Submitted site twice, still not showing up after 6 months

[Guest lindsay.dainie]

Hi everyone!

 

I'm not sure how else to get help with this, so I thought I would post my issue here. I hope someone can help. I've been trying to post a website to dmoz for quite a while now with no success. I followed all the steps correctly (chose a category, filled out the info, kept the length down, etc. etc). I filled this out on two occasions, about 3 months apart, and the website still has not appeared on dmoz. I'm not sure what else to do. It's a website for a company that does patternmaking and custom clothing design, so I don't understand why it wouldn't show up. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks so much!

[Callimachus]

There is nothing more to do. The answer as to when is in the FAQ

 

Basically it might get listed tomorrow or at some indeterminate time in the future as there is no set time for suggestions to be reviewed or listed.

[Guest lindsay.dainie]

Thanks for your quick reply. At least I know now that I'm not going crazy.

[TecEar]

I find myself in exactly the same situation.

My website is perfectly legitimate.

I have submitted it to the correct category 2 or 3 times over the past 6 months with no luck so far.

The particular category was last updated in mid-July 2006.

I wonder how frequently one might expect a category to be updated?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[hutcheson]

You also should start by reading the FAQ. Exactly the same answers should be operative.

[TecEar]

Regarding the FAQ:

 

2 minutes, 2 years, 2 decades…What is an acceptable amount of time to be “on-hold”?

 

And, how strange that one might conceivably be “on-hold” because an editor is giving preference to researching and listing a site of their choosing rather than responding to requests from legitimate websites who have enthusiastically and explicitly expressed a wish to be included and participate in the DMOZ Open Directory Project.

 

A strange beast indeed!

[pvgool]

2 minutes, 2 years, 2 decades…What is an acceptable amount of time to be “on-hold”?

Acceptable to who?

 

And, how strange that one might conceivably be “on-hold” because an editor is giving preference to researching and listing a site of their choosing rather than responding to requests from legitimate websites who have enthusiastically and explicitly expressed a wish to be included and participate in the DMOZ Open Directory Project.

A strange beast indeed!

1) no one can make a request, you can only suggest us to look at a site

2) most sugegstions are not from legitimate websites

3) and what about all those legitimate websites that didn't get suggested, they have excatly the same rights as the onse that get suggested

4) your statement would have been valid if DMOZ was a service for webmasters, luckely it isn't

[motsa]

2 minutes, 2 years, 2 decades…What is an acceptable amount of time to be “on-hold”?

It's not really about what's acceptable. The concept of "acceptable" will vary depending on who you speak to, editor or non-editor, website owner or non-website owner, etc. What you might find unacceptable, I might consider completely reasonable and vice versa. The review of a suggested site takes as long as it takes. I don't mean that to be facetious or inconsiderate -- given the volunteer and somewhat random nature of the ODP and the way it functions, it's impossible to say when someone will decide to review siteA that was suggested to categoryX. Someone could come across it in a few minutes or it may be years before someone decides that that site and that category are something they absolutely must deal with.

 

And, how strange that one might conceivably be “on-hold” because an editor is giving preference to researching and listing a site of their choosing rather than responding to requests from legitimate websites who have enthusiastically and explicitly expressed a wish to be included and participate in the DMOZ Open Directory Project.

The fact that a site's owner has learned about the ODP and has suggested their site doesn't (and shouldn't) make the sites owned by people who've never heard of the ODP less worthy of review. The only fair way to handle things is to give no preference to the people who've discovered the directory and let the randomness of the universe level the playing field.

[Eric-the-Bun]

Usually an editor has a good idea of the value of the suggestion pool for a category. If the quality of suggestions is good, then the pool will be the first place the editor looks. If people have spammed the category, then a legitimate request may be hidden within the rubbish. There comes a point where an editor is more likely to find the site through their own efforts rather than wading through all the rubbish to find the few gems.

 

Mostly (but not always) an editor searching for sites is operating in an informational category (ie folk dancing, a locality) where the suggestion rate is relatively low and so the question does not arise.

 

The 'nature of the beast' is created by the human aspect of the directory which results in people working in areas that interest them. So if a category is not interesting to an editor, less work will be done in it. In that respect the editing effort reflects the interests of the surfer community rather than the webmaster community.

 

regards

[hutcheson]

It is true that in the ODP, a casual passing reference from a disinterested person is always always always MUCH more valuable, MUCH more interesting, MUCH more credible, MUCH more important, than the most enthusiastic self-praise. And if you're every really concerned about getting good information, AVOIDING the self-praise is priority #1.

 

I don't find this strange. It seems just like real life.

 

"If you don't blow your own horn, and nobody else does either ... at least you don't end up sounding like a trumpeting fool." As the real proverb says, "let another praise you, and not your own lips."

[avh]

What is the record?

 

I've submitted my site a year ago, and still no news, good or bad.

Needless to say that the site is perfectly normal and it was submitted in the correct category. The site is an online game for kids and during this time it became rather popular, but DMOZ is still silent.

