Joomla is one of the most commonly used CMS (content management systems) for websites. This is a short SEO guide for Joomla webmasters and users that explains how to deal with Joomla SEO problems and implement easy solutions.
Bear in mind that this tutorial focuses on the onsite optimization aspects of Joomla. It is important that you have an administrator login privilege. This means you need to be able to log in as administrator to your Joomla website before you can implement the changes recommended in this tutorial.
The suggestions in this article can be implemented whether your website is in development (still using local host) or in the production stage (at your hosting server).
Fixing the Joomla Front Title tag problem
The default Joomla home page uses "Welcome to Front page." Ideally, you need your home page title tag to be as accurate and descriptive as possible.
Below are the steps you need to take to correct this problem:
1. Log in as administrator to your Joomla website.
2. Go to Content ==> Main Menu.
3. Click the "Home" link.
4. On your right, find "Parameters (System)." Expand it.
5. Replace the traditional "Welcome to Frontpage" title with your preferred home page title tag for your Joomla website.
6. Click "Apply."
7. Click "Save."
8. Clear all browser cache and view your Joomla website. The title tag on the home page should now be changed to your assigned title tag.
Assigning SEO Friendly URLs in Joomla
This suggestion will work best if your Joomla website is still in the development stage (this means the website files are still on your local computer and not yet uploaded to a web hosting server), and still not indexed by search engines.
If you change the URLs after Google indexes thousands of your old URLs, it can take a lot of time for Google to reflect these changes, and can cause your present rankings and existing traffic level to drop.
To get the most out of SEO friendly URLs in Joomla, it is recommended that your Joomla website be powered by an Apache web server. This will allow you to use .htaccess and execute mod rewrite rules.
The following steps will enable SEO friendly URLs in Joomla; they are applicable only to those using Apache web servers.
1. You need to visit your website's root directory (either using an FTP client) and find htaccess.txt. If you can find this file, rename it to .htaccess. If you cannot find htaccess.txt, then proceed to step 2 (make sure, though, that you have .htaccess in your website root directory).
2. Log in in as administrator to your Joomla website.
3. Go to Site ==> Global Configuration.
4. Under SEO Settings, change all the parameters below to "YES."
* Search Engine Friendly URLs
* Use Apache Mod_Rewrite
* Add suffix to URLs
So it will look like the screen shot below:
5. Clear your browser cache, and then try visiting your Joomla pages. You will notice that the URL will be rewritten, and looks clean/SEO friendly.
Note: If you are making these changes in the localhost, and then you are uploading the website files to your hosting server, do NOT forget to edit "configuration.php" (can be found in your Joomla website root directory) and change the following line from:
var $live_site = '';
to this:
var $live_site = 'http://www.thisisyourfinaljoomladomain.com';
Enable internal linking on your Joomla article titles
By default, Joomla's front page lists your articles, for which the title is NOT hyper linked to the exact post URLs.
To get the benefit of having the targeted keywords in the anchor text, you need to change the post/article titles into hyperlinks.
To do this, follow the steps below:
1. Log in as administrator.
2. Go to Content ==> Article Manager.
3. Find "Parameters" and click it.
4. Find the "Title Linkable" option and change it from No to Yes.
5. Click Save/Apply.
6. Go to Menus ==> Main Menu.
7. Click the "Home" link.
8. Expand "Parameters (Component)," which can be found to your right.
9. Look for "Title Linkable" and change it to "Use Global."
10. Click "Apply" and then "Save."
11. Clear your browser cache, and then try visiting your Joomla home page. You will notice that the title tags of your articles as listed in your home page have changed into hyperlinks.
These internal links can help with the indexing of your articles, especially if your Joomla website features a lot of indexable content.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Baidu Search Engine Optimization Guide
Thinking about doing business in China? Then you'd better start thinking about optimizing for Baidu. This China-based search engine is as dominant in that country as Google is in the US, and its ambitions stretch beyond its country's borders. You can't approach SEO in the same way for Baidu that you do for Google, however, as this two-part article series reveals.
Baidu is a Chinese search engine; in fact, it is the leading search engine in China and has been starting to increase its market share globally.
If this trend continues, Baidu in the future may become one of the biggest search engines, along with Google, its rival. This increase in market share also increases the importance of getting good rankings in the Baidu search engine, particularly if you are targeting customers coming from China.
Getting good rankings in Baidu requires understanding the search engine optimization guide that works with the Baidu search engine.
The objective of this article is present the general guidelines for optimizing websites to get a better ranking in Baidu. This includes the onsite and offsite SEO guidelines. This is a two-part article series.
The official guide is available at the baidu.com domain in pure Chinese: http://wenku.baidu.com/view/6991a97931b765ce05081485.html
To understand the document, it has been translated into English. The main key points and suggestions will be discussed here.
Technical and Quality Guidelines for the Baidu Search Engine
Like Google, Baidu uses a search engine crawler. It's called the "Baidu spider." Its job is to fetch content from web pages and put it in their index. This is the same process that the Googlebot goes through.
According to the Baidu Search Engine Optimization Guide, there are a number of important categories you need to consider.
Category 1: Crawlability
1. It is recommended that you use text instead of flash, images, JavaScript, etc. to display important content or links. The Baidu spider cannot recognize text that is contained in those formats.
2. If you use Flash-based web technology to present content, you should present a pure text equivalent to be crawled and indexed by the Baidu spider. This can be done by putting a link on the home page to the text version.
3. Do not use iFrame when presenting web content. The content displayed by iFrame will be ignored by the Baidu spider.
Category 2: Site Structure
1. Your site should have a clear structure and clear navigation that makes it easy for users to find content.
2. This also makes it easy for search engines to understand the website's content quickly, thus increasing the chances for better rankings.
3. Use a tree structure and breadcrumbs. Like a tree, the trunk is the home page, with branches made up of the website categories, and the leaves being the content pages. Breadcrumbs make it possible for users to know where they are in your website, so they can easily navigate back to the home page if they need to.
4. Ideally, the site structure should be flat. For example, going from the home page to a content page should force users to go through as few levels (clicks) as possible. This makes it easy for users to find content by using only a very few clicks to reach the content page.
5. Maintain a good linking structure. For example, there should be a link from the home page going down to the category pages and then to the content pages.
6. Use plain HTML text links for navigation. Maintain link consistency; for example, on every page of the website, there should be a link back to the home page. Do not use complex JavaScript-based links or flash.
7. Place the more important content links prominently on the home page.
8. When using image links, use the alt text. This makes it easy for search engines to know what the target page is all about.
Category 3: Sub-domains and Directory
1. If you are using a category structure on your website, you can use a directory structure to present content if the categories are not large or rich enough to exist as independent websites.
2. If the category seems to be very broad and rich in content, you can use a sub-domain structure.
3. To have the strongest impact on rankings, make sure to maintain a strongly themed website. There should be a strong correlation of content from the main website to its categories/directories for search engines to get a better understanding of the website's theme.
4. Prevent duplicate content in sub-domains and directories.
5. Do not abuse the sub-domain structure. Creating too many sub-domains without substantial content will be grounds for a search engine penalty.
Baidu is a Chinese search engine; in fact, it is the leading search engine in China and has been starting to increase its market share globally.
If this trend continues, Baidu in the future may become one of the biggest search engines, along with Google, its rival. This increase in market share also increases the importance of getting good rankings in the Baidu search engine, particularly if you are targeting customers coming from China.
Getting good rankings in Baidu requires understanding the search engine optimization guide that works with the Baidu search engine.
The objective of this article is present the general guidelines for optimizing websites to get a better ranking in Baidu. This includes the onsite and offsite SEO guidelines. This is a two-part article series.
The official guide is available at the baidu.com domain in pure Chinese: http://wenku.baidu.com/view/6991a97931b765ce05081485.html
To understand the document, it has been translated into English. The main key points and suggestions will be discussed here.
Technical and Quality Guidelines for the Baidu Search Engine
Like Google, Baidu uses a search engine crawler. It's called the "Baidu spider." Its job is to fetch content from web pages and put it in their index. This is the same process that the Googlebot goes through.
According to the Baidu Search Engine Optimization Guide, there are a number of important categories you need to consider.
Category 1: Crawlability
1. It is recommended that you use text instead of flash, images, JavaScript, etc. to display important content or links. The Baidu spider cannot recognize text that is contained in those formats.
2. If you use Flash-based web technology to present content, you should present a pure text equivalent to be crawled and indexed by the Baidu spider. This can be done by putting a link on the home page to the text version.
3. Do not use iFrame when presenting web content. The content displayed by iFrame will be ignored by the Baidu spider.
Category 2: Site Structure
1. Your site should have a clear structure and clear navigation that makes it easy for users to find content.
2. This also makes it easy for search engines to understand the website's content quickly, thus increasing the chances for better rankings.
3. Use a tree structure and breadcrumbs. Like a tree, the trunk is the home page, with branches made up of the website categories, and the leaves being the content pages. Breadcrumbs make it possible for users to know where they are in your website, so they can easily navigate back to the home page if they need to.
4. Ideally, the site structure should be flat. For example, going from the home page to a content page should force users to go through as few levels (clicks) as possible. This makes it easy for users to find content by using only a very few clicks to reach the content page.
5. Maintain a good linking structure. For example, there should be a link from the home page going down to the category pages and then to the content pages.
