How do blog comment/forum back links compare to editorial back links?

[ZakGottlieb71]

I know that Google prefers a varied back link profile, and so it's ideal to get both - but I wanted to know, are followed back links from blog comments, forum posts etc. (i.e. The low-hanging fruit) weighted significantly lower by Google than links appearing within the of a page, for example? If so, is it possible to quantify by how much?

[modifyed]

In my experience, these links, though not a must, do help if you are not getting backlinks from any other authority pages.

[AlanMosley]

I dont think the actual value is know, but thinking how easy the cheap links are to how hard a quality link is to get, i think the diffrnece would be large.

[mj775]

Having a complete backlink profile is key to success. That means having follow and nofollow blog comment links along with authority links.