Hello MNHQ - a question about automatic links please?

Farm Foods

Littlewoods

Kwik Save

Bargain Booze

This is what has slowed MN down. Isn't it.

I don't like it. I WANT links I purposely put in my post in one colour, and other links in another. I don't want to give any company free advertising - what if I'm complaining about them, or just don't like them.

And it HAS slowed MN down. In fact it keeps breaking MN.

And I don't like it.

So there.

Seventh - I don't think the Fool does. It was staggeringly unpopular when it was introduced about 10 years ago and it doesn't look like the boards are covered it in now.

Arf at the sweater shop

SO how does it earn revenue then?

Do we have to actually click on the links to make you any money or do people pay you just for them being there?

What Naoko says.

Any advertising that looks sufficiently like malware to be mistaken for it is poor advertising, and I think badly of any website that uses it.

Switch it off.

god, i find it really awful and annoying. and makes it look like the poster has added a link on purpose. I agree a different colour would be good, if you really have to carry on MNHQ. It's very offputting and I find it strangely intrusive.

and I hope that doesn't sound snarky. I am really upset about this. I want to think the best of you lot at HQ.

I'm just having a little trouble

Justine, how on earth could you NOT have realised that this is a form of endorsement?

I don't understand how you can run business masterclasses or whatever they are and not have considered that, when it's instinct to most of us.

I'm appalled, I really am.

I don't think I can bear it. There are plenty of other sites that do this throughout people's posts...you can't say the word 'pushchair' without it linking you to some shopping site.

It's just so awful.

It's a bit ridiculous that we can swear on this site but we now have to write sains burys with a space in it to get around advertising them accidentally!

I don't like this either.

I don't like that now people won't know which of my links I meant and which I didn't. If this is going to continue I think you'll have to take away the ability of posters to put words into the square brackets to shorten the links, iyswim, so all links intended by posters will be in their full form rather than just saying click here.

Actually, I may just give up on mn if there are going to be links everywhere.

I will repeat what I said on the other thread. I don't like this. Yes, it's easy to get around but I don't want my posts turned into adverts that affect a company's Google rankings. I don't mind clicking on adverts once in a while but I choose to do that - turning my words into advertising isn't on.

I was asking advice on washing machines and the brands I was asking about weren't linked (my fault I didn't convert them) but the shop was, which is confusing. Plenty of other posters have said this far more articulately than me.

Oh God this is horrible

I just started a thread about it as I was so shocked

Sorry

God I don't want to have to leave AGAIN

That's a good point. Although even clicking it shows /affiliate.

Do you get something if I just click the link? Or do I have to buy something?

It would be better if they were different colours.

tee when you hover over it? Can't do that on my phone or tablet.

We can tell because it says affliate at the end of the link?

I'll just stop clicking any links at all, personally.

I think this is so wrong, sorry MN (still love you all, it's just made me cross).

On S&B this has ruined the threads. I've just looked at an old perfume thread, and now there are links to most brand names that wouldn't have been there before.

It's like someone said up there ^ putting words in our mouths :(

Ooh- good call ItsAll!

So now we have things like Marks and Spencer auto linking what's to stop me doing this and linking it to my affiliate program so I get money instead? How would anyone tell?