6. Use plain HTML text links for navigation. Maintain link consistency; for example, on every page of the website, there should be a link back to the home page. Do not use complex JavaScript-based links or flash.
7. Place the more important content links prominently on the home page.
8. When using image links, use the alt text. This makes it easy for search engines to know what the target page is all about.
Category 3: Sub-domains and Directory
1. If you are using a category structure on your website, you can use a directory structure to present content if the categories are not large or rich enough to exist as independent websites.
2. If the category seems to be very broad and rich in content, you can use a sub-domain structure.
3. To have the strongest impact on rankings, make sure to maintain a strongly themed website. There should be a strong correlation of content from the main website to its categories/directories for search engines to get a better understanding of the website's theme.
4. Prevent duplicate content in sub-domains and directories.
5. Do not abuse the sub-domain structure. Creating too many sub-domains without substantial content will be grounds for a search engine penalty.
Google Instant Technical Observations for SEO
Google Instant is the latest Google innovation to have an effect on both users and SEO. But what kind of effect, exactly? This article will make some technical observations of Google Instant in action, and examine the short- and long-term implications for SEO (with a focus on keywords).
You can learn more about how Google Instant works directly from Google; we've also touched some on how it changes the SEO game here on SEO Chat before.
Okay, let’s go to the most important question to be answered: “How does Google Instant affect SEO and its users?”
The answer to this question is fundamental to the evolution of SEO, and it’s important that practitioners adapt to this change in order to survive and do well at the SEO game.
To answer this question as realistically as possible, I've conducted a test using real world examples on Google to search for information.
Scenarios Where Google Instant is Not Available
As of the time this tutorial was written, not all searches done with Google could be served via Google instant. There are some limitations, which I've elaborated below.
First, there are specific command search operators which are not supported by Google Instant. For example, consider the following search query:
site:www.seochat.com
Google does not serve that query using Google Instant, which means you'll have to manually click the search button.
Sample screen shot:
Other search operators which are not supported by Google Instant include:
* site:
* cache:
* filetype:
* link:
* related:
Google remains mum as to why those queries are not supported by Google Instant. Possible reasons could include controlling automated searches and queries to their index by spammers. Such searches are against Google's terms of service. The operators which are not supported are commonly used by marketers and SEOs to gather more information about a certain website.
However, the good news is that there are still lots of operators which are supported by Google Instant. These operators include are the following:
* allinanchor:
* allintext:
* allintitle:
* allinurl:
* inanchor:
* inurl:
* intitle:
Second, slow Internet connections can cause issues for Google Instant. Specifically, when your connection appears slow to Google, the search engine automatically turns off Google Instant. However, if Google has previously turned off the service and you are pretty confident that your connection is now fast, you can switch on Google Instant by means of the relevant control beside the search button.
Third, Google Instant does not work in some browsers. Of the top five Internet browsers according to Wikipedia:
Only the top three browsers as of the time this article was written are supported by Google Instant (Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome). The two other browsers are not yet supported (Safari and Opera in Windows).
It is possible that in the near future, Google Instant will be available to most common browsers, including the last two.
Fourth, it seems that only Google.com serves Google Instant. If you visit country- based versions of Google, for example http://www.google.co.uk/ or http://www.google.ca/, you will not be able to use Google Instant. [This is expected to change in the future, as Google gradually rolls it out to other countries. --Ed.]
You can learn more about how Google Instant works directly from Google; we've also touched some on how it changes the SEO game here on SEO Chat before.
Okay, let’s go to the most important question to be answered: “How does Google Instant affect SEO and its users?”
The answer to this question is fundamental to the evolution of SEO, and it’s important that practitioners adapt to this change in order to survive and do well at the SEO game.
To answer this question as realistically as possible, I've conducted a test using real world examples on Google to search for information.
Scenarios Where Google Instant is Not Available
As of the time this tutorial was written, not all searches done with Google could be served via Google instant. There are some limitations, which I've elaborated below.
First, there are specific command search operators which are not supported by Google Instant. For example, consider the following search query:
site:www.seochat.com
Google does not serve that query using Google Instant, which means you'll have to manually click the search button.
Sample screen shot:
Other search operators which are not supported by Google Instant include:
* site:
* cache:
* filetype:
* link:
* related:
Google remains mum as to why those queries are not supported by Google Instant. Possible reasons could include controlling automated searches and queries to their index by spammers. Such searches are against Google's terms of service. The operators which are not supported are commonly used by marketers and SEOs to gather more information about a certain website.
However, the good news is that there are still lots of operators which are supported by Google Instant. These operators include are the following:
* allinanchor:
* allintext:
* allintitle:
* allinurl:
* inanchor:
* inurl:
* intitle:
Second, slow Internet connections can cause issues for Google Instant. Specifically, when your connection appears slow to Google, the search engine automatically turns off Google Instant. However, if Google has previously turned off the service and you are pretty confident that your connection is now fast, you can switch on Google Instant by means of the relevant control beside the search button.
Third, Google Instant does not work in some browsers. Of the top five Internet browsers according to Wikipedia:
Only the top three browsers as of the time this article was written are supported by Google Instant (Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome). The two other browsers are not yet supported (Safari and Opera in Windows).
It is possible that in the near future, Google Instant will be available to most common browsers, including the last two.
Fourth, it seems that only Google.com serves Google Instant. If you visit country- based versions of Google, for example http://www.google.co.uk/ or http://www.google.ca/, you will not be able to use Google Instant. [This is expected to change in the future, as Google gradually rolls it out to other countries. --Ed.]
Baidu Search Engine Optimization Guide: A Second Look
In this second of two articles on Baidu search engine optimization, you'll learn about the following important items: website analytics data; website trust and the importance of link popularity; Baidu search engine penalty factors and how to recover from a penalty; and some frequently asked questions regarding Baidu search engine optimization.
Website Analytics Data
Baidu recommends improving the following website analytics factors for better websites:
Conversion rate. This is the most important performance metric. It is related to the quality of service offered by the website. Aiming for a standard conversion rate, such as three percent, is good.
Bounce rate. This reflects the quality of the landing page. If the bounce rate is said to be very high, then you need to analyze the causes, such as a mismatch of content with respect to title tags, or a misleading meta description or title tag in search engine results.
Exit rate. If a specific page has a very high exit rate, this might mean either that the page has poor content quality or is loading very slowly, causing visitors to navigate away from the website.
If this page has a high exit rate and is part of the conversion funnel, it is worth checking, so that conversion-related problems can be solved.
User retention time. The length of time a visitor stays on a website is related to the quality of the content. For high quality content websites, user retention time is high because visitors will spend a lot of time reading content.
Importance of Link Popularity and the Trust of the Website
The Baidu search engine measures a website's trustworthiness, its quality and authority by the number of links/citations/shares/bookmarks pointing to the domain.
These are recommendations from the users of the website. So if your website's quality content is substantial and useful, your visitors will recommend it to others in the following ways:
* Linking to the website (this is called an organic link) from their own website. They might mention it in their content with a link to your site.
* Share it with friends in Facebook and other social networking sites. These can be measured by the number of “likes” for that particular content.
* Mention the website in the forums as an answer to a particular problem.
The “recommended information” related to your website will be used by Baidu to judge/assess the value of your website. The higher these recommendations, the better the performance of your website in the search engine results.
To increase the trust of the user for a certain website, Baidu recommends the following:
* The web page should be clear, easy to navigate and read, and user-friendly.
* Make it easy for the user to understand what your website is all about in the shortest span of time.
* Have a detailed site description and contact information so that users can easily contact you and inquire about your services.
* Get some user reviews, customer feedback and other information, which are useful to a new visitor.
* Use a website design that focuses on strengthening the brand, giving users a quicker and better understanding of your website, which then improves trust.
Baidu Search Engine Related Penalty Factors
How does Baidu define deceptive search engine optimization tactics? Any use of search engine optimization strategies that relies on malicious means to get quality content and rankings in search engines, which are inconsistent with search engine guidelines, which results in a poor user experience, will be considered a “deceptive” SEO practice by Baidu.
This will result in some penalty imposed on a website. The following are examples of deceptive practices:
1. A website secretly placing contents and links not visible to the normal user, but only to the search engines.
2. A website hosting malware that will steal user information or compromise privacy.
3. Fake websites of official companies. This is called “phishing;” it is a technique that will attract innocent visitors and lure them into entering their personal information.
4. Websites with a low amount or degree of original content that just contain affiliate links.
5. Websites with links pointing to a malware website (thus compromising user security when they click the link).
6. Websites that are reported to be spammers; for example, executing massive cold calls to scam user money.
Possible penalties:
1. For a light offense, the ranking weight of the website will be reduced; thus, the ranking will fall from its original ranking position.
2. For an extreme offense, the website will be removed completely from the search engine index until it is reported to be clean or the deceptive practices are completely corrected.
Website Analytics Data
Baidu recommends improving the following website analytics factors for better websites:
Conversion rate. This is the most important performance metric. It is related to the quality of service offered by the website. Aiming for a standard conversion rate, such as three percent, is good.
Bounce rate. This reflects the quality of the landing page. If the bounce rate is said to be very high, then you need to analyze the causes, such as a mismatch of content with respect to title tags, or a misleading meta description or title tag in search engine results.
