It’s not just the summer heat wave. There’s lots of debate and discussion where people are fired up about the possible formation of an industry trade association.

I recommend you check out the threads about the topics on the online forums – ABestWeb is a great one. There are many different opinions on the topic. I like that people in the online community are smart, vocal, passionate and opinionated.

I took a 450 mile road trip down to Camarillo, Calif. in the middle of last week. There’s nothing like a long drive to clear your head. I find it relaxing to hit the open road (although, that was before I reached the Los Angeles area later in the week).

I had several items on my agenda for the trip – to rent a car that I might consider purchasing in the future (a Toyota Prius); to try and do my weekly Affiliate Thing Podcast while driving down to my destination (don’t worry I used a headset); and to think about the broader issues that I would like to see an industry association address and bring them up at the dinner in Camarillo (which was really the main reason for the trip).

No matter how much I prepare each year for the Ad:Tech tsunami to hit San Francisco, I’m never truly ready. Weeks before the conference, I begin meticulously making out my schedule for each day – what companies I’ll meet with, what sessions to attend, which booths I promised to stopped by; and of course, which parties and events I need be at.

It’s not even 8am and I have already had two major computer crashes and been locked out of my house this morning.

There was a thread on the affiliate forum ABestWeb.com about first timers’ experiences at the Affiliate Summit. I was sorry to hear that not everyone had a completely pleasant experience at the event. Many pointed out that they felt there were many people whom they wanted to meet but felt were unapproachable. Most people singled out responded on the forum that had someone come up to them they would have been glad to chat. In many case, these people were not even approached.

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. I hope you already got some gifts for your sweetie. If not, what the heck are you waiting for? So, once that very important task is out of the way you can move on to sharing your love and appreciation with others.

Here are some simple ideas for spreading the love. And each should take you only about 10 minutes. That’s not much time to make someone feel special.

The last week has been a whirlwind of analysis about mergers and acquisitions in the interactive marketing space.

The biggest news was the Microsoft/Yahoo deal, which was announced at the end of last week. Here’s what some news (The Boston Globe, CNN, the New York Times) outlets are saying about Microhoo!

I have a full plate this week, so let’s get right to it.

The LinkShare Summit is being held later this week in San Francisco. I love when the performance marketing folks converge on my home turf. Too bad, the weather is not cooperating. Oh well, I still expect the event to be packed with good information, have the chance to strengthen old relationships, make some great new connections and have lots of dinner and drinks with a great group of folks.

I have a full plate this week, so let’s get right to it.

The LinkShare Summit is being held later this week in San Francisco. I love when the performance marketing folks converge on my home turf. Too bad, the weather is not cooperating. Oh well, I still expect the event to be packed with good information, have the chance to strengthen old relationships, make some great new connections and have lots of dinner and drinks with a great group of folks.

One of the most challenging issues facing online merchants is recruiting new affiliates. In fact, we have a feature article on that very topic in the latest issue (January/February) of Revenue. And while Senior Writer Alexandra Wharton talks to a wide array of publishers and merchants about the complex and often frustrating issue of affiliate recruiting, the show promoters of Affiliate Summit have come up with a unique approach to give merchants unprecedented direct access to top earning affiliates.