The blog of Lord Greenleaf got 1000 pageviews!

On January 25th 2014, I started The blog of Lord Greenleaf.

Today, February 22th, I got more than 1000 pageviews thanks to EasyHits4U (EH4U)! Thank you EasyHits4U and thank you - both EH4U and non-EH4U visitors - for making this possible!

I got more than 1000 pageviews!

My blog gets approximately 20 visits a day. While it's not much, it's more than enough for me.

If you have a website, a blog or an online service of your own, I really recommend the traffic exchange service EasyHits4U. Although it does take time to browse through other websites in order to get visitors, it really pays off.

I like EH4U since it has a 1:1 exchange ratio (= visit a website, get a visitor) and you also get a $0.30 bonus for browsing through 1000 websites. If you want to earn more money than that, then you'll need referrals.

One other great thing with EH4U is that the service tracks how many people have visited your website. You can also create splash pages (simple webpages with little information about a service, website etc.) to promote it. As a free member, you can promote up to 15 websites (or blogs etc.) in total.

Please note that EH4U isn't meant to be a "Bux" site where you can earn money. EH4U is a traffic exchange after all!

Create your free logo at Logotype Creator

Do you have a company, an association or a website where you need a logotype? Then Logotype Creator is the service you need.

It's very simple: First you type the name of your company etc. and then press the button "Generate Logo Now!" You'll now get a selection of different logos created for you. Some of them are free while others cost money.

This is my free generated logo:

The icon consists of many PacMan-like shapes which symbolise my great interests in games - something which this blog is mostly about. The font colour is green to match the green leaves. The font used for this logo is meant to match the "natural handwriting" which symbolises my opinions.

You should give Logotype Creator a try. It's very useful!

Guardian Cross: Got two new Limited 5* cards!

This weekend I got two new Limited 5* cards in Guardian Cross!

The first one is Mighty Valentine Specter which I won in the Coliseum (PvP-battles):

The information page about Mighty Valentine Specter. (Screenshot taken by me)

The second one is Berith which I got by logging in 15 days in a row.

The information page about Berith. (Screenshot taken by me)

Like I wrote earlier, Guardian Cross is a great and easy online trading card game for Android- and iOS-devices, made by the Japanese video game company Square-Enix.

I love it very much since the illustrations are very beautiful, it's a Final Fantasy spin off, it reminds of Pokémon and it's very easy to play. If you're searching for a great game for your mobile phone, I highly reommend it.

Here is an invitation code (sadly only for the iOS-version) to get you started: DT47351

With the code you get a Super Rare card. I hope you'll enjoy the game as much as I do!

Here's a gameplay video of Guardian Cross:

GOG.com: Download Dungeon Keeper for free! (less than 15 hours left)

GOG.com is an online game store where players can buy old & classic games mostly from the 90s, like Duke Nukem 3D (1996), the King's Quest series (1984-1998) and The Incredible Machine (1993).

This weekend, GOG (which is the abbreviation of Good Old Games), is offering the game Dungeon Keeper (1997) for free! Dungeon Keeper also exists as a free-to-play mobile game for iOS and Android. But the mobile game has been heavily criticised because it's not faithful to the original and it uses too much micro-transactions. So if you want to play Dungeon Keeper as it was meant to be played, this is a golden opportunity to do so.

Since there are many people who want to get a free copy, you don't actually get a direct download link on GOG. After you have registered your copy, GOG will notify you when you can download it.

But even if you (or I) don't manage to get Dungeon Keeper, I still recommend GOG. When you start an account at GOG the first time, you'll get some PC games for free. My favourite is the 1994-game Beneath a Steel Sky which I'm playing at the moment. The game is created by the company behind the famous Broken Sword-series.

If you can't or don't find the classic game of your choice, you can always request it. If there are enough votes on your game, GOG will consider selling it. I think this is a great way to stay legal since it's difficult to know if abandonware is legal or not.

So hurry! You have less than 15 hours left to get your free copy of Dungeon Keeper! Get it now at GOG.com!

No, when you read this post, you have less than 15 hours left
to get your free copy of Dungeon Keeper on GOG.com.

A weekend with Borderlands 2

During the weekend (07/02/14-09/02/14), Steam lets its members try Borderlands 2 (by 2K Games) for free. I found out about it during late Saturday, and after waiting more than 8 hours to download and install the game I finally got a chance to try it out - even if I could only play it for 1-2 hours.

In short, Borderlands 2 can be described as a FPS (= first person shooter) game with RPG-elements (= role playing game). 4 players can play together online in the story campaign.

