Google Releases New Webmaster Guidelines

Click our post title to see a clickable list of the new items that Google has release today in its Webmaster Guidelines section.

Of note it the mention of WebPosition Gold. Using this product now violates Google’s terms of service. Google has also really spelled out details for duplicate content, affiliates sites, printer friendly page versions, loading keywords in link title tags and image alt tags, and many other important issues. If you are in the business, you really need to take a few seconds and make sure that you are up-to-date.

One thing that I would like to point out that I am seeing that clearly Google will be looking for is the use of false anchor tags in text. The use of this technique may get your site banned from Google as it really falls into the category of hidden text. In several cases on sites that I webmaster that have been optimized by other firms this is a technique that is used. The anchor goes no where, but allow keyword stuffing in the source code. Another trick that I have seen that is sure to give you problems is to include in html comments bogus links to websites that the domain contains your keywords, and I don’t mean one link or two, I mean like 50 links in one commented section.

Be careful, make sure that your site is being webmastered by a reputable firm to assure that this tricks that Google has clearly identified and is targeting for dropping from their index is not being used on your website.

Widget World WOW

Take a peak at some of the things that I have added to my blog today at Blog-World Watch.

I’ve added a sun clock, a cat that follows your mouse, and a blidget of my blog in the side bar. These are all from WidgetBox.com.

If you have not visited this site, I have to tell you that you really must. It is so very cool and so very easy to add things to your blog. If you are using Blogger Blogspot then you can add the items to your layout very easily. If you are FTP blogging like this blog Web-World Watch, then you can add them to posts as you can not add them to the side bar or page template. You can even make a blidget, see my side bar on Blog-World Watch, with your own blog.

Oh I also forgot another thing. Take a look at the feed slide show that I did to while you are there. You can add three feeds and then have them show the posts in random rotation.WidgetBox is a very cool site. I do not know how they do what they do, but I will certainly be looking closer. :0)

Widget World WOW

Take a peak at some of the things that I have added to my blog today. I’ve added a sun clock, a cat that follows your mouse, and a blidget of my blog in the side bar. These are all from WidgetBox.com.

If you have not visited this site, I have to tell you that you really must. It is so very cool and so very easy to add things to your blog. If you are using Blogger Blogspot then you can add the items to your layout very easily. If you are FTP blogging like my other blog Web-World Watch, then you can add them to posts as you can not add them to the side bar or page template.

You can even make a blidget, see my side bar, with your own blog. Oh I also forgot another thing. Take a look at the feed slide show that I did. You can add three feeds and then have them show the posts in random rotation.

WidgetBox is a very cool site. I do not know how they do what they do, but I will certainly be looking closer. :0)

Got a Site Too Big For Online Sitemap Generators

Here’s the solution! Most online Google Sitemap generators only spider up to 500 pages. If you have a site with an active blog you are out of luck. Well until now. Click our blog post title to visit a site that I have just found today that allows you to make a Google Sitemap for up to 5,000 pages fairly easily.

Okay you have a few steps, but if you can not install Python on your web server, are not programatically literate, or like me, simply want to not have to reinvent the wheel, then this may be a good solution for you too.

You need to set up a free account at Free Site Map Generator, then install a special blank text file in the root just to verify your site and click start. The spider creates a site map for you and then allows you to download it as a .zip file.

Here’s where you need to manipulate it a bit, open the zip file and then create a .gz file. I use a free utility called win-gz which I found on the Web. Then upload your new sitemap.xml.gz file to your server and feed it to Google Webmaster Central. Why take the extra step to .gz it? Well if you have a big site, do Google a favor and make it easy to snatch the files. Google Sitemaps do understand the .gz format. In fact at the very beginning of Google Sitemaps this was the only format in which you loaded your sitemap. Now Google will take just plain .xml files, but they do stipulate that for big sitemaps it is best to provide the compressed .gz format.

I have tried a number of other sitemap generators and here is one that I really like for small sites http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/. This generator creates a .xml, .xml.gx, ror.xml, and urllist.txt file and is very easy and fast.

So now you have choices for making a Google Sitemap online whether your site is big or small.