Kicking Sphere Related Content Plug-in to the Curb [Updated]
October 24th, 2007
For a while, now, I’ve had the Sphere Related Content plug-in for WordPress turned on. My hope was that you, my loyal reader, would have an interesting and relevant avenue to related contentent, and likewise, the widget would drive traffic back to StringFoo.
Well, like my dreams to become an F1 world champion (congrats, Kimi) and to score a winning World Cup goal, my dream of Sphere driving torrents of traffic to my site lies dashed and broken on the jagged rocks of reality. Never once have I had it return a related story that was actually related to the blog entry in question. And there’s no indication that Sphere has driven a single visitor my way (if I’m wrong, please comment below…). So what’s the point? Sphere appears to be just another Web 2.0 overly-funded venture that doesn’t work well.
By their own admission, “the Sphere Related Content widget works best on topics that are being actively discussed in the blogosphere and news media.” Since web development is hardly discussed at all, let alone actively in the blogosphere (my 3rd most hated word in the English language) and news media, I suppose the poor widget didn’t have a chance.
So farewell, Sphere, we hardly knew ya.
[Update: 11/04/07 5:30p] Several readers wrote to say that they had, indeed, found my site through Sphere. I stand corrected…
Sphere: Related Content
StringFoo's Feed-o-Rama:
October 31st, 2007 at 9:52 am
So you not a fan of Sphere It? Have you tried Blogrush?
October 31st, 2007 at 9:54 am
Just so you know I visited your site through Sphere it.