Forum Moderators: phranque
I've been using some "url framing" for a few different domain names. I've noticed that when I click on a link from a framed page to go to a totally new url that the url of framed page remains in the browser bar.
Is there some kind of information I can put in the <a> tag so that the url will change when I follow a link from the framed page?
Also, my domain registration company allows you to add meta tags to the domain name for domains using url forwarding and framing. Are these meta tags going to be of any use for getting the site listed on google, or am I pretty much losing my chances of getting on google by using url framing?
Thanks!
Try the TARGET attribute with a value of _top. So, for example, the anchor may look like this:
<a href="index.html" target="_top">Goodbye Webmaster World!</a>
You can find more about TARGETs at: [w3.org ]
Now, about URL framing. The way I see it, unless your content changes significantly from the time Google indexes the framed URL and the non-framed URL, it may think one's a duplicate of the other. Google will probably choose just one of the two, and it will probably be the one that has the better inbound links.
I'd use the meta tags because it's a good thing to do, not just for search engine placement but also for accessibility to different browers and other factors.
Url frames forwarding will not get you great results on the search engines these days. I mean from your-domain.com opens a frame in which are displayed pages hosted on my-freeisp-hosting etc :-)
If you want to make a framed site you could do the following sort of thing.
This used to be an acceptable way to make a framed site with a non framed version built in, with reasonable search engine compatability (then).
Note that its not a method much used these days because well linked sites of flat pages tend now to do better in the search engines. Plus users are now much more used to using non framed sites.
That said one of my oldest sites still lists on page 1 of google for a phrase I just checked, not a very competitive phrase mind you, only 9,690 other pages competing.
Assuming a basic frame set of a left navigation and right contents pages in every browser / screen set.
For every unique page of content on your site make two pages, one will be the normal html page that is visible in the frameset on the right in the contents frame, the other will be the frameset page which locates this to the right frame, sets the frame charachteristics and sets details for your menu frame to the left. In the frameset page put all you contents html in the noframes tags.
Note there have to be standard text links in every normal contents page.
All links on the site should be to frameset pages (not contents pages) with target set to _top. That will change the visible URL in the same browser window after every link is clicked and new page loaded.
The maximum number of pages a visitor is likely to see outside your frameset will be 1, if they arrive on one for any reason, any link will take them back into the frames layout you want them to see.
Make a standard or modular page or set of pages to appear in the left menu frame with all your main navigation links.
Your Menus. You can use js image rolls if you want here because the code can be kept away from the contents code in the contents pages and noframes tags and thus away from confusing SEs and diluting you contents text etc.
These links should be available as straight html links at least at the footer of all contents pages and in the version you pop in the noframes tags of the frameset pages.
If you are interested in this method I can expand if you are interested.
As I mentioned at the start. It is not one that is commonly used these days and I have long since stopped promoting any sites like this so I dont actually know now how competitive I could make them today, but there are some advantages in various situations and more than a few things I have left out :-).
Thank you for your help! I actually believe I'm just trying to do a url forwarding. I already have several sites with paid hosting and I want to see if these new domains are going to be worth keeping around on free hosting before I decide to invest more paid hosting with them. So that is my only incentive to use url frame forwarding.
Do search engines still grab the 'content' on a url framed page?
My biggest problem at this point is that if you follow a link from from (example; framedpage.com to newframedpage.com) then the url browser bar still says framedpage.com even if you are seeing the content from newframedpage.com
This is an html issue and the (target="_top") command didn't quite do the trick.
But, the html problem isn't my biggest concern. What are the downfalls of trying to do a site with url frame forwarding. My registrar acts as if they are offering this wonderful service by providing a place to host your files while you can redirect your domain to them. If this were such a good method wouldn't more people be doing it?
There has to be some catches. Such as, possibly you can't get rid of the framed domain name when trying to leave the site from a link. Or, possibly search engines such as google won't capture the content of the page thus giving you poor results on search engines, even though your site may have quality content?
What do you think?
url frames forwarding like this seems at first glance to be a good idea but in reality you are getting what you paid for, i.e. not a lot :-), the domain in the browser window and your real content from the free hosting or whatever displayed in the frame from that domain. That only for visitors who arrive from the domain you want to promote other visitors may arrive at the free hosting pages.
People in here will tell you its not a good way to get your domain into the engines because the content is not hosted on that domain.
So have desirable-domain-name.com pointing with frames forwarding to free-nasty-domain-name-pages and the search engines will follow the link usually when you submit it but they will list the contents pages under
free-nasty-domain-name-pages/file.html
Which is the resulting url that people will see if the pages rank for a search.
This is only logical if you think about it as it would be childs play to make one framed page and link within it to the contents of another persons site, perhaps a big site with lots of content.
You would not expect the search engines to think that the other persons site was yours, you would hope not and imho they cannot easily distinguish between these cases.
So if you want to promote desirable-domain-name.com
then all pages of content should be also listed at
desirable-domain-name.com/filename.html
or
desirable-domain-name.com/directory/filemane.html
etc etc
does not make a difference if framed or non framed sites are involved.
hope that helps.
I have been dealing with framing issues for the last 3 weeks, my sites have been up and down, and it has been quite a headache.
Today, I had a wonderful revelation.
I figured out how to use the advanced dns management tools at my registrar, including the 'a records'.
Setting up my domain with the a records to say
@ 10 Address xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
www 10 Address xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
I am able to get my sites to show without having to deal witih Url Framing and Forwarding. Now I have fully operational url browser names and pages change in the url broswer bar when I follow links. :)
If anyone is ever dealing with the problems associated with Framing, find out if you can get the ip address of the site where your pages are hosted and use the 'a records' management at your registrar. It may save you alot of time and headaches... you'll get a fully operational site without the pitfalls associated with framed urls.
Thanks
