Do you have any websites listed in DMOZ?

[MichaelCorfman]

Many webmasters are familiar with DMOZ.org, also known as the open directory project. DMOZ is an open directory of websites that currently lists over 4.5 million sites classified into nearly 600,000 categories. It is maintained by over 85,000 editors.

It is not easy to have a gaming websites listed in dmoz. In general dmoz does not list affiliate operated sites unless they are deemed as being of high quality and are viewed as offering very solid original content.

So, for today's poll I thought I would ask about dmoz submissions by GPWA members. Have you submitted a site for inclusion? If you have submitted a site has it been accepted into the directory? Share your stories with us.

Michael

[pgaming]

Keeping it simple the answer is no I never submitted to Dmoz. IMO Dmoz is a relic from the past and is tailored towards a small minority of webmasters.

There is more but will hold my tongue lol.

Good question!

greek39

[Moonlight Cat]

DMOZ listed my russian gambling site casino-13.com.

[casinogod]

Yes I am very proud to say we have a number of sites listed in dmoz.

We only ever submit a site once, also we only submit the sites that we feel are absolute top quality. There is no point in submitting a site that does not have something totally origional to offer.

Also if the site is covered in advertising it is likly to get rejected, and the editors do re-review listings so once you site is listed it needs to stay of a certain standard or it can and will get dropped.

Those are my top tips and good deed for the day.

[chaosicq]

I did submit one site once in about 2004, but after reading so much about people being paid to add sites, I decided not to bother again, The dmz should be blacklisted from search engines if the rumours are true.

[CoopersPick]

I would like to see my high quality and content rich website added.

[MichaelCorfman]

I did submit one site once in about 2004, but after reading so much about people being paid to add sites, I decided not to bother again, The dmz should be blacklisted from search engines if the rumours are true.

Well, with 4.5 million sites and 85,000 editors there are bound to be rumors. And, unfortunately, with that many editors, it is a certainty that a few of them breach their ethical responsibilities as editors. Same thing is true everywhere, unfortunately. As folks know the same has been true on occasion with GPWA members.

Folks that have been here for a while know that fellow GPWA members don't like it one bit when other members act unethically. The same is true in pretty much any ethical community. And it is no different in DMOZ. Personally, I'm an editor there (my editor name is michaelcorfman and here is a link to my dmoz profile), and I know on a first-hand basis that the community there cares every bit as much about integrity as the folks here do.

Michael

[Aegist]

Frustratingly I have submitted my website to DMOZ, and had no reply at all. It has completely turned me off DMOZ, because my website is one of the most recognised and respected in the industry (arbitrage trading), and they have small time operations and dodgy sites in their listing already. It is as if they have just closed up shop and aren't willing to even look at new submission (for the last 5 years!).

For that reason, I even went so far as to make a submission to become an editor of the appropriate section - that is, I figured no one was moderating my sections anymore because no changes have been made in over 4 years now, so I guess they need some help with it right? Well, after putting a lot of time into filling out the application process - no reply to that either.

It is hard to take 'DMOZ' seriously after that experience.

[CoopersPick]

Well, with 4.5 million sites and 85,000 editors there are bound to be rumors. And, unfortunately, with that many editors, it is a certainty that a few of them breach their ethical responsibilities as editors. Same thing is true everywhere, unfortunately. As folks know the same has been true on occasion with GPWA members.

Folks that have been here for a while know that fellow GPWA members don't like it one bit when other members act unethically. The same is true in pretty much any ethical community. And it is no different in DMOZ. Personally, I'm an editor there (my editor name is michaelcorfman and here is a link to my dmoz profile), and I know on a first-hand basis that the community there cares every bit as much about integrity as the folks here do.

Michael

would my affiliate site fit your category guidelines or no?

[CoopersPick]

Well, with 4.5 million sites and 85,000 editors there are bound to be rumors. And, unfortunately, with that many editors, it is a certainty that a few of them breach their ethical responsibilities as editors. Same thing is true everywhere, unfortunately. As folks know the same has been true on occasion with GPWA members.

Folks that have been here for a while know that fellow GPWA members don't like it one bit when other members act unethically. The same is true in pretty much any ethical community. And it is no different in DMOZ. Personally, I'm an editor there (my editor name is michaelcorfman and here is a link to my dmoz profile), and I know on a first-hand basis that the community there cares every bit as much about integrity as the folks here do.

Michael

do I fit the affiliate category for your editing cat?

[bb1web]

Funny you should bring this up.

A friend recently told me how impossible it was to get into dmoz because it was the virtual version of the good ol' boys network.

I decided to submit something I know is completely original, and there's no getting around it.

I'll try to keep the site simple as possible so my design skills don't get me outed before I ever got a chance.

I hope I get you Mr C, I believe accepted or not, that it would be a fair assessment.

The rest of the dmoz editors ... well ... lets take it on a case by case basis.

[Aegist]

Just to make the point clearer that I was explaining above, see this:
http://www.dmoz.org/Games/Gambling/S...andicapping/S/

The fifth link on this "tipping and handicapping - S" page is to Sports-Arbitrage.com. That website has been completely inactive ever since I create Sports Arbitrage Guide, over 4 years ago, and the arbitrage alert service which is sells has not been taking new subscribers that whole time. But the link remains - useless as ever.

