Monday, April 2, 2007

Google To Report Invalid Clicks To Advertisers

Google has officially announced on it's blog that it's now starting to report invalid clicks http://adwords.blogspot.com/2006/07/estimating-invalid-clicks.htm

They also offered official explanation why and how they are doing it.

"You can now run Campaign Performance and Account Performance reports featuring the number and percentage of invalid clicks that have been determined to be invalid and automatically filtered out by the AdWords system.

You are not charged for these clicks – the system's sophisticated detection and filtering techniques have identified these as invalid clicks and prevented them from being charged to your account. Read our FAQ about how Google detects invalid clicks to learn more about this process.

When running a Campaign Performance or Account Performance report, you can select columns within the Advanced Options section to include data about the number of filtered invalid clicks for the reporting period, as well the percentage of invalid clicks within the total number of clicks for the reporting period.

Please note that data for invalid clicks is only available for reports dated January 1, 2006 to the present, and that this data is not available for hourly views.

Here's how to run a report with data on invalid clicks:

Log in to your AdWords account.Click on the Reports tab and then on the Create Report link.For 'Report Type,' select Campaign Performance or Account Performance from the pull-down menu. Choose your 'View' from among the available options (note that hourly views are not available for invalid clicks reporting).Select the 'Date Range' for your report by using the time span. Data for invalid clicks reporting is available from January 1, 2006 onwards. For Campaign Performance reports, select which campaigns to include by choosing the radio button for All campaigns or the radio button for Manually select from a list ( to hand-pick your campaigns for inclusion). Within 'Advanced Options,' click Add or Remove Columns.Check the column option boxes for Invalid Clicks (for the number of invalid clicks filtered during the reporting period), and / or for Invalid Clicks Rate (for the percentage of clicks filtered out of your total clicks during the reporting period). Select any other data you want included in this report by clicking the appropriate boxes and adding filters if desired. Note that reports with data for invalid clicks can't include data for ad distribution.Enter a unique Report Name and check the box to save your settings as a template if you want to re-use them in the future.For 'Scheduling and Email,' schedule your report to run at regular intervals if you want it automatically generated; provide an email address for delivery if desired; and then choose your preferred report delivery format (.csv, .csv for Excel, .tsv, .xml, or .html). Click Create Report."

Sunday, April 1, 2007

Weird USB Gadgets You Did Not Know Existed

USB Snowman - always a fun and timeless winter activity - building a snowman. Of course you always need the right kind of snow to easily roll-up the snowman parts. The wet heavy stuff works so much better than when it's really cold and you have only the dry powdery snow mixture.

In the spirit of winter fun we offer a snowman that requires zero powder - just a nice warm USB connection. Complete with a little hat and scarf, just plug in and watch the belly glow. A great desktop addition, sure to put you in a happy mood. The LEDs glow through 4 color changes.

Also has these features.

  • USB-powered mini glowing Snowman with LED light
  • LED cycles through 4 colors
  • A great holiday gift
  • Power Supply: 5V/1A, Standard USB
  • Dimensions: 2.15" dia x 4.5" high
  • Compatible with PC, MAC, SUN, and Playstation2
  • No software or battery Required

USB Sushi Disks - never again will you have to choose between having sushi or having a USB memory drive--thanks to the USB sushi drive. These USB drives are hand-made-in-Tokyo sushi replicas. The convincing USB sushi drive comes in several flavors.

USB Fan - soft, safe nylon blades circulate steady stream of cool air

  • Quiet motor will not disrupt you when working
  • No batteries, plugs into USB port
  • No switches - virtually nothing to break, just plug it in to use
  • Small enough to take anywhere
  • Unit Dimensions 2.6" L x 0.5" W x 11.0" H
  • 1 year warranty

USB Beverage Chiller - the CoolIT USB Beverage Chiller is the only way to keep your drink cold while you're at your computer. And it looks cool on any desktop!

The next must-have computer accessory is here. With the USB Beverage Chiller at your side, you can keep your beverage chilled and stay at your computer longer.

Just seconds after plugging the chiller into your computer's USB port (no external outlet needed), the coldplate chills to 45 degrees Fahrenheit, the perfect temperature for keeping your beverage chilled.

  • Plugs into your computer's USB port
  • Coldplate chills to 45 F
  • Keeps your beverage cold