Soapbox Style Sunday: Copycats

Hey Blogger Buds,
I'm getting up on my soapbox today. I've done it three times before, once on announcing winners, again on blog music, and a third time on word verification.
But today, I've got a different issue.

Just to preface, my soapbox is not where I take a megaphone and tattle-tale. Trust me, I have better things to do with my life than go around naming names and spreading rumors. My soapbox is just a place where I can rant.
Get away while I'm still dragging out my soapbox. It's heavy.

I unfollowed a blog today. For a while, I was tempted to, but today was the final straw. There were some legitimate reasons at first. The blogger specialized in indie books. I didn't particularly care for their reviews. They like Twilight. They're a "publicity blog" (meaning that they pretty much only post giveaways and author interviews. Nothing really legit.)
Then they posted a comment on an author blog that I stalk religiously. A comment that spoiled the ending of a book that I was pushing off reading (patience makes it so much more enjoyable).

That got me really upset. But that wasn't the final straw. And, even without all of these aforementioned things, this last straw was heavy enough to break the camel's back all by itself.

I found an interview on their blog. And then I happened across a second blog with an identical interview. This second blog included a giveaway, supplied by the author's publisher.

I'm honestly speechless. I'm so mad, but I don't know what to say.
Just:

Get your own darn interview.

And, to further the point:

Write your own freaking reviews.

In short:

Don't be a copycat.

It's illegal, degrading to yourself, and just plain stupid.

*jumps off huge soapbox, banging knee*

Peace,

Riv

Current Music: Boyce Avenue cover of Babylon by David Gray

Soapbox Style: Word Verifications

Hey Blogger Buds,
So it's Soapbox time again. Just a preface: I in no way am trying to insult any blogger. I never mention names. "Soapbox Style" posts are just for me to vent, and maybe shed some light. This is not a personal attack on anyone.


Okay, so I'm Soapboxing about this because I needed to find something to post, since I have no internet connection right now.

I absolutely hate when blogs have word verifications. I know, it's great for finding weird words, and it's relatively easy when you're posting a ton of comments in a row on one blog so you can win an amazing contest and you haven't slept for three days (Loooong story. I know there's a certain someone reading this right now and laughing), but it totally turns me off. I love commenting on blogs, but when I know there's a word verification thingy required, I don't. It's such a pain! I spend anywhere between twenty minutes and an hour checking blogs a day, even more on weekends because I love IMMs, including all the five minute (or ten, even) videos. I comment a lot, even if it's "Ooh! So jealous of ___!" or "____ is amazing! Enjoy!" And I'm turned off if I know from past experience that a blog requires verification.

Blogger has an amazing spam finder. Just today it caught a junk comment. My first ever real spam. So why do blogs with only a few dozen followers have  verifications, if I don't, after 100+?

If you're one of those super big blogs that gets tons of spam that sneaks past the filter, go for it. Kudos. Enjoy putting up your filter. But any average blog? Argh! ("But I don't WANNA be a pirate!" [Cookies if you know where that's from])

I absolutely hate the word verifications. (If you couldn't tell.)

Meh,
Riv

PS: Hope you guys are enjoying the two weekly posts! I'm missing you!

Soapbox Style: Blog Music

(ETA: Sorry, I titled this wrong. #rivfail)

Hey Blogger Buds,
So here's your last chance: Put lots of space between you and me, right now, because I'm about get on the soapbox. Don't worry, I'm not naming anyone here. But there's something I hate on blogs. (Run away while I'm  still lugging out my big soapbox)

Music. Videos. It drives me up the wall and annoys all but the most nonsensical (great word) words out of my head. I'm constantly listening to music, and when I open twenty blog tabs, mouthing along with Taylor or Martin or Pierre  or whoever, I don't want something else blasting out of my earbuds. Especially when the music is loud. I have to go through every one of my open tabs to find the embedded playlist, or the video, that's catching my teardrops before they land on  my guitar. (I'm trying to think about how that might possibly be metaphorical, but I got nothing.)

*steps off soapbox*

What's your opinion on music on blogs? If you have an embedded playlist or something, you're welcome to ignore my banter. If you don't want to ignore it, I'd love to hear your reasoning.

What about the rest of you? Does it annoy you too?

Peace,
Riv

PS: There's a new widget at the bottom of my right sidebar. It's a button widget; go check it out!

PPS: Speaking of buttons, don't forget to enter my CONTEST to win some awesome REAL ones HERE!

Soapbox Style: Announcing Winners

Hey Blogger Buds,
Warning: Run away now, while you still can. Flee while I'm busy dragging out my nice, big soapbox.

There are a few things I can't stand in the bloggy world, one of which is the way winners are sometimes announced. I'm going to avoid names completely, of course.

I totally get it when the host emails the winner and then announces it on the blog however they want.
It's perfectly understandable that the host adds the winner to the bottom of a post, and adds into the title "This is My Post of Awesome! And Winners Too!" because then a person will probably check.
But when the winner is added briefly into a post and is told to email the host?

That's drives me insane. Personally, I don't read every single post on a blog. I look through my blog roll and click on most of the posts, depending on what it's about. If the title makes it sound interesting, I clicky. But how can someone add the winners onto the end of a post, telling the winner to email them, without the winner having any idea that they were just announced?

*jumps off soapbox, hurting foot from the long drop*

What do YOU think? Am I crazy? Is there a point to my banter?

Peace,
Riv

Current Mood: Getting a Cold... *runs off for OJ*
Current Music: Long Live by Taylor Swift (song of awesome *sings off-key*)

PS: Don't forget to enter my awesome CONTEST HERE! You don't even have to be a follower to enter!