Exit rate. If a specific page has a very high exit rate, this might mean either that the page has poor content quality or is loading very slowly, causing visitors to navigate away from the website.
If this page has a high exit rate and is part of the conversion funnel, it is worth checking, so that conversion-related problems can be solved.
User retention time. The length of time a visitor stays on a website is related to the quality of the content. For high quality content websites, user retention time is high because visitors will spend a lot of time reading content.
Importance of Link Popularity and the Trust of the Website
The Baidu search engine measures a website's trustworthiness, its quality and authority by the number of links/citations/shares/bookmarks pointing to the domain.
These are recommendations from the users of the website. So if your website's quality content is substantial and useful, your visitors will recommend it to others in the following ways:
* Linking to the website (this is called an organic link) from their own website. They might mention it in their content with a link to your site.
* Share it with friends in Facebook and other social networking sites. These can be measured by the number of “likes” for that particular content.
* Mention the website in the forums as an answer to a particular problem.
The “recommended information” related to your website will be used by Baidu to judge/assess the value of your website. The higher these recommendations, the better the performance of your website in the search engine results.
To increase the trust of the user for a certain website, Baidu recommends the following:
* The web page should be clear, easy to navigate and read, and user-friendly.
* Make it easy for the user to understand what your website is all about in the shortest span of time.
* Have a detailed site description and contact information so that users can easily contact you and inquire about your services.
* Get some user reviews, customer feedback and other information, which are useful to a new visitor.
* Use a website design that focuses on strengthening the brand, giving users a quicker and better understanding of your website, which then improves trust.
Baidu Search Engine Related Penalty Factors
How does Baidu define deceptive search engine optimization tactics? Any use of search engine optimization strategies that relies on malicious means to get quality content and rankings in search engines, which are inconsistent with search engine guidelines, which results in a poor user experience, will be considered a “deceptive” SEO practice by Baidu.
This will result in some penalty imposed on a website. The following are examples of deceptive practices:
1. A website secretly placing contents and links not visible to the normal user, but only to the search engines.
2. A website hosting malware that will steal user information or compromise privacy.
3. Fake websites of official companies. This is called “phishing;” it is a technique that will attract innocent visitors and lure them into entering their personal information.
4. Websites with a low amount or degree of original content that just contain affiliate links.
5. Websites with links pointing to a malware website (thus compromising user security when they click the link).
6. Websites that are reported to be spammers; for example, executing massive cold calls to scam user money.
Possible penalties:
1. For a light offense, the ranking weight of the website will be reduced; thus, the ranking will fall from its original ranking position.
2. For an extreme offense, the website will be removed completely from the search engine index until it is reported to be clean or the deceptive practices are completely corrected.
Google Not Guilty in YouTube Case
Earlier this week, Google was cleared of any wrongdoing in a copyright infringement case brought against YouTube by Telecinco, a Spanish broadcaster. Google owns the popular video sharing website, which was accused of harboring copyrighted content. Telecinco filed the lawsuit claiming that YouTube should be responsible for the content that is uploaded to the site, but that claim was rejected by a federal court in Madrid, Spain.
Rather than accepting Telecinco's placement of the monitoring burden on YouTube, the federal court said that it was the copyright owners who had the responsibility to make sure that their content was not being distributed in an unwanted manner. The court noted that since YouTube had policies already in place regarding copyrighted content, the site has taken all the necessary steps to avoid such problems. In the end, it was ruled that if a copyright holder had a legitimate gripe, they would have to report it to YouTube if they hoped to have their demands met.
In response to the favorable ruling, Google created a blog post stating that the verdict was “a clear victory for the Internet and the rules that govern it.” The blog post also noted that the ruling was in line with European law, under which copyright owners are given the onus of determining if their content's copyrights are being violated. If infringement is detected and reported, it is then the site's responsibility to remove any offending material.
Google's blog post also detailed the backlash that could have occurred if the court ruled in favor of Telecinco. It stated that each minute, YouTube receives 24 hours of uploaded video. The manpower necessary to monitor such a massive amount of content would be so large that the site would not be able to run and generate profit. The same could be said for many other popular websites, particularly in the social networking circle, such as Facebook and Twitter. If it was ruled that all sites were responsible for monitoring uploaded content for copyright infringement, most would cease to exist, leaving a major void in the Internet landscape.
Telecinco's case is not the first time that Google and YouTube have come under fire for copyright infringement. This June, they won a favorable decision in a $1 billion lawsuit from Viacom. Viacom's suit alleged that Google actually encouraged users to upload copyright protected content. As with the Telecinco case, the judge ruled that it was Viacom's responsibility to notify YouTube of any copyright infringement. As long as YouTube removed it after being notified, they were not in violation of the law.
There is little doubt that Google's existing Content ID technology helped in winning the case versus Telecinco. The technology allows content owners to notify YouTube of any incidents of copyright infringement. As of right now, over 1,000 media companies in Europe use the technology. Through the Content ID system, copyright owners can ask YouTube to block content, or request other actions to be taken. They can ask YouTube to track the number of views, or request that advertising be placed next to the content for revenue purposes.
For more on this topic, visit http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20017370-38.html?tag=mncol
DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.
Rather than accepting Telecinco's placement of the monitoring burden on YouTube, the federal court said that it was the copyright owners who had the responsibility to make sure that their content was not being distributed in an unwanted manner. The court noted that since YouTube had policies already in place regarding copyrighted content, the site has taken all the necessary steps to avoid such problems. In the end, it was ruled that if a copyright holder had a legitimate gripe, they would have to report it to YouTube if they hoped to have their demands met.
In response to the favorable ruling, Google created a blog post stating that the verdict was “a clear victory for the Internet and the rules that govern it.” The blog post also noted that the ruling was in line with European law, under which copyright owners are given the onus of determining if their content's copyrights are being violated. If infringement is detected and reported, it is then the site's responsibility to remove any offending material.
Google's blog post also detailed the backlash that could have occurred if the court ruled in favor of Telecinco. It stated that each minute, YouTube receives 24 hours of uploaded video. The manpower necessary to monitor such a massive amount of content would be so large that the site would not be able to run and generate profit. The same could be said for many other popular websites, particularly in the social networking circle, such as Facebook and Twitter. If it was ruled that all sites were responsible for monitoring uploaded content for copyright infringement, most would cease to exist, leaving a major void in the Internet landscape.
Telecinco's case is not the first time that Google and YouTube have come under fire for copyright infringement. This June, they won a favorable decision in a $1 billion lawsuit from Viacom. Viacom's suit alleged that Google actually encouraged users to upload copyright protected content. As with the Telecinco case, the judge ruled that it was Viacom's responsibility to notify YouTube of any copyright infringement. As long as YouTube removed it after being notified, they were not in violation of the law.
There is little doubt that Google's existing Content ID technology helped in winning the case versus Telecinco. The technology allows content owners to notify YouTube of any incidents of copyright infringement. As of right now, over 1,000 media companies in Europe use the technology. Through the Content ID system, copyright owners can ask YouTube to block content, or request other actions to be taken. They can ask YouTube to track the number of views, or request that advertising be placed next to the content for revenue purposes.
For more on this topic, visit http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-20017370-38.html?tag=mncol
DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.
Google Street View Reaches Brazil and Antarctica
When Google introduced Street View nearly three and a half years ago, hardly anyone imagined that it would attain the reach it has today. On October 1, Street View earned the distinction of reaching all seven continents when the search giant added Brazil and Antarctica. Long-time Street View watchers won't be surprised to hear that there were a few glitches, however.
Let's look at Antarctica first. It's kind of difficult to get one of Google's Street View vehicles to and through an area with such a harsh climate. Let's not even talk about the ecological implications! No, what Google did instead, according to its blog, was focus on Half Moon Island; indeed, if you read the blog entry to the end, you'll note that its author mentions vacationing to Antarctica with plans to take some Street View photos.
For the rest of the continent, Google seems to have relied on user-contributed photos as much as they could. So if you use Street View to examine Antarctica, you'll see a lot of blue dots that represent these photos. You'll be able to drop Google's famous pegman over these dots to view the images.
Search Engine Land raised the amusing specter of penguins filing lawsuits against Google for violating their privacy – which brings us, in a roundabout sense, to Brazil. Google has had privacy issues in the past with Street View, up to and including lawsuits; indeed, they started automatically blurring any faces that show up in the application to help quell such concerns.
Brazil's Street View situation was a bit more macabre than usual, however. Again, as reported by Search Engine Land, something very unexpected showed up on local streets in Brazil: dead bodies. Images included a partially-covered body next to Avenida Presidente Vargas in Rio de Janeiro, and a covered body near police cars in Belo Horizonte. (That can't have helped tourism). Shortly after the online media picked up on this story, Google fixed the locations in Street View so that searchers would only find a blank screen instead.
Is this a problem with the system, or is it simply inevitable that such a service will catch things one would rather not see revealed to the entire world? And what kind of privacy is one entitled to expect while in a public place? This is hardly the first time Google Street View has turned up embarrassing or uncomfortable images, and it certainly won't be the last.
There have also been cases of people “showing off” for the Street View cameras; Google tries to get rid of them when they spot it. Of course, once something is on the Internet, it's hard to get rid of. Start typing “Google Street View” into Google, and the completing options offered by Google Instant include “bloopers” and “funny.” There's even a website, StreetViewFun.com, devoted to the unusual things that users have turned up with Google Street View. It's updated daily with new images; recent images included an arrest and two people mooning Google's camera.
