SNL - Saturday Night Live April 9th (s36e20)

Host: Helen Mirren
Musical Guest:  Foo Fighters

Opening: [5/10]  We've seen too many Barack Obama openings lately.  I gave it a 5 because at least they kept it short and sweet.

Helen Mirren's Monologue: [6/10] Monologue was pretty weak.  A few jokes that were obviously written for her.  They did a bit of musical number with other cast members which wasn't too bad.  Again, they were wise to keep this one short and sweet which is why I gave it a 6.

Usually it would be a bad sign to get the show off to such a weak start, but they recovered nicely with the next five skits...

Mort Mort Feingold - Accountant for the Stars: [9/10]  Very solid and nice and tight.  It gave a lot of the cast members a chance to showcase their celebrity impersonations which I always enjoy.  This one even had a few laugh out loud moments for me which is why I gave it a 9..

Digital Short - Touching Helen Miren's Breasts: [8/10]  This one started off lower than an 8, but it got better as it went on.  Kristen Wiig came in at the end and raised it from a 7.5 to an 8.

Fox & Friends: [7/10]  It was funny and pretty solid to start with.  They probably should have wrapped this one right before they did the telecast with Helen Mirren.  This is when the skit started feeling like it was dragging on.

Frankenstein: [7.5/10] This skit was clever.  It had me smiling, but not laughing out loud.


Foo Fighters Performance #1

Weekend Update: [9/10] You can always count on Weekend Update for some good laughs, and as always this one delivered.  Bill Hader's James Carville impersonation was really funny.

Hugh Jackman - The Best of Both Worlds:  [7/10] Helen Mirren does a great job playing a murderous Julie Andrews.

Underground Records: [5.5/10] - Not a huge fan of this skit, but it is so rapid fire at least it doesn't get boring.

The Reelz Channel: [7.5/10]  Helen Mirren seemed up for just about anything.  In this skit she played a lesbian Eleanor Roosevelt making out with Marilyn Monroe.

Perspective Photo Studios: [8.5/10]

Foo Fighters Performance #2


Bongo's Clown Room: [6.5/10]

Click here to watch Saturday Night Live online.

Experiment #4 - Another Try For A Popular Post

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Even though my Glenn Beck post from Experiment #1 didn't generate much in the way of traffic, I'm going to try once more to create a popular post by anticipating what people might be searching for.

This time I'm hoping that a Saturday Night Live post will bring in some traffic.  I know that I often spend some time on Sundays searching Google and YouTube for SNL skits that I may have missed, or wanted to see again.

It doesn't take long for the SNL skits to be taken down from YouTube due to copyright violations.  I'm sure a lot of people will be searching tomorrow and I hope they stumble across my SNL Review post.

Tonight's host is Helen Mirren and the musical guest are the Foo Fighters.  It will be Season 36, Episode 20.  Often referred to as s36e20.  I'll be sure to include that in the post.

A few minutes after the show finished airing I published this SNL Post.

I then posted a couple of comments on some of the review sites in the hopes that they will count as linkbacks.

When I search in Google, my post doesn't seem to be registering.  Once again, I'm afraid that there may be too much competition.  I realize that I'm going to have to learn a bit more about the latest Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques to try to get my pages to register on Google.

Experiment #3 - Link 4 Link

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I just did a Google search for "Blog Experiment" and I was pretty happy to see that this site ranked #2...  Out of 27 Million!!!

 

I was curious who this guy was that claimed to have the "Greatest" blog experiment, so I check out his site.

His blog claims that if I add a link to him, that he'll link back to me.  I have learned that Linkbacks are sites that link back to your blog.  The number and quality of linkbacks that you have is something Search Engines take into consideration when ranking you in their results.

I'm adding a link to his blog (http://thegreatestblogexperiment.blogspot.com/) and hopefully he'll add one back to me.

This was a short experiment, but I am already thinking about a future experiment where we generate a massive number of linkbacks to this site.  Look for it in the near furutre.

Experiment #2 - Setting up AdSense

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Google AdSense Example

You all know what AdSense is - right?

In case you have never seen it before, or have seen it, but not realized what it was, the sample at the left is an example of a Google AdSense ad.

I have to admit, I've never been a big fan of the way AdSense ads look on a blog.  I agree with the people out there who claim that they tend to cheapen the look of a site.  Also, in all the years that they've been around, I can't recall ever clicking on one (much the same way I always ignore the highlighted 'paid' results on my Google searches).

I always assumed websites got paid for displaying these ad.  This is not the case.  It was interesting to learn that sites only make money when visitors click through on these ads.

How much do you get paid for AdSense?

Google doesn't have a straight answer for that one.  They say that it depends, and that the best way to find out is to sign up, see how much you're making and then decide whether it is worthwhile to continue.

Whether I'm a fan or not doesn't really matter.  This seems to be my next logical "experiment", and my first step towards "Monitization".  Blogger really makes the whole process quite easy.

I'm going to start out light and only display AdSense adds after my posts.  Blogger gives you three options...

There is a lengthy Terms & Conditions page to read (or at least scroll through).  Everything seems pretty reasonable and it is clear that I'm just scratching the surface by displaying plain old AdSense adds on my blog.  The Terms & Conditions refers to that as AdSense for Content.  There are other types of AdSenses referenced like AdSense for Search, AdSense for Video, etc.  These are all things to explore, and you can rest assured knowing that they will be the subject of future "experiments".

There was one part in the Terms & Conditions that worried me for a minute.  I had to agree to not disclose Google Confidential Information including click-through rates.  I wanted to ensure that nothing was going to prevent me from being able to update my Scoreboard to let you know how much I've earned.

The good new is that although I won't be able to share details of specific click-through rates, I am allowed to disclose the amount of Google’s gross payments to me.