Borderlands 2 takes place on a planet called Pandora, where a Vault (with alien technology) has been opened and a valuable mineral has been spread all over the planet as a result. The Hyperion Corporation, lead by the antagonist Handsome Jack, tries to find this mineral and "civilise" the savage planet with an iron fist. Many people travel to the planet in order to find the mineral, and they're hence called "Vault Hunters".

The story starts with four Vault Hunters travel on a train which gets destroyed by the Handsome Jack. Left for dead, the protagonists are found by a robot named Claptrap who decides to lead them to the city of Sanctuary. In the city, an anti-Hyperion resistance group is gathering to revolt against the terror of Handsome Jack. The voyage to Sanctuary isn't easy since the route is filled with bandits and mercenaries working for Handsome Jack, and monstrous beasts.

The graphics are cell-shaded, so it feels like watching a cartoon. I don't know how to comment on the humour presented in the game, but the game - due to its violent content (among others) - is definitely not recommended for younger players (compared to Sanctum 2). The ESRB gave it an M-rating.

Similar to a MMORPG (= massive multiplayer online role playing game), the player can't really "die" during the missions. Once defeated, the player gets a chance to recover by defeating an opponent. If the player fails to do so, he/she will respawn at a spawn point spread across the level he/she is in.

Borderlands 2 offers the player a chance to explore Pandora, something which I appreciate a lot. But I'm not into games with M-ratings so I might not buy it for a while.

Here is the "Doomsday" trailer of the game:

A weekend with Sanctum 2

Sanctum 2 box art from Wikipedia

During the weekend (24/01/14-26/01/14), Steam let its users play Sanctum 2 free of charge. 

Sanctum 2 is a science fiction hybrid of tower defense/FPS game by Coffee Stain Studios released in 2013. In the game, four players may ally with each other online in order to stop aliens from destroying the player base's power core.

The four players can choose between four different characters with different abilities. Each player can arm him- or herself with 2 different firearms.

When not fighting aliens, the players must build walls and towers in order to defend the power core long enough before all of the attackers are annihilated.

The plot is narrated through comic book panels which are interesting to follow.

Sanctum 2 is fun to play, but I'm more of an explorer. Instead of guarding an area I would rather visit new environments like Black Mesa (Half-Life), City 17 (Half-Life 2), Nar Shadda (Star Wars: Dark Forces) and many other places.

So would I buy it? Perhaps in the future, but not today.

Here is a trailer showing the gameplay of Sanctum 2:

Att få saker gratis på nätet: En recension om Loot Palace

To get things for free: A review of Loot Palace - An English summary can be found at the bottom of this Swedish review.

Många av er har kanske inte hört talas om Loot Palace tidigare men har sett att jag många gånger nämnt det amerikanska företaget på min blogg.

Loot Palace, som grundades 2011 av entreprenören Dan Bochichio, är ett online belöningsprogram där medlemmar kan utföra uppgifter och tjäna den virtuella valutan Plunder Points. För dessa "plundringspoäng" kan medlemmarna senare byta mot diverse olika presentkort och spelkort. T.ex. kan man få Steam Wallet, Sony PlayStation Network Cards, Microsoft Xbox Live Points, Nintendo Points samt presentkort till iTunes och Amazon.

Uppgifterna kan handla om att se på reklamfilmer, svara på enkätundersökningar, skaffa gratis varuprover, utnyttja engångserbjudanden, nedladdning av diverse program och köp av fysiska eller digitala varor (programvara eller spel). Loot Palaces erbjudanden varierar från land till land beroende på företagets samarbetspartners.

Guess the Value - en av Loot Palaces många tävlingar.

Förutom dessa uppgifter kan medlemmarna även delta i tävlingar som att gissa värdet på en bunt med presentkort ("Guess the Value") och spela mot varandra i olika flashspel för att nå topp fem. Sedan några månader tillbaka kan man också vinna Plunder Points genom att använda Loot Palaces egen sökmotor och lyssna på radio. Möjligheten att lyssna på radio och få poäng samtidigt gäller tyvärr inte i Sverige.

Tjänar man poäng snabbt? Det beror på vad man vill satsa på. Gör man som jag och bara tittar på reklamfilmer tar det mycket lång tid, men man är säker på att få poäng - till skillnad från enkätundersökningarna.

På samma sätt som Pay-To-Click tjänsterna (t.ex. NeoBux som jag skrev om i mitt förra inlägg) har man chansen att tjäna många poäng utan extra arbete om man lyckas rekrytera folk till företaget och få dem att utföra uppgifterna.

Trots att jag är emot konceptet att rekrytera människor och utnyttja deras vilja att få gratis saker gillar jag trots allt Loot Palace.