But Google Street View isn't just for fun and games, and not everyone who doesn't want to be captured on camera is innocent. One of the top 100 images on StreetViewFun has quite a story attached to it; it helped to capture a pair of muggers. The mugging occurred in Groningen, Holland; the 14-year-old victim found the image of the incident on Google Street View, and reported it to the police. The police, in turn, went to Google to get the unblurred image – and one of the officers recognized the muggers.
The controversy surrounding Google Street View and issues of privacy will probably continue. The application itself, however, is so useful that it is unlikely to go away any time soon. From finding your way around in an unfamiliar area to planning your next vacation to simple armchair tourism to yes, helping to foil a crime, Google Street View has proved its versatility.
DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.
Let's look at Antarctica first. It's kind of difficult to get one of Google's Street View vehicles to and through an area with such a harsh climate. Let's not even talk about the ecological implications! No, what Google did instead, according to its blog, was focus on Half Moon Island; indeed, if you read the blog entry to the end, you'll note that its author mentions vacationing to Antarctica with plans to take some Street View photos.
For the rest of the continent, Google seems to have relied on user-contributed photos as much as they could. So if you use Street View to examine Antarctica, you'll see a lot of blue dots that represent these photos. You'll be able to drop Google's famous pegman over these dots to view the images.
Search Engine Land raised the amusing specter of penguins filing lawsuits against Google for violating their privacy – which brings us, in a roundabout sense, to Brazil. Google has had privacy issues in the past with Street View, up to and including lawsuits; indeed, they started automatically blurring any faces that show up in the application to help quell such concerns.
Brazil's Street View situation was a bit more macabre than usual, however. Again, as reported by Search Engine Land, something very unexpected showed up on local streets in Brazil: dead bodies. Images included a partially-covered body next to Avenida Presidente Vargas in Rio de Janeiro, and a covered body near police cars in Belo Horizonte. (That can't have helped tourism). Shortly after the online media picked up on this story, Google fixed the locations in Street View so that searchers would only find a blank screen instead.
Is this a problem with the system, or is it simply inevitable that such a service will catch things one would rather not see revealed to the entire world? And what kind of privacy is one entitled to expect while in a public place? This is hardly the first time Google Street View has turned up embarrassing or uncomfortable images, and it certainly won't be the last.
There have also been cases of people “showing off” for the Street View cameras; Google tries to get rid of them when they spot it. Of course, once something is on the Internet, it's hard to get rid of. Start typing “Google Street View” into Google, and the completing options offered by Google Instant include “bloopers” and “funny.” There's even a website, StreetViewFun.com, devoted to the unusual things that users have turned up with Google Street View. It's updated daily with new images; recent images included an arrest and two people mooning Google's camera.
But Google Street View isn't just for fun and games, and not everyone who doesn't want to be captured on camera is innocent. One of the top 100 images on StreetViewFun has quite a story attached to it; it helped to capture a pair of muggers. The mugging occurred in Groningen, Holland; the 14-year-old victim found the image of the incident on Google Street View, and reported it to the police. The police, in turn, went to Google to get the unblurred image – and one of the officers recognized the muggers.
The controversy surrounding Google Street View and issues of privacy will probably continue. The application itself, however, is so useful that it is unlikely to go away any time soon. From finding your way around in an unfamiliar area to planning your next vacation to simple armchair tourism to yes, helping to foil a crime, Google Street View has proved its versatility.
DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.
Video Game Tricks for SEO
Wouldn't it be wonderful to get your visitors to put in as much time on your website as gamers put into playing Halo and other video games? You may not be able to turn your site into a dazzling, graphical free-for-all, but you can adapt some of the things that make video games so addicting. Customize some of the following ideas for your website, and you may soon see a swarm of visitors.
I saw the ideas I'll be discussing here on Neil Patel's Quick Sprout site. The techniques fall loosely under the heading of “game mechanics.” Game mechanics, according to Wikipedia, are a construct of rules intended to produce an enjoyable game – one that people want to keep playing. So what are some of the elements that make a game fun?
Well, one of the most obvious is competition. There are several ways to encourage that on a website. You might want to start with a test of skill or knowledge. It doesn't have to be fancy, either. Think about all those online quizzes you've seen. Sites like Facebook and OKCupid are full of these. Sometimes, the sillier they are, the better. Patel mentions that Bunkbeds.net created a quiz that asks the question “How long could you survive chained to a bunk bed with a Velociraptor?”
Funny is great, but you need to make sure the quiz is at least in some way related to the material on your web site. When a visitor takes the quiz, give them their score, and a badge that they can post on their website and at their favorite social networking sites (like Facebook and Twitter). Their friends will see it, and want to compete with them by taking the quiz. You've carefully created the badge so that it links back to your website – which means that every time it's posted, your site is gaining links. As Patel noted, Bunkbeds.net now ranks well on Google for the term “bunk beds.”
Every game has rewards, even if it's just a high score and bragging rights. You should reward your visitors as well, for the kind of behavior you want to encourage. How should you reward them? That depends on your site. Some sites reward active users by posting their names and avatars on the site's front page. That's a good reward for a social site. You might offer discounts, certain limited moderating abilities in a forum, a special badge on your own site...you're only limited by your imagination. When your rewarded visitor's friends see that he or she has this cool bling, they'll want it too – fostering a virtuous circle.
I saw the ideas I'll be discussing here on Neil Patel's Quick Sprout site. The techniques fall loosely under the heading of “game mechanics.” Game mechanics, according to Wikipedia, are a construct of rules intended to produce an enjoyable game – one that people want to keep playing. So what are some of the elements that make a game fun?
Well, one of the most obvious is competition. There are several ways to encourage that on a website. You might want to start with a test of skill or knowledge. It doesn't have to be fancy, either. Think about all those online quizzes you've seen. Sites like Facebook and OKCupid are full of these. Sometimes, the sillier they are, the better. Patel mentions that Bunkbeds.net created a quiz that asks the question “How long could you survive chained to a bunk bed with a Velociraptor?”
Funny is great, but you need to make sure the quiz is at least in some way related to the material on your web site. When a visitor takes the quiz, give them their score, and a badge that they can post on their website and at their favorite social networking sites (like Facebook and Twitter). Their friends will see it, and want to compete with them by taking the quiz. You've carefully created the badge so that it links back to your website – which means that every time it's posted, your site is gaining links. As Patel noted, Bunkbeds.net now ranks well on Google for the term “bunk beds.”
Every game has rewards, even if it's just a high score and bragging rights. You should reward your visitors as well, for the kind of behavior you want to encourage. How should you reward them? That depends on your site. Some sites reward active users by posting their names and avatars on the site's front page. That's a good reward for a social site. You might offer discounts, certain limited moderating abilities in a forum, a special badge on your own site...you're only limited by your imagination. When your rewarded visitor's friends see that he or she has this cool bling, they'll want it too – fostering a virtuous circle.
Drupal Search Engine Optimization using SEO Modules
Drupal is one of the best content management systems for building and developing websites. The Drupal developers make it very convenient and easy for webmasters to implement search engine optimization practices on an existing and completed website. This article will show you how.
The technique involves using "modules" which operate similarly to a WordPress plug-in (for those very familiar with WordPress). A module makes its possible to implement added features (such as SEO practices) on your existing Drupal installation without the need to customize or modify the core "Drupal" source code.
Before proceeding further, it is important that you meet the following requirements that are used to implement this tutorial:
1. This tutorial uses the latest released version, which is Drupal 6.19 as of October 2010.
2. Your Drupal should be fully installed in your web server. A local web server will do (such as XAMPP). If you still need to install Drupal, refer to this useful guide for installing Drupal in an Ubuntu XAMPP local server.
3. It is recommended for SEO purposes that you enable the "Clean URL" feature during the installation stage of Drupal.
How to create static front page content in Drupal
Static front page content gives you the following SEO advantages:
1. It lets you create a specialized landing page for your visitors where you can directly show them your services. This is particularly useful, since your home page is often the most frequently visited page and most common landing page on your website.
2. It prevents the duplication of content between your home page and other website URLs. By assigning unique content, you are isolating the home page from any duplicate content issue.
3. It gives your website a more professional/business-like look, as opposed to an informal blog, where the front page is a collection of recent posts.
The following are the easy steps you need to take to create static front page content:
1. Log in as administrator and then click "Create Content" ==> "Page." You can then enter your own customized front page content as well as the title of the page. For the title tag, make sure it is SEO friendly (maximize to create the best impact in search engine results).
2. Expand "Menu settings" and then, if you see "Menu link title," enter "Homepage." This will let Drupal use the anchor text "Homepage" for the home page internal link.
3. In the "Parent Item" section, choose "Primary links." Also, just ignore "weight."
4. Click "Publishing options." You need to check these two options to ensure that your content will appear on your home page: "Promoted to front page" and "Published."
5. Hit "Save." Launch your browser and then go to your Drupal website. Get the URL of the published content. This URL does not yet use the home page URL, but a specific Drupal content URL, for example: http://localhost/drupal/node/1 (if you are working in a local host server). You can get this URL by clicking the "Read more" of that content on the home page.
