Yesterday Digg announced that due to publisher backlash they will be making changes to their beloved frame based toolbar known as the DiggBar. I for one will not remove my frame breaking scripts on ToMuse and hope other publisher’s do not remove remove their’s either. Regardless of Digg’s latest line of bull, this move changes nothing as the DiggBar still frames the publisher’s content and encourages others to create their own framebars to clutter the Web. So as a publisher, I continue to assert that if you’re not blocking the DiggBar and other spambars from appearing on your website, you’re part of the problem. Read more »

It’s incredibly shocking how short some people’s memories are. In the late 1990’s the Web became inundated by frames such that content was practically inaccessible. Fast forward approximately 10 years later and we’re facing the same problem once again. In response to the surging popularity of Twitter and the need to tweet shortened URLs, Digg and others (HootSuite, Krumlr) have resurrected the sleazy technique in an attempt to take advantage of this ever growing trend. By repackaging its frame based toolbar as a social media sharing service Digg hopes to artificially inflate their own visitor statistics and steal traffic from other publishers. Read more »

Digg released their iframe based software toolbar (DiggBar) this week and I’ve been trying to educate both users and publishers as to why frames are a very bad idea. From a publisher’s standpoint, the framing of one’s website by another is considered both unethical and illegal. It effectively steals content, traffic, and potential revenue from the original content owner. From a user’s point of view, the initial attraction to these new framing toolbars (i.e. HootSuite, Krumlr, DiggBar, Facebook) is their ease of use and ability to shorten URLs for use on Twitter. Read more »

While it appears that most publishers understand the serious negative implications that the technique of framing incurs (and hopefully they all add frame breaking script to their websites), most Digg and Facebook users do not. What is of the utmost importance to users is the usability of a product/service. Thus, in an attempt to explain the effect that frames have on browser/website usability, I submit this single image to the Digg and Facebook community as well as all Web users to ask one simple question: Read more »

With Twittermania running rampant, the latest craze is the new social media sharing toolbars that are popping up everywhere. Because Twitter users are limited to only 140 character tweets, url shortening has become essential. Toolbars like HootSuite, Krumlr, and the DiggBar initially sound like a great ideas in that they enable visitors to easily share your content. Read more »

Firefox is the ultimate browser for your customizing pleasure. You can change themes, add search engines, and install various extensions to improve its functionality and look to meet your needs. Here are some of my favorite Firefox Add-ons.

StumbleUpon is a social bookmarking extension that makes surfing the web fun and exciting again. When setting up your account you select from a list of things that interest you. Then all you have to do is click on the “Stumble” button and it takes you to sites that contain those things you like.

RoboForm is a must have for any web browser Read more »