Then you have ArbHunters in the A section of tipping and handicapping (http://www.dmoz.org/Games/Gambling/S...andicapping/A/), while UCantLose is in the higher category of just sports (http://www.dmoz.org/Games/Gambling/Sports/) - yet these two arbitrage alert services are virtually identical (old school arbitrage email alerts).

And the whole time, I have submitted Sports Arbitrage Guide 2 or 3 different times now, with at least a WHOLE YEAR between each submission, applied to be an editor of this section, and had zero results.


Meanwhile Sports Arbitrage Guide is linked to from the Wikipedia article on arbtirage betting, and consistently top, or near the top of Google for all arbitrage related search terms. SAG is highly respected - yet still not accepted in DMOZ.



(OH and I almost missed the old alert service "WinRiskFree" on this page: http://www.dmoz.org/Shopping/Sports/Software/ which links to a page which says very clearly "This site is no longer active.")
Is any more evidence needed to demonstrate that DMOZ is a Dinosaur?

[Simmo!]

DMOZ is a weird beast and surely a model that could never work 100% effectively because it's too hard to police an unfunded resource. Aegist is on the money with responses and dead categories and it is very frustrating.

IMO, like many things, its the lack of communication that is it's undoing. You never hear why a site is rejected, you never know if your site has even been considered and any communication goes unanswered. Therefore, the "public" are going to get turned off, feel frustrated and generally dish out criticism. But then they are probably like eCOGRA in that regard where communicating decisons might open up a bigger can of worms.

Then you have the few editors that abuse the system which as Michael points out, doesn't help DMOZ's profile but much of this is again caused by itself and the frustration it dishes out by not communicating.

IMO if DMOZ was a paid-for service, like Yahoo Directory and BOTW, and used the funds to do things properly, it would fair better, but then you'd lose the good editors like the 3 or 4 we have here who know the industry, know the people and know what's good.

It's a bit of a no-win for DMOZ really because the model is fundamentally flawed, but at lest if they communicated with people they would get more respect.

[patmcluk]

I submitted two of my websites about six months ago and totally forgot about it until I saw this post.
I just checked and they are both listed :-}
But they are sport sites not gambling, I suppose that may make a difference.......

[bonusbeast]

I have submitted numerous sites and not a single one has ever appeared in DMOZ.

[MichaelCorfman]

Coopers Pick,

Quoting from your posts:

would my affiliate site fit your category guidelines or no?

do I fit the affiliate category for your editing cat?

No, I don't currently edit any sports related category.

However, please also know that attempting to influence editors and their decisions outside of standard submissions through the site is generally considered highly inappopriate by the dmoz community, and can even be grounds for having a site marked as inappropriate for future consideration on that basis.

Also, it is probably worth mentioning that no editor "owns" any category within dmoz. First of all, any editor can edit categories they are listed on and any subcategories of those categories. Additionally, there are a good number of editors who have the authority to edit any category within dmoz. That means every category I am authorized to edit probably has at least a couple hundred other editors that can also make changes.

It is not at all uncommon for an editor, particularly a newer one with less experience, to have sites they have added removed by an other editor. Changes made in sensitive areas such as gambling can bring scrutiny by other more senior editors, who typically care very much about the integrity of the editing process, with the result that at least nowdays I believe a very objective viewpoint is required to be a successful editor in those sorts of categories. There is a different issue with not having enough knowledgeable editors in many categories, which is probably compounded by the scrutiny in areas that could be prone to corruption.

I hope this poll prompts some of you to volunteer to be a dmoz editor (that is part of why I started the poll). If you are thinking of doing so I would be glad to offer encouragement and advise - just send me a pm. Personally, I'd been rejected as an editor on a couple applications, and it was the encouragement and support from another editor that prompted me to reapply and be accepted the third time around.

Michael

[giggles7p]

Well about 4 years ago or so i submitted my gambling forum and after many months i got notice that my site was accepted under the catergory

"Appliances"????????

LMAOOOOOO...

How my forum got put in that catergory I will never know, but if you read my GPWA Interview, there may be a clue??

hahahahaha

Pat

[MichaelCorfman]

Well about 4 years ago or so i submitted my gambling forum and after many months i got notice that my site was accepted under the catergory

"Appliances"????????

LMAOOOOOO...

How my forum got put in that catergory I will never know, but if you read my GPWA Interview, there may be a clue??

hahahahaha

Pat

Freaky. Sometimes the actions of senior dmoz editors amaze - they sometimes have a sixth sense about things. But really, to figure out your close relationship with certain appliances and to factor that into the categorization of your site. What can I say? Absolutely amazing. LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO....

Michael

[giggles7p]

LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO

Too Funny Mr. C! But ohhhh so true!

[penny-slot-machines]

I submitted but haven't been included. I'd not been too surprised as the category only seems to get edited once in a blue moon - I think only two sites were added to it in 2009.

But, I just took a look and noticed that a new site has been added (it had changed from 26 up to 27 listed)... so was excited to see if it was mine..... Alas, it was a three page site with the main space on the front page being a list of 10 affiliate links. Whoever owns that must be celebrating their fortune!

Makes me wonder whether my site got lost somewhere along the line - my site has plenty of original content, reviews, original video content and not too many banners, so should have stood a great chance of getting in, especially compared to this new site that has been included.

Maybe I should re-submit?

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