Assign Style to Search Engines

[Andreas]

<font size="3">Assign Style to Search-Engines</font>

Description
This Hack allows you to assign a specific Style for Search Engine Spiders.
Attention: Be careful in using this as showing other content to search engines than to Users might/will be considered cloaking and punished.

Details
1 Product XML (1 Plugin, 1 Setting, 2 Phrases)

[Vizionz]

dont completely understand what this will do ? can give me a basic idea i think i am missing what its doing. style got me confused

[Andreas]

Well, how should I explain it except that it allows you to assign a Style to Search Engines?

Anyway, i'll try:
In the left bottom corner of this Forum (in fact, on the bottom of most vBulletin Forums) you can see a Dropdown-Box where you can select several Styles (you are currently using Smooth Blue).
One is the default Style that will be displayed to Guests.
This Hack allows you to have a different default Skin that is being used for Search Engine Spinders.

Clear now?

[Vizionz]

thats what i thought but why would spiders need a style ? if spiders are using the style say spiderstyle that i created just for spiders. whats the benifit of them using that style ? spiders are not human when a spider searches your forum is this some sort of protection from them stealing your images ? or some type of way to speed up or be more inviting to spiders ? sorry if i seem lost but i understand what u mean but dont understand what it would be good for haha

[Andreas]

You could use a SEO Style to make it easier for the Spiders :)

Easier layout, less/no Graphics, etc.

[Vizionz]

okay now i got you ya know what would benifit this then if you havent implemented it. make it so only spiders can use it. but very good idea just had to get them questions out the way cause ya know someone would eventually ask :)

[AN-net]

is this not cloaking?

[Andreas]

Yes, could be. But does not have to be.

IMHO it isn't as it basically still shows the same Information.

[turkforum]

Warning: xml_get_error_code(): supplied argument is not a valid XML Parser resource in /includes/class_xml.php on line 276

Warning: xml_get_current_line_number(): supplied argument is not a valid XML Parser resource in /includes/class_xml.php on line 266

I use rc3 and it gives this error when uploading via both plugin and/or product
frst i tried products it did not work so i tried plugin same result

[Andreas]

LOL, the XML was 0 Bytes - don't know why.

[turkforum]

LOL, the XML was 0 Bytes - don't know why.

Waiting for the correct version

:confused: If you dont know why I guess nobody will:)

Anyway i hope you have the correct xml file and will reupload the file

thnx

[Andreas]

I did that before I posted that it was 0 Bytes :)

[Andreas]

> this hack will revert googlebot to this style?
Yes.

> How will the product understand that it is a searchbot?
vBulletin sets the Variable $show['search_engine'] to true if it is a Search Engine.
There are no special settings required.

[David_R]

seems like yet another nice hack.
Be careful in using this as showing other content to search engines than to Users might/will be considered cloaking and punished.
i dont think SEs will punish forums for using this style at all !.. cause we are displaying the unique content to both guests, spiders and members ?

[ILTK]

Before I install, is this user-agent based or IP based?

[Andreas]

Useragent

[Cornolio]

installed
it magically corrects the "famous problem", kirby. now everything works

[MissKalunji]

my question is how would they know....its a "spider"?

[Dave Hawley]

SE Spiders don't download pages as a user would and I really don't think they care for any style over another :)