and I would hate for that to happen.

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You know, one of the biggest things I was depending on for a profit this month was the PageRank toolbar update. Now I know that the toolbar update has absolutely nothing of importance to where your site ranks in the search engines, but it has everything to do when you are trying to sell links. And since ten bucks every single month comes from this blog here thanks to Medical Records Software, I have to say that the sale of links would mean a great increase of profits for me. Unfortunately, the update has not come. And part of me wonders if it ever will.

Google is obviously fed up with the sale of links. They don’t want us making money that they have no control over (yes, I am calling Google greedy) even though they sell links. Furthermore, they don’t want us to potentially skew their wonderful search engine by the sale of links. Want to know what I think? I think that’s rubbish. I think that Google needs to stop with their arrogance and allow people to do what they want with THEIR websites. If they are going to become greedier and greedier and give less money to their publishers, we need to find a way to make money elsewhere.

Now…I don’t know if this is true. I don’t know if Google just likes to make us sweat and I don’t know what the hell is going on. There are rumors that Google might get rid of the toolbar. If they do, whatever. I’ll find another way to make money. But I think since I do rely on that toolbar to make a little bit of money, it’d be nice to know what’s going on. Google says selling links is bad, but they do it. Why can’t we? Anyone got an opinion about this or am I just talking a bunch of trash?