Yesterday’s tongue-in-cheek top 10 hit the big lists (digg and reddit). Traffic surged and the server held up well. It’s not our first tsunami, but it has easily been our largest. Some details:

• Digg count: 1400+
• Reddit points: 130+
• Total traffic: 45k reads (250k hits, 48 hours, 10x increase)
• Dreamhost ad clicks: 497 (100x increase)
• Google ad revenue: 100x increase
• RSS subscription increase: +1600 (3x increase)
• Comments: 50 local + 250 digg + 120 reddit (1000x increase)

I’ll post some graphs once today’s stats are in. Tracking Digg stats is getting old, so I’m going to work on some software instead.

So is it worth it to write inflammatory, tongue-in-cheek top10 style commentary? I think so: people were interested, and the debate was useful and entertaining. It seems that the format is a good way to summarize an experience with something, in a way that people get. And, it was fun.

I use Windows and Linux every day. They’re both competent operating systems, each with reasonable applications and windowing systems. I find myself more productive on a Linux system, though, because of a few very simple differences.

So what are the differences?

1. A useful terminal emulator. So what if it’s only useful for developers: I’m a developer. I like a terminal with capable cut-and-paste, tabs, and resizing.
2. All-in-one application sources. Man, I love my apt (or yum, or distro-specific tool of choice). Finding and downloading applications for Windows is a crap-shoot in almost every way. I find this especially handy when building new systems: it takes far longer to build, update, and add needed applications on a Windows system than on most Linux systems.
3. Cut-and-paste, and focus handling. Middle-click cut-and-paste is even more useful than middle-clicking a URL to a new tab, and XWindows does scroll-wheel window focusing right (scrolls the window under the cursor).
4. Frequent, painless patches and new stuff, all the time. I’ve had a 3d desktop (compiz) and funky search (deskbar) for more than a year now (and I avoid the bleeding edge).
5. Multi-desktops. Using a single desktop now is a lot like working at a grade-school desk: it’s just too small to be useful.
6. Good, free tools. Like vim (or emacs). I know they’re old and crusty, but they both live and breathe text editing.
7. No reboots. I rarely have to reboot a Linux system when patching. Windows is getting better about reboots, but they’re still too frequent.
8. Open formats and protocols. My stuff (and my network) is mine, locking my stuff in proprietary, costly formats doesn’t work for me.
9. No need for paranoia. I don’t like the anti-malware tax: the cost, the CPU cycles, and the wasted fear. Signed application bundles are a big part of how Linux gets this right: you don’t have to fear installing new stuff (the rest is in frequent patching and limiting possible damage).
10. Respect. Don’t tell me what or how to do it: give me choices. And don’t treat me like a criminal, because I’m not.

Update - Someone dugg me, though the server is holding up well (thanks Dreamhost). Remember folks, top 10 lists are for fun.

Update - 2007 - Someone dugg me again. I guess Digg users have a short memory.

Also check out Three more things Linux does right (or that Windows does grossly wrong).

I don’t usually do the top-ten shtick, but I’ve seen too many horrible personal websites linked from digg, populicious, and reddit this week to resist. There are just a few things that you don’t do in a weblog (and satire is good for the soul).

#1 - Pictures of yourself

Your momma may like your mug, but it doesn’t add anything to your writing. In fact, your picture shatters any hope that I might imagine you as more interesting or intelligent than you are. Let your posts paint it, and stay hidden well behind the curtain.

It’s difficult to undo the effects of prejudice, especially when it’s the result of one of the lower-order inputs like sight and sound. Once I’ve seen your face, my subconscious draws its own conclusion. After that, anything I read is filtered through that picture and what my mind has made of it. And if you’re the average geek, the picture ain’t that pretty.

Let me decide if I want to see behind the curtain. If you decide for me, it’s going to take a lot of great writing to change what my mind’s eye has already seen.

#2 - Hubris (be yourself)

Don’t try to be too cool, too corporate, too fancy-shmancy, or too anything that you’re not. Figure out who you are and write from that. If you’re not honest, I’ll see it and move on.

Advertising is another hint of hubris. I know that you have to pay the bills (don’t we all), but don’t be greedy. If the ads hinder your content, to the left, right, and everywhere, I’ll curse you for your arrogance. If you want to make more money from your site, here’s a hint: write more, and write better — or be creative.

A noisy site is another sign of an inflated view of self. I think it’s cool if you work on other stuff. I’m interested in the things you’ve read. But don’t push it in my face all at once: it’s loud and it’s abrasive. Just avoid the noise. A front page full of dozens of different things doesn’t highlight any one of them well.

Be balanced, be humble, and be yourself. Everything else just gets in the way.

#3 - Ignorance (duh)

I know that we’re all learning, but there are a few sins of ignorance that I find especially repulsive. I wont stick around long if all I find is sloppy, ignorant, senseless drivel.

To start, you need to write clearly and correctly. Bending the rules can be fun, but IM-speak or plain-old lazy writing is just lame. Learning to write well takes time and effort (I’m still just a hack), but if you want to be widely read then it’s a requirement.

Your reasoning needs to be sound too, or at least interesting. A good rant is golden, but a rant rife with logical fallacy is painful to read. One you can write clearly the holes in your thinking become apparent. Fill in the holes (or be more creative), and people will find your writing more interesting.

#4 - Stolen, crappy, or ugly content

Blatant dishonesty is worse than arrogance, and presentation (while superficial) makes the first impression. If it’s not yours, if it’s crap, or if it makes my eyes bleed, I will never be back.

I’m always up for a good 101 Reasons Ruby Sucks rant, but only if the writing is clear, the reasoning is balanced, and it all makes sense. A good rant is useless if you don’t know what you’re talking about. An incoherent rant is even worse as it’s unbearably annoying. And any rant rendered in #0F0-green on black with comic-sans will make me run screaming. It doesn’t have to be beautiful, but it does have to be readable.

Due to the magic of RSS, I skim thousands of posts monthly. I’ll k-line you as soon as I see link-jacked or lifted content. I’m only interested in original content, so if it’s not yours then why return to your site?

Link logs are cool if you add something to the links, and you make it clear that the stuff is located elsewhere. Never make me click through the RSS to your site just to get at the links, as that’s an obvious cash-grab. And always give credit where it’s due, especially when it’s from another blogger. Links are a dime-a-dozen and I’m only going to return if I see something unique or interesting.

Learn to write well. Learn to reason well. Learn to find the interestingness in your opinions. Find a clear, simple presentation. Do that, and I might just read your site every day.

#5 - 404s, server-down, and bandwidth exceeded

I love to read, but I can’t read what I can’t see. I don’t care if your server has gone down in a huge ball of flames, or if your webhost is holding your offspring hostage for payment: keep the site up. Good hosting is cheap, as is reasonable weblogging software.

And don’t submit your site to the major aggregators unless you can handle it. It used to be funny when a site was slashdotted, but now it’s just sad. If you wan to play with the big boys, be prepared for it.