RSS Feeds

[ikgrauke]

I have been running into some mixed reviews on RSS feeds for websites. I have been reading online that they can be a great way to provide news updates to customers relating to your industry, and that if they are in PHP and not Javasript, they can be read by search engines and are a great way to keep fresh content.

My companies site is hosted and managed by a local guy, and he thought that SE's could read javascript just fine but that RSS would most likely be ignored by SE's because it is just a mirror of another site.

Unfortunately, I can only edit the site using a WYSIWYG so I have limited access. Here are my questions:

1. Can SE's read Javascript?
2. Does RSS help with fresh content or is it ignored by SE's?
3. Given my limited access (and knowledge, and assuming RSS helps SEO), what would be the best way for me to add RSS to my site?

www.hallclosetuniforms.com

[allinfree]

Hi ikgrauke!

I believe your webhost is incorrect. My understanding is that javascript is not currently "seen" by SE's.

As far as an RSS feed being ignored, that would be a real slap in the face to all of us who have bought in to the "RSS Feed=Fresh Content=Better Ranking" theory. For now, I'm going to live in my own fantasy world and go on believing that it does help. I'm guessing that as long as the feed represents just a small portion of the overall page, that it will not singled out and viewed as duplicate content.

As to adding a feed, here's what worked for me:

First you need an RSS feed reader. There are a million of them out there but, I went with "RSS Fetch" -- it was the only one that I could even begin to comprehend (never said I was smart). Get it here - http://www.neoprogrammers.com/ (about half way down the page).

Also be sure to check out it's "Screen Shot" (it's not really a "SS") for examples of different layouts/formats - http://www.neoprogrammers.com/images/apps/rss.php. I found it very helpful in figuring out how readers work and understanding the configuration process.

That's all I've got to offer. Maybe someone will have a bit more insght.

Good Luck!

[flood6]

SE's can read JavaScript, but not much is done with it. Google has been accessing external JavaScript files for a while, but most think it is just being done to find cases where the webmaster is trying to game the SEs.

An RSS feed provided via JavaScript will be ignored by SEs. All they will see is the js on your page, not the content it provides.

RSS feeds can help a lot with SERPs. The trick is finding feeds that everyone else is not using. I have several sites that do very well because of the feeds they display.

I don't think you can add an RSS feed with just a WYSIWYG editor. If you're able to use PHP, I suggest MagpieRSS.

[ikgrauke]

Evidently our site doesn't support PHP. And I don't want to use Javascript because the content won't be indexed. Are there any other options for getting RSS?

[MtraX]

Hi

You might want to use off-site JS parsers, but I'm not sure Google will like it. I gave GoArticles.com a go. You can choose what content you want to show on your page and just insert the JS code on your page where you want it to display.

There must be many more such sites which will display. For instance http://www.feedroll.com/rssviewer/ is a nice way to also display content filtered to your needs. The free version puts ads in between, but if you go pro it's ad free.

Regards
MtraX

[allinfree]

Evidently our site doesn't support PHP. And I don't want to use Javascript because the content won't be indexed. Are there any other options for getting RSS?

Are you sure it doesn't support PHP?
Sometimes you have to add the following code to your htaccess file to enable the use of PHP from within HTML pages.

#allow html pages w/php to be parsed
RemoveHandler .html .htm
AddType application/x-httpd-php .php .htm .html

[ikgrauke]

Thats what my webhost said and I have to go with what he says because I don't have access to all the code.

How would I add JS from an off site parser so that it can be read by the robots?

[allinfree]

Sorry to hear that.

I can't help you with the JS but would really suggest you look around for a new hosting service that includes PHP as it is pretty much a standard feature these days with most hosting services.

I have no idea what you pay or what your disk space/bandwidth needs are, but I'm sure you can find a reliable web host that will provide you with all the "bells and whistles" for around what you are paying now. I'll be happy to recommend the hosting service I use if you want to email me. (Would mention them here but not sure if it is allowed. Been with them for over a year and both their service and customer service have been outstanding!)

[ikgrauke]

Thanks for the info. The owner actually works for the web hosting company so it would be hard to switch to anything else. Thanks again, though.

[bhartzer]

1. Can SE's read Javascript?

Search engines will see the javascript code, but they won't "see" the text or content of the feed--they won't run the javascript code, which is required in order for the content to show up.

2. Does RSS help with fresh content or is it ignored by SE's?

RSS definitely helps provide fresh content on your page(s). It won't actually boost your search engine rankings, but it will increase the frequency of crawls to your page(s).

3. Given my limited access (and knowledge, and assuming RSS helps SEO), what would be the best way for me to add RSS to my site?