Av alla gratistjänster som finns på nätet, anser jag trots allt att Loot Palace är världens bästa gratissajt därför att den är:

1. internationell - även svenska medborgare kan ansluta sig till Loot Palace 
2. en social nätverkstjänst - alla medlemmar kan delta i företagets chatt och forum för att träffa nya likasinnade människor: Jag har lärt känna nya vänner på Loot Palace
3. en trovärdig webbplats enligt Scanurl.net, Web of Trust, Webutation och URLVoid
4. en webbplats som bara belönar sina medlemmar med digitala presentkort: ni kan praktiskt taget köpa vad som helst med dem - pengar behövs i praktiken inte! 
5. en webbplats med engagerad personal - de svarar snabbt på era frågor och hjälper till om problem uppstår 
6. en webbplats där ni kan efterfråga vilka present- och spelkort som helst som kan användas internationellt
7. en webbplats som tillåter inaktivitet - Efter sex månaders inaktivitet blir ens konto arkiverat; kontot aktiveras på nytt efter att man kontaktat supporten

Jag har varit medlem på Loot Palace sedan 2012 och ångrar det inte. Jag har sparat ihop tillräckligt mycket poäng för att skaffa minst två presentkort men väljer att spara dem tills vidare. Och det är tack vare Loot Palace som jag kunde upptäcka flashspelet Papa's Pastaria.

Men till skillnad från andra rekryterare kommer jag inte att be er att använda min inbjudningskod eftersom jag anser att rekryteringsmodeller i allmänhet är oetiska.

Visserligen har jag redan lagt in länkar till Loot Palace med min inbjudningskod på min blogg, men det är upp till er själva om ni vill använda koden eller inte. Ni kan lätt radera bort koden från webbadressen och bli nya medlemmar "blankt".

Men om ni ändå på något sätt vill stödja mig och väljer att använda min inbjudningskod, är jag mycket tacksam.

Så småningom kommer jag också att presentera en jämförelse mellan Loot Palace och de andra online belöningsprogrammen Points2Shop och Stuffpoint.

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English Summary:

Loot Palace is an online rewards program where its users can do offers, watch advertisements, do surveys, play games and listen to radio in order to earn Plunder Points. It was founded in 2011 by the entrepreneur Dan Bochichio. The points are used in exchange for different gift and game currency cards like Steam Wallet, PlayStation Network Cards, Xbox Live Points, Nintendo Points, iTunes Gift Cards and Amazon gift cards.

Similar to Pay-To-Click services like NeoBux, the users may earn more points by referring people - a concept which I normally am strongly against.

Still I think Loot Palace is the best online reward program in the world since it is

1. international - citizens of most countries can join
2. a social networking service (like Facebook) - any member can join the chat and the forums to meet new people
3. a trustworthy website according to Scanurl.net, Web of Trust, Webutation and URLVoid
4. a website which only rewards you digital gift cards: you can virtually buy anything with them - no money needed!
5. a website with a great and committed Staff - they're quick to respond and help you with any inquiries
6. a website where you can request any available gift and game currency cards
7. a website which is tolerant towards inactivity - just contact the support if you have been inactive for 6 months and you'll start earning points again

I have been a member of Loot Palace since 2012 and I don't regret it. I've earned enough points to get at least two game currency cards. I've met new friends at the website and discovered the flash game Papa's Pastaria!

I won't ask you to use my referral code because I think the concept of referring people in general - to prey on people's will to earn free gift cards quickly - is unethical.

Although I have links (with my referral code) to Loot Palace, it is up to you - the reader - if you want to be recruited by me or not. You can easily remove the code and register as a new member at Loot Palace without my involvement. But if you still want to support me and choose to use my referral link, I would be much obliged.

Later in the future, I'll present a comparision between Loot Palace, Points2Shop and Stuffpoint. Thank you for reading.

I would like to thank the Staff of Loot Palace for giving me their permission to use the company's logotype and its photo of "Guess the Value".

Att tjäna pengar på nätet: En recension om NeoBux

To earn money on the Internet: A review of NeoBux - An English summary can be found at the bottom of this Swedish review.

Mitt första svenska inlägg på min blogg, och idag tänker jag göra en snabb presentation om NeoBux.

NeoBux är en s.k. Pay-to-click tjänst där medlemmar får betalt genom att klicka och läsa/titta på annonser. Låter det för bra för att vara sant? Tyvärr ja.

