Hotbot AddUrl = 404

Just Disapeared 5 minutes ago!

[EliteWeb]

I submitted a site to Hotbot earlier this morning, I go back a second ago and it is showing a 404 page not found.

[hotbot.com...]

[hotbot.lycos.com...]

both those URLS and I dont see the link on their homepage... Whats up.

[Brett_Tabke]

It's still up here.

[EliteWeb]

Cached ? or maybe im cached when it was 404. Ill delete my cache.

[Brett_Tabke]

Cookie I'd bet...

[EliteWeb]

K - Its all fixed now - kill this thread (: heh i f00ped up.

[Ove]

I get an 404 on the add url

/Ove

[EliteWeb]

Thank god I wasnt the only one, killing the cookies/cache fixed the problem then I had to re-request my pw to WMW (:

[Brett_Tabke]

now 404 here too.

[caine]

I'm also getting a 404 on the add url page

[Brett_Tabke]

So long Hotbot, and thanks for all the referrals.

[MarkHutch]

The "add URL" is gone on their homepage too...

[submitit.bcentral.com...] is still working via MSN search, but I didn't try it to see what would happen if there was a submission.

(edited by: MarkHutch at 6:55 pm (utc) on Mar. 26, 2002)

[Marcia]

Index page is up without submit URL. On one search, they've got Direct Hit mentioned but not Inktomi. Yet on another one they list both.

I seem to vaguely remember someone dropping a cryptic hint here at the board with no details many months ago that there would be a change coming after the first of the year.

Maybe they're changing search providers, they haven't added paid Ink pages for a while as far as I've seen.

[Ove]

Its avalible from sweden

[hotbot.spray.se...]

Its under this text the submit is.

Lägg till sajt
Använd detta formulär för att skicka webbsajter som du vill ska finnas med i HotBots webbsökningsdatabas:

/Ove

[4eyes]

Hotbot UK still has the link (for what it is worth)

[hotbot.lycos.co.uk...]

[backus]

Why don't they put an explaination up?

[Brad]

I wonder if Terra-Lycos will pull the plug on Hotbot, change providers or if Ink just told them absolutely no more free submits?

Any rumors on the grapevine?

[backus]

Goo submit is still up...

[jeremy goodrich]

honestly, I haven't seen traffic from hotbot in so long, I wonder why it still exists.

[Macguru]

I think it is a good thing they removed the page. Less people will waist time with it.

[Brad]

I still get a couple of hits a days from Hotbot. But if T-L is not going to promote it to the public that will die-off.

I agree, if Ink is not going to index free submit sites there is no reason for us to waste our time with it.

Maybe they are planing on changing DB's, after all Direct Hit is slated for closure in the near future -- now might be the right time to make a change at Hotbot?

[agerhart]

I wonder if Terra-Lycos will pull the plug on Hotbo

I'll throw them $5 if they do.

[Jill]

Hotbot has been "dead" for us for a long time now. All they need now is a proper burial.

[skibum]

All 404's here too

[Ove]

Still working from Sweden just tried a url

/Ove

[Go60Guy]

I just submitted a couple of pages through a submission service (don't worry, it was only to a few engines) and succeeded with Goo, but failed with Hotbot. Hotbot was OK yesterday.

Might that mean that the only remaining free ink submission route for the U.S. is Goo?

[Marcia]

Go60Guy there's still a free submit at MSN but it's very hard to dig out, it's really buried. I tried the one Ove suggested (in Swedish) and it worked.

[cre8pc]

My hunch is Hotbot is being euthanized and/or assimilated by FAST (Alltheweb).

TerraLycos, whose network includes Hotbot, Anglefire, Tripod, Lycos and more has recently launched its paid submission program for accepting URLS (http://news.com.com/2100-1023-844266.html?tag=cd_mh)called "InSite" (http://searchservices.lycos.com/searchservices/).

There's new fees for Tripod and Anglefire users.

And yes, I got a 404 for Hotbot AddURL and other pages inside the site.

Kim Krause

[mayor]

My take on all this:

With Fast muscling it's way into the US Government site search, which I understand gives Inktomi the boot, I wouldn't be surprised to see a firewall going up between the two engines. It may no longer be possible for Inktomi and Fast to co-habitate on HotBot.

Not only that, but Fast and Ink are now competing for the pay-to-index website budgets.

Last of all, the quarter is nearing an end. What better time to tell webmasters there's no hope of having your site indexed if you don't cough up the bucks?

[cre8pc]

I love a SE mystery.

Ok, DirectHit was factored into Hotbot's Inktomi results, plus Hotbot used DMOZ for its directory.

But, DirectHit, which is owned by AskJeeves, is being assimilated by Teoma, also owned by AskJeeves. Teoma is a fee-based engine.

Hotbot will need to dump DirectHit. What do they replace it with? Teoma? But Teoma is a Google rival. Google was Inktomi's rival (stole the Yahoo! rug right from under them.) Is Inktomi going to have a bird if Hotbot flips on Teoma?

Maybe Hotbot will be nourished by Lycos/FAST, now also a fee-based submission convert.

By the way, that error 404 is a redirect back to the Hotbot homepage.

Anyway, beats watching soap operas.

PS - thanks for the URL-kill in my above post. It helps to keep me in line :)

Kim

[kingkelly]

I do believe that Hotbot is going to start accepting the Paid URL submitting, since things have been going down the ****ter in the past couple of years...

why dont they all just give up, and let Google do its thing :)