The best way would be to get another web host--one that supports PHP. You don't have to be a programmer or have a lot of technical expertise to add an RSS feed to your website. There are many tutorials out there if you search for 'rss tutorial'.

By using the javascript, you're currently providing valuable content to your users but you're not actually taking advantage of the SEO-related benefits of RSS feeds. Using javascript is really just a waste of time and energy when it comes to SEO--you would actually be better off copying and pasting the feed to your site once a day.

[maniactive]

While I agree that SEs won't do much with java, I have a client that successfully parses RSS feeds using dotnet.

Unfortunately, he won't have anything to do with php!

Granted, a Microsoft delivery system seems to thrive on code bloat -- it uses about 30 more lines of code than php, but the search engines read the updated feeds daily.

Yes, I like php better, too. But it's not the only option for parsing feeds that SEs can read.

[sharling]

RSS definitely does increase the visibility of your site. Ifyou are looking for advice and help on how to set up feeds on h your site you can email joel@press-feed.com. He is extremely helpful

[n2links]

If your host doesn't support PHP, ask them if they support SSI and pull in the feed with a PERL script. http://www.kriyayoga.com/how_to/how_to_rss.html has some good information on this. Scroll down to his section on SSI. A link is provide for one PERL script that may work (I've not used it). I'd also suggest looking on http://cgi.resourceindex.com for a PERL script that'll parse the RSS feeds. Without PHP or SSI capability you are very limited in what you can do in creating dynamic content.

[kgun]

"Two men were walking in a forest, when they suddenly saw a savage, hungry-looking bear. One of the men quickly put on a pair of running shoes. The other guy exclaimed, "You idiot! You can't run faster than a bear ..."

To which the first guy replied, "But I don't have to run faster than the bear, I only have to run faster than you!"
Date: 26th Sep 2005
From: Adrian Ling
http://www.power-rss.com/

Scroll down and read his 4 main advantages of using RSS Feeds.

[DrTandem1]

Why not just host your blog on a blog site and embed the links back to your own site? That will solve both issues.

[kgun]

http://multifinanceit.com/page1.htm

Click on the link "Newsfeeds" 4 cm above the mamma search box.

This is the home page of MultiFinanceIT

[dean]

Given your limited knowledge and the lack of PHP, maybe you should look into Blogger. Blogger will handle all of the back-end and display the blog on your site, provided you give it FTP log-in info. It needs that in order to deliver the content to your site. It is a google owned site. It will also create an RSS/xml version. It's pretty much wysiwyg and template based. Very easy to set up and use.

[brucet]

If anyone is interested, Actinic offers a free PHP-based RSS parser that enables you to display a feed in search engine friendly format on any web site. The format is controlled using a CSS file. Also requires SSI.

It's compatible with XML v1 / RSS v2 feeds such as those generated using ListGarden, by Dan Bricklin. The feeds generated are compatible with both My Yahoo! and My MSN. Both ListGarden and the Actinic RSS Parser are distributed freely under the Gnu Public Licence.

More details here:
http://www.actinic.co.uk/ecommerce/RSS_newsfeed.htm
See it in action here (RH column of the page body):
http://www.actinic.co.uk/press/index.shtml

There are more comprehensive solutions out there, but this one is pretty flexible and easy to use.

[ikgrauke]

I am trying to figure out if my site is SSI compatible. What is SSI?

[DrTandem1]

Originally Posted by ikgrauke

I am trying to figure out if my site is SSI compatible. What is SSI?

Going by the whois database as to the host you are using, I visited that host. For what you say you are not getting, you are certainly spending a lot of money for it. Have you thought of changing hosts to one that is about five times cheaper and has more features, including PHP?

[ikgrauke]

Funny story- the owner of the company I work for is the sales manager at the company that hosts our website. I don't think he would be too keen on us switching hosts, but I really appreciate you looking into it.

In their defense, I think their are many things that I could do if I had the access to and understanding of the root code of our site. As it is, I know a little but I might still end up screwing things up.

For example, your suggestion to use blogger was a great one and I looked into it, but as it turns out I don't have access to the FTP. Thanks for all your help anyway. When I have learned enough not to screw things up I'll be able to do more.

[DrTandem1]

ikgrauke-

I'm afraid that there is very little we can do for you here. You say that your current site lacks PHP support, you have to access to FTP or the root files. Unless you can get more control of the site and/or expand its features, you are going to have to let your current webmaster tell you what is or is not possible.

[brucet]

ikgrauke

SSI stands for Server Side Includes. Most decent web hosts support this, but it may not be enabled by default.