So Amazon is now touting a contextual link program. Insert some code into your blog/site, set some parameters and — in theory — Amazon will generate links in the content automagically. You get affiliate kickback if someone clicks through and buys something. Examples of this are here and here.
How freaking annoying.
I had to go over to IE to see how they really work, since they get blocked by AdBlock Plus in Firefox (yay!). A reference to “Henson” is a link to a Jim Henson video on Amazon. A reference to “Outer Space” (in quote) gets turned into a link to an Outer Space Wall Poster on Amazon. Hovering over the link (this is the part that AdBlock blocks, and which is the most freaking annoying) opens a tiny preview box showing the product linked to.
You can control the style of the links to be different from your normal ones (e.g., a different color, or double-underline), and you can ratchet down the number that will be created, but it’s still visually disturbing. Never mind that some of the links aren’t appropriate (e.g., the Outer Space one noted); it’s just visual clutter in the worst place of all — the actual words I’m writing.
I was pondering giving this a try, and I’ll be watching Les to see if he gives it a go — but after seeing it in action, I’m disinclined,