Monday, August 23, 2010

Come Monday...Sheldons Amongst Us

“Come Monday…” is a weekly series that will involve a review of, or commentary about, websites, movies, documentaries, television shows, sports, music, and whatever else may tickle my fancy at the time. Be assured that these reviews will be generally positive, as in accordance to the Jimmy Buffett song “Come Monday.” This is subject to change, however. In fact, I would be most derelict in my duties to neglect going on a rant every once in a while. For rants promote change, and change can be good—right? Therefore, since good is generally considered as being a positive force in 99.3% of the parallel universes that I am aware of, even a rant could be considered as being something positive, and a genuine hissy-fit would be even better (so I’m told).



It is said that it takes all kinds to make a world. There are some we could do without, however.

More specifically, we could do without the Dr. Sheldon Coopers of this world. Be assured, they are out there with no other purpose but to make your existence all the more miserable. For it is usually when you need help with something that you know virtually nothing about that you encounter them, and they take great pleasure out of driving that point right through one temple and out the other side.

If you have no idea who I am talking about, [Dr. Sheldon Cooper] is the name of one of the main characters from [The Big Bang Theory] on [CBS], and he is the epitome of an anti-social geek, which makes for great comedy on a television show. On the other hand, it is not so funny in real life.

Okay, if you insist, this is about some help I needed with how to stop following some blogs through [Google Friend Connect]. If you are still not sure what that is, you can see my widget over on the sidebar between the widget for [NetworkedBlogs] and [HighCallingBlogs].

Anyway, several blogs I have been following through Google Friend Connect have either been removed or gone private in the last few weeks, and it was driving me nuts that there appeared to be no way to remove them from my list of subscriptions through [Google Reader]. For when you start following a blog through Google Friend Connect, the [RSS feed] for that blog is added to your Google Reader. That is, unless you don’t use the service, of course.

If you don’t use Google Reader, I would highly recommend it. For it is a great way to keep up with the new (and old) posts from your favorite sites.

Anyway (again), it was really bothering me that I couldn’t just unsubscribe from the blogs that I was following through Google Friend Connect. For after I would go through the regular process to do so, there they would be back again the next time I opened my Google Reader.

When I searched for an answer, the only reasonable way (in my opinion) that I found was to click on my icon on the Google Friend Connect widget on their site, and then follow a few more steps. Yeah, it sounded simple enough, but it really isn’t an option when you no longer have access to the widget on their site.

Aha! It dawned on me one day (in the middle of night, actually) that one of the sites that I am subscribed to in the regular way (because they don’t have a Google Friend Connect widget on display) is run by someone who is supposedly an expert on all things [Blogger], which is owned by Google. Therefore, it made sense to me that they would probably be very knowledgeable about the subtle nuances to Google Friend Connect.

Oh, but what I did not take into account was that I was attempting to deal with a real-life Dr. Sheldon Cooper. For after taking the time (we’re talking about a while here, folks) to try to leave a comment with a clear explanation of my dilemma, I have it on good authority that it was ignored because I left that comment on a post about a totally unrelated topic. Hey, I even started the comment off with an apology for it being off-topic, but in the mind of nerdy narcissists, an unforgivable sin had been committed.

Thankfully, I was shown how to stop following a blog through Google Friend Connect, and it had been there, right in front of my eyes, every time I would click on one those sites on my Google Reader. For that annoying yellow bar that appears every time on these “followed” blogs includes a link to where I can manage the blogs I am following, and a few clicks later, all of those defunct sites were history.

No, I suffer no delusions of shaming the Dr. Sheldon Coopers of this world into wanting to be more likeable, but this has sure made me feel a lot better. Hopefully, it has been good for you, too.

Please Also Visit: [FishHawk Droppings]

18 comments:

  1. I have to admit that I find the fictional Sheldon hilarious, but you are absolutely right; in reality? not so much :o)

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  2. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Jen!!! It was quite a shock to me just how much my wife loves her "nerds show." Leonard is her favorite, however.

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  3. It looks like I have something to check out later tonight, I think we have this show here somewhere in the channel-sphere. I have to admit that I don't watch much tv these days as I have 4 live entertainment-individuals at home. :)

    Btw I use Google Reader on my phone, its an awesome way to stay updated.

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  4. I use Google reader too.
    Have to admit I've never heard of this guy - and it is fine with me to stay that way.

    sandie

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  5. I think I'd rather meet Sheldon than Howard in real life, but that's just personal prejudice. ;)

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  6. I've never found socially inept characters funny but Sheldon is quite amusing - tho "Bazinga" kinda gets on my nerves!

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  7. You Are Hillarious FishHawk. I didn't even know anything about this dr sheldon character. I googled him and wow.. youuuuuuu, youuuuuuuuuuuu !

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  8. I've never heard of this Sheldon guy but sounds like I don't want to. I have tried though recently to unsubscribe to a blog several times through google reader. It says I'm unsubscribed but they are back the very next time they post.

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  9. oh I am going to have to admit I love that nerdy show too LOL! But I get a kick out of your image of him:)
    I agree with Jen I could never put up with him in real life
    Take Care,
    Janet :)

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  10. The sad thing is that there are way too many of these guys in the real world.

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  11. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Oyvind!!! I believe that you just might find The Big Bang Theory highly entertaining. For they go to great lengths to skewer academic types, but there is really nothing off limits for their writers.

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  12. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Sandie!!! Hey, you might be like my wife and fall in love with the show?

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  13. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear James!!! Well, the really scary part about Howard to me is that he reminds me too much of myself during more desperate times. (Um, please don't tell anybody.)

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  14. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Grace!!! Yeah, it was funny the first fifty or sixty times, but it has gotten old.

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  15. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear BadGal!!! Oh, I have no doubt that you will absolutely love the show. For it covers a number of topics that are of at least some interest to you.

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  16. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Ann!!! If the blog you are trying to unsubscibe from is one that you are following through Google Friend Connect, bring it up on your Google Reader. At the top of the page where their posts are displayed, there will be a yellow bar, which provides a link to your Blogger Dashboard. Click-on that link, and then click-on "Settings" to the right of that particular blog in the list of the blogs that you are following. Then click-on "Stop Following This Site," and after you click-on "Stop Following" on the prompt that will come up, you will be finally unsubscribed from that blog.

    Actually, you can access your Blogger Dashboard from any of the blogs that you are following, which will be in the second set of blogs on your Google Reader. So, if you would like to unsubscribe from more than one, you can do this without having to bring up each one.

    Now, if you were subscribed to the blog before you started actually following it through Google Friend Connect, you will probably have to also unsubscribe from that RSS feed the regular way by clicking-on "Manage Subscriptions" at the bottom of the left side of your Google Reader. I have had several with two feeds, and this is what I have done.

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  17. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Janet!!! Watching the show has helped to give me some perspective on several I have found out here in cyberspace. One of the first instances was when I read a reply by an administrator on a site that was supposedly set up to provide a forum to find answers to different computer/internet problems that ripped into someone for posting a question in the wrong category. Oh yeah, it was classic Sheldon all the way.

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  18. Thanks for stopping by again, my dear Mike!!! When Google first started out, their motto was, "Be Not Evil," but that has now changed to, "Bazinga!"

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Since the Blogger spam filter has been found sorely lacking lately, I will start moderating comments. Be assured that I am only interested in deleting spam. So, if you feel a need to take me to task over something—even anonymously, go ahead and let 'er rip, and I will publish it as soon as I can.