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Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

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Robin Garr

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Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Fri Jun 27, 2025 3:01 pm

Notice anything different about the forum in the last couple of days? :twisted:

Why, yes, I did tweak the Google ad algorithm. Little by little their 'suggested' procedures had blown through the unpleasant level and right into ding-danged irritating. So I took a look at the books and decided something had to give. Behold! No more ads at the top or bottom, no more ads popping up between posts, no more video ads!

Will this cost me a little? Yeah, a little, but to be honest, Google ads never were paying the rent. <shrug>

BUT: If you would like to help with the rent, you can help out a lot more than Google if you'll consider subscribing to my 30 Second Wine Advisor column on Substack. One wine column with per week and a simple chat feature that works kind of like WLDG. There's even a free subscription option, but the paid version is only $5/month or $50/year, which not only earns my gratitude but also gets you access to a $20-plus wine report on alternate weeks, helps me pay for those wines, and, yes, helps pay the rent. (The free edition gets all the columns, but the $20-plus wines are behind our sturdy paywall.)

Okay, end of commercial message. Let's hear what you think of the lighter ad load. And if I can persuade you to subscribe, here's the link:
https://30secondwineadvisor.substack.com/subscribe

There's actuall
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Patchen Markell

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Patchen Markell » Sun Jun 29, 2025 3:39 pm

Hey, you’re right! Nobody’s trying to sell me antivirus software and weight loss solutions and roof replacements! I wasn’t going to let that deter me, but it was getting a little annoying, kind of like walking through Times Square at noon, or trying to have a picnic during mosquito season. More than happy to subscribe.
cheers, Patchen
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Sun Jun 29, 2025 6:29 pm

Patchen Markell wrote:Hey, you’re right! Nobody’s trying to sell me antivirus software and weight loss solutions and roof replacements! I wasn’t going to let that deter me, but it was getting a little annoying, kind of like walking through Times Square at noon, or trying to have a picnic during mosquito season. More than happy to subscribe.

Thanks, Patchen! Now, can we talk about that extended warranty? :lol:
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David M. Bueker

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by David M. Bueker » Mon Jun 30, 2025 4:49 pm

Your McAfee antivirus has expired!
Decisions are made by those who show up
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Tue Jul 01, 2025 2:46 pm

David M. Bueker wrote:Your McAfee antivirus has expired!

:lol: :lol: :lol: :twisted:
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wnissen

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by wnissen » Tue Jul 01, 2025 3:29 pm

I have always had a "defense in depth" approach to ads, blocking most at the source with DNS, and covering the remaining few with browser-based ad blockers. But I also support the sites that provide unique value, like WLDG. Just subscribed! Thanks for the reminder.
Walter Nissen
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Wed Jul 02, 2025 3:42 am

Walter, many thanks to you and the others - you know who you are - who’ve helped with this meaningful support.
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Jenise

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Jenise » Wed Jul 02, 2025 10:51 am

I subscribed!
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Wed Jul 02, 2025 3:36 pm

Jenise wrote:I subscribed!

And I thank you so much! As I do the others who've joined the rolls and helped fill up the treasure chest enough to keep the doors open. :)

Next up, if a few of you would take a peek at the evolving Substack Chat and see if you think it could be hacked into a forum alternative if this one ultimately crashes on the obsolescence of http:// without the "s." No rush, but if one of you with a sub will check in sometime at https://substack.com/chat/1635617 and look over the relatively simple format. Also see if you can start a thread, preferably a real one rather than "testing.:" I think I set it up so any subscriber can start a post, but not sure.
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Dale Williams

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Dale Williams » Mon Jul 07, 2025 4:29 pm

Sorry I apparently missed this for a week, subscribed
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Mon Jul 07, 2025 9:04 pm

Many thanks, Dale!
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Patchen Markell

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Patchen Markell » Mon Jul 28, 2025 9:48 am

Glad the site is back, Robin: what happened over the weekend? DoS attack, or just the database equivalent of a mouse chewing through a wire?
cheers, Patchen
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Mon Jul 28, 2025 10:01 am

Patchen Markell wrote:Glad the site is back, Robin: what happened over the weekend? DoS attack, or just the database equivalent of a mouse chewing through a wire?


Patchen, we're reallyl glad too! This was the longest outage in a while. :P

Our techs are continuing to look at the situation, but these frequent "General Error - Too Many Connections" issues appear to be connected with the botization and spamification of the Internet, to use technical terms. Spammers, bad actors, and increasingly, a vast army of AI data scrapers.
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Patchen Markell

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Patchen Markell » Mon Jul 28, 2025 4:46 pm

Ah, so not so much a mouse as a vast army of digital rodent-drones. I have seen the future! And now I need a glass of wine…
cheers, Patchen
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Robin Garr

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Re: Google ads cut back ... and help with the rent

by Robin Garr » Tue Jul 29, 2025 1:47 pm

:mrgreen:

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