6. You need to go to "Administer" ==> "Site Configuration" ==> "Site information." At site information, go to the bottom of the page and look for the "Default front page" option. Enter node/1 if the content URL published in step 5 above uses http://localhost/drupal/node/1. Here is a screen shot:
7. Hit Save Configuration.
Drupal Global Redirect Module
The global redirect module is a very important module that will fix duplicate content issues. For example, it will fix the possible duplicate content issue between http://localhost/drupal/node/1 and http://localhost/drupal/ by doing a 301 redirect.
To install and enable the global redirect module, go through the following steps.
1. Download the module here: http://drupal.org/project/globalredirect, and then unzip and copy the "globalredirect" folder to the "module" directory of your Drupal installation.
2. Go to Administer ==> Site Building ==> Modules. To enable this module, just click "Global Redirect" and then "Save Configuration".
To check to see if this is working, http://localhost/drupal/node/1 (the content URL generated which is using the same content as your front page) will be 301 redirected to the Drupal home page URL, e.g. http://localhost/drupal/.
The technique involves using "modules" which operate similarly to a WordPress plug-in (for those very familiar with WordPress). A module makes its possible to implement added features (such as SEO practices) on your existing Drupal installation without the need to customize or modify the core "Drupal" source code.
Before proceeding further, it is important that you meet the following requirements that are used to implement this tutorial:
1. This tutorial uses the latest released version, which is Drupal 6.19 as of October 2010.
2. Your Drupal should be fully installed in your web server. A local web server will do (such as XAMPP). If you still need to install Drupal, refer to this useful guide for installing Drupal in an Ubuntu XAMPP local server.
3. It is recommended for SEO purposes that you enable the "Clean URL" feature during the installation stage of Drupal.
How to create static front page content in Drupal
Static front page content gives you the following SEO advantages:
1. It lets you create a specialized landing page for your visitors where you can directly show them your services. This is particularly useful, since your home page is often the most frequently visited page and most common landing page on your website.
2. It prevents the duplication of content between your home page and other website URLs. By assigning unique content, you are isolating the home page from any duplicate content issue.
3. It gives your website a more professional/business-like look, as opposed to an informal blog, where the front page is a collection of recent posts.
The following are the easy steps you need to take to create static front page content:
1. Log in as administrator and then click "Create Content" ==> "Page." You can then enter your own customized front page content as well as the title of the page. For the title tag, make sure it is SEO friendly (maximize to create the best impact in search engine results).
2. Expand "Menu settings" and then, if you see "Menu link title," enter "Homepage." This will let Drupal use the anchor text "Homepage" for the home page internal link.
3. In the "Parent Item" section, choose "Primary links." Also, just ignore "weight."
4. Click "Publishing options." You need to check these two options to ensure that your content will appear on your home page: "Promoted to front page" and "Published."
5. Hit "Save." Launch your browser and then go to your Drupal website. Get the URL of the published content. This URL does not yet use the home page URL, but a specific Drupal content URL, for example: http://localhost/drupal/node/1 (if you are working in a local host server). You can get this URL by clicking the "Read more" of that content on the home page.
6. You need to go to "Administer" ==> "Site Configuration" ==> "Site information." At site information, go to the bottom of the page and look for the "Default front page" option. Enter node/1 if the content URL published in step 5 above uses http://localhost/drupal/node/1. Here is a screen shot:
7. Hit Save Configuration.
Drupal Global Redirect Module
The global redirect module is a very important module that will fix duplicate content issues. For example, it will fix the possible duplicate content issue between http://localhost/drupal/node/1 and http://localhost/drupal/ by doing a 301 redirect.
To install and enable the global redirect module, go through the following steps.
1. Download the module here: http://drupal.org/project/globalredirect, and then unzip and copy the "globalredirect" folder to the "module" directory of your Drupal installation.
2. Go to Administer ==> Site Building ==> Modules. To enable this module, just click "Global Redirect" and then "Save Configuration".
To check to see if this is working, http://localhost/drupal/node/1 (the content URL generated which is using the same content as your front page) will be 301 redirected to the Drupal home page URL, e.g. http://localhost/drupal/.
Organic Link Building Tips: Guest Blogging for SEO
Organic Link Building Tips: Guest Blogging for SEO
(Page 1 of 2 )
Link building is an important webmaster activity, particularly for young websites. While there are a lot of ideas on the Internet as to how to start getting links, one of the best sources of links is guest blogging. Keep reading to find out what it is, and how to start doing it.
Guest blogging involves visiting a certain blog and then requesting permission from the webmaster to contribute blog posts or articles. Of course, you can include a link from your post pointing to your website. Lots of blogs and websites nowadays are in need of original, useful, quality content, so one strategy is to invite outside bloggers, also called “guest bloggers,” to register with their website and contribute content.
In return, these websites allow you to link to your website, provided your website contains quality content and is directly related to the topic and content of your guest post (also keeping in mind the overall relevance to the website).
While this technique is good, not knowing the best course of action can lead to problems and wasted time -- which, in the end, might not be a productive link building strategy.
It is also important to know that “guest blogging” is different from “article submission” as a means of getting links, because:
* Guest blogging showcases your expertise in a certain topic because you're contributing content you've written yourself. The article submission technique simply involves submitting content that may not be written by you (it could be written by others).
* Content that is created by a guest blogger will be published on a quality content-based website, while submitted articles are accepted by article submission directories.
* Links obtained via guest blogging are organic in origin; they are used in context, along with the content, and approved by the website's editors. Links obtained via article submission may only be seen in the author's short biography or in the footer section of the article.
Based on the above differences, it is clear that “guest blogging” has the edge in terms of getting quality links to a website.
This tutorial will teach beginning webmasters with expertise in their chosen topic to use the “guest blogging” technique to get links to their website. We'll take a step-by-step approach.
Step 1. Fill your website first with original and quality content
Lots of bloggers or webmasters set up their website, add just a few pieces of content (say 10 posts), and then immediately start an aggressive link building campaign, including “guest blogging.” This is not a good strategy.
Keep in mind that while you are planning to share your expertise by contributing guest posts, the owners of those websites will be checking your website as well. The best way for them to validate your expertise is to visit your website and read its content. If your website is under-developed and lacks content, your credibility as a guest blogger will be affected.
To make sure those blog owners and editors will believe in you and your expertise, you must fill your site first with original and quality content.
It is recommended that you have the best set of content, something that really shows off your knowledge and skills in your selected niche. It is also recommended that you break down your main niche into sub-categories, so that readers will know and understand the extent of your abilities.
Aim for around 30 to 50 blog posts before you start trying to use the guest blogging technique to get links to your site.
Step 2. Understand and prepare your targeted keywords
Again, it is a big mistake to proceed aggressively in getting links through the guest blogging method without thinking about and carefully planning your targeted keywords. You need to do some research into your targeted keywords.
Make sure that:
* Your targeted keyword is neither extremely difficult or broad (one word for example). It also should not be too easy (4 or more words).
The longer the anchor text, the more descriptive it will be, but it can distract from the readers' attention. Limit yourself to around 3 words in the anchor text, as this looks more natural.
* Make sure your targeted keyword is optimized for your onsite SEO implementation. For best results, aim for keywords that are used in your title tag and and content.
* Prepare at least 5 anchor text variations of the main targeted keyword. This is not only used for link building purposes, but to adjust the theme and fit that variation to the topic of your guest posts.
(Page 1 of 2 )
Link building is an important webmaster activity, particularly for young websites. While there are a lot of ideas on the Internet as to how to start getting links, one of the best sources of links is guest blogging. Keep reading to find out what it is, and how to start doing it.
Guest blogging involves visiting a certain blog and then requesting permission from the webmaster to contribute blog posts or articles. Of course, you can include a link from your post pointing to your website. Lots of blogs and websites nowadays are in need of original, useful, quality content, so one strategy is to invite outside bloggers, also called “guest bloggers,” to register with their website and contribute content.
In return, these websites allow you to link to your website, provided your website contains quality content and is directly related to the topic and content of your guest post (also keeping in mind the overall relevance to the website).
While this technique is good, not knowing the best course of action can lead to problems and wasted time -- which, in the end, might not be a productive link building strategy.
It is also important to know that “guest blogging” is different from “article submission” as a means of getting links, because:
* Guest blogging showcases your expertise in a certain topic because you're contributing content you've written yourself. The article submission technique simply involves submitting content that may not be written by you (it could be written by others).
* Content that is created by a guest blogger will be published on a quality content-based website, while submitted articles are accepted by article submission directories.
* Links obtained via guest blogging are organic in origin; they are used in context, along with the content, and approved by the website's editors. Links obtained via article submission may only be seen in the author's short biography or in the footer section of the article.
Based on the above differences, it is clear that “guest blogging” has the edge in terms of getting quality links to a website.
This tutorial will teach beginning webmasters with expertise in their chosen topic to use the “guest blogging” technique to get links to their website. We'll take a step-by-step approach.
Step 1. Fill your website first with original and quality content
Lots of bloggers or webmasters set up their website, add just a few pieces of content (say 10 posts), and then immediately start an aggressive link building campaign, including “guest blogging.” This is not a good strategy.
Keep in mind that while you are planning to share your expertise by contributing guest posts, the owners of those websites will be checking your website as well. The best way for them to validate your expertise is to visit your website and read its content. If your website is under-developed and lacks content, your credibility as a guest blogger will be affected.
