Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
- Microsoft Back in Talks with Yahoo Over New Deal
Yesterday's news was all about Microsoft's new deal with Yahoo, which won't require an acquisition, which was dropped earlier this month, according to CNN, CNET, and other sources. Instead, the goal will be to keep the value of Yahoo high and make the shareholders happy. A number of people, including Loren Baker, assume that Microsoft may end up going for Yahoo's search technology. We'll see how this plays out. There's mixed reviews for this new - Yahoo Files Patent for Search Term Substitution
Bill Slawski has written up another interesting piece about how search engines substitute other search terms for yours depending on past user behavior. Of course, this is related to a patent he discovered that was filed by Yahoo. Bill explains how this works: Let’s say that a large number of people who search for the term intellectual property then go on to search for the term patent attorney with their very next search, or within - Is a Meta Description Necessary in Google?
Less than a month ago, a lawsuit ruling determined that META tags are "immaterial" -- at least within Google, so forum members are wondering how important it is to add the meta description to web pages. Is there any benefit to this or should Google pick the best snippet based on users' queries? Well, considering that Google isn't the only search engine out there, adding a meta description helps other search engines like Live, Yahoo, - Benefits of Capitalized Letters in URLs
A WebmasterWorld thread discusses the inherent benefits of typing URLs with capital letters. A few thoughts come to mind: It's possible that search engines actually put emphasis on capitalized letters, though this is unconfirmed. It stands out for readers But there is a big con that you must be aware of, and that's the fact that there's a concern about duplicate content on different casing. This is especially true for IIS servers which will return - A Deeper Look at the Minus X Google Penalties
Branko at SEO Scientist wrote Anatomy of a Google Filter/Penalty (or how not to do nofollow PR sculpting). In that post, he goes through a specific client who saw signs of the minus X penalty (i.e. -6, -30, -60, -950 and so on). Branko summarized the pattern he saw, and actions he took, via a chart: The full size version is available at the post, but as you can see, he tried to isolate certain - Should You Place Your Site Wide Network Links in an iFrame?
A WebmasterWorld thread has discussion about how one should handle inter-linking a network of sites. You said interlinking a network of sites! In some cases, it make sense to link a property of sites to each other. For example, IAC, which owns Ask.com, also owns TicketMaster.com. If you scroll to the bottom of the site, you can see many of the other internet properties IAC owns. That includes Expedia, Lending Tree, Hotels.com, Hotwire and many - Google AdWords "Automatic Matching" Beta To Expand Tomorrow
The very controversial Google AdWords Automatic Matching feature has been confirmed to be expanding to other advertisers as early as tomorrow. In short, automatic matching is a new algorithm used to automatically target new keywords, not included in an advertiser's set keyword list, in order to use up all of the advertisers allocated budget. So if you are advertising for [Adidas shoes] and you have $10 left in your ad budget for the day, Google - Why Does Google Limit You To Three Ad Units Per Page?
A WebmasterWorld thread has a discussion around why Google might not allow you to add more then three AdSense ad units per page. WebmasterWorld's wyweb, a senior member, has a great theory. He explains that, imagine your web site is your house. Would it be fair to your neighbors to paste billboards all over your house and lawn? Not necessarily. Zoning laws still apply. You can try to have them changed or you can move - Video Recap of Weekly Search Buzz :: May 18, 2008
In the past week, we covered Mother's Day logos, Yahoo redirecting users to localized versions of their home page and Yahoo showing the location of an ad to searchers. Google is testing a green user interface on the search results and directory. SEOs are in deep fear of link penalties by competitors. Finally, Yahoo dropped the ambassador program. To win, tell me the most important topic from my video by commenting below at SERoundtable.com. To
Other Great Search Forum Threads:
- Can AdWords handle the future?, Search Engine Watch Forums
- Dan Thies Releases 2008 Edition of SEO Fast Start, Sphinn
- Does Google Friend Connect Help Rankings?, Search Engine Watch Forums
- Facebook blocks Google's Friend Connect, WebmasterWorld
- Google translate has 10 new language, DigitalPoint Forums
- Have Search Marketers Sunk To A New Low, HighRankings Forums
- The Barebones Basics of SEO Services, Search Engine Watch Forums
