vBSEO Google/Yahoo Sitemap Generator for vBulletin 3.6.x, 3.5.x & 3.0.x

vBSEO Google/Yahoo Sitemap Generator - vBulletin 3.5.x
Download vB 3.8.x Compatible Version Here
Download vB 3.7.x Compatible Version Here
Download vB 3.6.x Compatible Version Here
Download vB 3.0.x Compatible Version Here

Note: Version 2.5 replaces all previous versions of the vBSEO Google/Yahoo Sitemap Generator, and now includes support for all the new URL types in vBulletin 3.8.x.

Overview
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Providing Google, Yahoo, Ask sitemaps is an essential step towards improving your forums.

The "vBSEO Google Sitemaps" plugin provides a solution that allows your forum to be indexed by the Google (and also Yahoo and Ask) search engines faster, more completely, more effectively, and with less bandwidth consumption.

The ultimate goal is to help you achieve more web traffic for your forum.

Originally Posted by Google's Description of GSM

https://services.google.com/inquiry/publishertools?hl=en_US
Google Sitemaps is an easy way for you to help improve your site?s representation in the Google index. It's a collaborative crawling system that enables you to communicate directly with Google. You get a smarter crawl because you can provide Google with specific information about all your web pages, such as when a page was last modified or how frequently it changes.

Note: This plugin is fully compliant with vBSEO 3.x version. The current version is vBSEO 3.2. However, if you are running vBSEO, please upgrade to vBSEO 3.2 or greater before installing.

Compatibility
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Fully compatible with:

• vBulletin 3.0.x, 3.5.x, 3.6.x, 3.7.x and 3.8.x
• vBulletin Blogs 1.0.x and 2.0.x *Optional
• vBSEO 2.x, 3.x *Optional

What does it do?

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• Auto-generates a Google XML sitemap for all of your specified forum URL types (including vBulletin Blog URLs).
• Auto-generates a Yahoo text sitemap for all of your specified forum URL types.
• Auto-notifies Google when a new sitemap is generated.
• Automatically sends you a summary of the sitemap generation via email each time it is created.
• Includes only publicly accessible forums and threads.
• Allows Google/Yahoo to find all of your forum URLs without having to spider the forum to find the links.
• Allows Google/Yahoo to find your forum URLs without having to account for query string and/or session ID information.
• Allows Google to give precedence to crawling your higher priority forum pages.
• Allows Google to give precedence to crawling your forum pages that change more frequently.
• Allows you to conserve bandwidth by more efficiently facilitating the crawling processes for GoogleBot and Yahoo Slurp.
• Is 100% compatible with the static CRUs (Content Relevant URLs) used by vBSEO-enabled forums.

How does it work?
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Whenever it is scheduled or invoked via the URL, this plugin will generate both the Google XML formatted and the Yahoo text formatted sitemaps. If you selected "Yes" to the Google auto-notification setting, Google will be notified each time the sitemap is generated. The Yahoo sitemap must be manually submitted to http://submit.search.yahoo.com/free/request/.

• Google Sitemap files are gzipped
• Forum and thread pages are listed with pagination (i.e. all pages for each forums/thread are included in the sitemap)
• Maximum Priority is set for Sticky threads.
• Optimization for sitemap generation on large forums.

Automated Reporting Tool
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The vBSEO Sitemap includes a report tool, allowing you to track your progress. To access your reports enter the following URL:

http://www.example.com/forums/vbseo_sitemap/

NOTE: Replace "http://www.example.com/forums/" with the full URL to your vB forum root.


You will be required to login by providing your "Sitemap Interface Access Password" from your vBSEO Sitemap settings in:

• vBulletin Admin CP (for 3.5.x/3.6.x/3.7.x/3.8.x users) OR
• vbseo_sitemap.php configuration file (for 3.0.x users) located in the vbseo_sitemap directory in your forum root.

