Javascript - Will it effect the SE spider?

Should I not use Javascript on pages that I spidered

[tcman]

Im concerned about using Javascripts in the HEAD and HTML areas of my site.

I heard that the spiders will not properly index the site.

So, can I use JS and Flash type code and still get fully spidered?

[thejenn]

The spider will skip the Javascript and flash. (So if your navigation is strickly JS, you should provide a text alternative or a great site map.)

It won't index the text within the JS, but if it's setup properly, it shouldn't be too big of a roadblock to proper spidering.

That said...it's generally good practice both for helping spiders navigate and for cutting download time to put your Javascript in an external JS file and refer to it from the code of the page.