Google doesn't like .shtml files?

[PFOnline]

Hi all, recently we had to change our main page from index.html to index.shtml.

When we had our main page as index.html we ranked about #14 for our main keyword. Then when we changed to index.shtml, and our sites main page dropped out of site, to page 13 somewhere.

And it's interesting because some of our CONTENT pages now rank before our sites main page! (All content pages are .HTML not .shtml, and SURELY we have much more incoming links to the main page then these content pages.)

I'm wondering if I did anything wrong? Has anyone else had similar experiences with .shtml files as there main page? Does Google just not like index.shtml as the main page?

Thanks.

[Janet]

Hi PFonline,

I have a site that uses .shtml pages extensively. No problem anywhere. My bet is you are just experiencing what a very high % of others are since the last 2 Google updates. Here one day and gone the next. Google's results are very erratic at the moment and still haven't settled down since June.

It's quite possible that Google hasn't yet applied a ranking for your internal backlinks, since your original internal links all pointed to the .html files and have now changed. In my experience it takes a couple of months for these internal (or external) links to have the appropriate value (Page rank) applied to the page they are pointing to.

[Visit Thailand]

What method did you use to redirect? a 301?

We have nearly all our pages now on .shtml and do not seem to experience any drop in rankings.

[jbgilbert]

Use lots of .shtml myself with no problem.

Do note this. If you have a page indexed by Google called page.html and you them rename that page to page.shtml, Google considers them to be different names and you could find both indexed and quite possibly get an automated penalty on the pages for duplicate content.

This happen to me once (and only once).

[chewy]

OK,

Same question, different site...

So the prior webmaster on a site I am now doing SEO on had 3 index files:

index.htm, index.html and index.shtml

there is no good reason for this.

Google backlinks reports 157 for each - although I am not sure I trust this.

If "duplicate data" penalties actually do apply, I believe I would be a good candidate! And yes, keyword phrase #1 has dropped like a stone (possibly due to may other variables beyond scope of this inquiry - or possibly due to duplicate content penalty...)

What would people suggest is the best way to deal with this triplicate content?

Thanks,

Chew

[Slade]

chewy,

If they are basically the same page, set up 301 permanent redirect to the page you intend to keep as your index.

If the other pages have usable content, I'd say rename them to something more useful, and keep them around(don't forget the 301). Just update your link paths so google (and your users) know where the real home page is!