You're paid so much every time someone clicks on any of the displayed ads. Google uses its technology to decide the content of your web pages so only relevant ads are shown. If you're worried about showing ads that may compete with your own services or products, there is a filtering system you can take advantage of.

The buzz on the Net is you can make some decent income if you already have some decent traffic. No one knows exactly how much, since Google restricts participants from discussing exact results they are having with others. You'll be paid every 30 days as long as you reach the 100.00 minimum payout.

Adsense works best on information/resource sites that have a lot of great content. Google does not accept sites dealing with profanity/gambling/hate or violence. If your site deals with any of these themes don't bother applying. They also don't like pop ups so make sure you remove any you may have on your site before applying.

For a quick review of what's acceptable, see Google AdSense Policies. You'll know within 24 to 48 hours if you're accepted, and you'll be notified by email where to go and pick up your codes.

There are two different ways to add the Adwords ads to your website pages:

Banner Format - Displays 2 ads in a horizontal format like a banner layout.

Skyscraper Format: Displays up to 4 ads vertically in the right or left page margin. The majority of sites I've seen prefer this method, usually placing the ads on the right hand side of their webpages.

To apply for Adsense go to AdSense Application and fill out the short application. There's no commitment on your end and you can remove the ads and cancel at anytime.

There's really no set website length or traffic required to be accepted, but the rumor online seems to be you must have a minimum of 50 unique visitors a day and a minimum site size of 20 pages with good content. Again, these stats are not set in stone just popular belief by many of the "experts." For a complete overview, see AdSense Overview.

If you're really interested in running Adsense on your website but are hesitant since you don't know what kind of ads will be displayed there, I found a really cool online tool at: AdSense Web Tool. Just type in your url and you'll be shown an example of the types of ads that will appear on your site.

There are some other very helpful sites that will help you to understand Google's new Adsense:

About Google's AdSense: This site will show you how to make the most of AdSense.

AdSense: Shows the importance of Adsense to the small business person.

How to Boost your AdSense Revenue

Google AdSense -- Advertising Revenue for the Rest of Us: Dr. Ralph Wilson has written an excellent article.

As you can see, Google's Adsense can help you generate a little extra income from your website and at the same time may help your credibility purely by association. These two factors together make very good (Ad)sense.