Following our overview of current paid search engine inclusion (PFI) programs, we will now take a closer look at the technical procedures involved, spidering activity, quality of service, etc. This first instalment deals with Inktomi and AltaVista, more will follow in a later article.
Search for Survivors Follows AltaVista/Overture/Fast Searchquake
The ground moves with a confusing shift sideways, followed by a bump, then a lurch and finally a massive rumbling explosion that splits the earth and swallows whatever is in its path on the surface. This happens with disturbing regularity lately and aftershocks knock formerly solid firms off their strong foundations. Infoseek, Go.com, Direct Hit and Excite collapse.
Gaining Rankings within AltaVista
Frames
If you have information inside frames, you probably face a challenge gaining rankings in AltaVista, but it is not an absolute barrier. AltaVista indexes the outside of the frame as a distinct page. It will also index each pane of the frame window as a separate page. That means that if the content matching a query is in a pane, then visitors clicking on those links will see only the pane, not the full page as it was originally designed. So if you want visitors from AltaVista to experience your pages in a certain way, you should have non-frames as well as frames versions of those pages, and submit the non-frames versions.
Exclusive Interview with AltaVista
AltaVista (AV) is an undisputed veteran of the search engine industry. Their initial search engine endeavors trace back to the mid ’90s. AltaVista has made use of their early lead to remain a forceful competitor in this ever-changing industry. With over 500 million Web pages indexed and more than 40 million search queries a day, AltaVista remains a major force in the search industry. I had an opportunity to catch up with AltaVista’s Erica Aks, Manager of Content Engineering and distinguished Engineer Edgar Whipple. The topics of our conversation ranged from the best ways to submit, to the importance of knowing who your virtual neighbors are. This is an interview search engine optimizers should read with great interest. The team we interviewed is AltaVista’s first line of defense against spam.