Why directories have PR6 in home but ALL the rest of pages PR0?

[silverbytes]

I noticed that many directories have pr6 or 5 in homepage but ALL the rest of pages including main categories are PR0. I wonder why and I wonder if any link there has any value or is just a bunch of links with no value at all...

[tedster]

Here's a thread from April on this topic: The Grey Bar PR0 Phenomenon [webmasterworld.com].

I think it's important to make a differentiation between:

1. a gray bar (no data is available)
2. an all white bar (PR is less than 1)

But what you are pointing out, the "Gray Bar Disease", is definitely something that became widespread in directories, even top tier directories. Google sees many lower tier directories as essentially link farms with another name.

But why Google also nailed the best directories I'm not so sure. I don't think it stops the links from helping the target sites. But it certainly does remove a marketing tool from the directory. Maybe Google doesn't want sites to apply to directories just for a possible PR jump.

[edited by: tedster at 12:54 am (utc) on July 22, 2008]

[rainborick]

You're going to get dozens of different opinions on this issue. Without getting into the whole Toolbar PageRank debate, I think you still have to take a 0 or graybar reading as most likely being a signal of low quality from Google. The Toolbar PageRank indicator has developed so many foibles in the past year, that it's impossible to know for sure that a page has little or no PR. It can also simply be a glitch in the database. But on the whole, I wouldn't put much hope in getting a lot of Google love via a link from a page that shows up with a 0 or graybar. So then you have to judge things without considering Google.

[silverbytes]

So do you think being linked from directories with pr0 may cause some google damage or it's just like google ignores those?

[tedster]

If the directory has a PR6 home page as you mentioned in this thread's title, then I think it helps.

[MLHmptn]

And don't forget that what you see is TBPR..Not real PR under the hood! And besides you shouldn't be submitting to directories that are irrelevant in the first place, this isn't about gaming Google, but rather improving site visitation in front of your target audience. Target directories that fit your niche and don't link farm into directories that don't.

Of course I could be all mistaken, after all I am not MC! :)