Efter att man registrerat sig på webbplatsen, får man (som gratismedlem) klicka sig igenom 25 olika annonser värda $0.001 per klick. Därefter måste man vänta i ca 6 timmar innan man får nya att läsa. Ibland kan det dyka upp några annonser till som NeoBux:s medlemmar har skapat. Man kan också skapa egna reklam som andra kan klicka på.

Men hur tjänar man "snabba cash" som man så ofta ser på många annonser lite varstans på nätet, t.ex. på YouTube? "Hemligheten" är rekrytering av människor ("referrals") som också klickar på annonser. För varje klick som ens "referral" gör, tjänar man lite mer pengar.

NeoBux fungerar också som en s.k. Traffic exchange tjänst där medlemmar kan presentera sina webbplatser för varandra och på så sätt få ökat besöksantal.

Hur blir det med inaktivitet? I NeoBux:s användarvillkor står det att om ens konto inte används i 30 dagar, kommer kontot att tillfälligt bli suspenderat. Kontot blir permanent suspenderat efter 60 dagars inaktivitet. Om man skapar ett konto men inte använder det inom 72 timmar, blir det också permanent avstängt.

Man kan tyvärr inte avsluta ens NeoBux-konto. 

Vad anser jag om NeoBux och dess tjänster? Jag testade tjänsten och tjänade $0.028 på en timme. Det är inte mycket alls och det är tidskrävande. Det kanske är ett roligt tidsfördriv men traditionellt arbete med timlön är trots allt mycket mer "lönsamt" jämfört med det här.

Att tjäna pengar genom att bjuda in och låta andra människor också göra en del av jobbet tycker jag är oetiskt. Jag tycker att det är fel att utnyttja människors vilja att tjäna in extra pengar för att man själv ska kunna nå samma mål. 

Jag föreslår därför att ni bör undvika NeoBux och andra liknande Pay-To-Click tjänster.


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English summary:

NeoBux is a Pay-To-Click service where the members can earn money by clicking on and watching advertisements. Each click gives the member $0.001. After watching 25 different ads, the member needs to wait for 6 hours before he/she can repeat the process.

The only way as a free member to earn money quicker is through referrals. Each time a referral clicks on an ad, the free member earns some money.

NeoBux also works like a Traffic exchange program where its users can present their websites/blogs to each other in order to get more hits.

NeoBux temporarily suspends an account if it's inactive for 30 days. The account gets suspended permanently if it's inactive for 60 days. Once you've created an account, you can never close it.

The concept of using other people to do the work for you in order to earn money yourself - to prey on people's will to get an income in an easy way - is unethical according to me. Because of that I recommend you not to use NeoBux and other similar Pay-To-Click services.

I love Papa's Pastaria!

Loot Palace - the best online rewards program where it rewards its users different gift cards - have different flash pages every month where the users can compete with each other. The goal is to get to the top 5 each month, since the winners will get extra Plunder Points.

My favourite flash game right now is Papa's Pastaria (original URL) by Flipline Studios. The aim of the game is to run a restaurant where you, the owner, mostly will do all of the work: take orders, cook noodles, add sauces and satisfy the customers.

At the moment my high score is too low to be on the top 5. But the game is addicting nevertheless.

Here is my first avatar before my saved game was deleted and I had to restart from the beginning:

Avoid Squidoo at all costs!

Sorry Squidoo, but you should be avoided!

Some of you might have read my articles on my Squidoo-page in the past. Unfortunately they have been unpublished since they supposedly aren't original and "spammy" according to Squidoo's terms of service (TOS). Not only that, I can't even log into my account to either copy or edit my contents to follow their TOS!

I agree with Squidoo that articles - or lenses as they're called - should be original and reflect the author's thoughts and opinions; in other words - no plagiarism. I also agree that lenses shouldn't only be about promoting affiliate programs where authors ask their readers to use their referral codes. But how is it possible to know that a certain text is original or not?

Sometimes it's very easy to see that a text has been copied or quoted without the original author's permission. But how can you as an author prove that your text is your own work - especially on Squidoo?

After my experiences of Squidoo unpublishing my lenses, I would say it's impossible. It took me 7 hours to write an article about Loot Palace. It was accepted and featured on my page. But now all of my lenses have been taken down and I can't do anything about it. Several hours of work down the drain...

I have also written e-mails to Squidoo regarding this matter. But their policy is that if they don't reply in 30 days, that means my unpublished lenses still aren't approved and will be removed after 60 days in total.

This is one of the reasons why I started a "real" blog instead, here on Blogger.

So if you plan on starting a Squidoo-account to write articles, I strongly recommend you not to do it. Even if you write lenses of high quality (according to yourself), Squidoo will unpublish them if they think the articles violate their TOS. And Squidoo change the TOS very often!