We're listed at Google and Yahoo (meaning that searches return links to this site), and possibly a few other search engines. The site's first year was spent mostly inactive, I actually considered not renewing the domain name, but activity picked up a little once the Google listing was obtained, and it picked up some more when Yahoo switched the clubs over to groups. Activity really took off when I added a page of links to all message pages, causing search engines to list all message text.
Without this page of links the message pages are not otherwise visible to webcrawlers, but whether this is necessary is a function of the type of bulletin board software being used. Many bulletin boards don't even store the messages as HTML files, instead generating the message pages on the fly with CGI scripts. We'll be switching to this approach sometime later this year, and I'll modify the links page to instead use references to the CGI scripts.
The listings at Google and Yahoo were accomplished by filling out their on-line forms, you'll have to poke around, I don't recall where they are.
I also spent some time building content, and this seemed to help bring searches to the site. The biology and geology glossaries are some of this content, but I haven't worked on content for a very long time, focusing most of my effort on improving the software.
Another thing that helps is having links to your site from other sites. I'm on the list at
Talk.Origins, and they have a form somewhere at their site for requesting to be listed. I know I'm listed at other sites, and in the discussion board listings at Google and Yahoo, though I didn't do anything to get on these lists. If you do a Google search on "link:" it will find every page that links to your site. Talk.Origins is the only website where I requested a listing. I sent email to ICR, but never heard back.
I'll make you a deal. You update my site map page and my discussion board page, both of which are woefully out of date, and you can add your site to the list of discussion boards. Once you're on that page, search engines will be sure to find you. They seem to scan my site once every couple weeks.
Good luck!
| -- | Percy |
| | EvC Forum Director |
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