Really, I do. But I took the plunge anyway and added word verification to the comment form.
I find word verification terribly frustrating, especially when it seems next to impossible to figure out the scrawled letters and numbers to get it right. But what I find even more frustrating is spam.
I've been sort of drowning in it for the past few months, growing more and more upset about the fact that every single day, I get multiple spam comments--most of which are never seen by anyone but me, but occasionally one slips through and is visible to anybody reading my blog. I really disliked the fact that my time was being wasted dealing with dumb spam, and I contemplated taking steps to reduce/eliminate my spam problem.
However, I never got to the point of convincing myself to do it because I didn't want to inconvenience those who are kind enough to leave a comment for me. But then I returned from our little get-away earlier this week and found 45 comments waiting in my Spam folder and even more in the Awaiting Moderation folder.
That did it.
I apologize in advance to anyone who tries to leave a comment and has a hard time figuring out the word verification. I know it's a pain; I feel the same way. But honestly, I just don't know what else to do to put an end to spam.
If you have any other ideas, I'm all ears.
And I'm sorry. Really, I am!!
Now, on to a happier topic... Vacation post, coming up! :)
4 comments:
Let us know if it makes a difference. I don't get quite so many but enough to be annoying.
Katie - it worked!!! I haven't had a single spam comment since I started the word verification - I'm rejoicing! :) Maybe after I've had it a while, I'll take it off again, and see if the spammers immediately pick up on the fact that it's gone. But oh my goodness, what a relief to not have to deal with spam every time I turn on the computer!! :)
Davene, I know your frustration!
Andrew finally put a block on mine that will not allow comments on any post older than 2 weeks. That has completely shut off the spam comments for me. I don't know if it will always keep out the spam, but I think very little will get through.
Davene, one of the reasons I left Blogger (in addition to simply needing a change) were the hits I was gettting from Russia. They kept creeping up: 30 one month, 42 the next, and when they hit 62 per month, I quit. Wayne said they "bots" and not to worry, but I haven't had any of that since I moved. All this is to say that once your blog has been "identified" one way or the other, nothing short of drastic will get it to stop. So I get the need for the word verification, and will do it gladly! Unfortunately, I think it's probably needed (and will continue to be needed).
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