To make sure those blog owners and editors will believe in you and your expertise, you must fill your site first with original and quality content.
It is recommended that you have the best set of content, something that really shows off your knowledge and skills in your selected niche. It is also recommended that you break down your main niche into sub-categories, so that readers will know and understand the extent of your abilities.
Aim for around 30 to 50 blog posts before you start trying to use the guest blogging technique to get links to your site.
Step 2. Understand and prepare your targeted keywords
Again, it is a big mistake to proceed aggressively in getting links through the guest blogging method without thinking about and carefully planning your targeted keywords. You need to do some research into your targeted keywords.
Make sure that:
* Your targeted keyword is neither extremely difficult or broad (one word for example). It also should not be too easy (4 or more words).
The longer the anchor text, the more descriptive it will be, but it can distract from the readers' attention. Limit yourself to around 3 words in the anchor text, as this looks more natural.
* Make sure your targeted keyword is optimized for your onsite SEO implementation. For best results, aim for keywords that are used in your title tag and and content.
* Prepare at least 5 anchor text variations of the main targeted keyword. This is not only used for link building purposes, but to adjust the theme and fit that variation to the topic of your guest posts.
Content Ideas: Getting Unstuck
Have you been feeling stuck for ideas lately? Not sure what to write about? That's a real problem if you run a content-based site, and it's an even bigger problem when you're trying to rank high in the SERPs. Keep reading for some suggestions to help you get your mental idea factory churning merrily along again.
The idea for this article came from Kelly Simon writing for Compendium. We'll begin by taking an obvious resource and using it in a not-so-obvious way: your keywords. No doubt you have a lot of keywords for which you want to be found in the search engines, and you've tuned your SEO accordingly. You may even have delighted in watching your website climb the SERPs for those keywords. Good for you.
But let's reverse things for a moment. Forget the keyword for which you're trying to be found, and focus on the ones that are actually referring traffic to your site. If you're using Google Analytics, it should be child's play for you to find out what a user searched for before clicking the link to your website. If they clicked it, they must have thought you'd have what they're looking for...and what they did after they found your site will give you a hint as to whether you filled their need.
Say you're a dentist, and you notice you're getting a lot of hits for a certain dental procedure. Perhaps it's time to include a one-page explanation of that particular treatment: what it is, why it's done, whether it's usually covered by insurance, what a patient can expect going in, etc. Make sure to link to it appropriately. You could see your hits from search engines rise, and even gain a few conversions this way.
Simon also suggests looking to your business trends when creating content. If you tend to get most of your new customers in the summer, for example, that means that they've spent the time before that doing research. So you should have built up content that will be useful to potential customers doing research BEFORE the summer. Creating lots of good, useful content can take months, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time.
Doing this has the added advantage of encouraging you to think like your customers while creating content. If you want to write something that will be useful to them, you need to consider their concerns at that particular point in the buying cycle. Suppose you sell landscaping and gardening services, and you know that your customers like to start thinking about what kinds of changes they'd like to make to their landscape in early February, and get serious by early April. (Remember, this is strictly hypothetical). In late December at the latest, you'll want to start writing articles about preparing the landscape and the kinds of options to consider based on various criteria. You could even get a little personal and talk about what you're thinking of doing for YOUR garden. Focus on whatever topics you think will help a potential customer make a decision.
Start running these articles in mid-to-late January, and be sure to link to them appropriately within your site. Get incoming links from other sites as well. You want to appear in the search engines when your potential customers are looking and doing their research. Working with your business trends should help you increase conversions.
The third tip Simon mentions for creating more content is so obvious that many of us forget it: ask your customers. Many times, you won't even need to ask them; they'll tell you what they think anyway. And that can help you shape content just for them.
To use a non-Internet-based example, I recently went on Disney's Backstage Magic tour, which takes visitors “behind the scenes” at Disney World and into many areas that guests never get to see. While we were in the tunnels under the Magic Kingdom, our guide noted that the company got a lot of positive letters. Two of the positive things that visitors mentioned most were the courtesy they received from Disney employees, and the cleanliness of the parks. The guide went on to explain three of the reasons for that cleanliness: a corporate culture where every employee picks up trash whenever they see it; garbage cans placed strategically as the result of one of Disney's own experiments; and (at least in the Magic Kingdom) a giant vacuum cleaner system that speeds the trash to its destination at 60 miles an hour.
Exactly how Disney keeps its parks clean isn't important here. What IS important is that the company saw a lot of visitors commenting on it as something they enjoyed about the parks, and used that information to shape content – in this case, making it an interesting part of a tour. And they never would have known to do that if they didn't pay attention to the feedback they received from their visitors!
You can use keyword referral, business trends, and customer feedback to help you figure out what kind of content you need to add to your website. Start filling in an editorial calendar and soon you'll find that you always have a new idea at your fingertips. Good luck!
DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.
The idea for this article came from Kelly Simon writing for Compendium. We'll begin by taking an obvious resource and using it in a not-so-obvious way: your keywords. No doubt you have a lot of keywords for which you want to be found in the search engines, and you've tuned your SEO accordingly. You may even have delighted in watching your website climb the SERPs for those keywords. Good for you.
But let's reverse things for a moment. Forget the keyword for which you're trying to be found, and focus on the ones that are actually referring traffic to your site. If you're using Google Analytics, it should be child's play for you to find out what a user searched for before clicking the link to your website. If they clicked it, they must have thought you'd have what they're looking for...and what they did after they found your site will give you a hint as to whether you filled their need.
Say you're a dentist, and you notice you're getting a lot of hits for a certain dental procedure. Perhaps it's time to include a one-page explanation of that particular treatment: what it is, why it's done, whether it's usually covered by insurance, what a patient can expect going in, etc. Make sure to link to it appropriately. You could see your hits from search engines rise, and even gain a few conversions this way.
Simon also suggests looking to your business trends when creating content. If you tend to get most of your new customers in the summer, for example, that means that they've spent the time before that doing research. So you should have built up content that will be useful to potential customers doing research BEFORE the summer. Creating lots of good, useful content can take months, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time.
Doing this has the added advantage of encouraging you to think like your customers while creating content. If you want to write something that will be useful to them, you need to consider their concerns at that particular point in the buying cycle. Suppose you sell landscaping and gardening services, and you know that your customers like to start thinking about what kinds of changes they'd like to make to their landscape in early February, and get serious by early April. (Remember, this is strictly hypothetical). In late December at the latest, you'll want to start writing articles about preparing the landscape and the kinds of options to consider based on various criteria. You could even get a little personal and talk about what you're thinking of doing for YOUR garden. Focus on whatever topics you think will help a potential customer make a decision.
Start running these articles in mid-to-late January, and be sure to link to them appropriately within your site. Get incoming links from other sites as well. You want to appear in the search engines when your potential customers are looking and doing their research. Working with your business trends should help you increase conversions.
The third tip Simon mentions for creating more content is so obvious that many of us forget it: ask your customers. Many times, you won't even need to ask them; they'll tell you what they think anyway. And that can help you shape content just for them.
To use a non-Internet-based example, I recently went on Disney's Backstage Magic tour, which takes visitors “behind the scenes” at Disney World and into many areas that guests never get to see. While we were in the tunnels under the Magic Kingdom, our guide noted that the company got a lot of positive letters. Two of the positive things that visitors mentioned most were the courtesy they received from Disney employees, and the cleanliness of the parks. The guide went on to explain three of the reasons for that cleanliness: a corporate culture where every employee picks up trash whenever they see it; garbage cans placed strategically as the result of one of Disney's own experiments; and (at least in the Magic Kingdom) a giant vacuum cleaner system that speeds the trash to its destination at 60 miles an hour.
Exactly how Disney keeps its parks clean isn't important here. What IS important is that the company saw a lot of visitors commenting on it as something they enjoyed about the parks, and used that information to shape content – in this case, making it an interesting part of a tour. And they never would have known to do that if they didn't pay attention to the feedback they received from their visitors!
You can use keyword referral, business trends, and customer feedback to help you figure out what kind of content you need to add to your website. Start filling in an editorial calendar and soon you'll find that you always have a new idea at your fingertips. Good luck!
DISCLAIMER: The content provided in this article is not warranted or guaranteed by Developer Shed, Inc. The content provided is intended for entertainment and/or educational purposes in order to introduce to the reader key ideas, concepts, and/or product reviews. As such it is incumbent upon the reader to employ real-world tactics for security and implementation of best practices. We are not liable for any negative consequences that may result from implementing any information covered in our articles or tutorials. If this is a hardware review, it is not recommended to open and/or modify your hardware.
Twitter Announces Three Significant Changes
October has been a big month for Twitter in terms of announcements, as the social networking site revealed three new happenings within the company. The announcements not only included a shakeup in the company's leadership, but also some new features that users can expect to see in the future.
Regarding the shakeup in leadership, Twitter announced that Dick Costolo would take over as CEO of the company. Costolo, whose role was that of COO for about a year, will take over the spot previously held by Twitter's co-founder Evan Williams. Williams held the CEO role for two years after it was passed on to him from Jack Dorsey, the site's creator. Dorsey is now chairman of the board.
Williams' move out of the CEO spot to focus on product strategy is essential at this time, since the company has been working on the development of a revamped site design appropriately referred to as “New Twitter.” New Twitter incorporates more area for extra content on the page's right sidebar by shifting the main stream towards the left border. Costolo, who seemed optimistic about the move and the company's future, stated that “we have awesome stuff in the pipeline, and we’re ready to accomplish more in the next two years than we’ve accomplished in the last four.”
