site command search now returns more granular results?

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

This may be old news, maybe not, but it's the first time I notice. I didn't miss seeing this for over a decade did I?

A search for site:example.com returns a number of pages, lets say 1000 for this example. If I add 500 pages to the site and store it in its own category, lets say I call the category "widgets", it gradually gets indexed over time. Nothing new there.

Interesting behavior:

A site:example.com command still yields the 1000 pages a week later, with NO pages from the new widgets category, but a site:example.com/widgets/ returns all 500 new articles already.

~ Why would the widgets category not be part of the overall site command results?
~ Why do the PAGES in the new widgets category rank for specific phrases but not main keywords?

It's almost as if my site is viewed not for the sum of its parts (the whole) but each part on it's own as if it were free from the site. Is this new ?

[tedster]

The special operator search [site:example.com/directory] has long returned some URLs that are not returned for [site:example.com] - but it sure is weird that all the omitted URLs were from the same, new directory. It seems like [site:example.com/directory] must tap into a different data set.

[philippe2803]

That's a weird behaviour indeed :-(
I know for a fact that the "site:" command is not very accurate, and seomoz reported it too here: [seomoz.org...]

I also notice that the command does not report the same number of pages indexed if you use a different browser :-/

[anallawalla]

From another thread: [webmasterworld.com]

we have just seen a site: search which corresponds to wmt, this is a major shift from a few thousand pages on site: to now over 1mil. this is the first time since late april and mayday.

Certainly no change to that operator's results seen in Australia.

[Bewenched]

What I noticed is that only really top level pages are showing when I search with the site: operator. Very very few deeper pages were showing in those results.

[suratmedia]

I am getting the same wired results for site: after implementing "hcard review" on level 3 pages.

So, most of the level 2 pages are gone behind level 3 pages.