It looks like I have AdSense setup now.  It will be 48 hours or so before ads start to show.  There will be public service announcements in the meantime.

Once my adds are working and I've seen some of the reporting available, I will update this post.

Glenn Beck Leaves Fox News, Millions Upgrades to Fire Fox 4.0

On second thought, I guess these two headlines aren't really related.

If you are looking for information on Glenn Beck leaving Fox News, you can click on this image...

Glenn Beck and Fox News Call It Quits

If you are looking to download the latest version of Firefox, click the image below to be directed to mozilla.com where you can join the millions who have already downloaded Firefox 4.0.

Top 6 New Features in Firefox 4

1. Faster Browsing thanks to a new JavaScript engine.  Mozilla claims that the new JavaScript engine can perform at up to six times the speed of previous versions.  
2. If you're still not used to Tabs, Firefox 4.0 it will prompt you to let you know how many tabs you are about to shut down when you close your browser window.
3. Hardware accelerated video graphics.  Firefox will take advantage of your computers video card's processing power to improve the rendering time of video and graphics.
4. HTML5 support will let you take advantage of the newest and most innovative sites out there.
5. Firefox 4.0 sports a cleaner look that appears to be "borrowed" from Google Chrome.
6. The new Add On manager makes it easy to find new add ons and manage the ones you have installed.

For the past year or so I have seldom used Firefox.  I left it in favor of the performance and the uncluttered interface of Google Chrome.  Firefox 4.0 has brought me back (for now...).

Glenn Beck Leaving Fox News

Glenn Beck and Fox Call It Quits

Conservative talk show host Glenn Beck announced today that he will end his talk show on Fox News.

Beck has been with Fox for less than three years.  His brand of conservative populism attracted many viewers and increased ratings. 

It isn't clear whether he is quitting or being forced to leave.  What is clear is that his ratings have been dropping and the Network has felt the impact of the recent advertiser boycotting.

Beck at the Restoring Honor Rally He Organized at the National Mall

A turning point came last summer when Beck made comments indicating that Barack Obama has a "deep seated hatred for white people."

Comments like these led to boycott campaigns and caused Fox News to distance themselves from Beck.

The long turns at the blackboard turned off the younger audience, so sought after by advertisers

Facts about Glenn Beck

• Age: 47
• Parents operated a bakery in downtown Washington when Glenn was growing up
• When he was 14, his mother drowned in a boating accident.  Glenn has referred to his mother's death as a suicide during interviews
• Step brother committed suicide
• Married for 10 years
• 2 Daughters from first marriage
• Recovering alcoholic and substance abuser
• Married 2nd Wife in 1999, have 2 kids (1 adopted).
• Had been diagnosed with macular dystrophy.  At risk of going blind in the near term and has difficulty reading, driving and recognizing people.

What Are Others Are Saying about Glenn Beck



http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/07/business/media/07beck.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/mc-ss-ironpigs-sandberg-0406-20110406,0,6505137.story

http://www.tvlatest.com/article/2301/In+Other+News+Wendesday%3A+Alec+Baldwin,+Glenn+Beck,+Matt+Lauer

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/tv/la-et-glenn-beck-20110407,0,5973014.story



This post was created as part of Mike's Blog Experiment #1.  To learn more, click here.

Experiment #1 - Create A Popular Post

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My initial thought is that I should find out what is super hot on the web right now and create a detailed post about it.



My theory is that if lots of people are using these search terms, maybe they'll come across my post.

I searched Google to see if I can find out what is hot in the Internet right now.  I came across a neat Google feature called Google trends that does just that.

It tells me that Glenn Beck is leaving Fox and that the Hotness level is "On Fire".  I recognize the name, but I don't really know who Glenn Beck is.  Even so, this sounds like something that I should capitalize on.


I'm going to get some facts, maybe some gossip, some links, definitely a picture and I'll add lots of labels to my post.

I've got to run now to write my "Glenn Beck" post, but I'll be back later to update this post to let you know how it worked out...


UPDATE:

Okay, it is now 1:48am.  I've learned a bit about Glenn Beck.  I wrote a post about Glenn Leaving Fox News based on information I read in a bunch of news articles.  I went to Wikipedia and gathered some interesting facts which I also included.  I figured that links to other sites may help so I included a bunch that I had found by doing a Google search.

View my Glenn Beck Post here

Then I decided to expand upon the experiment.  Firefox 4.0 was just released a couple of weeks ago and already about 60 million people have downloaded it.  That means a lot of people must be searching for Firefox.  And now with people searching for Fox news, I thought I'd try a post that combines the two.

View my Fox News / Firefox Post here

After creating the posts, I read recent Glenn Beck postings from news sites and left the following comment on those sites...

I don't think this will be the last we hear of Glenn Beck.

- Mike

www.mikesblogexperiment.com

The sites I left this comment on were:

• Chicago Breaking Sports
• Wall Street Journal SpeakEasy
• EW.COM
• Christian Science Monitor

You'll notice how I have the site name in my signature line.

I would have done more , but a lot of them need you to sign up.  This seemed like too much trouble for Experiment #1.

I just did a Google search and it looks like some of this has paid off.  This is the first time a search for mikesblogexperiment.com has returned a hit in Google!

FURTHER UPDATE

Well, it has been around 40hrs since my Glenn Beck Posts went up.  I got very few hits as a result and I can't find my posts ranking anywhere near the top 20 on Google.

I'm re-thinking this strategy.  By picking such a hot topic, I'm competing with thousands of other more established sources.  Perhaps Google knows that I'm a brand new blog with a minuscule amount of posts and they rank me accordingly.  I'll leave the posts up and we'll see what happens, but in the meantime it is time to move on with some more experiments...