Once you successfully login, you will be provided with a list of 'Useful Links'. Here are the 4 main links:

Show Reports List
The 'Show Reports List' link will display a report of each time your vBSEO Sitemap generator executed, including the (1) date, (2) run time, (3) total URLs included, and (4) and change in # of URLs included from the last generation.

Each vBSEO Sitemap generation record will include a (1) "View details" and (2) "Remove record" link. The "View Details" link shows more detailed information about the sitemap generated. The "Remove record" will permanently delete the record from your reports.

Show Sitemap Downloads Log
The 'Show Sitemap Downloads Log' link will display a report of each time your vBSEO Sitemap was downloaded by either a search engine (GoogleBot or Yahoo) or by another user agent (i.e. Web browser, etc.).

The report includes the (1) date, (2) name of sitemap file downloaded, (3) Bot, (4) IP address of the downloader, and the (5) User-agent.

Each vBSEO Sitemap download record will include a "Remove record" link which will permanently delete the record from your reports.

Run Sitemap Generator
The 'Run Sitemap Generator' link will automatically regenerate your Google and Yahoo sitemaps.

Your Forums Homepage
The 'Your Forums Homepage' link is a quick link back to your forum homepage.

Additional Links
Additional links to various other related SEO resources are also included.


Click "Install"
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Please click "Install" to show your support for this script.


Installation & Configuration for vB 3.5.x, 3.6.x, 3.7.x and 3.8.x as a Plugin
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Follow the installation/upgrade instructions provided in the docs/readme.html file.


Google Webmaster Accounts
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It is NOT required for you to have a Google Webmaster account to run the vBulletin Google Sitemaps plugin. If you decide to setup an account for testing purposes you can do so here:
http://www.google.com/webmasters/sitemaps/login?sourceid=gsm&subid=us-et-about2


Copyright & Licensing

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• vBSEO Google Sitemaps plugin is copyright protected by Crawlability Inc.
• You are free to download and install this plugin on any vBulletin forum for which you hold a valid vB license.
• Unauthorized distribution of any code and/or documentation, whole or in part, included here is strictly prohibited.
• In addition, the following copyright notice must be maintained.

vBSEO(TM) ? 2005-2009 Crawlability, Inc.


Revision History
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02/22/2009 - Version 2.5 Released

NEW FEATURE: Blog tags URLs are included.
NEW FEATURE: Social Group Discussion URLs are included.
NEW FEATURE: Smart Priority applied for the following URL types

1. Show Post
2. Member Profiles
3. Forum Display
4. Poll Results
5. Blog Entries
6. Member Profile Albums
7. Social Groups
8. Social Groups Discussions
9. Social Group Pictures
10. Tags
11. Blog Tags

UPDATE: Compatible with vBulletin 3.8.x. Includes the following updated settings:

1. Priority Range - Show Post
2. Priority Range - Member Profiles
3. Priority Range - Forum Display
4. Priority Range - Poll Results
5. Priority Range - Show Thread
6. Priority Range - Blog Entries
7. Priority Range - Member Profile Albums
8. Priority Range - Social Groups
9. Priority Range - Social Group Pictures
10. Priority Range - Tags

Fix: Social Group Discussion database error is fixed.

Upgrade Instructions
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(1) Follow the installation/upgrade instructions provided in the docs/readme.html file.

(2) For versions of vBulletin 3.6.x only: Open "Schedule Manager" in the vBulletin Admin Control Panel (admincp); Remove existing scheduled task for Sitemap Generator if you have one.
Note: The new task will be automatically setup when you import the XML product file.

Other vBSEO Plugins

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• vBSEO - vBulletin Search Engine Optimization
  
• vBSEO Conditional Signatures for vBulletin

vBSEO Affiliate Program
============================

We welcome you to join the vBSEO Affiliate Program.

[DementedMindz]

question in the data folder is a htaccess with deny from all how can google pull info if its denied?