I'm not even frustrated anymore, in time the whole thing became pathetically amusing, and now I am wondering if I am going to set a record.

[sounddude]

There is no set time for how long it takes for a site that has been submitted to get looked at. There are lots of factors involved as stated in the various responses above. Another factor is that it may take considerable time for an editor to actually get to the category before a site can be viewed. And I've found that too many times, sites are submitted in a wrong manner or to the wrong category. So when an editor finally gets to a submission, and sees it's in the wrong place, they must send it to the holding area of the correct category, where it may sit for a length of time waiting for an editor to get there. I know it may sound inefficient but it actually does work. It's just that we receive SO many submissions and with an all volunteer project, it just takes a while. And if there is no editor for your category, well....

 

Don't give up.

 

sd

[galleryonshow.c]

Why cant things be simple

 

Thought it would be easy to post a quick reply, when I thought I had another forum window came up(this one). I have submitted my site ( url removed ), cant find it anywhere, and have to be einstein to put on note on the forum, all too hard.

[hutcheson]

Also, bear in mind that we are website reviewers, not game reviewers. If your primary purpose is promoting a game, then the "commonality of interest" between you and the ODP already has two strikes against it.

 

And focus your promotional efforts towards sites that do review games (and are therefore equipped to state, credibly and authoritatively, that your game is not being used as a distribution vector for slimeware such as key loggers, phishers, viruses, adware, etc.). Also, I'd recommend distributing through a reputable download site (if, in these evil days, you can find one that either prohibits or labels slimeware.

 

It is unfortunate that games are so often used that way, but we all have to adapt to reality (which for a sane parent means giving up many innocent games, simply because they couldn't be certified safe; for a sane editor it means sticking to what he can safely review; for a sane publisher it means addressing the issue of certification to the satisfaction of the most cautious consumer.

[edlam69]

Submission to DMOZ is it important anymore?

 

Dear DMOZ,

 

I have just launched my site couple of months back and tried to list to DMOZ because it is said to be the universal directory and search engines sometimes refers to DMOZ.

 

I have attempted several times to list into DMOZ but till today after several months, I dont see any of my sites information listed in DMOZ.

 

Further investigation, I have found a site has exactly the same setup like DMOZ of which listing requires a FEE! I dont know whether it is legitimate or not but surely if it isnt, many would be cheated.

 

It would mean submitting into DMOZ seems like "throwing a message bottle into the sea" and hope for a reply from somewhere or hoping someone able to find it if it reaches the shore.

 

I dont understand the relevence of submitting into DMOZ, but I am just following guideline written on the net,on ways to get listed on the net. Sorry for being a newbie at this.

 

I am new at this n would like to apologize in advance if I have offended anyone in DMOZ.

 

THanks!

EL

[spectregunner]

It would mean submitting into DMOZ seems like "throwing a message bottle into the sea" and hope for a reply from somewhere or hoping someone able to find it if it reaches the shore.

 

An excellent description.

 

In suggesting a site, all you are doing is saying: Hey editors, if you are so inclined, take at look at this site. It may or may not be worth listing.

 

Any expectations beyond that are not on a very solid foundation.

[TecEar]

Contemplating my breathing

 

Ah, so editors volunteer their services without commitment – they’re busy people. While upholding the principles of the Directory Project, they may or may not, from time-to-time see fit to find time to entertain and select suggestions for inclusion.

 

My “suggestion” (which I am invited to submit for the remote possibility of consideration) is by no means better than the suggestion of any “googlebot” or other spider that an Editor might utilize to follow their inclination: no more, no less and surely not to be given any special priority or value. No, to do so would discriminate against other equally worthy, but as yet undiscovered, websites. So, to explore or not to explore becomes the whim of whichever Editor happens to donate their time and interest to a particular category. While this Editor may deem a suggestion worthy, another may not. So it is that this whimsical and arbitrary selection process continues. And, as the Directory Project evolves, it becomes an expression of Editors’ interests and collective wisdom to choose whatever it is they wish to choose.

 

The irony is that we find time to discuss why it is inappropriate to discuss the selection process - while suggestions remain unselected and categories stagnant.

 

To think that one has understood the Directory Project is perhaps an indication that one has misunderstood the Directory Project – I had better return to contemplating my breathing.

 

Cheers!

[nea]

While this Editor may deem a suggestion worthy, another may not.

That can be the case with "borderline" sites, but in the absolute majority of all cases it is straightforward: a site i listable or it is not. An editor might be unsure about a site's listability due to inexperience, but you'd find that experienced editors usually have no problem agreeing about whether a particular site is listable or not. It's not rocket science.

 

The irony is that we find time to discuss why it is inappropriate to discuss the selection process - while suggestions remain unselected and categories stagnant.

Well, there are 8000 or so editors, and if a handful of us choose to try and explain things heer at the Resource-Zone, to hopefully get some people to help us improve the directory, it just might be time well spent

 

Besides, for the last week we haven't been able to edit at all due to technical issues (see the announcement at the top of every board) so at the moment there is all the time in the world to get into the Zen of editing!

