To help you get more value from my postings, I added the LinkWithin widget to my blogs today. This widget can automatically suggest, for any new post, related stories found elsewhere within the blog. I’m still getting a feel for what it considers to be “related” — and am already chuckling at some of its whimsical results.
What You See
At the bottom of each post, the LinkWithin widget displays links and thumbnails for up to 3 related stories within my blog.
You’ll see the benefits of its “intelligence” at the end of this and all other posts in this blog.
How It Works
LinkWithin chooses related stories based on their title, tags and content, according to the developer’s FAQ.
Having said that, I’ve found some of the choices to be quite amusing: it sees linkages that a human editor would never consider. Take a look at the post “Indicators of Waste Heat” as an example (LinkWithin’s results appear at the bottom).
How did LinkWithin “see” the connection between our cats’ heat-seeking behavior and a yoga retreat in Provence?
Well, it turns out the yoga retreat took place during a heat wave in southern France. There was no A/C in the yoga studio or in the 16th century hotel where we stayed. Temperatures hovered in the high 90s and above for more than a week.
LinkWithin must have detected words relating to heat in both posts, even if their subject matter is largely unrelated. Both posts were written with a somewhat wry tone, although I doubt LinkWithin could detect that subtle aspect to the content.
See what you think…