Another important announcement this month was the launch of Twitter for Google TV. By integrating Twitter with the new Google TV, the company can fuse two forms of entertainment -- the Internet and television -- into one. Twitter for Google TV comes pre-installed and allows users to partake in the majority of the same features on their televisions that they have enjoyed via the Internet.
Users can browse through Tweets, favorites, and @mentions. They can also reply to Tweets, favorite them, share them, or retweet. Users can follow others, view profiles, view photos and videos, and perform searches. They also have the options of sharing web pages, pictures, videos, and other content through the feature.
Last, but not least, was Twitter's announcement of its launch of Promoted Accounts. Promoted accounts is a feature that falls under Twitter's umbrella of Promoted Products. The company had already introduced Promoted Tweets and Promoted trends in the past, and Promoted Accounts is just another way for the site to generate revenue.
Promoted Accounts is listed under the “Suggestions for you” area of the page. While that section of the page may have suggested other people to follow, it will now also suggest accounts of companies that a user may want to follow. These new suggestions are based on each user's public list of who they are following at the current time.
One example of how Promoted Accounts works could be a person who follows gaming-related accounts. While they may not follow @xbox themselves, some of the people they follow might. In that case, @xbox will be listed as a suggestion for that person. Twitter plans to test the Promoted Accounts feature with only a few companies to start, and if there are no relevant suggestions for the user, no Promoted Account recommendation will appear.
For more on this topic, visit http://vator.tv/news/2010-10-05-twitter-roundup-new-ceo-promoted-accounts
Regarding the shakeup in leadership, Twitter announced that Dick Costolo would take over as CEO of the company. Costolo, whose role was that of COO for about a year, will take over the spot previously held by Twitter's co-founder Evan Williams. Williams held the CEO role for two years after it was passed on to him from Jack Dorsey, the site's creator. Dorsey is now chairman of the board.
Williams' move out of the CEO spot to focus on product strategy is essential at this time, since the company has been working on the development of a revamped site design appropriately referred to as “New Twitter.” New Twitter incorporates more area for extra content on the page's right sidebar by shifting the main stream towards the left border. Costolo, who seemed optimistic about the move and the company's future, stated that “we have awesome stuff in the pipeline, and we’re ready to accomplish more in the next two years than we’ve accomplished in the last four.”
Another important announcement this month was the launch of Twitter for Google TV. By integrating Twitter with the new Google TV, the company can fuse two forms of entertainment -- the Internet and television -- into one. Twitter for Google TV comes pre-installed and allows users to partake in the majority of the same features on their televisions that they have enjoyed via the Internet.
Users can browse through Tweets, favorites, and @mentions. They can also reply to Tweets, favorite them, share them, or retweet. Users can follow others, view profiles, view photos and videos, and perform searches. They also have the options of sharing web pages, pictures, videos, and other content through the feature.
Last, but not least, was Twitter's announcement of its launch of Promoted Accounts. Promoted accounts is a feature that falls under Twitter's umbrella of Promoted Products. The company had already introduced Promoted Tweets and Promoted trends in the past, and Promoted Accounts is just another way for the site to generate revenue.
Promoted Accounts is listed under the “Suggestions for you” area of the page. While that section of the page may have suggested other people to follow, it will now also suggest accounts of companies that a user may want to follow. These new suggestions are based on each user's public list of who they are following at the current time.
One example of how Promoted Accounts works could be a person who follows gaming-related accounts. While they may not follow @xbox themselves, some of the people they follow might. In that case, @xbox will be listed as a suggestion for that person. Twitter plans to test the Promoted Accounts feature with only a few companies to start, and if there are no relevant suggestions for the user, no Promoted Account recommendation will appear.
For more on this topic, visit http://vator.tv/news/2010-10-05-twitter-roundup-new-ceo-promoted-accounts
Best Free Blogging Service in 2010
If you love to blog and do not have the financial capital to start with, then your best solution would be to use a free blogging service. But which one should you choose? This article examines some of the criteria for choosing a free blogging service, and makes a recommendation based on how the most popular ones measure up.
Bear in mind that if you start a blog on the Internet, the professional way would be to buy your own domain and a hosting space that costs some money. If you cannot afford this at the beginning, blogging service providers will provide a sub-domain URL for your blog for free (e.g thisisyourblog.blogspot.com if you are using Google Blogger service.)
Of course, the hosting space is free, as your content will be stored on their own servers, so you do not need to pay anything. This article will attempt to review the top blogging service providers on the Internet for this year. Selecting an appropriate blogging service is critical; you will need to choose one before you can begin blogging online.
This review will be very helpful to those beginning bloggers needing to earn money from blogging as well as looking for the most efficient blog platform in terms of search engine optimization and blog page design. This is also helpful for those beginning bloggers that are planning to migrate to a paid hosting solution in the future using their own domain, but would like to start blogging using free services for now.
This review does not include paid blogging services like Typepad and Squarespace.
Criteria for selecting the best free blogging service
There is more to selecting a blogging service than just registering, selecting your favorite theme and then starting to write a blog post. Most beginning bloggers fail to realize some of the important criteria to consider when selecting a proper blogging service, which are as follows (by order of importance):
1. Ability to edit the blog template HTML source code - This is very important. Without this feature, you cannot monetize your blog, as you cannot add AdSense code and other blog monetization methods. In addition, the ability to edit the blogging service's source code will provide you with more search engine optimization opportunities than you would have with those that disallow template source code editing.
2. Ability to transfer your blog's link juice to your new domain - This is also very important, because a time will come when you decide to transfer your content to your new domain. This domain will be hosted some place other than with your free blog service provider. There are lots of ways to do this, either by redirection (server side) or link rel canonical (template side).
3. Allows you to monetize your blog -- This can include putting Google Ad Sense codes and affiliate links on your blog. If the free blogging service doesn't allow this, then you cannot make money out of your content.
4. Ability to change blog theme and designs - A blogging service with this feature will allow you to change the look and feel of your blog even after you've started blogging and been doing it for a while; you're not locked into what you chose when you first signed up.
5. Does not put third party advertisement banners or links on your blog - It would be nice if the free blogging service did not provide advertisement banners to crowd out of your content. Your blog will definitely look better and cleaner without them.
6. Privacy and anti-spam protection- It is extremely important, if you wish to protect your privacy and identity, that these features are offered by the free blogging service in addition to preventing spam in your blog.
Ability to edit the blog template HTML source code
Reviewing all of the top free blogging services, only Google Blogger allows full template source code editing.
With this enabled, you can add the following very important blogging tools for success:
* Verification methods for Google Webmaster Tools and other search engines (like Bing).
* Website analytics - such as Google Analytics or Stat Counter.
* Other third party JavaScripts such as those used for Google AdSense and In-text advertising.
* The implementation of advanced onsite SEO techniques (title tag optimization, etc).
Bear in mind that if you start a blog on the Internet, the professional way would be to buy your own domain and a hosting space that costs some money. If you cannot afford this at the beginning, blogging service providers will provide a sub-domain URL for your blog for free (e.g thisisyourblog.blogspot.com if you are using Google Blogger service.)
Of course, the hosting space is free, as your content will be stored on their own servers, so you do not need to pay anything. This article will attempt to review the top blogging service providers on the Internet for this year. Selecting an appropriate blogging service is critical; you will need to choose one before you can begin blogging online.
This review will be very helpful to those beginning bloggers needing to earn money from blogging as well as looking for the most efficient blog platform in terms of search engine optimization and blog page design. This is also helpful for those beginning bloggers that are planning to migrate to a paid hosting solution in the future using their own domain, but would like to start blogging using free services for now.
This review does not include paid blogging services like Typepad and Squarespace.
Criteria for selecting the best free blogging service
There is more to selecting a blogging service than just registering, selecting your favorite theme and then starting to write a blog post. Most beginning bloggers fail to realize some of the important criteria to consider when selecting a proper blogging service, which are as follows (by order of importance):
1. Ability to edit the blog template HTML source code - This is very important. Without this feature, you cannot monetize your blog, as you cannot add AdSense code and other blog monetization methods. In addition, the ability to edit the blogging service's source code will provide you with more search engine optimization opportunities than you would have with those that disallow template source code editing.
2. Ability to transfer your blog's link juice to your new domain - This is also very important, because a time will come when you decide to transfer your content to your new domain. This domain will be hosted some place other than with your free blog service provider. There are lots of ways to do this, either by redirection (server side) or link rel canonical (template side).
3. Allows you to monetize your blog -- This can include putting Google Ad Sense codes and affiliate links on your blog. If the free blogging service doesn't allow this, then you cannot make money out of your content.
4. Ability to change blog theme and designs - A blogging service with this feature will allow you to change the look and feel of your blog even after you've started blogging and been doing it for a while; you're not locked into what you chose when you first signed up.
5. Does not put third party advertisement banners or links on your blog - It would be nice if the free blogging service did not provide advertisement banners to crowd out of your content. Your blog will definitely look better and cleaner without them.
6. Privacy and anti-spam protection- It is extremely important, if you wish to protect your privacy and identity, that these features are offered by the free blogging service in addition to preventing spam in your blog.