[hutcheson]

TecEar, you're obsessed with process, and completely forgetting the other aspects of the project: mission, community, and product.

 

The mission (to build a product) is what is primary: the guidelines are simply the community's collective wisdom as to what actions contribute to the product. And the processes are simply what they have to be: that is, whatever seems to be the most efficient way of contributing to the mission.

 

So if you'll contemplate the mission and the product, then the guidelines and the process follow logically. And you'd feel appreciation rather than resentment when someone contributed something beyond what you had imagined might be done.

[TecEar]

Discontinue the suggestion submission process

 

the processes are simply what they have to be: that is, whatever seems to be the most efficient way of contributing to the mission.

 

In theory, entertaining suggestions from well meaning individuals who are familiar with a site’s content, have already matched it to the correct category and who deem it worthy for inclusion in the Open Directory Project should be a very efficient way of discovering new sites for review.

 

In practice, it appears that Editor’s have become overwhelmed by the volume of poor and inappropriate suggestions with the result that “the worthy few” are becoming obscured and overlooked.

 

If one must wait 2 minutes or 2 years or just too long perhaps it is time to discontinue the suggestion submission process all together. This would dispel the illusion that the suggestion submission process has any significance at all and free the Editors to concentrate on contemplating the mission and building the product as their wisdom suggests.

[pvgool]

This has been discussed and at this moment the postive aspects of the suggestion process are still higher as the negative aspects. In many categories the pool of suggested sites is a good starting point to find new listable sites. In others (mainly highly commercial ones) the pool is overwelmed with sites we will never list.

[hutcheson]

TecEar, you're obsessed with controlling the process, to the utter exclusion of any considerations about efficiency or effectiveness.

 

The ODP system is designed to empower people; the processes are there only to enable people to work more effectively. And each particular process has limitations. But so what?

 

Is Google filled with spam results sometimes? Of course it is. But no sane person would suggest that the ODP process impose a priority on when Google searches are done! And no sane person would suggest that the editors be forbidden to ever use Google searches, because they are frequently an inefficient way to find good sites.

 

The exact thing can be said about site suggestions. What happens "in theory" (that is, "in your dreams") is utterly irrelevant. "In practice" (that is, "in reality") site suggestions are frequently worthless. And sometimes helpful.

 

So the ODP has taken the same approach, the only sane approach, for site suggestions. They are there, for when (in the editor's judgment) they might be useful. They can be ignored when (in the editor's judgment) they look like a waste of time.

 

But, to be fair, doesn't the submitter have the same choice? Site suggestions can be made, if he thinks it's worth his time to make them. If not, he can also use his time elsewhere.

 

The justification is the end-effect. Hundreds of thousands of good sites have been found through those suggestions. And if we had to wade through tens of millions of suggestions to find those sites, is that really that much worse than Google search results? And site suggestions sometimes have counteracting advantages of their own. So doing more Google searches is no substitute for judicious use of suggestions.

 

And that's the end of that part of the discussion. We are not, on your or on anyone else's suggestion, going to put purely arbitrary and counterproductive constraints on what the volunteers do. And that includes ALL the volunteers -- the trusted volunteers (editors) and the untrusted volunteers (submitters). WHATEVER they do that helps build a comprehensive, reliable directory, is going to be OK -- more than that, it's going to be appreciated.

[INCspot]

I find myself in exactly the same situation.

My website is perfectly legitimate.

I have submitted it to the correct category 2 or 3 times over the past 6 months with no luck so far.

The particular category was last updated in mid-July 2006.

I wonder how frequently one might expect a category to be updated?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

I've literally been waiting over three years. I submitted my site back in September 2003, and still nothing's been done (it's an online resume/personal homepage)

 

Back when they still did site submissions, I was told to check back every few months, usually politely (although one administrator went on an angry rant about me nagging them, even though I never posted repeat requests sooner than I was asked to.)

[motsa]

Unfortunately, resume/personal home pages are not generally something editors are tripping over themselves to review so I would expect them to have a somewhat longer review time.

[globalghn]

I have been trying myself for over 1 year

 

I am now wondering if it really makes scence to submit your website, I have submitted mine about 2 time over the last 1 year and six months, no luck. I have not even reveived any sort of acknowledgement from the editors, nothing. I am thinking about re-submiting again for the last time. Do you think its a wise idea? Do you think they still have the record of submission?

 

I really dont know.

 

Hi everyone!

 

I'm not sure how else to get help with this, so I thought I would post my issue here. I hope someone can help. I've been trying to post a website to dmoz for quite a while now with no success. I followed all the steps correctly (chose a category, filled out the info, kept the length down, etc. etc). I filled this out on two occasions, about 3 months apart, and the website still has not appeared on dmoz. I'm not sure what else to do. It's a website for a company that does patternmaking and custom clothing design, so I don't understand why it wouldn't show up. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks so much!