[iojam]

DementedMindz,

the data/ folder is not accessed directly - you should submit http://yourforumsroot/sitemap_1.xml.gz URL (not http://yourforumsroot/vbseo_sitemap/...temap_1.xml.gz)

[DementedMindz]

thank you i just wasnt sure if the htaccess in root allows them to grab the sitemap

[darkdiver]

one Problem with the Time an Date in the Highscore

absoluter Highscore: darkdiver schaffte 160 Punkte am d.m.Y

and here

# Benutzername Punkte Kommentar Zeit Dauer
1 jamesbond
Snake Champion!

59 No Comment d.m.Y, H:i 4 Sek.
2 jamesbond 0 No Comment d.m.Y, H:i 3 secs

[nguyenvuan]

Hello,

I installed this plugin but in my Google acc, it show error "Unsupported file format".

How can I sold it out?

Thank you very much

[iojam]

darkdiver,

one Problem with the Time an Date in the Highscore

absoluter Highscore: darkdiver schaffte 160 Punkte am d.m.Y

Perhaps this is about another hack, not vBSEO Sitemap Generator?

nguyenvuan,
please let me know the URL you are submitting to Google.

[EricaJoy]

Originally Posted by firstrebel

At the time of installing this hack Google had 228,000 pages indexed for us. It is now falling and is at 198,000. Also Yahoo only has ~16,000 pages indexed.

Can someone offer an explanation please?

Bob

Mega ditto. My pages indexed are steadily falling. If this trend continues, I'm going to have to uninstall. Also, the pages that Google has aren't the ones in the sitemap. What gives?

[T2DMan]

Originally Posted by princessfrozen

Mega ditto. My pages indexed are steadily falling. If this trend continues, I'm going to have to uninstall. Also, the pages that Google has aren't the ones in the sitemap. What gives?

Have you recently upgraded to vbulletin 3.5. There are many rel=nofollows on the new version that means that many duplicate url's are no longer available to the search engines. This would reduce the urls reported on Google/Yahoo. But this is nothing to worry about.

You have to understand what a sitemap is. Its just a list of url's of your existing forum. It lets Google/Yahoo know the url's that you have, and the new ones that have been added.

How many pages are reported on google compared to the url's in the sitemap? If you have an old site, and less url's in Google than the sitemap, then you possibly need more inbound links/Google Pr, and better onpage SEO.

A site map does not SEO your pages, does not make each page any more unique than any other regards duplicate content... A sitemap can do no harm, and Google still spiders your site normally.

Do you have the vbSEO rewrite installed?
Do you have any other url rewrite hack installed?

Since rewrite hacks will have a big effect on the url's this would give some answers. You would need to make sure that the sitemap was doing the rewritten urls properly (certainly would work with vbseo url rewriter).

Apart from the above, just put it down to the ups and downs of how Google and Yahoo report pages.

I recommend that you look at the onpage SEO template changes I recommend on my thread Search Engine Optimize vBulletin 3.5. With vBSEO, and my onpage changes, sites generally get to the top of the SERPS for many forums and threads.

All the best.

[EricaJoy]

We upgraded near the end of December and we have a non vbSEO url rewrite solution. i will implement your ideas on SEO for vb 3.5 and let you know how it goes.

thanks!

[T2DMan]

With a non vbseo rewrite, you will need to make sure that the sitemap shows the rewrites. Be very careful using the vbseo sitemap as this will only list the old default vBulletin url's (unless you have customised the vbseo sitemap program)

All the rewrites that I have seen have very big problems. You should not be able to see the old url's at all on your forum. If you can see old url's and these are not 301 redirected to the new, then you have duplicate content, and you are losing out on Google PR and link text value to those pages.

vbseo is the only rewrite that I have seen that does a 100% job (apart from several sites that I have manually coded). In fact, with the new vbseo just out, there are just so many extras over and above plain rewrites, that it is well worth having a look.