Ability to edit the blog template HTML source code
Reviewing all of the top free blogging services, only Google Blogger allows full template source code editing.
With this enabled, you can add the following very important blogging tools for success:
* Verification methods for Google Webmaster Tools and other search engines (like Bing).
* Website analytics - such as Google Analytics or Stat Counter.
* Other third party JavaScripts such as those used for Google AdSense and In-text advertising.
* The implementation of advanced onsite SEO techniques (title tag optimization, etc).
htaccess SEO and Security Tips
This is a beginner's guide to htaccess. It is meant to introduce this configuration file and its useful implementations in website management. .htaccess is a server configuration file commonly found in Apache, Zeus and Sun Java System web servers. It provides a lot of applications with implications for website security and search engine optimization. You cannot find or use .htaccess in Microsoft-based IIS servers and non-Apache-based servers.
To create and upload an htaccess file:
1. Open any text editor (such as geditor in Ubuntu or notepad in Windows).
2. Enter the htaccess syntax you would like to implement on your website (at the text file).
3. Save it as .htaccess
Note: There is a "." before the filename, and there is no file extension to it; just .htaccess
4. Upload it to a directory where you would like the directives to be implemented. An htaccess uploaded to the root directory of your website will cover all of the website's directories and files (from root to inner).
But if you upload only the .htaccess file to a specific inner directory, the directives on that .htaccess file can be only be implemented in that specific directory.
IMPORTANT: If you have an existing .htaccess in your website and you plan to edit it, it is extremely important to secure a backup of that .htaccess first, before doing anything else.
301 redirecting old/dead URL to new URL
Suppose you have URLs, and then you delete them because they are no longer needed. You need to replace them with new URLs (by re-publishing content, for example, or shortening your URLs).
With respect to SEO implementation, this approach can cause you to lose a lot of traffic and link juice, because those old URLs might be contributing a very significant amount of traffic and links to your website.
What is the best solution? Instead of giving those URLs a 404 header status (not found, or does not anymore exist), you need to 301 redirect those non-existing URLs to their new, permanent location.
With this method, if those dead URLs are still indexed by Google, any users coming from search engines or other websites can still read and visit the new URLs because they have been "301 redirected."
To do this, you can use .htaccess to do the 301 redirects. For example:
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
redirect 301 /2009/04/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique.html http://www.php-developer.org/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique/
redirect 301 /about/ http://www.php-developer.org/about-codexm/
There are two 301 redirection commands above; the first is to 301 redirect:
http://www.php-developer.org/2009/04/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique.html
TO:
http://www.php-developer.org/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique/
The second redirection is to 301 redirect:
http://www.php-developer.org/about/
TO:
http://www.php-developer.org/about-codexm/
What if you have a URL with spaces? For example: http://www.php-developer.org/wp-content/uploads/tutorials/Excel database functions sample sheets.xls
Then you will need to use a double quote in the 301 redirection line, e.g:
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
redirect 301 "/wp-content/uploads/tutorials/Excel database functions sample sheets.xls" http://www.php-developer.org/excel-database-sample-sheets/
The above line will 301 redirect that URL with spaces to this new location: http://www.php-developer.org/excel-database-sample-sheets/
Note: 301 redirection implementations using .htaccess will be uploaded to the root directory of your website. If you have an existing .htaccess, you will simply need to edit it and add the redirection lines. You will not need to actually create a brand-new .htaccess.
Disable hot linking to save website bandwidth
If you have a website in which you are hosting fairly large files like MP3s, video files and audio wave files, then someone outside your domain might be tempted to take advantage of your website's resources by directly streaming/linking to it, without paying a single penny for bandwidth use.
Why is this not good? Your website's bandwidth (for which you are paying with your hosting bills) is being substantially consumed by unauthorized persons. This is known as "bandwidth theft" and includes stealing pictures from your website by reusing them in another website (NOT in your website).
Abuse can slow down your site and weaken your website security. This is where you can use .htaccess to prevent this.
For example, say you want to prevent "hot linking" for the following file types mp3, jpg and wav audio files. You want to allow only your own domain (e.g yourdomain.org) to access them; other domains are restricted.
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
## DISABLE HOTLINKING
RewriteEngine on
# Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www.)?yourdomain.org/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule .(mp3|jpg|wav)$ - [F]
Again, if you upload the .htaccess file to the root directory of your website, all of your website directories and files will be protected against hot linking, as stated in your .htaccess file.
Adding more than one domain to hot link to your site
There are times when you have several websites and you need to hotlink to the images, perhaps for convenience and saving disk space. In this case, if you implemented the above .htaccess syntax, then your website will not be permitted to access those images.
You can grant permission to any website to access and "hot link" your web content (images, etc). For example:
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
## DISABLE HOTLINKING
RewriteEngine on
# Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www.)?yourdomain.org/.*$ [NC]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www.)?seochat.com/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule .(mp3|jpg|wav)$ - [F]
The .htaccess lines above allow seochat.com to hot link to yourdomain.org website (in addition to yourdomain.org, of course).
To create and upload an htaccess file:
1. Open any text editor (such as geditor in Ubuntu or notepad in Windows).
2. Enter the htaccess syntax you would like to implement on your website (at the text file).
3. Save it as .htaccess
Note: There is a "." before the filename, and there is no file extension to it; just .htaccess
4. Upload it to a directory where you would like the directives to be implemented. An htaccess uploaded to the root directory of your website will cover all of the website's directories and files (from root to inner).
But if you upload only the .htaccess file to a specific inner directory, the directives on that .htaccess file can be only be implemented in that specific directory.
IMPORTANT: If you have an existing .htaccess in your website and you plan to edit it, it is extremely important to secure a backup of that .htaccess first, before doing anything else.
301 redirecting old/dead URL to new URL
Suppose you have URLs, and then you delete them because they are no longer needed. You need to replace them with new URLs (by re-publishing content, for example, or shortening your URLs).
With respect to SEO implementation, this approach can cause you to lose a lot of traffic and link juice, because those old URLs might be contributing a very significant amount of traffic and links to your website.
What is the best solution? Instead of giving those URLs a 404 header status (not found, or does not anymore exist), you need to 301 redirect those non-existing URLs to their new, permanent location.
With this method, if those dead URLs are still indexed by Google, any users coming from search engines or other websites can still read and visit the new URLs because they have been "301 redirected."
To do this, you can use .htaccess to do the 301 redirects. For example:
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
redirect 301 /2009/04/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique.html http://www.php-developer.org/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique/
redirect 301 /about/ http://www.php-developer.org/about-codexm/
There are two 301 redirection commands above; the first is to 301 redirect:
http://www.php-developer.org/2009/04/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique.html
TO:
http://www.php-developer.org/how-to-make-blogger-post-title-unique/
The second redirection is to 301 redirect:
http://www.php-developer.org/about/
TO:
http://www.php-developer.org/about-codexm/
What if you have a URL with spaces? For example: http://www.php-developer.org/wp-content/uploads/tutorials/Excel database functions sample sheets.xls
Then you will need to use a double quote in the 301 redirection line, e.g:
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
redirect 301 "/wp-content/uploads/tutorials/Excel database functions sample sheets.xls" http://www.php-developer.org/excel-database-sample-sheets/
The above line will 301 redirect that URL with spaces to this new location: http://www.php-developer.org/excel-database-sample-sheets/
Note: 301 redirection implementations using .htaccess will be uploaded to the root directory of your website. If you have an existing .htaccess, you will simply need to edit it and add the redirection lines. You will not need to actually create a brand-new .htaccess.
Disable hot linking to save website bandwidth
If you have a website in which you are hosting fairly large files like MP3s, video files and audio wave files, then someone outside your domain might be tempted to take advantage of your website's resources by directly streaming/linking to it, without paying a single penny for bandwidth use.
Why is this not good? Your website's bandwidth (for which you are paying with your hosting bills) is being substantially consumed by unauthorized persons. This is known as "bandwidth theft" and includes stealing pictures from your website by reusing them in another website (NOT in your website).
Abuse can slow down your site and weaken your website security. This is where you can use .htaccess to prevent this.
For example, say you want to prevent "hot linking" for the following file types mp3, jpg and wav audio files. You want to allow only your own domain (e.g yourdomain.org) to access them; other domains are restricted.
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
## DISABLE HOTLINKING
RewriteEngine on
# Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www.)?yourdomain.org/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule .(mp3|jpg|wav)$ - [F]
Again, if you upload the .htaccess file to the root directory of your website, all of your website directories and files will be protected against hot linking, as stated in your .htaccess file.
Adding more than one domain to hot link to your site
There are times when you have several websites and you need to hotlink to the images, perhaps for convenience and saving disk space. In this case, if you implemented the above .htaccess syntax, then your website will not be permitted to access those images.
You can grant permission to any website to access and "hot link" your web content (images, etc). For example:
HTACCESS SYNTAX:
## DISABLE HOTLINKING
RewriteEngine on
# Options +FollowSymlinks
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^$
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www.)?yourdomain.org/.*$ [NC]
RewriteCond %{HTTP_REFERER} !^http://(www.)?seochat.com/.*$ [NC]
RewriteRule .(mp3|jpg|wav)$ - [F]
The .htaccess lines above allow seochat.com to hot link to yourdomain.org website (in addition to yourdomain.org, of course).
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