Ha ha… well, I’m going to agree with Classics here. It was a big fight to get the non-original sites out of DMOZ – and then another big fight to convince them that Got2Bet had original content (which it did and still does).
However, there was also a point where DMOZ was listing non-useful sites (ie. a banner exchange) under a main category (gambling) where it clearly didn’t belong, as well as at least one site which had already more or less become an “under construction” page – and it took more long discussion before these were removed/relocated.
In case anyone was wondering, I also applied and got rejected despite the fact that I could show references, proof of expertise, etc. It became quite clear that they will basically not accept applications for larger categories except those made by an editor of a smaller category. And gambling is one of those categories that no one really wants to edit because it is extremely time consuming as you can imagine… so on occasion another editor will come in and do the job temporarily just to clear the backlog.
Has DMOZ been a boon to Got2Bet? Yes, sort of – but not directly in terms of traffic. I’d be amazed if Got2Bet gets 10 hits a month from a DMOZ listing, even the Google version where we are right near the top because of their sorting by pagerank.
Is it worth getting in DMOZ? Yes, sort of, because you certainly have nothing to lose.
Is it worth the hassle? Debatable, since the great likelihood is that your application will not be considered for some time, and then there had better be some really unique elements and content in order for the application to be successful. This is especially true for the foreign language sites – Got2Bet has a Chinese version which has far and away more original content – and is in fact one of the biggest Chinese-language sites – but the application made more than a year ago has apparently not been looked at, and since I have seen no other sites added I would assume that the application has not been rejected.
Basically – unless one can clearly show that DMOZ will provide a boost in position for Google or Inktomi, I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Classics may well be right, in fact I’d tend to agree with most of what has been said. But don’t bother knocking on the door unless your site is unique, and don’t bother applying to edit the gambling category unless you are willing to start washing dishes first. DMOZ has always “promoted” from within and I don’t see that changing any time soon.